VOICE OF THE JEWISH NEWS: Dangerous lie about Jewish children, broadcast without a second thought

The cardinal rule of journalism is simple. Check. Your. Facts.

If your mother says she loves you, check it.

If a listener texts your radio show with a claim so obscene it reads like it was scrawled in crayon on a crack house door, check it.

Yesterday, James O’Brien failed that test. Wilfully and spectacularly.

Live on LBC, he read out an obviously false message claiming Jewish children in “Shabbat school” (a term no Jewish parent or child has ever used) are taught that “one Jewish life is worth thousands of Arab lives and Arabs are cockroaches to be crushed”.

He didn’t check it. He didn’t question it. He didn’t hesitate. He read it on air, verbatim, in his usual tone of weary moral superiority. LBC then decided it would be a good idea to promote it on social media, only to delete it when the backlash began.

This was a transparently sinister fabrication with obvious intent. To frame British Jews as racist.

The truth is the polar opposite. Jewish education in Britain, from Reform cheders to Orthodox schools, are among the most respectful and introspective spaces in the country. Interfaith dialogue, community outreach and ethical responsibility is at their very core.

This was a transparently sinister fabrication with obvious intent. To slander British Jews as racist

The idea that these precious places preach hate is cold-blooded slander, straight from the mouth of one of the nation’s best-known broadcasters.

On today’s show, O’Brien offered limp regret, saying he was “genuinely sorry” for taking “unsubstantiated claims at face value”. Fine. But where’s the follow-up? Has “Chris” – the texter whose wife supposedly witnessed this fantasy lesson in “Shabbat school” – been contacted again? Verified? Traced? Blocked? If not, LBC should pass us his number. We’ll do the fact-checking for them.

Meanwhile, Ofcom has confirmed it’s received multiple complaints and is considering action.

This wasn’t just an editorial failure. It was a moral and a dangerous one. Jewish schools already operate behind security guards, barbed wire and CCTV. When a national radio presenter legitimises the idea that they’re breeding hatred, the risk to those children increases.

When lies like this go unchecked, they don’t just damage reputations. They endanger lives.