Around the Table

Last week one of our American contributors came to visit, and was given a grand tour of Mishpacha’s new headquarters.

He checked out the front desk, editors’ offices, graphics room, kitchen areas, water cooler and coffee machine. Then he peeked into a conference room and took in the sight of a room full of animated people surrounding a long table, engaged in lively conversation.

“Wow, this is a real meeting,” he said.

And I wondered, are Zoom meetings fake? With our team spread out over different locations and time zones, especially over the past two years of Covid-restricted travel, we’ve been doing a lot of our meetings virtually. Virtual meetings mean everyone is in their own little space, and it’s that much harder to form a group dynamic. Plus, it’s a lot easier to be involved in side pursuits — texting, answering emails, finishing up that week’s parshah, compiling menus — when you can limit the other participants’ field of view. I’m sure I’m not the only person who’s gotten unrelated emails from meeting participants while someone else is doing the talking.