BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Jodi Rudoren, editor-in-chief of The Forward
November 30, 2020
How/where are you celebrating your birthday and with whom? “Umm, you might have heard there is a global pandemic? So I’ll be ‘celebrating,’ such as it is, with my husband and twin 13-year-olds, in our home in Montclair, and I have no idea what’s planned. I’m lucky in that I got to be with my parents, sisters, nieces and nephews last weekend to mark the twins’ Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Oh, and this weekend, my mom-friends hosted a backyard champagne brunch for me and another member of our corona text-message group whose birthday is two days later. So that’s more than enough.”
How did you get your start in journalism? “In ninth grade at Newton (Mass.) North High School, I took ‘Introduction to Journalism’ with Helen Smith. She taught me critical things like, ‘when in doubt, leave it out’ that I still think about every day at work, and also some outdated skills like how to paste up pages using border tape for graphics and ads. I became advertising manager then news analysis editor then editor-in-chief of the award-winning Newtonite under Helen’s tutelage, and the rest (Yale Daily News, Middlesex News, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, the Forward) just kind of happened.”
What’s an interesting book/article you’re reading during coronavirus social distancing? And why? “I discovered when my kids were in fifth grade and reading ‘Wonder’ that I like reading many young-adult books more than most adult-adult books: they’re strong in plot and character, light on literary masturbation, and you can get more story in you before you fall asleep.
So in the spring, when my daughter and son started a book club with their friends, I read what they read -- ‘Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac’ was a great unmasking of all the superficial social stuff in high school, a lot of which continues with grown-ups.
Next on my night table is ‘The Lost Shtetl,’ the debut novel of Max Gross -- because Max used to work at the Forward, and the Forward’s Book Club just discussed it, and there was the bizarre recent social-media dustup over shtetl-inspired streetwear, and the pandemic is basically making us all rebuild our little shtetls, our communities, in new ways.”
What’s a trend going on in the U.S. or abroad that doesn’t get enough attention? “‘Secular’ religion. Like people building community or identity through Jewish food. Or creating singing groups that nourish them spiritually. Or doing meal trains for people who are going through illness or loss. Or Peloton’s ‘Sundays With Love,’ which I just wrote this column about on Friday.”
What are you watching for in the Biden presidency? “Honestly, keeping expectations low -- just want to see the bile in our discourse dialed down, the respect for dissenting viewpoints turned up.”
What’s a fun fact that people in Washington might not know about you? “I came *this* close to being a contestant on Master Chef 10.”
Source: https://www.politico.com/
