Producer of Israel's "Homeland" visits Carroll University

With only a handful of television channels and modest resources, Israel has become a surprising – yet premier – exporter of popular TV shows. The original format of Showtime’s acclaimed series “Homeland,” “Prisoners of War” was awarded Best Drama Series of 2010 by the Israeli Academy of Film and Television, the local equivalent of the Emmys.

Ron Leshem was head of programming and content for Keshet Broadcasting, Israel’s leading broadcast network. He produced some of the country’s most successful television series, including “Prisoners of War,” “Arab Labor,” “the A-word” and “Traffic Light.” Leshem will visit Carroll University on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014, to discuss media portrayals of politics and culture in and of the Middle East.

“Media and Communication in the Middle East: Images and Realities” will be noon to 1 p.m. in the Dorothy Goff Frisch Recital Hall of Shattuck Music Center, 218 N. East Ave., Waukesha. Pizza and refreshments will be provided. This event is free and open to the public; seating is limited.

Leshem also is the author of the novels “Beaufort”/“If There’s a Garden of Eden” (2005) and “Niloofar” (2009). “Beaufort” won the 2006 Sapir Prize for Literature and the Yitzhak Sadeh Prize for Military Literature. He co-wrote the screenplay for the 2007 film, “Beaufort,” which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and won the Berlin International Film Festival Silver Bear for Best Director.

Earlier in his career, Leshem was a journalist and editor for Israeli mainstream print dailies Yediot Ahronoth (1998-2002) and Ma'ariv (2002-2006). He then transitioned to television, becoming deputy director of programming and special projects for Channel Two. He worked for Keshet Broadcasting from 2006-2009. Currently, Lesham is developing adaptations of his own shows for NBC Universal.

The event is co-sponsored by the Carroll University Office of Academic Affairs, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the Spiritual Life Advisory Board.

For more information, contact Lilly J. Goren, professor of political science, at 612.743.5822 or lgoren@carrollu.edu.

About Carroll University

Carroll, Wisconsin’s oldest four-year institution of higher learning, is an independent, co-educational comprehensive university grounded in the liberal arts tradition. Incorporated in 1846, it offers bachelor’s degrees in 57 majors and master’s degrees in business administration, education, exercise physiology, graphic communication, nursing, physician assistant studies and software engineering, as well as a clinical doctorate in physical therapy. For more information, visit www.carrollu.edu.