Dr. Nachman Shai MK – Bio

Dr. Nachman Shai was elected to the 18th Knesset in February 2009. In his capacity as a Knesset Member on behalf of the Kadima party, he is a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee; the Economic Affairs Committee and the Committee on the Status of Women. Nachman also serves as the Chairman of the Knesset Delegation to the European Parliament and chairs the Israel-United Kingdom Parliamentary Friendship Group, the Israel-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group, the Israel-Belgium Parliamentary Friendship Group and the Lobby for the Promotion of Israel's Public Diplomacy.
Immediately prior to his entry into the world of politics, Nachman held the position of Senior Vice President and Director General, External Affairs of the United Jewish Communities (UJC), Israel.
Nachman has held diverse positions in the military, the media, the diplomatic and the public arenas. These include: Director General of the Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport; Israel Defense Force Spokesperson, with the rank of Brigadier General; Communications Advisor to the Minister of Defense; Director General of the Second Television and Radio Authority; Chairman of the Board of Directors of Channel 2 News Company and Chairman of the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA). He has served as press secretary of the Israel Mission to the UN in New York, press advisor to the Israeli Embassy in Washington and has worked as a reporter in the print and electronic media.
Nachman holds a Ph.D. in political science and communications from Bar Ilan University (the subject of his thesis was "Public Diplomacy and Low Intensity Conflict") and an MA degree, cum laude, from the Communications Institute of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He also completed advanced studies at the World Press Institute, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Nachman Shai is married and has 3 children.