Jeff Bakalar
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Jeffrey Ian Bakalar (born ) is a professional podcaster, video game journalist, and formerly the host of CNET's longest-running
podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
, ''The 404 Show''. He was a recurring personality on various podcasts on ''
Giant Bomb ''Giant Bomb'' is an American video game website and wiki that includes personality-driven gaming videos, commentary, news and reviews, created by former ''GameSpot'' editors Jeff Gerstmann and Ryan Davis. The website was voted by ''Time (maga ...
'', later becoming a co-owner of the site in 2025.


Personal

Bakalar was born in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
in 1982 and was raised in
Briarwood, Queens Briarwood is a middle-class neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood is roughly bounded by the Van Wyck Expressway to the west, Parsons Boulevard to the east, Union Turnpike to the north, and Hillside Avenue to the ...
before his family relocated to
Marlboro Township, New Jersey Marlboro Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is located within the Raritan River, Raritan Valley region and is a part of the New York metr ...
where he attended Marlboro High School. He graduated from
Towson University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its foundin ...
in 2004 with a
Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students pursuing a professional education in the visual arts, Fine art, or performing arts. In some instances, it is also called a Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA). Background ...
in Electronic Media and Film, where he won an award for a
mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...
he directed called ''Adult Swim.'' In 2010, he married his longtime girlfriend, Stacie Davis. He currently lives in
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
.


Career

During his college years, Bakalar worked as a production office intern for actor and producer
Bob Balaban Robert Elmer Balaban (born August 16, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer and writer. Aside from his acting career, Balaban has directed three feature films, in addition to numerous television episodes and films, and was one of the pro ...
in New York City at his production company Chicagofilms while Balaban completed work on ''
Gosford Park ''Gosford Park'' is a 2001 satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. The film, which is influenced by Jean Renoir's French classic '' The Rules of the Game'', follows a party of wealthy Brito ...
''. In 2004, he signed a contract with
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
subsidiary
Maverick Records Maverick was an American entertainment company founded in 1992 by Warner Music Group and run by recording artist Madonna, as well as Frederick DeMann and Veronica "Ronnie" Dashev. It included a record label ( Maverick Records), a film producti ...
to direct and produce a documentary for the pop punk band
Mest Mest is an American Rock music, rock band originally formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Tony Lovato, bassist Matt Lovato, drummer Nick Gigler, and guitarist Jeremiah Rangel. They broke up in 2006 after eleven years, but temporarily reformed ...
. The documentary, entitled ''Seven Deadly Sins'' was released as a pack-in bonus with copies of the band's 2005 album ''
Photographs A photograph (also known as a photo, or more generically referred to as an ''image'' or ''picture'') is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor. The process and pra ...
''. In 2007, Bakalar joined CNET as a home theater and gaming editor, eventually starting a technology and pop culture
podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
called ''The 404 Show'' with Randall Bennett and Wilson Tang. In hosting the podcast, Bakalar has interviewed
Tony Hawk Anthony Frank Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed Birdman, is an American professional skateboarder, entrepreneur, and the owner of the skateboard company Birdhouse. A pioneer of modern vertical skateboarding, Hawk completed the first docume ...
,
Marc Maron Marc David Maron (born September 27, 1963) is an American stand-up comedian, podcaster, writer, actor, and musician. In the 1990s and 2000s, Maron was a frequent guest on the ''Late Show with David Letterman'' and appeared more than forty times ...
,
John Hodgman John Kellogg Hodgman (born June 3, 1971) is an American author, actor, and humorist. In addition to his published written works, such as his satirical trilogy '' The Areas of My Expertise'', '' More Information Than You Require'', and '' That Is ...
,
Shaun White Shaun Roger White (born September 3, 1986) is an American former professional snowboarder and skateboarder. He is a five-time Olympian and a three-time Olympic gold medalist in half-pipe snowboarding. He holds the world record for the most X ...
,
Wayne Brady Wayne Alphonso Brady (born June 2, 1972) is an American comedian, actor, and singer. He is a regular cast member on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series '' Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' He was the host of the daytim ...
,
Scott Aukerman Scott David Aukerman (born July 2, 1970 Note: see 10:20) is an American writer, actor, comedian, television personality, director, producer, and podcast host. He was a writer and performer in the later seasons of the sketch series '' Mr. Show'' f ...
,
Michael Showalter Michael Showalter (born June 17, 1970) is an American director, writer, and producer. He first achieved recognition as a cast member on MTV's ''The State'', which aired from 1993 to 1995. He and David Wain created the ''Wet Hot American Summer ...
, Andrew W.K. and others. Each year the podcast is performed live at the
Consumer Electronics Show CES (; formerly an initialism for Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). Held in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Winchester, Nevada, United States, the event typi ...
, where it has featured
Danny DeVito Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi (TV series), Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him ...
,
Eliza Dushku Eliza Patricia Dushku (; born December 30, 1980) is an American former actress. Dushku starred as Faith (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Faith in the supernatural Drama (film and television), drama series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1998–2003) an ...
,
Felicia Day Kathryn Felicia Day (born June 28, 1979) is an American actress, singer, writer, and web series creator. She is the creator and star of the web series '' The Guild'' (2007–2013), a show loosely based on her life as a gamer. She also wrote and ...
and others. In 2012, Bakalar started CNET's first-ever weekly tech parody comic called ''Low Latency'', which he writes and is illustrated by Blake Stevenson. Bakalar briefly co-hosted another CNET project, Pre-Game, but stopped production after a year of programming to focus more on The 404 Show. Bakalar is a member of the New York Videogame Critics Circle, an advocacy group for game writers in and around the New York City area. He regularly appears on TV and radio as a technology, pop culture, and video game expert. Bakalar has been featured on G4's ''
Attack of the Show ''Attack of the Show!'' (''AOTS'') is an American live television program that aired on G4. AOTS features segments on pop culture, video games, and movies. After an initial run from 2005 to 2013 (which originally aired from 2005 until 2013, we ...
'',
NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
's ''
All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...
'', and
CNBC CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Day ...
's '' Power Lunch''. In late 2014, Bakalar joined
CBSN CBS News 24/7 (formerly known as CBSN and the CBS News Streaming Network) is an American streaming video news channel operated by the CBS News and Paramount Streaming divisions of Paramount Global. Launched on November 6, 2014, it features block ...
as a regularly appearing tech and pop culture pundit representing CNET. On May 22, 2015, he joined the cast of
Giant Bomb ''Giant Bomb'' is an American video game website and wiki that includes personality-driven gaming videos, commentary, news and reviews, created by former ''GameSpot'' editors Jeff Gerstmann and Ryan Davis. The website was voted by ''Time (maga ...
's ''Giant Beastcast'', where he remained a regular member until its conclusion in May 2021. He later joined the cast of its sister podcast, the ''Giant Bombcast''. On September 29, 2017, the final episode of ''The 404 Show'' podcast was published. In May 2025, Bakalar announced he had become a co-owner of the newly-independent ''Giant Bomb''.


References


External links


The 404 ShowCNET profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bakalar, Jeff CNET 1982 births American video game podcasters Writers from Hoboken, New Jersey Living people Marlboro High School alumni Towson University alumni People from Briarwood, Queens People from Marlboro Township, New Jersey