Jonathan Goldstein (born August 22, 1969) is an American-Canadian author,

humorist A humorist is an intellectual who uses humor, or wit, in writing or public speaking. A raconteur is one who tells anecdotes in a skillful and amusing way. Henri Bergson writes that a humorist's work grows from viewing the morals of society ...

and radio producer. Goldstein has worked on radio programs and

podcasts A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an episodic series of digital audio files that users can download to a personal device or stream to listen to at a time of their ...

such as ''

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

'', ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' is a weekly hour-long American radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internationally, and is ...

,'' and ''

WireTap Wiretapping, also known as wire tapping or telephone tapping, is the monitoring of telephone and Internet-based conversations by a third party, often by covert means. The wire tap received its name because, historically, the monitoring connecti ...

''. Goldstein's work has been academically examined as representative of "the positioning of Jews and Canadians as potentially overlooked minorities in the late-twentieth- and early twenty-first-century United States".

Early life

Goldstein was born to Buzz and Dina Goldstein 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 City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

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 * ...

, where he spent the first four years of his life before the family moved to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, his mother's hometown. The family settled in the suburb of Laval. Goldstein attended

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

and later completed a master's program in creative writing at

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

Career

After graduation, Goldstein supported himself by working in the

telemarketing Telemarketing (sometimes known as inside sales, or telesales in the UK and Ireland) is a method of direct marketing in which a salesperson solicits prospective customers to buy products, subscriptions or services, either over the phone or throu ...

industry for ten years while continuing to write and attend readings. He talked about this time on an episode of This American Life, 'Plan B'.

Radio/audio

He hosted the CBC summer radio program ''Road Dot Trip'' in 2000 and has contributed to shows like '' Dispatches'' and ''Outfront''. In 2000, his career received a boost after he was selected to work on

Ira Glass Ira Jeffrey Glass (; born March 3, 1959) is an American public radio personality. He is the host and producer of the radio and television series '' This American Life'' and has participated in other NPR programs, including ''Morning Edition'', ...

' popular

public radio Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

program ''

''. Goldstein relocated to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

to work as a producer on the show. Many of Goldstein's pieces have been featured on ''This American Life'' where he is a contributing editor. From 2000 to 2002 he was also a producer of the show. In 2002, Goldstein returned to Montreal and started work on several projects for

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...

. He hosted ''

'', which debuted in 2004 and ended in 2015. The program featured stories told over the phone. In May 2014, Goldstein played an "

expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

" in humorist

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 ...

's comedy/court show podcast ''

Judge John Hodgman ''Judge John Hodgman'' is a weekly, comedy, comedic court show podcast hosted by John Hodgman and Jesse Thorn. The show is distributed online by Maximum Fun. The program features host John Hodgman acting as a judge (with Jesse Thorn as bailiff) ...

''. In September 2016, Goldstein began a new podcast, ''

'', with podcast network

Gimlet Media Gimlet Media LLC was a digital media company and podcast network, focused on producing narrative podcasts and headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. The company was founded in 2014 by Alex Blumberg and Matthew Lieber, who served as the company's ...

. The podcast was discontinued in 2023 by Spotify, which had purchased Gimlet in the meantime. In May 2025, ''

'' returned under the podcast network,

Pushkin Industries Pushkin Industries is an American publisher of podcasts and audiobooks. It was started in 2018 by Malcolm Gladwell and Jacob Weisberg. As of 2021, it hosts over 25 podcasts. History The company was co-founded in 2018 by Malcolm Gladwell and Jacob ...

. Goldstein is a member of the

Public Radio Exchange The Public Radio Exchange (PRX) is a non-profit web-based platform for digital distribution, review, and licensing of radio programs. The organization is the largest on-demand catalogue of public radio programs available for broadcast and internet ...

editorial board.

Writing

In 2001, Goldstein's

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

, '' Lenny Bruce Is Dead'', was published by Coach House Books. Goldstein also co-authored ''Schmelvis: In Search of Elvis Presley's Jewish Roots'

with Max Wallace, an account of a

Hasidic Hasidism () or Hasidic Judaism is a religious movement within Judaism that arose in the 18th century as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine before spreading rapidly throughout Eastern Europe. Today, most of those aff ...

Elvis impersonator An Elvis impersonator is an entertainer who impersonates or copies the look and sound of American musician and rock singer Elvis Presley. Professional Elvis impersonators, commonly known as Elvis tribute artists (ETAs), work all over the wor ...

and

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

's quest to trace the Jewish roots of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. Goldstein has also been published in ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. The magazi ...

'', '' Saturday Night'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

The Walrus ''The Walrus'' is an independent, nonprofit Canadian media organization. It is multi-platform and produces an eight-issue-per-year magazine and online editorial content that includes current affairs, fiction, poetry, and podcasts, a nation ...

'', '' GQ'', the '' Journey Prize Anthology'' and the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.

''. He has also self-produced a number of small publications, most notably ''carwash the size of a peach''.

Other

In September 2007, ''WireTap'' producer Mira Burt-Wintonick released "Superstar of the Netherlands," a short film featuring Goldstein and ''WireTap'' regular Gregor Ehrlich, on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. In February 2008, Goldstein debuted the internet project ''CBC Web 3.0'' which features the short "The Future is Yesterday,” a comedic take on the impersonal nature of the Internet.

Personal life

Goldstein has resided in

, and

, and he now lives in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. Goldstein was in a relationship with the author

Heather O'Neill Heather O'Neill (born 1973) is a Canadian novelist, poet, short story writer, screenwriter and journalist, who published her debut novel, '' Lullabies for Little Criminals'', in 2006. The novel was subsequently selected for the 2007 edition of ' ...

that ended in 2007. Goldstein married fellow radio producer Emily Condon in 2015, having been introduced by Sean Cole in 2013.

Bibliography

Books

* '' Lenny Bruce Is Dead'' (, 2001) * '' Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible!'' (, 2009) * ''I'll Seize the Day Tomorrow'' (, 2012) * ''Schmelvis: In Search of Elvis Presley's Jewish Roots'' (with Max Wallace) (, 2002)

Essays and reporting

Awards

* ReLit Award (Regarding Literature Award) (2001) *

Third Coast International Audio Festival The Third Coast International Audio Festival (TCIAF or TCF), based in Chicago, curates audio stories from around the world and showcases them in various mediums. It is informally referred to as the "Sundance of Radio". The festival was affiliated ...

: Gold Prize (2002) *Canadian National Magazine Awards: Silver Award for Humour (2004) * The New York Festivals: Gold World Medal for Best Regularly Scheduled Comedy Program (2006) for ''

References

External links

Transom.org bio page, including links to This American Life stories he has producedPublic Radio Exchange member page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldstein, Jonathan 21st-century American novelists American humorists American male novelists American radio personalities American radio producers Anglophone Quebec people Canadian humorists Jewish humorists Canadian male novelists Canadian people of American-Jewish descent Concordia University alumni Jewish American novelists Jewish Canadian writers McGill University alumni Writers from Brooklyn Writers from Laval, Quebec 1969 births Living people CBC Radio hosts This American Life people 21st-century Canadian male writers Novelists from New York (state) 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American Jews Novelists from Montreal