Stephen Joseph Dubner

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_J._Dubner

Stephen J. Dubner (born August 26, 1963) is an American journalist who has written seven books and numerous articles. Dubner is best known as co-author (with economist Steven Levitt) of the pop-economics book Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, its 2009 sequel, SuperFreakonomics and its 2014 sequel Think Like a Freak.

Contents [show] Background[edit] His parents were born Solomon Dubner and Florence Greenglass.[2] His mother was the first cousin of Ethel Greenglass Rosenberg. His father worked as a copy editor at The Troy Record.[1] His parents, separately, converted to Catholicism from Judaism. After their baptism, they renamed themselves Paul and Veronica. Dubner grew up in Duanesburg, New York, the youngest of eight children, and received a devout Roman Catholic upbringing.[2]

Dubner has explained his own choice to practice Judaism as an adult as follows: "I did not grow up Jewish, but my parents did....But for my parents—and now, for me, as I am becoming a Jew—there is a pointed difference. We have chosen our religion, rejecting what we inherited for what we felt we needed."[2]

Dubner's first published work was in the American children's magazine Highlights for Children.[3] Dubner received a scholarship from Appalachian State University in North Carolina, and graduated in 1984.[citation needed] At Appalachian he formed a band, "The Right Profile," which was signed to Arista Records.[4] In 1988, he stopped playing music to focus more on writing, going on to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Writing from Columbia University (1990), where he also taught in the English Department.[5] In the 1990s, Dubner was a story editor at The New York Times Magazine.[1]

Dubner, married twice,[1] currently resides in New York City with his wife, Ellen Binder-Dubner, and their two children.

Dun Cow FC[edit] Dubner is also the principal sponsor, through Freakonomics Radio, of an English Sunday League side from Shrewsbury called Dun Cow FC, after being contacted by the club's Media Manager Alex Simpson.[6] The first season of Freakonomics sponsorship saw Dun Cow finish as runner-up in Division Four and get promoted to Division Three.

Books[edit] Turbulent Souls: A Catholic Son’s Return to His Jewish Family (1998, ISBN 0-380-72930-X) Republished as Choosing My Religion: a Memoir of a Family Beyond Belief (2006, ISBN 0061132993) Confessions of a Hero-Worshiper (2003) (ISBN 0-688-17365-9)[7] Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, co-author with Steven Levitt (2005) (ISBN 0-06-089637-X) The Boy With Two Belly Buttons, a children’s book, (HarperCollins, 2007) (ISBN 978-0061134029)[8] SuperFreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance, co-author with Steven Levitt (2009) (ISBN 0-060-88957-8) Think Like a Freak: The Authors of Freakonomics Offer to Retrain Your Brain, co-author with Steven Levitt (2014) (ISBN 0-062-21833-6) When to Rob a Bank: ...And 131 More Warped Suggestions and Well-Intended Rants, co-author with Steven Levitt (2015) (ISBN 0-062-38532-1)

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/nyregion/how-stephen-j-dubner-of...:

Nov. 10, 2017

Stephen J. Dubner, the co-author of the best-selling book “Freakonomics,” is also the host of the public radio show “Freakonomics Radio” as well as the podcast “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know.” The latter, a brainy game show, has a dedicated fact checker, and features guests who discuss their knowledge of niche subjects like the origin of seltzer or robotic fish. Mr. Dubner, 54, lives on the Upper West Side with his wife, Ellen Binder (“She was going to hyphenate her name when we got married, but we decided Binder-Dubner sounded too much like ‘been there, done that,’” Mr. Dubner said); their two children, Solomon, 17, and Anya, 15; and the family Havanese, Fifi.

BREAK OF DAWN I like to sleep in a little bit, so I’ll get up at 6 or 6:30. During the week I’m up at 5. I grew up on a farm, so I like the quiet predawn. I’ll go out and let the dog off the leash in Central Park, when you can do that. Then I try to make a big breakfast right around the time everyone is waking up. I find the smell of bacon is the world’s best alarm clock. And once in a while, if I know nobody’s going to be up and around, I’ll go play golf at Saint Andrew’s Golf Club in Hastings-on-Hudson. I love playing alone. And it’s fast, so I’d usually be home by 9:30 or 10.

“They may want to use me a lot, or they may want to use me zero,” said Mr. Dubner of the time he spends with his teenage kids. Here he helps his daughter, Anya, with homework.CreditDaniel Tepper for The New York Times

TEEN SUPPORT From there, the way the day unfolds depends on what the rest of the family is doing. The thing I try most not to do is to have a routine. What I mean by that is that with kids who are teenagers, they have a lot going on. They have homework, and they’re preparing for the SAT, and I’ve been working a lot during the week, so I try to be around for them. They may want to use me a lot, or they may want to use me zero.

THE BEAUTIFUL GAME But there are different components of things I might do on a Sunday. For instance, my son is a soccer fanatic. We support FC Barcelona, the Barcelona football club. A few years ago a chapter of their fan club started in New York, and I think they’re the biggest fan club outside of Catalonia or Barcelona. So they’ll have events sometimes on Sunday, and the two of us will go down to this club in Chelsea called Smithfield Hall. We’ll go down there and drink beers — he doesn’t, I do — and that’s a good Sunday, if we can spend a few hours with Penya FC Barcelona. I guess “penya” means “club” or “fan,” I don’t even know. Sunday is also when my son and I record our soccer podcast, called “Footy for Two.” It’s basically him espousing his passion and educating me at the same time.

EATING ADVENTURES With my daughter I’m really just trying to be ready to do whatever feels good. On a dream Sunday we’ll go shopping for food and spend the whole afternoon cooking dinner. There’s a really good farmers’ market right out the door on Columbus Avenue, and what we make may depend on what they’re selling. We usually try every time to eat something weird and exotic one of us has never eaten before. A couple of weeks ago, that was star fruit, because the kids had never had it. Half the family is into eating meats that aren’t typical meats. That’s the men. The women are much more into eating known and unknown vegetables. But that works out, too.

TICK, TICK, TICK Another aspiration is for all four of us to watch “60 Minutes” on Sunday night. Even though the show handles heavy, serious topics, it somehow bridges the gap. It’s TV, so it’s very accessible, and a nice way to get the kids thinking about politics a little bit more.

ALL IN THE FAMILY I try to contact one of my siblings, usually by phone. I’m the youngest of eight, and it’s hard to be in touch with everyone all the time, so I do a rotation. It’s a very peace-inducing connection for me. Family is easily the most important component of my life. To me there’s no substitute for that emotional connection. The call with my siblings is like putting a bow on the beginning of the week: knowing you’re all about to get sent out as these little paper boats on some rocky sea into the world, but you’re buffeted all around by family. And hopefully that strength will sustain you.

Sunday Routine readers can follow Stephen J. Dubner on Twitter @Freakonomics and @tmsidk_show