Nitza Lowenstein (; born 1953) is a retired Israeli-Australian radio broadcaster and producer. She is best known for presenting and producing radio shows for

SBS Radio SBS Radio is an Australian radio network owned by the Special Broadcasting Service directed towards newly arrived immigrants in Australia. It originally began as two stations based in Melbourne and Sydney, set up to provide pre-recorded informa ...

in both

Modern Hebrew Modern Hebrew (, or ), also known as Israeli Hebrew or simply Hebrew, is the Standard language, standard form of the Hebrew language spoken today. It is the only surviving Canaanite language, as well as one of the List of languages by first w ...

and English, from 1988 to 2023.Nitza Lowenstein Farewells SBS after 35.5 years of producing and broadcasting her radio shows
''SBS Hebrew''. 25 August 2023

Early life

Lowenstein was born and raised in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

in 1953. Most of her childhood friends at that time were children of

Holocaust survivors Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators before and during World War II in Europe and North Africa. There is no universall ...

. She married her South African husband, Arthur Lowenstein, in a traditional Jewish ceremony in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, where they lived. Lowenstein graduated with an MA in History & Literature in 1977 from the city's

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The universit ...

. She emigrated with her husband to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in the same year. They have three children together.

Career

In 1984, she began working for

Emanuel School Emanuel School is a private, co-educational day school in Battersea, south-west London. The school was founded in 1594 by Anne Sackville, Lady Dacre and Queen Elizabeth I and today occupies a 12-acre (4.9 ha) site close to Clapham Junction ...

, an independent

Jewish Day School A Jewish day school is a modern Jewish educational institution that is designed to provide children of Jews, Jewish parents with both a Jewish and a secular education in one school on a full-time basis. The term "day school" is used to differentiat ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, where she coordinated the Hebrew and Jewish Studies curriculum in the Infants School.

SBS

In March 1988, Lowenstein began producing and presenting radio programs for SBS Radio, a

public service broadcaster Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

in Australia with programmes in both Hebrew and English. During her 33.5 tenure she interviewed prominent global Jewish figures. In 1988 she interviewed

Nobel laureate The Nobel Prizes (, ) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make outstanding contributions in th ...

, and

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...

Elie Wiesel Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel (September 30, 1928 – July 2, 2016) was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, List of Nobel Peace Prize laureates#1980, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored Elie Wiesel bibliogra ...

. She also interviewed the Israeli writer A. B. Yehoshua in 1996. In 2005, she interviewed ''

Fiddler on the Roof ''Fiddler on the Roof'' is a musical theatre, musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and musical theatre#Book musicals, book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Russian Empire, Imperial Russia in or around 19 ...

'' star,

Chaim Topol Chaim Topol (; 9 September 1935 – 8 March 2023), mononymously known as Topol, was an Israeli actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Tevye, the lead role in the stage musical ''Fiddler on the Roof'' and the Fiddler on the Roof ...

. In 2016, she interviewed rabbi

Shmuley Boteach Jacob Shmuel Boteach (born November 19, 1966), known as Shmuley Boteach, is an American Jewish rabbi, author, and media host. He is the author of 31 books, including the best-seller ''Kosher Sex: A Recipe for Passion and Intimacy'' (1999) and ...

. She also interviewed key political figures from

, including prime ministers,

Shimon Peres Shimon Peres ( ; ; born Szymon Perski, ; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician and statesman who served as the prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the president of Israel from 2007 t ...

in 1994 and

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin Netanyahu (born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who has served as the prime minister of Israel since 2022, having previously held the office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021. Netanyahu is the longest-serving prime min ...

in 1998. In 2016, she interviewed the Israeli Minister of Justice,

Amir Ohana Amir Ohana (; born 15 March 1976) is an Israeli lawyer, former Shin Bet official and politician who has served as the Speaker of the Knesset since 2022, and as a member of the Knesset for Likud. He previously held the posts of Ministry of Just ...

. In 2018, she interviewed Israeli president,

Isaac Herzog Isaac "Bougie" Herzog (; born 22 September 1960) is an Israeli politician who has been serving since 2021 as the president of Israel. He is the first president to have been born in Israel after its Declaration of Independence. Son of former Is ...

, when he was head of the

Jewish Agency The Jewish Agency for Israel (), formerly known as the Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. It was established in 1929 as the operative branch of the World Zionist Organization (WZO). As an ...

. In addition, she has interviewed prominent

Jewish Australians Australian Jews, or Jewish Australians, () are Jews who are Australian citizens or permanent residents of Australia. In the 2021 census there were 99,956 people who identified Judaism as their religious affiliation and 29,113 Australians who ...

such as

Ronni Kahn Ronni Kahn (; née Hellmann; born 1952) is a South African-born Australian social entrepreneur, best known for founding the food rescue charity OzHarvest. Kahn, who emigrated to Australia from Israel in 1988, was awarded the Local Hero Awar ...

Alex Ryvchin Alexander Ryvchin (; born 18 July 1983) is a Ukrainian-born Australian author, advocate, media commentator, and lawyer. As Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, he advocates on behalf of the Australian Jewis ...

and politician

Josh Frydenberg Joshua Anthony Frydenberg (; born 17 July 1971) is an Australian former politician who served as the treasurer of Australia and deputy leader of the Liberal Party from 2018 to 2022. He also served as a member of parliament (MP) for the divisi ...

. She has also interviewed local entertainment figures such as singer

Lior Lior Attar, better known simply as Lior, is an independent Australian singer-songwriter based in Melbourne. He is best known for his 2005 debut studio album ''Autumn Flow'', which featured singles such as "Daniel", the title track and his signa ...

. She interviewed non-Jewish politician,

Pauline Hanson Pauline Lee Hanson (''née'' Seccombe, formerly Zagorski; born 27 May 1954) is an Australian politician who is the founder and leader of One Nation, a right-wing populist political party. Hanson has represented Queensland in the Australian S ...

in 1997. She has also produced and presented special educational programmes on Jewish holidays such as

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

Kol Nidrei Kol Nidre (also known as Kol Nidrei or Kol Nidrey; Aramaic: ''kāl niḏrē'') is an Aramaic declaration which begins Yom Kippur services in the synagogue. Strictly speaking, it is not a prayer, even though it is commonly spoken of as if it w ...

Hanukkah Hanukkah (, ; ''Ḥănukkā'' ) is a Jewish holidays, Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd ce ...

and

Purim Purim (; , ) is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday that commemorates the saving of the Jews, Jewish people from Genocide, annihilation at the hands of an official of the Achaemenid Empire named Haman, as it is recounted in the Book of Esther (u ...

. She has also produced special reports from Israel, such as when she was in the country during the

2022 Gaza–Israel clashes The 2022 Gaza–Israel clashes code-named as Operation Breaking Dawn lasted from 5 to 7 August 2022. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted some 147 airstrikes in Gaza and Palestinian militants fired approximately 1,100 rockets towards Israe ...

. In 2019, Lowenstein recorded a tribute marking the life and work of the late Israeli writer,

Amos Oz Amos Oz (; born Amos Klausner (); 4 May 1939 – 28 December 2018) was an Israeli writer, novelist, journalist, and intellectual. He was also a professor of Hebrew literature at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. From 1967 onwards, Oz was a pro ...

. She has also produced and broadcast specials marking key events in Israeli history, such as the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

.47 years to Yom Kippur War...listen to original recordings including PM Golda Meir from 6.10.1973 (Hebrew)
''SBS Hebrew''. 4 October 2020

References

External links

Nitza Lowenstein at SBS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowenstein, Nitza Living people 1953 births 20th-century Israeli journalists Israeli women radio presenters Israeli women journalists Australian women journalists Australian women radio presenters Australian radio personalities Australian radio producers Israeli Jews Australian Jews Israeli emigrants to Australia Israeli emigrants to South Africa University of the Witwatersrand alumni Macquarie University alumni Mass media people from Tel Aviv Journalists from Sydney 21st-century Israeli journalists

Early life

Career

SBS

See also

References

External links