Ha-Shiloaḥ experienced financial problems due to the considerable increase in printing and paper costs coupled with an underwhelming number of initial subscribers, causing significant losses.
[3] He intended for the journal to be devoted to Zionism, Jewish scholarship, and belles lettres in a style that was accessible to the average reader and not to a specific or limited audience.
[1] Ha’am stressed that the journal would not serve as a platform for scientific discussions or debates on abstract issues in order to further expand accessibility to the masses.
Due to Ha’am adherence to the Hibbat Zion and cultural Zionist movement, the monthly often expressed antagonism towards Theodor Herzl and political Zionism.
Originally, Ha’am believed that Hebrew literature must be opened to the influence of European culture in order to reach the masses, but his attitude changed upon the journal’s creation.
Ha’am wanted the journal to be pedagogical and didactic in nature, so he corrected the language and style of works and added or cut parts to make the contributors’ views clear to the readers, but he did not change the meaning of any of the manuscripts.
His goal through such strict editing policy was to “train the taste of the Hebrew reading public up to the point at which they would cease to find pleasure in those exhibitions of bad taste and bad manners which were familiar in the Hebrew literature of that time.”[1] Despite Ha-Shiloaḥ’s success, Ahad Ha’am resigned editorship at the end of 1902, believing that powers in which his work depended upon have continuously decreased.
Klausner belonged to a younger generation of Zionist thinkers that was characterized by a desire to widen the scope of Jewish culture and Hebrew literature.
Klausner believed that this policy in the past forced Hebrew writers to be unnatural by suppressing sincere human thought and that this change would open the door for a wider range of works.
He claimed that Klausner would be unable to fulfill his promises due to a lack of talented writers and would therefore have to increase the amount of articles dealing with non-Jewish matters.
[1] Despite Ahad Ha’am’s protests at the changes made to Ha-Shiloaḥ, Joseph Klausner believed that his connection to youth would allow him to meet the demands of the younger generation.
After relocating to Palestine for a job opportunity as a professor of Hebrew literature, Ha-Shiloaḥ’s prominence began to dwindle, eventually leading to its demise in 1926 under Klausner.
[1] Ahad Ha’am was apprehensive about this appointment, fearing that “the atmosphere of Warsaw might spoil the talent of Bialik.”[1] Before accepting the position, Bialik made the condition that he would be completely independent in running the belles lettres section and dealing with contributors.
Micha Josef Berdyczewski was one prominent writer who advocated for European culture to be made available to every Hebrew reader, and accused Ha’am of confusing this young generation.
Ha’am responded to this point by arguing that the aim of Hebrew literature to help the Jew understand and interpret their inner world did not have to be done creatively in order to achieve such a goal.
He also believed that a majority of belles lettres was not suitable for the young Hebrew reader due to the lack of content that expressed the true feelings of the Jewish people.