A few years ago, the average American probably could not tell you what a Hasidic Jew was. But thanks to a set of shows running the gamut from serious scripted dramas to reality TV, that’s all changed.

There is a New York-based blog called “Hasid or Hipster” that juxtaposes the bushy beards and black hats of Brooklyn’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish population with those of the district’s hipsters and asks ...