Algemeiner Chairman Simon Jacobson. Photo: Patrick McMullan Company

Algemeiner Chairman Simon Jacobson gave remarks at the 8th annual ‘J100’ gala on Tuesday night, discussing the paper’s guiding philosophy before introducing Editor-in-Chief Dovid Efune.

“Media, true media, as Emile Zola said so many years ago, is all about truth — objective truth, as much as humanly possible,” Jacobson told the crowd assembled. “But there’s another aspect which is sorely forgotten. Imagine media with a soul: with compassion, with love and kindness. Most people don’t associate the word ‘media’ with that.”

“I’d like to tell you that The Algemeiner has a soul,” Jacobson continued. “When you have a soul, it creates an unwavering commitment to truth, because nothing can buy you.”

“It’s a soul that goes back thousands of years — when Abraham 3,800 years ago was fighting for truth in a pagan world, and when Moses was doing the same in his time. And even in the worst of times, he never allowed the flame of truth to be extinguished.”

Watch Jacobson’s speech below: