American Jewish Life Magazine

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Benyamin Cohen
Editor-in-Chief
A native Atlantan, Cohen attended Georgia State University where he majored in print journalism and minored in religion. In 1994, that educational background led him to create Torah from Dixie, a weekly publication circulated to synagogues across the country. In 1997, he published a 300-page book by the same name. Cohen went to work for the Atlanta Jewish Times where he was a writer as well as the editor of their Arts and Entertainment section. After that he became Special Sections Editor for the Fulton County Daily Report. And in January 2004, he became editor of Atlanta Jewish Life magazine.

Cohen, who admits to not sleeping much, channeled his creative energies to create Jewsweek magazine (www.jewsweek.com) in his spare time. During his four years as editor (he left Jewsweek in April 2005), the pop culture Webzine attracted more than 50,000 visitors a month and was regarded as the foremost national publication for its demographic (20-40 year olds). Cohen, who is often asked to join panel discussions on Gen X Jews in America, is currently authoring a book chronicling his religious road trip through Bible Belt churches.

Cohen, a rabbi's son, married a minister's daughter in January 2004 in a kosher wedding catered by, of all places, The Varsity. They live near Emory University with their two dogs, Aydah and Tivo.

email: [ bcohen@ajlmagazine.com ]

Bradford R. Pilcher
Managing Editor
Bradford R. Pilcher, also a native Atlantan, also attended Georgia State University. He majored in religion and minored in film, putting his education to minimal use writing for such publications as Wired News, the Digital Bits and Jewsweek magazine. In November of 2002, he joined the staff of Jewsweek, eventually becoming Literary Editor. He's also worked for Turner Broadcasting Systems, and spent a brief stint in their London office.

Whenever possible Pilcher travels and speaks on Jewish topics to a variety of groups. He's consulted for the National Museum of America Jewish History, spoken before the Jewish Funders Network, and taught Jewish middle and high school kids, among other venues. And when he's not doing this, he plays poker - a lot.

With his free time, Pilcher is currently at work on two books, one a work of steampunk fiction and another a work of long-form journalism. He also spends considerable time fending off his mother's inquiries regarding his love life, but wants her to know he loves her very much and promises to give her grandchildren eventually.

email: [ bpilcher@ajlmagazine.com ]

Michael Jacobson
Publisher
Michael is a seasoned executive with over twenty-five years of experience and has assisted numerous companies in strategic planning, financial procedures, financial statement preparation, business and marketing plan creation; and operation analysis and implementation. He currently provides business and financial advice through his consulting firm.

Michael served as CEO and CFO at US Games. While at US Games, Michael grew the company from $8 million to $28 million in annual sales in three years. US Games was sold in 1996. Previously at Squirrel, Michael helped improve customer satisfaction, and reduced average service call response times by more than 50%. In March 1992, Squirrel was sold to Sulcus Computer Corp. At Sun Life U.S.A, Michael was responsible for the supervision and review of SEC filings, and management and statutory financial statements for the Sun Life U.S.A. Group, a financial institution with assets in excess of $10 billion.

Michael is currently Treasurer of the Epstein School, and serves on the boards of the Weber School and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. He has previously been chair of the JFGA Domestic Planning committee and served on the executive board. He has also served as an officer on the boards of the Theatrical Outfit, Byrnwyck and Helmsley Homeowners and the alumni Georgia State EMBA alumni association. Michael holds an MBA from Georgia State University and a BSBA from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

email: [ mjacobson@ajlmagazine.com ]

SCOTT BUTLER
SALES MANAGER
An alumnus of Georgetown University, Scott Butler has racked up two decades of business experience which includes: Senior Vice President at Lehman Brothers, Partner at UBS Painewebber, Senior Vice President at the Wachovia Corporation, and Director of Business Development at Bressler Advertising and Public Relations. He is also an independent marketing and sales consultant for Hank Aaron BMW since 2003.

In the publishing field he served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Travelgirl magazine for two years, helping it become one of the premier lifestyle travel magazines in America. Butler joined the Atlanta Jewish Life team in early 2006 as our sales manager.

He was awarded the Abe Schwartz Young Leadership Award by the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta in 1999, and was the chair of the Federation campaign for its Young Leadership Council from 1997-1999. He remains a member of the Federation Endowment Committee and is a founding member of the William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum.

Butler is a third-generation native Atlantan who attended Pace Academy and had his bar mitzvah at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. His favorite hobbies include working out at LA Fitness, traveling with the kids, breakfast at Waffle House, and an occasional round of golf. Butler lives with his wife Jane in Marietta with their three daughters.

email: [ sbUTLER@ajlmagazine.com ]