LOS ANGELES — CNBC anchor Sara Eisen is a fixture at the annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, where she moderates marquee events, such as a one-on-one interview on Tuesday with Ken Griffin, CEO of the hedge fund Citadel. 

But the real reason that Eisen — along with scores of billionaire investors and business executives — comes to Beverly Hills for the exclusive annual gathering is for the conversations happening far from the main stages. And much of the conversation Eisen is hearing this week, she told Jewish Insider, has to do with the dramatic rise in antisemitism in recent years.

“To a large extent, I reflect a lot of what the sources that I speak to [say]. That’s investors, and it’s business leaders, and it’s private equity leaders,” Eisen said in an interview during the conference, after she wrapped up moderating a conversation with the CEO of Carlyle, the co-president of Morgan Stanley, the chairman and CEO of State Street and the CEO of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System. 

“A lot of these people, Jewish and non-Jewish, talk to me about it. They know about my background. They know my perspective. They see what’s happening in the political world. They see what’s happening in geopolitics,” she continued. “This is the sideline conversation.” 

The issue isn’t new for Eisen. Her grandfather was a Holocaust survivor, and he talked openly about his experiences. “I have always been someone with a really strong Jewish identity,” she said. But something began to change for her after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel, and it seeped into her professional work.

“I think for a lot of us, after Oct. 7, it was a wake-up call that we need to speak out more about these issues. I try to use my platform to bring awareness and education to issues like antisemitism, because I care about it,” said Eisen. 

During a guest appearance on “The View” in March, she criticized former Trump administration official Joe Kent, who resigned from his position as director of the National Counterterrorism Center in March, for blaming Washington’s war with Iran on Israel. 

“It is a very old-school, antisemitic trope to blame the Jews and to blame Israel. It’s as old as time,” Eisen said on “The View.” “It is a classic case of quintessential antisemitism, and by the way it is a dangerous time to do that because the Jews are under attack, and we’re fortifying our synagogues and our schools.” 

In an April interview with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Eisen pressed Warren on her support for Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, despite the fact that the Democrat had a tattoo of a Nazi symbol and praised military tactics used by Hamas. “I’m just curious why you think he’s your ‘kind of man,’” Eisen said, referencing Warren’s description of Platner at a recent campaign event. 

Warren defended Platner, noting that he apologized for the tattoo and his history of insensitive remarks. Eisen drilled down on Platner’s praise of Hamas tactics: “You guys want to be the party of inclusivity, right?” 

“I want to be the party that stands up for hard-working people,” was Warren’s response. “I want us to be the party that actually delivers on lowering costs and that expands opportunities, and that’s what Graham Platner wants to do, and I’m there to stand with him and to help in that fight.” 

Eisen is known as a no-nonsense TV anchor with an occasional snarky streak and an aptitude for finance and economic trends. She covers the news, and lately, she sees antisemitism in the headlines — and feels a particular obligation to cover it. 

“I think that the world’s changed,” Eisen said. “There is now this raging outburst of antisemitism, and it’s a societal issue, and I have a background and a perspective on it. And I think it feeds directly into stories we’re doing about the economy and society and geopolitics.”

Reporters, Eisen argued, should not pretend they do not have backgrounds that affect the issues they cover. For her, that means talking about being Jewish, and spotlighting the rise in antisemitism. It stands out at a time when questions like the ones she asked Warren are not necessarily echoed by other top reporters at national outlets. 

“As journalists, we’re also people. We have families, we have religions, we have backgrounds, we have history. I try not to inject those opinions, but I do think perspective matters,” she said. “Nobody wants to be interviewed by robots.” 

The result is even more social media vitriol than she has always received as a prominent media figure. Only now, it’s antisemitic. 

“I feel the heat, and that’s definitely a calculated risk, and it’s unfortunate and it’s unpleasant,” said Eisen. “But I also feel like if, if we’re not asking these questions and we’re not speaking up about these issues, then then nobody will. So we need to.”