Lior Schleien is an Israeli satirist, the creator and host of the popular
prime time comedy and satire TV show State of the Union ("Matzav
HaUma"), followed by Back of the Union ("Gav HaUma").
State of the Union ran for seven successful seasons on Israel's Channel 2, and
was taken off the air overnight in the middle of its 8th season due to
alleged pressure from the Prime Minister's office, after the country's
elections were moved up. A day later Schleien signed the show with Channel 10,
renaming it Back of the Union.
Every Saturday night Schleien hosts a panel of comedians, writers and media
personalities discussing the week's major events and interviewing Israel's leading
politicians. He ends each show with a now celebrated monologue - his personal and
satirical observation of what bugged him the most that week. Presidents Shimon Peres
and Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Joan Rivers (in a special
episode taped in New York), were some of the guests on the shows, which won
the Israeli Academy Award for Best Comedy/Satire Show in 2012, 2013 and 2016.
Schleien (born in Tel Aviv, Israel, 1978) is known for his sharp humor and original
political analysis. In 2013 he was chosen by Ha'aretz Newspaper as the 4th
most influential person on Israeli Television. He started his TV career in 2002, by
writing and hosting a satire segment on Yair Lapid's Talk Show (Lapid is now the
leader of the "Yesh Atid" party and a candidate for Prime Minister). Schleien later
joined the writing staff of It's A Wonderful Country ("Eretz Nehederet", Israel's
SNL) and since 2004 he's been creating, producing and hosting his own shows,
including Tonight ("HaLayla"), an Israeli version of The Tonight Show, which won
the Israeli Academy Award for Best Talk Show.
In addition to his TV career, in 2011 Schleien initiated, produced and hosted a
prominent event named When Will The Cops Come? - The Freedom Of Speech
Prom ("Matay Yavo Shoter? - Mesibat Sium Hofesh Habituy"). It was a gathering
of comedians and media personalities in protest against new laws of the Israeli
government designed to restrict the freedom of speech. In the event, which took place
in Tel Aviv, every speaker was allocated 5 minutes to say anything on his mind,
without reprisal, in the eleventh hour before the new laws were enacted.
Schleien holds a law degree from Tel Aviv University, and is the life partner of Merav
Michaeli, a Member of the Israeli Parliament.
