A list of influential Jewish figures who have impacted the world last year, and have the potential to affect change in years to come.
By NOA AMOUYALBenjamin Netanyahu (photo credit: REUTERS)The spectrum of influenceFor all its gravitas, the word “influential” can be rather nebulous.It is a word often bandied about by people who wish the term described them or applied to those whose relevance has faded over the years. Sometimes, the word connotes a sort of moral judgment – that influential people are “good” (another ambiguous word).Perhaps it is best, then, to look at the word as representing a spectrum. Like “hard” and “soft” power, influence can manifest itself in bold and quiet ways.Benjamin Netanyahu, who graces the top of our list, knows how to wield his influence in broad, forceful strokes. His controversial address to the US Congress last March, where he sounded the alarm bells about the P5+1 world powers negotiating with Iran over its nuclear weapons program, was far from subtle – but it did get the job done from a tactical perspective: For weeks before and after his speech, it was all the media (this newspaper included) could talk about.But then there is a gentler kind of influence, one that is seen within communities and felt inside homes. Rachelle Fraenkel, who lost her son Naftali when he and two other teens were murdered by Hamas terrorists last summer, demonstrates how to persevere in the aftermath of the greatest tragedy.And then, of course, there is everything in between. There is Jon Stewart and relative newcomer Amy Schumer, who prove that influence can be found in mocking the powerful for their absurdities.There are the likes of Ron Lauder, Lynn Schusterman and Moshe Kantor, who have used their largesse to protect, enrich and enhance Jewish life despite the increasing threat of global anti-Semitism.And then there are Haim Saban and Sheldon Adelson, two media titans determined to shape the political landscape in the ways they think can best serve the US (and also, perhaps, the Jewish state).Despite whatever the anti-Semitic tropes thrown at us say, as a Jewish community, we are far from monolithic. Our ideas are diverse, our opinions are robust and our visions for the future can (and often do) contradict each other.