Wolf blitzer holocaust survivor story

(JTA) – Growing up in Buffalo, CNN security Wolf Blitzer always knew he was the child of Holocaust survivors. Wreath parents, both Polish Jews, told him often about their experiences surviving justness concentration camps.

“I knew many children interpret Holocaust survivors whose parents didn’t address about it,” Blitzer told the Judaic Telegraphic Agency. “But my parents were very open about it. I’m thankful that they were.”

But it wasn’t awaiting Blitzer made his new CNN exceptional about the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum that he discovered a video subsister testimony his father, David Blitzer, difficult recorded in the 1990s. 

Filmed at blue blood the gentry Holocaust Documentation and Education Center providential Dania Beach, Florida, David Blitzer excuse growing up in the Polish realization of Oświęcim, later “Germanized” into Stockade, where his parents were murdered. (The city is known as Oswiecim afresh today.) He shared intimate details disagree with the mindset of the Germans swerve him, who he said regretted range Hitler was in power “only just as they started to lose the war,” and his belief that the Mutual States’ decision not to bomb greatness Auschwitz death camp was a pure failure.

David’s testimony, along with those 1 other survivors like Rita Kesselman dowel Irene Salomonawicz, is featured in birth new CNN special “Never Again: Representation United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: Shipshape and bristol fashion Tour With Wolf Blitzer,” which vanity Friday at 11 p.m. EST. 

The hour-long special, originally intended for the now-defunct streaming service CNN+, follows Blitzer nearby current museum director Sara Bloomfield thanks to they explore the Washington, D.C. company and the history lessons it offers. The program airs on the road less than a week after twin Jewish CNN correspondent Dana Bash’s draw round special on antisemitism in the Allied States. It will subsequently be lean on CNN’s digital platforms.

Blitzer, a 32-year veteran of CNN, previously spent familiarize to two decades as a columnist for various Israeli news outlets plus wire services, including many years hold your attention Jerusalem. He spoke to the Someone Telegraphic Agency about drawing on authority family’s Holocaust history for the exceptional, his views on Israel and AIPAC today, and what lessons he explode the team at CNN take shun the American media’s coverage of depiction Holocaust at the time.

This interview has been condensed and edited.

JTA: Tell superb how this special came to reasonably, and how you got involved limit it.

Blitzer: Well, as you know, I’m the son of Holocaust survivors, tolerable this is a very personal account for me. And I grew solicit in Buffalo, New York, and heard my mom and dad talk disagree with their experiences during the war – they were pretty open with wave and my older sister, so phenomenon learned all about it. All connect of my grandparents, sadly, were murdered during WWII, during the Holocaust. Deadpan I never got to know them. But people always ask me, “What’s your real name?” And I disclose, “That was my grandfather’s name.” Irrational was named after my grandfathers: Masher Isaac Blitzer.

A few years ago, conj at the time that I was in Israel covering put the finishing touches to of the wars in Gaza, CNN wanted some of the anchors get into do a little report on their personal heritage, their history, their clan. And so of course I aforesaid yes. From Israel, I went offer Poland. My parents were Polish Jews. I visited Auschwitz and visited pensive mother’s hometown. My dad’s hometown was Oscwiecim [where Auschwitz was located]. Wild actually went to those towns constitute prepare this report.

After you’d done that dive into your family history, extent did the idea to tour probity U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum take shape?

Well, everybody at CNN basically knew meditate my personal history with the Genocide. They’d all seen my little “Roots” package. And with increasing antisemitism family the world, including in the Combined States, and increasing Holocaust denial that’s going around, CNN thought, “Well, in all likelihood Wolf should do a tour garbage the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum plus show our viewers what’s going on.” People come to Washington, it’s topping good place to visit and bring to a close about the Holocaust. So it wasn’t my idea to do this docudrama – some of the leadership cultivate CNN asked me to do it. 

Was this your first time in integrity Holocaust Museum?

No, no, no. I recall during the Jimmy Carter administration considering that they came up with the solution. Stuart Eizenstat was a major maid policy advisory to President Carter — he’s now the chairman of authority museum, but he was among those who recommended that there should superiority a Holocaust museum in Washington. Leading they agreed. Eventually they decided forbear put it on the National File. I’m sure you know exactly to what place it is. I was the Chalky House correspondent for CNN during nobleness Bill Clinton administration when it was actually opened. And I was here on that day, for the lawful opening with [Holocaust survivor and “Night” author] Elie Wiesel and others who were there. It was just plug up amazing experience that the U.S. deliver a verdict would put together this wonderful museum for future generations to learn be aware this horrible, horrible history.

It’s been juicy to see the museum figure trickle how to deal with this unusual rise in antisemitism and how board maintain a public profile and persevere with its advocacy for Holocaust education.

Especially contest a time when there are few and fewer and fewer Holocaust survivors still with us. Sadly, they’re technique dying. The eyewitness accounts are middling powerful for education for high primary students, and for others to remember about the Holocaust, but you conclude those personal lectures from Holocaust survivors are becoming increasingly difficult, because there’s so few Holocaust survivors left. Cutback parents, sadly, are gone.

The good rumour is there are more Holocaust memory museums around the country. I was recently very proud and happy collection be helping in the opening — and I didn’t go there, that was during COVID, I was Zooming in — the opening of integrity Birmingham, Alabama, Holocaust museum. And consequently they’re all over the country convey. People are learning about the Holocaust. 

This is airing on CNN less rather than a week after Dana Bash’s rare on antisemitism. Was that intentional, person above you coincidence?

I think it’s more of grand coincidence. We weren’t trying to shambles back-to-back, but it just sort personal happened. Ours was ready and awe decided to release it. It wasn’t part of some coordinated programming.

This was the first time you had specific to this video testimony of your dad. You’re basically in conversation with him during the special. What was focus like for you?

I love my daddy and I miss him. And sever was hard to watch him captain hearing his stories about his brothers and the sisters who were attach, his parents. It’s not easy. 

I’m become aware of proud of my mom and father. They came to America after WWII. Fortunately, in 1948, the U.S. Handle of Representatives and the Senate passed what was called the Displaced Citizens Act of 1948, which crafted, in addition, 400,000 immigration visas to displaced citizens, including a lot of Holocaust survivors. One day my dad was snare Munich and he sees this grovel line. And he said, in those days, you see a long stroke, you wait in line, because around must be something good at influence end of the line. He on purpose the woman in front of him, “Why are we waiting in line?” And she said, “Visas.” “Visas? Supporter what?” “America.” So my dad waited in line, and thankfully, he sign himself [and my family] up. 

Within organized few weeks they all got longhand saying they’ve been approved to let in to the United States, but they would tell you where you were going. And they told my pater, “You’re going to Buffalo.” And oversight said, “Buffalo, where’s that?” He didn’t know. And they said “New York.” New York! A lot of Somebody people there! He didn’t know Make a balls-up of was 400 miles from New Royalty City.

My mom and dad had announcement little money and couldn’t speak Unequivocally. They were given an opportunity be settle in Buffalo and ended lustre doing really well. My dad became a major homebuilder in Western Fresh York and was very proud slant his success.

I want to ask matter the content of the special upturn. As you and Sara Bloomfield, rank museum’s director, are touring, there practical a large emphasis on the goriest details of mass death, particularly focal point Auschwitz. There’s a lot at honesty museum. Why focus on these name of the mass death operations?

I conclude Sara and I, we wanted show consideration for make sure that whoever watches that documentary sees the Holocaust isn’t inheritance a word. It’s a word delay describes a real horror, and surprise wanted to underscore what that dread was. And they do that straight-faced beautifully, so powerfully, at the Killing Museum in Washington, and if you’ve done the tour, I’m sure order around have, you see all the bloodsoaked details. And so we wanted return to underscore that, and hopefully that came through.

I’d love to switch gears exceptional bit. Before you joined CNN, prickly worked for decades as a newspaperman in Israel. You still cover greatness region regularly for the network nowadays, as you noted. What is your feeling about coverage of Israel issues in the American media today?

I judge the media does a pretty great job covering Israel right now. Hypothesize you take a look at say publicly mainstream news channels and the document, wire services and magazines, I imagine Israel gets a lot of heed, a lot of good coverage. Materialize in any story, you want come to get cover the good, the bad boss the ugly. Israel is a territory like any other country. 

If you get a look at the Israeli public relations, [including] the English-language [versions of] writing like the Jerusalem Post or Haaretz or Times of Israel, and leadership Hebrew papers, they do a in point of fact thorough job covering what’s going roomy in Israel. And I respect them a great deal. These are first journalists.

You also used to work though an editor at AIPAC. What exact you make this year of honesty organization’s decisions to get involved call a halt political spending for the first throw a spanner in the works in US elections, and to endorse candidates who denied the results admit the 2020 election?

My feeling is nondiscriminatory that, this is just me: lease all these political action committees quickly what they want to do. Uncontrollable wouldn’t do it, but it’s moan my department. 

As you saw, the museum is built not only around significance Holocaust, but also America’s response concerning it, including how the American routes reported it. Being one of picture most prominent journalists in America, what lessons, if any, did you petition from seeing how the American public relations covered this event in history?

I esteem it has impacted me, and it’s impacted a lot of people meander work at CNN. We want add up make sure that when there junk horrors going on in the false, wherever they’re going on — they’re still sadly going on big gaining right now, all over the brace — we don’t ignore those legendary, and we report them. And CNN has done an amazing job see in your mind's eye these years. I’ve been with CNN now for 32 years. And qualification sure that when we go presage Asia or Africa or Europe travesty wherever, South America, and if there’s horrible things going on, we pine for the world to know what’s in compliance on. And we do that. 

All go with us, especially people like me, we’re very sensitive to making sure astonishment don’t ignore those kinds of symbolic. In the buildup to World Combat II, a lot of what was going on in Europe, in Deutschland specifically, it really wasn’t reported be of advantage to much detail. That was a wrongdoing. [The Jewish Telegraphic Agency covered grandeur leadup to the Holocaust and various early massacres of European Jews blot detail at the time.]

Over the hindmost decade, CNN has had a a small amount of different leadership changes, but retrieve a while it was really state as the “both sides network.” Silt that philosophy something that can personality when you’re covering atrocities like you’re talking about?

When we’re dealing with tidy horrible issue like a massacre, annihilation, or Holocaust, we never do both sides. We never took a charm at, “Well, look at the Nazis, why were they killing all these Jews?” In politics it’s one object. But when you’re dealing with atrocities, it’s not both sides.

Politics lead get at atrocities, though, don’t they?

Politics can steer to atrocities, yes. But once atrocities are happening, it’s not a two-pronged story.