Jonathan Goldstein

Jonathan Goldstein began his radio career reading audio essays on the CBC. In 2000, he became a producer at This American Life. In 2003, he began his podcast, Wiretap which ran for 11 years on the CBC in Canada and PRI in the US. In 2016, he began Heavyweight which is currently going into its 9th season.

What are the ingredients for a perfect Heavyweight episode?
Stakes and jokes and a person I like as the subject and some ideas and sadness and good music and a listener who is sitting in the virtual driveway unable to virtually click off the virtual radio knob

What is the throughline of all the audio you have made throughout the years?
It’s all pretty much been dictated by my own whims and interests which is a very fortunate thing.

How has the show changed over the years?
I worry that maybe it hasn’t. But having my producers in front of the mic has been a nice change for me. I do know that when the show started it was just me helping friends and family and then after exhausting all that, I moved on to helping strangers.

How have you changed over the years?
Again, I worry maybe I haven’t. Or not enough. I think becoming a father has changed the stakes of personal growth. A child reflects everything about you back at you. It’s like a heavy-handed ironic Twilight Zone episode every day. Your personal style of interaction, that in some ways you can remain kind of philosophical about, becomes very consequential when you’re raising a child.

What did you want to be when you were eight?
When I was eleven, I wanted to be a comic book artist. Maybe own a candy store?

Can you remember the first time you realized you were funny?
I really don’t know how funny I am. In my performance, I think I’m always straining after something that would make things funnier and never getting there to my satisfaction. I’ve really enjoyed writing for funny people. It’s so much more satisfying. I think it’s like that ridiculous line about how if it bends it’s funny and if it breaks it isn’t. I think there’s something about me that is always breaking. Or, I don’t think I have enough funniness in me to counterbalance all the less good qualities, that is, the anger, the depression, etc.

Are there any memorable interactions with fans you can share?
The thing that comes to mind is a little hard to easily explain, but I was recently in a Target and was trying to bargain with the cashier… the whole thing was beneath my dignity (and there aren’t a ton of things I can say that about) and when I was done, the guy standing behind me in line said, “good luck with the new season.” So, he was listening to that whole petty exchange, judging me but good.

Pretend someone hasn’t listened. Which episode should they start with?
I always say the first one because it was organic. It was me trying to help my father reconnect with his brother and that became the blueprint for the show.

What do all these stories have in common?
They’re all stories that I strongly believe in. They probably share a stylistic something. In the best of cases, they’re the right mix of funny and sad.

Can you shout out 1-3 other audio makers who deserve a little shine? Why are they great?
I always encourage people to check out the work of Joe Frank. But no one ever seems to. Joe Frank was able to do a very particular kind of thing that I’ve never heard anyone else do. He had a certain kind of authority, charisma… a mood about him. He and Ira Glass were probably my biggest inspirations.

How are you feeling about the audio industry these days?
I don’t know that I have what you would call feelings about the audio industry. I can’t tell if we’re up or down, but I’ll keep going.

What do you feel about this whole video craze?
I got into this business because I have a face for radio.

If you had $1M to make another show, don’t worry about the logistics or whether or not anyone would listen, it doesn’t have to make sense like time and space don’t have to exist, what would it be?
Pretty much what I’m doing now. But maybe if I honestly didn’t care about whether anyone was listening it would be lazier and more boring… a lot of digressions where I share my dreams.

What’s a podcast, TV show, any piece of media, you wish you made?
So many. What comes to mind is John Wilson’s stuff. That’s a kind of video I would love to do… where it’s like video essays. It’s such a hard form to do well and he does it. I’ve always loved Pamela Adlon’s “Better Things.” But these are things I know, in my heart,  I couldn’t do. Not even in my wishes. Like the last season of Nathan Fielder’s “The Rehearsal”... there’s just a level of pure genius.

What’s your favorite sound?
My son’s voice before he falls asleep. My wife calling me to dinner.

What’s a podcast you love that everybody knows about?
This American Life. Its impact can’t be overstated.

Is there anything I didn’t ask you about that you want to share?
Thank you for having me.

Thank YOU, Jonathan!