Haaretz journalist embroiled in sexual harassment scandal announces hiatus

Haaretz journalist Ari Shavit announced Friday that he will be "taking a break" from journalism in the wake of Jewish Journal reporter Danielle Berrin's allegation that he sexually harassed her.

"Haaretz strongly objects to any form sexual harassment and sees it as misconduct that must be uprooted," the daily said in a statement. "Haaretz expects its employees to behave professionally at all times. Ari Shavit is a senior journalist, who has accomplished much with Haaretz over more than 20 years. Today he informed us that as a result of recent publications, he has decided to take a break from his work as a journalist."

In an item published in the Jewish Journal on Oct. 9, Berrin described a meeting she had with Shavit in 2014, saying Shavit had made unwanted advances and groped her.

Shavit apologized, saying, "Until I read the article, I felt we had a friendly meeting that included, among other things, the basis for courtship. I didn't think for a moment it was sexual harassment. I apologize from the bottom of my heart for this misunderstanding."

Berrin dismissed Shavit's claim as "absurd."

"Throughout our interaction, he touched me in ways I did not want to be touched and he caused me to fear for my safety. ... None of this was flirtation; this was an assault on my dignity and professionalism that frightened and disturbed me."

Berrin said she was "glad Ari Shavit has at least acknowledged an encounter took place," but said she is still waiting for him "to apologize for what he actually did; he did not apologize for committing sexual assault."

Also on Friday, Jewish American journalist Avital Chizhik said that she too had been harassed by an Israeli journalist, but stressed it was not Shavit.

"This almost-exact story happened to me years ago with another Israeli media personality," she wrote. "It wasn't a Haaretz journalist and wasn't Shavit, just a media personality. I don't want to identify him. I just wanted to say this unfortunately happens from time to time."

Chizhik writes for Haaretz's English edition, the New York Times, and Tablet Magazine.

Besides Cizhik, journalist Rachel Malek Buda of the Israeli daily Makor Rishon also came forward, saying she had been verbally and physically harassed by an Israeli media personality.

Buda refused to identify him, and wrote in a Facebook post: "Every woman has her Ari Shavit, as I also have my own Ari Shavit. A first-class media personality I met during a certain event sexually harassed me. You could even say he harassed me flagrantly. Don't try to guess who, because I won't tell."

She could ruin this man's decades-long career, she claimed, but refuses to out of consideration for his wife and children.

"This is called proportionality," she said.

טעינו? נתקן! אם מצאתם טעות בכתבה, נשמח שתשתפו אותנו