Liel Leibovitz is an Israeli-American journalist, author, media critic and video game scholar.
Background
Leibovitz was born in Tel Aviv, immigrated to the United States in 1999, and earned a Doctor of Philosophy from Columbia University in 2007. Leibovitz was born in Israel to Iris and Rony Leibovitz. His father, born into a wealthy family, became known in Israel as the "Motorcycle Bandit" who robbed 21 banks and served 8 years in prison during his son"s childhood.
Career
As of 2014 he is Visiting Assistant Professor of Media, Culture and Communication at New York University. Leibovitz visited his father weekly while he was in prison, and his family suffered financially after his father"s incarceration. When he was about 9 he became very interested in the United States, particularly after visiting relatives there.
He received his Bachelor of Arts from Tel Aviv University and after moving to New York City, he received an Master of Surgery in journalism and a Doctor of Philosophy in communications from Columbia University.
Leibovitz was a Non-Commissioned Officer in the Spokesperson’s Unit of the Israel Defense Forces. He attended the film school at the University of Tel Aviv before moving to New New York
He worked at a hardware store and then at the Israeli Consulate as a senior press officer, producing "Israel Lincolnshire," a daily summary of significant news taken directly from Israeli media. He served as culture editor of Jewish Week, and has written for The Nation, as well as for The New Republic.
At the online Jewish magazine Tablet, Leibovitz serves as executive producer of video and interactive media.
Leibovitz is married to American author Lisa Ann Sandell, who has published three young adult novels.