Jewish Ledger Van Morrison’s lyrical antisemitism By Melissa Langsam Braunstein (JNS) Van Morrison’s latest song comes complete with its own eyebrow-raising title: “They Own the Media.” But who exactly is “they”? The song doesn’t specify, and Van Morrison hasn’t issued a public statement to clarify, in spite of numerous articles flagging the song’s antisemitic language. If we look back 16 years, though, it’s reasonable to think Morrison has Jews on the brain. As The Forward recently reminded readers, Morrison “denied back in 2005 that ‘They Sold Me Out,’ in which he sings in first-person from the perspective of Jesus, was antisemitic. That song includes the lyrics: ‘For a few shekels more, they didn’t even think twice/For a few shekels more, another minute in the spotlight’ ” and “Sold me out for a few shekels.”