About Us
SoCal Jewish News is a megaphone for Jewish news, highlighting achievements and shortcomings within the community, all filtered through a lens of ethics, objectivity and professionalism. Coverage will run the gamut from breaking news to political commentary, from culture, arts and entertainment to religion, travel, health, fashion, food and more. Our award-winning reporters and editors will take deep dives into Jewish-themed issues and personalities and spotlight stories that fly under the mainstream media’s radar.
SoCal Jewish News is committed to covering the entire community of all ages and from all walks of life: Ashkenazi, Sephardic, Jews of Color, AAPI, Persian, Mizrahi, LGBTQ+, interfaith Jews, Jews by Choice, Jew-adjacent, Jew-curious and those of other faiths who partner with Jewish groups and organizations. We also want to hear and engage with all voices, from the Jewish faith to those of other faiths and nonbelievers.
Jumpstart Labs (EIN: 26-2173175) is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
California public benefit nonprofit corporation.
Donations to SoCal Jewish News are tax deductible
to the full extent of the law
Meet the Team
Kelly Hartog
Kelly is an award-winning writer, editor, book coach and speaker with more than two decades’ experience. She has written for myriad publications including The New York Post, The Washington Post and NBC. She has covered, on the ground, the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh. She is a former editor and reporter at the Jerusalem Post in Israel. She survived (and wrote about) an al-Qaida suicide bombing attack while on assignment for the Post in Mombasa, Kenya, in 2002. She turned the only section of the Jerusalem Post’s print edition (“In Jerusalem”) that took paid advertising into a profitable venture. In California, she launched the monthly Orange County Jewish Life magazine, successfully ran four online local Patch news sites and is the former managing editor of the Los Angeles Jewish Journal.
Erin Ben-Moche
Erin is an award-winning journalist and, together with Esther D. Kustanowitz, co-hosts “The Bagel Report” podcast about Jews and entertainment. She has covered film and television for a variety of publications including the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, The Detroit Jewish News and New Jewish Voices. She is the former digital content manager of the Los Angeles Jewish Journal.
Lynn Pelkey
Lynn is an award-winning art director with more than 20 years’ experience in Jewish publications, having launched numerous magazines and newspapers. She is an accomplished designer, photographer and illustrator. She was the art director at the New Jersey Jewish News, overseeing five editions of its print product, and is the former art director of the Los Angeles Jewish Journal.
Julie Alexander
Julie has been a Learning Management manager in Los Angeles for over 10 years. She is an expert in managing application training projects, working with vendors and budgets and tracking and analyzing onboarding, software rollouts and maintaining websites. She is also the recipient of a local Emmy Award for scriptwriting for the children’s television show “The Magic Door” (produced by the Chicago Board of Rabbis, and has performed with the award-winning National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene.
Esther D. Kustanowitz
Esther is an award-winning journalist who has written for myriad Jewish publications. She also works as an editor, consultant and speaker. Along with Erin Ben-Moche, she co-hosts “The Bagel Report” podcast, was the founding editor at GrokNation (created by Mayim Bialik), and was a longtime freelance reporter for the Los Angeles Jewish Journal.
Sharla Ives
Sharla’s favorite childhood book was an English grammar textbook her mother gave her in elementary school. She has used her English language powers to defeat school bullies, who, confounded by her vocabulary, would walk away in confusion. She has forged a more than two-decade career as an editor, including a stint at the Los Angeles Jewish Journal.
Gerri Miller (Z”L”)
Gerri was a renowned entertainment journalist who sadly passed away in March 2021. The former trailblazing editor of Metal Edge magazine, she transitioned more than a decade ago to covering the Jewish entertainment world, where she cultivated deep access to Hollywood’s movers and shakers. She got her start in the 1980s, when she wrote for and edited several publications for Sterling’s Magazines in her native New York. A former Los Angeles Jewish Journal freelance reporter, she wrote more than 700 feature articles for the publication. She was an integral founding member and a huge champion of SoCal Jewish News. She is missed terribly, and we continue our work in her honor.