Information about Mortimer Zuckerman

Mortimer Benjamin "Mort" Zuckerman (born 1937, Montreal, Quebec, Canada) is a Jewish American magazine editor, publisher, and real estate billionaire.

He co-founded Boston Properties, Inc. in 1970. He is chairman of the board, and director. He has been the publisher/owner of the New York Daily News since 1993 and, as of 2007, is the current Editor-in-Chief of U.S. News & World Report.

As of 2007, Mort Zuckerman is the 188th wealthiest American^[1] as per Forbes.

Biography

Education

Zuckerman graduated from:

• Harvard University's Law School with LL.M. (1962)
• University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School with M.B.A. and distinction of honor in 1961
• McGill University with LL.B. in 1961
• McGill University with B.A. in 1957

He entered McGill University at the age of sixteen.

Professional life

Zuckerman taught at Harvard Business School as an associate professor for nine years and at Yale University. He also spent seven years at the real estate firm Cabot, Cabot & Forbes, where he rose to the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer^[2].

In 1980, he acquired the literary magazine The Atlantic Monthly, where he was Chairman from 1980 to 1999. In 1999 he sold the magazine to David G. Bradley. In 1984, Mortimer Zuckerman bought U.S. News & World Report, where he remains its Editor-in-Chief.

Zuckerman serves on the Board of Trustees of several educational and private institutions such as New York University, the Aspen Institute, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, the Hole in the Wall Gang Fund, the Center for Communications. He is a member of the JPMorgan's National Advisory Board, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and the International Institute of Strategic Studies. He worked as a president of the Board of Trustees of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

Associations

Zuckerman is known to be a mentor to and close associate of Daniel M. Snyder^[3], owner of the NFL football team Washington Redskins. He has been a financial backer to Snyder's business ventures (CampusUSA magazine)^[4], and was a shareholder and director in Snyder Communications Inc.^[5], a marketing services business which was taken over in 2000 (by Havas Advertising).

Jewish Causes

In addition to his publishing and real-estate interests, Zuckerman is also a sought-after commentator on world affairs, and an active supporter of Israeli and international Jewish causes.

In their 2006 paper The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, John Mearsheimer, political science professor at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Walt, academic dean of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, named Zuckerman as a member of the media wing of the "Israeli lobby" in the United States.^[6] Zuckerman replied: "I would just say this: The allegations of this disproportionate influence of the Jewish community reminds me of the 92-year-old man sued in a paternity suit. He said he was so proud, he pleaded guilty." ^[6]

He occasionally appears on The McLaughlin Group and writes columns for U.S. News & World Report and the New York Daily News, usually taking liberal to centrist positions on political matters. Between 2001 and 2003, Zuckerman was the chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Typically, the nominating committee attempts to choose a person who is both respected and uncontroverisal. However, Zuckerman was widely opposed by liberal Jewish factions.^[7][8] Nonetheless, Zuckerman was eventually elected and served a full term.

In 2005, before the Jewish settlers' pullout from Gaza, at James Wolfensohn's request, Zuckerman made a private plea to his friends, including Bill Gates, and Leonard Stern, and raised $14 million within two days for a private advocacy group, the Aspen Institute, which bought greenhouses in Gaza and transferred them to Palestinians as a gift.^[9] About 30% of the greenhouses were then looted and damaged by Palestinian civilians.^[10]

Honors

Zuckerman was awarded the Commandeur De L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

References

External Links

Mort Zuckerman interview with The New York Observer