Rob Kutner

Rob Kutner is not the most, shall we say, “traditionally male-coded” of men. He’s the family cook, he cried more than his wife did at their son’s recent Bar Mitzvah, and as for sports – when a cousin recently sent him a picture of his new Kansas City Chiefs jersey, his first response was, “Ah yes, Taylor’s fiancee’s team!” These are interesting times for men, to say the least. For Jewish men, when they look back to the Jewish Patriarchs, it’s hard to know how to model themselves. That’s why Kutner is co-hosting Mamas’ Boys, a new podcast devoted to “Jewish men having real talk.” The very first command that Abraham, the O.G. Jewish man-bro, was given was Lech Lecha, which the Rabbis have often interpreted to mean “Go into yourself.” It’s been 4,000 years, but Abe, I think we’re finally ready to go there. Read more about the new Mamas’ Boys podcast.

When comedy writer Rob Kutner decided to write a new comedic history of the Jews, The Jews: 5,000 Years and Counting, he figured he had enough experience making depressing political news funny that he could navigate the complicated history. But then October 7 happened, forcing him to rethink everything. In a blog for Reboot, Kutner explains how he grappled with the new challenge by embracing some advice from his editor: “We’ve been through worse. We’re not going anywhere.” He realized Jews have continued to grow, pivot, and flourish even in the face of every pressure not to. Learning about, arguing about, and yes, even joking about the worst things that have been done to us (and sometimes by us) can all be invaluable steps forward on our people’s never-ending mission to try and make things better. Read more from Kutner here.