Hen Mazzig: ‘I appear on Piers Morgan’s show for the Jewish teenager watching at home’

Israeli writer and activist Hen Mazzig has said he continues appearing on hostile television debates because he wants young Jews watching at home to see someone publicly defending the community without fear.

Speaking to Jewish News news editor Justin Cohen at a packed JW3 event hosted in partnership with the Jewish Leadership Council and Jewish News, Mazzig reflected on the personal toll of becoming one of the most recognisable pro-Israel voices online since 7 October.

The Israeli activist, whose social media platforms reach millions globally and whose interview series And They’re Jewish features conversations with prominent Jewish actors, creators and public figures, said his media appearances were no longer about convincing opponents directly.

Discussing repeated appearances on Piers Morgan Uncensored, where he has clashed with anti-Israel commentators, including Ana Kasparian and Owen Jones, Mazzig said: “She’s not going to change her mind.

“Who matters is the audience at home.”

He added: “I’m doing it for the 17-year-old Jewish kid in Manchester watching it.

“Here’s a Jewish guy that we can get behind.”

Mazzig told Cohen that many Jewish advocates made mistakes by trying to “win arguments” rather than persuade wider audiences.

“You want to win the room, not the argument,” he said.

The social media commentator also spoke about the strategy behind his online work, revealing that research carried out through his Tel Aviv Institute found audiences responded more positively to nuanced and personal storytelling than aggressive political debate.

“Facts don’t matter as much. Specifics matter much more,” he said.

“If you bring your family history, if you bring something that you heard first-hand, that works so much better.”

The Israeli influencer, whose online following has grown dramatically since 7 October, revealed he and his husband had moved homes after facing abuse linked to his public profile.

“It’s not easy to wake up every day to think about this stuff,” he said.

“It’s not easy to go down the street and get (verbally) attacked sometimes.”

He said some friendships collapsed after 7 October because of his activism and identity as an openly Jewish Israeli.

“It’s racist,” he said. “I refuse to change, and I refuse to give up on my identity.”

During the evening, Mazzig reflected emotionally on marrying his husband Mark in Greece last year during the war while Israelis remained hostage in Gaza.

“We had a conversation about how we are going to do it,” he said.

He recalled a rabbi telling him Jewish tradition teaches people to hold both joy and grief together simultaneously.

“Even in the brokenness, we are finding moments of joy,” he said.

The activist also spoke extensively about his Iraqi Jewish heritage and the story of his grandmother, who fled Baghdad for Israel in 1951.

“My grandmother came to Israel with nothing but clothes on her back,” he said.

“They lost everything they had, they lost their land, they lost their property.”

Looking at a photograph of her displayed on screen during the event, Mazzig became emotional as he described imagining what she would think seeing her grandson now speaking publicly around the world as an openly Jewish Israeli.

“To think that my grandmother couldn’t write or read and came to Israel as the only lifeline that would protect her and save her,” he said.

“And now to have her grandson sitting here in London with a platform, with a microphone, with people wanting to listen and engage.”

Mazzig argued that the history of Jews expelled from Arab countries remained widely overlooked in discussions surrounding Israel and Zionism.

“It’s the story of 850,000 Jews that were expelled from every Middle Eastern country,” he said.

The evening also touched on rising antisemitism in Britain and the atmosphere facing Jewish students and communities following recent attacks and incidents targeting Jewish areas in London.

Recalling a recent university debate, Mazzig described the room as “hostile” and said he feared for his safety afterwards.

“They kept shouting at me,” he said. “I really felt that my life was in danger.”

He also spoke about increasing security around Jewish schools and communal institutions.

“Why do we have former soldiers protecting Jewish schools?” he asked. “It’s not the 1930s”.

During the discussion, Mazzig criticised Green Party leader Zack Polanski and wider controversies involving Green politicians accused of antisemitism.

He described Polanski as “a washed-up version of Jeremy Corbyn, but just with a Jewish mask”.

Despite the hostility he described facing online and in public life, Mazzig urged British Jews not to retreat from openly expressing their identity.

“You can’t let anyone make you feel ashamed of who you are,” he said.

“I would love for everyone here to maybe tomorrow or the next day to do something small to show your Jewish identity.”