Managing tensions and paradoxes: Jewish PR professionals’ experiences in the UK since the Hamas attack and the onset of war in Gaza

In this article I present the results of a study of the experiences of UK-based Jewish public relations practitioners since the Hamas attacks of October 7th, the onset of the war in Gaza, and rising antisemitism in the UK. Using a tensions and paradox lens, I show how they negotiate tensions both in the wider environment, particularly antizionist forms of antisemitism in public discourse, and in their professional workplaces, in media-related roles as well as in relation to organisational responses to the events. The tensions generated two paradoxes of belonging that challenged a. their right to claim both British and Jewish identity; b. their right to claim a place in their organisational community. The research extends scholarship on tensions and paradoxes in public relations to the professional context, and also illustrates the value of this lens for diversity research focused on understanding the dynamics of marginalisation in the profession.