Hi everyone,

If you’re getting this email, it means I thought you might be interested in the podcast I’m starting. However, if I was wrong and this is something you don’t want in your inbox - I apologize, and please feel free to unsubscribe.

But - you’ll be missing out on some great content! I’ll be interviewing some fascinating people from this region, basically anyone and everyone between the River and the Sea. You can read more in the About page, but even better: listen to the podcast right here (above), where I lay things out.

Later on down the road, the podcast episodes will be available on your favorite directories, iTunes, Spotify and others - don’t worry, I’ll keep you posted.

If you hope this thing takes off, like I do - I could use some help. Please spread the word: subscribe and share with your family and friends. I’d really appreciate it.

See ya soon!

Transcription

Hi, everybody, my name is Ami Kaufman and I am a journalist working for the past almost 20 years in Israel. I am so excited to start this podcast, otherwise occupied. It's been something I've been dreaming about since. Well, the beginning of the pandemic, so yeah, not so long. But hey, I've been, you know, procrastinating like all of y'all, so give me a break.

Anyway, what is Otherwise Occupied? Let's tackle that one first. I suppose the name somewhat hints at the situation in this region. And when I mean this region, I'm talking about the river and the sea, meaning the Jordan River in the East and the Mediterranean Sea, in the West. And in this podcast, I plan on talking to everyone and anyone I can - who is in that specific region.

So depending on where your favorite demographer places themselves on the political map, most experts would agree that the ratio between Jews and non Jews in this area is about, you know, 50:50. And that's including the Gaza Strip, if you're wondering, and since that's going to be the case, in my opinion, at least for the foreseeable future, I want to get to know the people that make up this place, better. Jews, Arabs, activists, politicians, journalists, artists, straight folk, LGBTQ folk, everyone.

This podcast is about listening. I'll be making my views clear here and there. Don't get me wrong, but this is about getting to know people. Not arguing with them, not trying to convince them. Other people can do that on other platforms. I want to get down to the bottom of what makes people tick in this place. What's important to them, what's the most urgent thing they want to tackle? What needs to change first? And most importantly, I'll be asking them each and every one of them, this question: what do they think is in the future for this region, between the river and the sea? And what is their dream for it? Which is different. Divided, united, separated, together - what kind of entity or more than one entity do they think will work? I think the answers have potential to be very interesting.

So that's pretty much it. If you think you want to listen to me in my guests chat, all you have to do is subscribe to my newsletter and podcast on Substack. That's amikaufman.substack.com. And you'll get it to your email each time a new episode comes out. You'll also be getting some posts I'll be writing about stuff happening in Israel, my opinions, analysis - okay, my rants on this and that whatever with a focus on social media.

That's it. One more thing. I need your help in spreading the word. So if you could email the link to a few of your friends, if you could follow me on Twitter, share the podcast on social media. I would really, really appreciate it.

All right, guys. So, if you're not otherwise occupied, I hope you give it a listen. Bye bye.

Get on the email list at amikaufman.substack.com