Wikipedia

Jonah Goldberg

Jonah Jacob Goldberg(born March 21, 1969) is an Americanconservativesyndicated columnist, author, political analyst, and commentator. The founding editor ofNational Review Online,from 1998 until 2019, he was an editor atNational Review.[1]Goldberg writes a weekly column about politics and culture for theLos Angeles Times.[2]In October 2019, Goldberg became the founding editor of the online opinion and news publicationThe Dispatch.[3][4][5][6]Goldberg has authored the No. 1New York TimesbestsellerLiberal Fascism,released in January 2008;The Tyranny of Cliches: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas,released in 2012;[7]andSuicide of the West,which was published in April 2018 and also became aNew York Timesbestseller, reaching No. 5 on the list the following month.[8][9]

Jonah Goldberg
Goldberg in 2012
Born
Jonah Jacob Goldberg

(1969-03-21)March 21, 1969(age 55)
New York City, New York, U.S.
EducationGoucher College(BA)
Occupation(s)Journalist and author
EmployerThe Dispatch
Spouse
​
(m.2001)​
Children1
RelativesLucianne Goldberg(mother)
Goldberg's voice
Onfascism

Goldberg is also a regular contributor on news networks such asCNNandMSNBC,appearing on various television programs includingGood Morning America,Nightline,Hardball with Chris Matthews,Real Time with Bill Maher,Larry King Live,Your World with Neil Cavuto,theGlenn Beck Program,andThe Daily Show with Jon Stewart.Goldberg was an occasional guest on a number ofFox Newsshows such asThe Five,The Greg Gutfeld Show,andOutnumbered.He was also a frequent panelist onSpecial Report with Bret Baier.From 2006 to 2010, Goldberg was a frequent participant onbloggingheads.tv.Goldberg has been a noted critic of President Donald Trump, fellow Republicans, and the conservative media complex during and after the Trump presidency.[10]In November 2021, Goldberg and his colleague Steve Hayes resigned fromFox Newsin protest overTucker Carlson's documentaryPatriot Purge.Goldberg described the documentary as "a collection of incoherent conspiracy-mongering, riddled with factual inaccuracies, half-truths, deceptive imagery, and damning omissions."[11]

Early life and education

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Goldberg was born on theUpper West Sideof New York City'sManhattanborough toLucianne Goldberg(née Steinberger), aliterary agentwho died in 2022 and advisedLinda Trippto illegally record conversations withMonica Lewinsky,and Sidney Goldberg, who died in 2005, an editor and media executive.[12][13]In speaking about his upbringing, Goldberg has said that his mother was anEpiscopalianand that his father wasJewishand that he was raised Jewish.[14][15]After graduating from high school in 1987, Goldberg left New York City to attendGoucher CollegeinTowson, Maryland,from which he earned his bachelor's in 1991, majoring in political science.[16]Goldberg's class at Goucher, which was awomen's collegeuntil 1986, was the second to admit men.[17]While at Goucher, Goldberg was active in student politics and served as the co-editor of the school newspaper,The Quindecim,for two years. Goldberg and Andreas Benno Kollegger were the first men to run the paper. He later interned forScripps Howard News Service,United Press International,and other news organizations.[when?]He also worked for Delilah Communications, a publishing house in New York.[when?]

Career

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After graduating, Goldberg taught English inPraguefor less than a year before moving toWashington D.C.in 1992 to take a job at theAmerican Enterprise Institute.[18]While at AEI he worked forBen J. Wattenberg.He was the researcher for Wattenberg's nationally syndicated column and for Wattenberg's book,Values Matter Most.He also worked on severalPBSpublic affairsdocumentaries, including a two-hour special hosted byDavid Gergenand Wattenberg.[19]Goldberg was also invited to serve on Goucher College's Board of Trustees immediately after graduating in 1991, a position he held for three years.[20]

In 1994, Goldberg became a founding producer for Wattenberg'sThink Tank with Ben Wattenberg.That same year he moved to New River Media, an independent television production company, which produced "Think Tank" as well as numerous other television programs and projects. Goldberg worked on a large number of television projects across the United States, as well as in Europe and Japan. He wrote, produced, and edited two documentaries for New River Media,Gargoyles: Guardians of the GateandNotre Dame: Witness to History.

He joinedNational Reviewas acontributing editorin 1998. By the end of that year, he was asked to launchNational Review Online(NRO) as a sister publication toNational Review.He served as editor of NRO for several years and later became editor-at-large.[when?]

Clinton–Lewinsky scandal

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Goldberg's motherLucianne Goldbergwas involved in theClinton–Lewinsky scandalas detailed inThe New Yorker.[21][22]Goldberg has spoken of his mother and the Lewinsky scandal:

My mother was the one who advised Linda Tripp to record her conversations with Monica Lewinsky and to save the dress. I was privy to some of that stuff, and when the administration set about to destroy Lewinsky, Tripp, and my mom, I defended my mom and by extension Tripp... I have zero desire to have those arguments again. I did my bit in the trenches of Clinton's trousers.[23]

These tapes became the focal point of the Lewinsky scandal.

Current work

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Goldberg in 2007

Writing forNational Reviewand other publications

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Beginning in 1998, Goldberg was an editor and wrote a twice-weekly column atNational Review,which is syndicated to numerous papers across the United States, and atTownhall.com.National Reviewconsists of fellow contributors such asRamesh Ponnuru,Richard Brookhiser,andKevin D. Williamson.[24]

Goldberg also wrote the "Goldberg File"[25]atNational Review,a column that was generally lighter and more focused on humor and cultural commentary. Goldberg's column often made pop-culture references to works includingStar TrekandBattlestar Galactica,of which he has said he is a fan.[26][27]Goldberg was also a frequent contributor at theNational ReviewblogThe Corner,often authoring posts with light-hearted, comedic and pop-culture references.

Goldberg leftNational Reviewin May 2019.

Aside from being a member of theUSA TodayBoard of Contributors, he has written forThe New Yorker,The Wall Street Journal,Commentary,The Public Interest,The Wilson Quarterly,The Weekly Standard,The New York Post,andSlate.The Los Angeles Timesadded Goldberg to its editorial lineup in 2005.

In 2020, Goldberg co-foundedThe Dispatch,an online news publication aimed at offering political, social and cultural analysis from a center-right perspective.[28]

Online media

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Goldberg is the host ofThe Remnant with Jonah Goldberg,[29]an interview podcast that covers a variety of topics in the spheres of politics, conservative theory, and current events. Goldberg is a frequent participant in programs produced byRicochet,[30]including the podcastGLoP Culturewhich features Goldberg,John Podhoretz,and Ricochet co-founderRob Long.[31]From 2006 to 2010, he was a frequent participant onBloggingheads.tv.[32]

Books

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Goldberg's first book,Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, from Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning,was published in January 2008. It reached No. 1 on theNew York Times Best Seller listof hardcovernonfictionin its seventh week on the list.[33]Some historians have denounced the book as being "poor scholarship",[34]"propaganda",[35]and not scholarly.[36]Other reviewers described the book as "provocative".[37][38]The audiobook version ofLiberal Fascismwas narrated by Johnny Heller. Goldberg followed the book withThe Tyranny of Clichés: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideasin 2012. The paperback edition ofTyranny of Clichescame out on April 30, 2013. Goldberg himself narrated the audiobook version. His most recent work,Suicide of the West,was released in 2018.

Pulitzer claim controversy

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In May 2012, Goldberg was touted as a "two-timePulitzer prizenominee "in the book jacket of his second book,The Tyranny of Cliches: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas.NBC News reporterBill Dedmanpointed this out as misleading because Goldberg had in fact only been an entrant in the Pulitzer contest and had never been nominated as a finalist, as the moniker "Pulitzer nominee" claimed. Becoming an entrant in the Pulitzer contest requires only that either the author of a written work submit an entry form along with a small fee or that someone else do so on their behalf. Following Dedman's reporting, Goldberg and his publishing company acknowledged the false claim and subsequently removed the line from the book jacket.[39]

Media appearances and commentary

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Frequent topics

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Some frequent topics of his articles include censorship,meritocracy,liberty,federalismand interpretation of theConstitution.He has attacked the ethics and morals ofliberalsandDemocrats,and his disagreements withlibertariansalso appear often in his writings. In the years of the Trump presidency, his writings turned critical of the Trump movement and the moral rot within the Republican Party.[40]He was a supporter of theIraq Warand has advocated American military intervention elsewhere in the world. He has defended historicalcolonialismin places such as Africa as more beneficial than it is generally given credit for; in one column, he suggested that U.S. imperialism on the continent could help solve its persistent problems.[41]When he wrote in October 2006 that invadingIraqwas a mistake, he called it a "noble" mistake and still maintained that liberal opponents of the war policy wanted America to fail: "In other words, their objection isn't to war per se; it's to wars that advance U.S. interests.... I must confess, one of the things that made me reluctant to conclude that the Iraq war was a mistake was my distaste for the shabbiness of the arguments on theantiwarside. "[42]

He popularized and expanded on a commentary by the lateTimewriterWilliam Henry III.Henry had written on the subject ofmulticulturalismand cultural equality, stating that "it is scarcely the same thing toput a man on the moonas to put a bone in your nose ". Goldberg stated that" [m]ulticulturalism—which is simplyegalitarianismwrapped in rainbow-colored paper—has elevated the notion that all ideas are equal, all systems equivalent, all cultures of comparable worth. "[41]

He has criticized the idea of "social justice"as meaning" anything its champions want it to mean "or" 'good things' no one needs to argue for and no one dare be against ".[43]

Relations with other writers and public figures

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Goldberg has publicly feuded with people on thepolitical left,likeJuan Cole,over U.S. Iraq policy, andAir America Radiocommentators such asJaneane Garofalo,who has accused him of being achickenhawkon the Iraq War. On February 8, 2005, Goldberg offered Cole a wager of $1,000 "that Iraq won't have a civil war, that it will have a viable constitution, and that a majority ofIraqisandAmericanswill, in two years' time, agree that the war was worth it ".[44]Cole refused to accept and the wager was never made.[45]Goldberg later conceded that if Cole had accepted the bet, Cole would have won.[46]

Peter Beinartand Goldberg engaged in a discussion onBloggingheads.tv

Goldberg andPeter BeinartofThe New Republichosted a conservative vs. liberalWebTVshow,What's your Problem?,from 2007 to 2010. It originally could be found onNational Review Online[47]and later moved toBloggingheads.tv.[32]

Relations with Fox News

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RegardingFox News,Goldberg said, "Look, I think liberals have reasonable gripes with Fox News. It does lean tothe right,primarily in its opinion programming but also in its story selection (which is fine by me) and elsewhere. But it's worth remembering that Fox is less a bastion of ideological conservatism and more apopulist,tabloidynetwork. "[48]Goldberg has criticized liberals for applying a double standard to Fox News, arguing they have no "problem with the editorializing ofMSNBC'sKeith OlbermannorChris Matthews,they think it's just plain wrong for conservatives to play that game ".[48]

During the Trump years and beyond, while Goldberg defended certain news hosts and shows on Fox News, he became more sympathetic towards critiques of Fox News, especially regarding their opinion hosts, includingTucker Carlson,Sean Hannity,andMark Levin.[49][50][28]On November 21, 2021, Goldberg and colleague Steve Hayes announced that they were severing their ties to Fox News in protest of its support forTucker Carlson'sPatriot Purge,which they described as "a collection of incoherent conspiracy-mongering, riddled with factual inaccuracies, half-truths, deceptive imagery, and damning omissions."[51][52]

Donald Trump

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During the years of the Trump Presidency, Goldberg remained very critical of conservative media's embrace of him. On Trump's defenders in the media, Goldberg said this:

For nearly five years now, it has been obvious that Trump was unfit for the job and the arguments marshaled in his defense were cynical rationalizations that, for some, eventually mutated into sincerely held delusions. Sure, some deluded themselves from the beginning, but I’ve talked to too many Republican politicians and conservative media darlings who admitted it in private.[53]

During the Trump Presidency, Goldberg became increasingly critical of both the Republican Party's embrace of President Trump and their abandonment of pre-Trump principles.[54][10]

Personal life

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Goldberg is married toJessica Gavora,chief speechwriter and former senior policy adviser to formerAttorney GeneralJohn Ashcroft.[55]They have one daughter, and they live in thePalisades, Washington, D.C.neighborhood.[56][57]

Goldberg's brother, Joshua, died in 2011 from accidental injuries.[58]Goldberg's father, Sidney, died in 2005, and was survived by his wife, Jonah's mother, Lucianne.[59]Lucianne Goldberg died on October 26, 2022.[60][61]

Bibliography

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  • Suicide of the West: How the Rebirth of Tribalism, Populism, Nationalism, and Identity Politics is Destroying American Democracy.Crown Publishing Group.2018.ISBN978-1-101-90494-7.
  • The Tyranny of Clichés: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas.Penguin books.2012.ISBN978-1-101-57235-1.
  • Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning.Crown Publishing Group.2008.ISBN978-0-385-51769-0.

References

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  1. ^"The End of an Era".National Review.May 31, 2019.Archivedfrom the original on June 19, 2019.RetrievedJune 20,2019.
  2. ^"Jonah Goldberg".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on August 1, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 13,2020.
  3. ^Balluck, Kyle (October 8, 2019)."Jonah Goldberg, Steve Hayes launch conservative media company The Dispatch".The Hill.Archivedfrom the original on June 19, 2020.RetrievedJune 8,2020.
  4. ^"Jonah Goldberg is 'ideologically grounded, but I feel politically homeless'".Columbia Journalism Review.Archivedfrom the original on April 19, 2019.RetrievedMarch 13,2019.
  5. ^Rowland, Geoffrey (March 1, 2019)."National Review's Goldberg, Weekly Standard's Hayes to launch conservative media company".The Hill.Archivedfrom the original on March 2, 2019.RetrievedMarch 13,2019.
  6. ^"Stay-Puft Socialism, Luxurious Infanticide".National Review.March 1, 2019.
  7. ^Klein, Joe (May 18, 2012)."'The Tyranny of Clichés,' by Jonah Goldberg ".The New York Times.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  8. ^Suicide of the West.Crown Forum. 2018.ISBN978-1-101-90493-0.
  9. ^"Hardcover Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers".The New York Times.May 20, 2018.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  10. ^abCalderone, Michael (October 8, 2019)."Trump critics on the right join the media wars".Politico.com.Archivedfrom the original on July 29, 2020.RetrievedMay 17,2020.
  11. ^"Two Fox News pundits quit over concerns about 'conspiracy-mongering' Jan. 6 documentary".The Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Archivedfrom the original on July 18, 2022.RetrievedMarch 29,2022.
  12. ^"McAdams's Kennedy Assassination Home Page Index"(PDF).Archived(PDF)from the original on September 3, 2012.RetrievedAugust 8,2012.
  13. ^"WRITER DECLARES SHE WAS G.O.P. SPY IN M'GOVERN CAMP".The New York Times.August 19, 1973.Archivedfrom the original on July 22, 2018.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  14. ^Goldberg, Jonah (December 23, 2004)."Politicizing Christmas"ArchivedJanuary 13, 2016, at theWayback Machine,National Review Online
  15. ^"The Hop Bird | National Review".National Review.June 17, 2005.Archivedfrom the original on September 6, 2020.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  16. ^"Chick Politics National Review".National Review.April 18, 2001.Archivedfrom the original on April 28, 2021.RetrievedMay 28,2019.
  17. ^Pressley, Trustees of Md School Sue Anne; Writer, Washington Post Staff (May 11, 1986)."Goucher College To Admit Men".Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Archivedfrom the original on July 1, 2018.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  18. ^"Jonah Goldberg | AEI Scholar".AEI.Archivedfrom the original on March 5, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 8,2019.
  19. ^"PBS – A Third Choice – Credits".PBS.RetrievedJuly 13,2020.
  20. ^"Taking Conservatism Seriously | National Review".National Review.June 8, 2001.Archivedfrom the original on May 10, 2021.RetrievedAugust 12,2018.
  21. ^"Salon Media Circus|The jester of Monicagate".Archived fromthe originalon June 19, 2006.
  22. ^"Article on the Lewinsky scandal at Townhall.com".Archived fromthe originalon February 14, 2006.
  23. ^"The Incredible Shrinking Clinton".Nationalreview.com. June 23, 2004.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 12,2015.
  24. ^"The Masthead | National Review".National Review.December 19, 2017.Archivedfrom the original on February 18, 2018.RetrievedFebruary 21,2018.
  25. ^"The G-File | National Review".www.nationalreview.com.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2018.RetrievedAugust 16,2018.
  26. ^"Jonah Goldberg on National Review Online".June 17, 2003. Archived fromthe originalon December 19, 2013.
  27. ^"Tales from New Iraqica: They didn't leap the shark".Article.nationalreview.com. October 10, 2006.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2015.RetrievedMay 29,2012.
  28. ^abCoppins, McKay (January 31, 2020)."The Conservatives Trying to Ditch Fake News".The Atlantic.Archivedfrom the original on March 10, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  29. ^"The Remnant With Jonah Goldberg".The Dispatch.Archivedfrom the original on September 13, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 13,2020.
  30. ^"Jonah Goldberg Archives – Ricochet".Ricochet.Archivedfrom the original on September 17, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 13,2020.
  31. ^"GLoP Culture Archives – Ricochet".Ricochet.Archivedfrom the original on September 15, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 13,2020.
  32. ^ab"Jonah Goldberg on Bloggingheads.tv".Bloggingheads.tv.RetrievedSeptember 13,2020.[permanent dead link]
  33. ^"Hardcover Nonfiction".The New York Times.March 9, 2008.RetrievedMarch 5,2008.
  34. ^Feldman, Matthew."Poor Scholarship, Wrong Conclusions".HNN Special: A Symposium on Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism.George Mason University (HNN).Archivedfrom the original on September 7, 2011.RetrievedMay 31,2011.
  35. ^Griffin, Roger."An Academic Book – Not!".HNN Special: A Symposium on Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism.George Mason University (HNN).RetrievedMay 31,2011.[permanent dead link]
  36. ^Paxton, Robert."The Scholarly Flaws of" Liberal Fascism "".HNN Special: A Symposium on Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism.George Mason University (HNN).Archivedfrom the original on April 27, 2011.RetrievedMay 31,2011.
  37. ^"Nonfiction Reviews: Week of 26 November 2007".Publishers Weekly.November 26, 2007. Archived fromthe originalon December 10, 2007.RetrievedDecember 24,2007.
  38. ^"Who is 'Fascist'".Creators.com. February 11, 2008.RetrievedMay 29,2012.
  39. ^"Conservative author Jonah Goldberg drops claim of two Pulitzer nominations".NBC News. May 9, 2012.Archivedfrom the original on May 13, 2018.RetrievedMay 12,2018.
  40. ^Goldberg, Jonah (December 5, 2020)."Republicans look for a path away from the Trump fiasco".Tulsa World.RetrievedMarch 21,2021.
  41. ^ab"Three Cheers For Aristocracy".Nationalreview.com. December 13, 1999.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 12,2015.
  42. ^Goldberg, Jonah (October 20, 2006)."Iraq Was a Worthy Mistake".National Review Online.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 12,2015.
  43. ^"What is Social Justice? – PragerUniversity".YouTube.Archivedfrom the original on January 20, 2015.RetrievedJanuary 28,2015.
  44. ^"Cole Goes On".Nationalreview.com. February 8, 2005.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 12,2015.
  45. ^"Playing With Human Lives Goldbergs".Informed Comment. February 8, 2005.Archivedfrom the original on July 12, 2012.RetrievedMay 29,2012.
  46. ^"Juan Cole Pests".National Review. January 18, 2007.RetrievedSeptember 12,2015.
  47. ^""What's Your Problem?",National Review Online".Tv.nationalreview.com. Archived fromthe originalon April 2, 2012.RetrievedMay 29,2012.
  48. ^ab"Fox, John Edwards and the Two Americas".Realclearpolitics.com. March 16, 2007.Archivedfrom the original on February 24, 2021.RetrievedMay 29,2012.
  49. ^"Both sides need to ditch whataboutism and condemn bad actors".StarHerald.com. January 26, 2021.RetrievedMarch 21,2021.
  50. ^"Popular Afront".thedispatch.com. January 15, 2021.RetrievedMarch 21,2021.
  51. ^Hayes, Steve; Goldberg, Jonah (November 21, 2021)."Why we are leaving Fox News".The Dispatch.Archivedfrom the original on November 22, 2021.RetrievedNovember 22,2021.
  52. ^Folkenflik, David (November 21, 2021)."Two Fox News commentators resign over Tucker Carlson series on the Jan. 6 siege".NPR News.Archivedfrom the original on November 22, 2021.RetrievedNovember 22,2021.
  53. ^Goldberg, Jonah (December 4, 2020)."Screwtape Went Down to Georgia".gfile.thedispatch.com.
  54. ^"Jonah Goldberg is 'ideologically grounded, but I feel politically homeless'".cjr.org. March 13, 2019.Archivedfrom the original on March 5, 2021.RetrievedMarch 21,2021.
  55. ^"Weddings: Jessica Gavora, Jonah Goldberg".The New York Times.August 26, 2001.Archivedfrom the original on December 9, 2007.RetrievedMay 21,2007.
  56. ^"About Jonah".RetrievedJune 8,2020.
  57. ^"The Urban Bane That Is D.C. Speed Cameras".National Review.February 26, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on November 9, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 8,2019.
  58. ^Goldberg, Jonah (February 12, 2011)."Josh Goldberg, RIP".National Review Online.Archivedfrom the original on February 8, 2022.RetrievedFebruary 8,2022.
  59. ^"Goldberg, Sidney".New York Times.June 10, 2005.RetrievedFebruary 8,2022.
  60. ^Goldberg, Jonah (October 28, 2022)."That's no icon, that's my mom".The Dispatch.RetrievedOctober 28,2022.
  61. ^Larimore, Rachael (October 29, 2022)."Our best stuff from an extreme week".The Dispatch.RetrievedOctober 29,2022.
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