When I saw in the article “Israeli writer faces criticism at lecture” in Wednesday’s newspaper, I was interested to see what people disliked about Irit Linur’s lecture. After reading the entire article, I took away no new knowledge or perspectives on the lecture that Linur presented. I believe that before opinions about a certain event on campus can be presented to the campus there should be coverage about what was stated at the event so that the public can make their own decision about the information being discussed. Although this is three days after the event, I would like to deliver what I took away from hearing her speak.

I attended her lecture, and thought it was really interesting and fun to be there. Irit has written four novels, directed movies, wrote a mini television series that aired in Israel and is currently a host for the daily radio show. To say the least, she has contributed to the Israeli arts and literature significantly. At her lecture, Linur specifically spoke about making television series in Israel and all the details that go into making it a successful television show.

Bringing Irit Linur to the UI brought a different perspective of Israel to the campus. She was not here to discuss politics, but to discuss entertainment and the entertainment in Israel particularly. She reminds everybody that there is a rich artistic culture in Israel and that Israel’s not a country that only deals with politics domestically and internationally. It is very unfortunate that there are groups of students on campus who choose to find faults in others rather than introduce their people’s accomplishments. Considering the opposition toward Linur’s lecture, I would think that the group would have stayed for the entire lecture, including the Q&A; section following the lecture.

Jessica Ost

sophomore in LAS