JEFFREY BRODSKY

BRODSKY--Jeffrey H. Jeffrey H. Brodsky, an accomplished journalist and oral historian, passed away July 26, 2023 at age 49 at home after battling an aggressive form of Parkinson's disease for the past decade. Mr. Brodsky was a graduate of Columbia University's inaugural Oral History Master of Arts program, where his journalism contributions are now held in a permanent archive. Born and raised in Manchester, NH, Mr. Brodsky showed his journalistic talent at an early age. As editor-in chief of his high school newspaper, he led the staff in transforming the student publication into a broadsheet format based on The Boston Globe, Mr. Brodsky then secured high profile interviews with all nine candidates for the 1992 Presidential election, including the eventual winner Bill Clinton. His efforts revitalized a stagnant circulation and increased readership to make it the highest-circulated school newspaper in the country at that time. Mr. Brodsky was selected as a national columnist for Youth News Service and was chosen by USA Today to serve on their Advisory Board of Young Adults, where he wrote regular commentary and op-ed pieces. Later, he was one of 20 students selected nationwide for the newspaper's first teen panel. After running a controversial editorial regarding the transparency of student elections, his high school newspaper was shut down. Mr. Brodsky later rallied the state-wide press to get the paper reopened and testified before the New Hampshire House Judiciary committee in Concord about student press rights. Mr. Brodsky received his bachelor's degree in political science from Washington University in St. Louis. Following graduation, he was selected as one of 12 students worldwide for Columbia University's inaugural Oral History Masters Degree program. For his signature oral history project, he interviewed politicians about their first campaign. Mr. Brodsky conducted long-form interviews with over 84 governors, senators and heads of state including Governor Mike Dukakis, Senator George McGovern, civil rights advocate Jesse Jackson, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfield, among many others. The finished historical retrospective was published in the Washington Post and on NPR. In 2015, Columbia University established the Jeffrey H. Brodsky Oral History Award to honor future generations of journalists and historians in conducting innovative and outstanding research. In 2021, Columbia also established a permanent archive to catalog Mr. Brodsky contributions to the fields of journalism and political interviewing. Some of Mr. Brodsky's other high profile political interviews included Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, Israeli President Shimon Peres, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Governor Eliot Spitzer, Mayor David Dinkins, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and future President Donald Trump. Mr. Brodsky was one of the last people to interview 1972 Presidential Nominee George McGovern before McGovern's death in 2012. Mr. Brodsky 's work has appeared in the Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, USA Today, Bloomberg News and the Wall Street Journal. He has also made appearances on CNN, C-Span, and National Public Radio's (NPR) Talk of the Nation. Mr. Brodsky's journalism legacy also lives on in New Hampshire, where he launched The Brodsky Prize in 2018 to encourage out-of-the-box efforts and innovation by a new generation of student journalists. Mr. Brodsky is survived by his father, Howard Brodsky, his mother Kathy Brodsky, his younger brother Greg Brodsky and his nephews Oscar and Benjy Brodsky. His father, Howard Brodsky, is a nationally recognized entrepreneur, and the co-founder of CCA Global Partners. His mother Kathy, with whom Mr. Brodsky shared his birthday, is a clinical social worker, poet, and author of multiple children's books. The family asks that donations be made to the Nackey S. Loeb School of Communications, P.O. Box 4114 Manchester, NH 03108, in honor of Jeff Brodsky. A service to remember his life will be posted at www.jeffbrodsky-memorial com. To leave a message of condolence, please go to www.lambertfuneralhome com.