People Jew Wanna Know

Shay Khatiri grew up in an Iranian Communist household where his dad handed him Das Kapital at age 12 — and somehow ended up a neoconservative Persian researcher at CAMERA, fighting media bias against Israel. Shay knows more about Jewish life than most Jews, and will absolutely turn off your lights before leaving Shabbat dinner. Shay breaks down why Iranians were cheering on Israeli fighter jets f...

Andy Buckley is David Wallace. You know him. You love him. But before he was Steve Carell's perfectly straight-faced boss at Dunder Mifflin, he spent years as a Merrill Lynch wealth manager — which explains why his corporate deadpan hits so painfully right. He's also one of the most thoughtful and openly supportive non-Jewish allies the community has had since October 7th. Andy talks about...

Margarita returns for a solo episode to catch you up on the comeback of the “Goy You Will Enjoy” season — dedicated to the allies showing up for the Jewish community — and the current state of Jinsta. She also reads a powerful letter from a listener about intermarriage that sparked one of the most thoughtful conversations we’ve had in a long time. Truly an incredible note. Follow People Jew Wanna...

Dr. Monasebian is a board-certified plastic surgeon, and the man Margarita personally trusts with her own face. A Forest Hills native, Brandeis graduate, and proud half-Sephardic, half-Ashkenazi Jew, Dr. Monasebian has built a reputation not just for exceptional results, but for telling patients the truth. In an industry full of hype, he’s refreshingly candid about what procedures are worth consid...

Rebecca Brooks is the dark horse behind some of the biggest food and lifestyle personalities you know — Rachael Ray, Andrew Zimmern, Guy Fieri, Jacques Torres, Robert Irvine. She founded the Brooks Group at 25 out of her husband's family office in New York, and basically helped invent the "lifestyle of food" category before Food Network was a household name. Margarita talks to Rebecca about what a...

Ariel Stachel—Tony winner for The Band's Visit—gets brutally honest about learning to “act” by hiding parts of himself, and what it took to finally stop. We get into his solo show Other , the identity whiplash growing up post 9/11, and why he’s willing to say the uncomfortable things—about activism, platforming, and how Jews should be portrayed in media right now. Margarita and Ariel compare n...

Neil Friedman is the quiet powerhouse behind some of the most important Jewish cinema of the last two decades. As founder of Menemsha Films and ChaiFlicks — the world's largest Jewish streaming platform — he's racked up five consecutive Oscar-nominated films, championed hidden gems from six continents, and turned Bad Shabbos into a $1.5 million theatrical juggernaut at a moment when nobody...

Moshe Davis was Mayor Eric Adams' Jewish liaison and architect of NYC's first-ever Mayor's Office to Combat Antisemitism — until he found out via tweet that the Mamdani administration was replacing him. He's the guy who handled everything from synagogue security to the "Israel Bombs Way" street sign vandalism. Moshe has dealt with the good, the bad, and the ugly of Jewish...

Shye Klein was just weeks into his new life in Israel when he drove into the Nova festival at 2 a.m. on October 7th. Before noon, he was back in Tel Aviv — alive, with five friends and a roll of film of people he might never see again. A Canadian-Israeli photographer who'd never owned a Hillel sweatshirt or set foot on a Birthright trip, Shai walked out of that field and walked straight into 200 s...

Jill Kargman is a New York Times bestselling author of 12 books, creator of Odd Mom Out, and a "shtetl chic" Manhattan Jewess. Margarita and Jill talk wig life, vaginal lasers, antisemitism in middle school, and why Jewish joy is the whole point. Jill found her voice the moment she stopped hiding behind characters and just told the truth. She's excited to share her new film - Influen...

Vlad Khaykin is the Head of North American Advocacy for the Simon Wiesenthal Center (and a former ADL veteran). He approaches antisemitism the way a scientist approaches a virus: studying its architecture, its mutations, and why it keeps infecting new hosts across centuries. This is an episode where you'll learn a tremendous amount about antisemitism's latest "mutation" - Anti-Zi...

Sometimes you run into a guy in his underwear on the streets of NYC and do a mini pod with him! Ham is an artist best known for standing in his underwear & talking to strangers! Learn more about his art on Instagram @sweatpantcity Support our work: buymeacoffee.com/peoplejewwannaknow

This episode is NOT a joke ;). Julia Ain, also known as @qveenjulia, is a funny Jewish girl with big boobs who will make you laugh and blush at the same time. A viral content creator with over 1M followers online, she sits down with Margarita to share her story and reflect on being a proudly Jewish content creator in this crazy time. This episode is for our boobers and boober lovers! Follow Julia...

Scott Piro is a communications strategist and Jewish advocate who has spent years shaping messaging around antisemitism, Israel, and Jewish communal response. After October 7, he went viral for sharing the moment he walked out of a recovery meeting when the conversation turned into the demonization of Jews and Israel. In this episode, we discuss what it takes to make messaging that resonates, why...

Artist, Holocaust scholar, teacher, and devoted single dad, Marc Dennis joins People Jew Wanna Know with stories that sound almost unbelievable—from robberies to life on a Native American reservation and how it all led him to create hyper-realistic art. Follow Marc on Instagram @darcmennis and check out his art at marcdennis.com . Marc's art will be on display on April 18th in Los Angeles. Wha...

Rabbi Mark Wildes of Manhattan Jewish Experience (MJE) joins Margarita to reflect on the debate from the People Jew Wanna Know 2 Year Anniversary Party, talk all things Kiruv, and discuss how young adults make sense of Judaism. Check out MJE at www.jewishexperience.org and follow them on Instagram @mjexperience and @rabbiwildes . Buy Rabbi Wildes' book The Jewish Experience Support our work: b...

Bellamy Bellucci is a sharp, self-aware Jewish activist who doesn’t shy away from calling herself “very insane” while asking some of the hardest questions facing our community today. In this episode, we learn about her incredible story straddling various identities - South-African, trans, Jewish, professional dancer, what can't she be? We discuss the wins & misses of Jewish activism, Bella...

Fleur Hassan‑Nahoum is an Israeli politician, policymaker, and diplomat currently serving as Israel’s Special Envoy for Trade & Innovation and Secretary‑General of Kol Israel in the World Zionist Congress, after completing her tenure as Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem. This episode is a communications masterclass, full of interesting learnings from Fleur's career, her take on the future of Israe...

HBO's One Day In October Co Creator and Producer Daniel Finkelman & Producer Chaya Amor, reconnect with Margarita to discuss the lasting impact of the show & their experience working closely with Oct 7th survivors along with Director and Co-creator Oded Davidoff and Producers Lee Kuperman and Aviv Ben Shlush. Finding a way to make art from trauma is no easy feat, and this episode will...

Traveling by plane, train, and carrier pigeon, comedian Omry Hananya joins People Jew Wanna Know to talk about his unusual upbringing, serving in the IDF, being a professional debater, and how all of that led him to comedy. Follow Omry on Instagram @the_angry_prophet and @omry_hananya_ Support our work: buymeacoffee.com/peoplejewwannaknow What We Discuss: 00:00 Intro & Episode Agenda 02:30 A b...

Inspired by the book The Condition of Jewish Belief , this first-of-its-kind event brings together 4 Rabbis from different Jewish movements for a bold public discussion—and likely some debate—on the most pressing questions facing Jews today: What are the most urgent spiritual or moral questions facing Jews today? What should be the relationship between the Jewish diaspora and Jewish Israelis? In w...

Bonus episode featuring Ben Rozenshteyn, co-owner of Suka Sushi and the entrepreneur behind Immunohealth and Normopharm. You will learn a ton about food insensitivity & welllness in this episode, as well as what it takes to run a viral sushi shop in Manhattan. Follow Suka Sushi on IG @sukasuhi_ny and Ben Rozenshteyn @rozen_ben Check out Immunohealth at www.immunohealth.com Support our work: bu...

Julie Smolyansky is the immigrant founder and CEO of Lifeway Kefir, who turned a family business into a category-defining wellness brand—and did a some truly unhinged things along the way to make it work. In this episode, we talk about our shared Russian-speaking Jewish heritage, grit, raising kids while scaling a company, and how Julie thinks about Jewish leadership and antisemitism today. Follow...

Adam Cohen-Aslatei — CEO of Three Day Rule and founder of the anti-superficial dating app S’More — joins People Jew Wanna Know to talks all things modern dating, why dating apps have failed us and how matchmaking and AI can save us. Together, we discuss how women need to get over their fear of men's heights, the psychology of dating and Materialists . Follow Adam on Instagram at @adamaslatei a...

Beatrice Levine, art historian, digital creator and graduate student pulls back the curtain on the art world - from Nazi-era restitution and Jewish art history to why museums are inherently political spaces. We talk art scandals, post-Oct 7th art, and what it's like for her to manage some of the most influential Jewish pages on social media. Follow Beatrice on Instagram @culturequota and subsc...