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World Jewish Congress honours Axel Springer chief Mathias Döpfner
The World Jewish Congress honoured Mathias Döpfner with its Theodor Herzl Prize in New York on November 9, 2026.
Döpfner leads Axel Springer, and New York City Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch received the award alongside him.
The prize is the WJC’s highest honour, and the organisation represents Jewish communities in 100 countries.
In his speech at the Museum of Modern Art, Döpfner staged an imagined conversation with Theodor Herzl, a journalist and founder of modern political Zionism.
He argued that antisemitism remains a danger and said opposing it is part of defending freedom and democracy.
The ceremony fell on the 88th anniversary of the November pogroms of 1938, and Döpfner said resistance to antisemitism must continue in everyday life, including at schools and universities.
The World Jewish Congress awarded Axel Springer chief Mathias Döpfner the Theodor Herzl Award in New York on November 9, 2026.
Döpfner said that opposing antisemitism is a responsibility for everyone who defends freedom and democracy.
He warned that antisemitism has modernised its channels and said it must be challenged in everyday life.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch was also honoured.
The award ceremony took place on the 88th anniversary of the November pogroms of 1938.
- Who
- The World Jewish Congress honoured Mathias Döpfner, Axel Springer’s chief executive, and Jessica S. Tisch, New York City’s police commissioner.
- What
- Döpfner received the Theodor Herzl Award, the World Jewish Congress’s highest honour.
- When
- November 9, 2026.
- Where
- New York, at the Museum of Modern Art.
- Why
- The World Jewish Congress cited Döpfner’s long-standing support for Israel and his firm opposition to antisemitism.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Döpfner warned the World Jewish Congress Governing Board in Geneva against the normalisation of antisemitism since October 7, 2023.
The World Jewish Congress presented Döpfner and Jessica S. Tisch with the Theodor Herzl Award in New York.
- Award
- Theodor Herzl Award, the World Jewish Congress’s highest honour
- Recipient
- Mathias Döpfner, Axel Springer chief executive
- Co-recipient
- Jessica S. Tisch, New York City police commissioner
- Ceremony date
- November 9, 2026
- Ceremony location
- New York’s Museum of Modern Art
What people are saying
I am German. I am not Jewish. And I am a Zionist.
Antisemitism has not disappeared. It has only modernised its distribution channels.
Israel is not the reason for antisemitism. Antisemitism is the reason for Israel.
Germany has the best memorial sites in the world. But Jews cannot live in memorial sites.