Public Apologies, Private Agendas, and the War on Truth with Aliza Licht and Co-host Samantha Ettus

In this episode of Leave Your Mark, my dear friend and special co-host Samantha Ettus joins me to unpack what happens when people and institutions get their apologies disastrously wrong.

From a Vice President at Penguin Random House reposting a vile mockery of an innocent Jewish woman’s murder, to the New York Times publishing a dangerously misleading story about starvation in Gaza, we explore how these failures not only erode public trust but also fuel antisemitism.

This episode goes beyond PR missteps to unpack the moral and societal cost of bad apologies, and the silence that often follows them. With candor, urgency, and clarity, we break down:

- Why the “I didn’t read it” excuse doesn’t fly when you’re an editor

- The anatomy of a real apology and the red flags that scream deflection

- What the New York Times gets consistently wrong about Israel and the Jewish people

- How modern journalism is failing at its duty and what that means for public safety

- Why brands and institutions must speak out and what silence really signals

This is more than a conversation about saying sorry. It’s about who gets protected, who gets harmed, and what real accountability looks like in a world where perception is power.

Listen now to learn what to look for — and demand — when an apology isn’t enough.

00:00 Introduction to Leave Your Mark

00:28 The Art of Public Apologies

01:21 Case Study: Doubleday Books VP Apology

03:36 The Incident and Its Aftermath

05:48 Analyzing the Apology

10:18 Case Study: The New York Times Apology

16:10 The Role of Journalism and Accountability

26:03 Concluding Thoughts and Future Discussions