Here I Am With Shai Davidai
Hosted by Shai Davidai
An Israeli professor at Columbia, who went viral for a campus speech, interviews Jewish and allied voices on antisemitism and identity post-Oct 7.
This is an interview show born from a specific political and cultural moment. The host, an academic who became a prominent activist figure, uses his platform to have what he calls "complicated conversations" with Jewish leaders, activists, and allies. The discussions center on Jewish identity, rising antisemitism, and inter-community dynamics, almost always viewed through the lens of the post-October 7th reality.
“The show is hyper-focused on the post-October 7th experience, hosted by a central figure in the campus antisemitism debate. It stands out by directly tackling "third rail" topics and internal community disagreements, rather than presenting a monolithic viewpoint.”
Who hosts this show
Shai Davidai is an Israeli assistant professor, formerly at Columbia Business School, specializing in social psychology. He gained widespread public attention following the October 7th attacks for a viral speech criticizing Columbia University's administration for its response to what he termed "pro-terror student organizations". This activism became the foundation for his podcast, which explores the rising tide of antisemitism through discussions with prominent Jewish and allied voices.
Credentials & credits
- Former Assistant Professor, Columbia Business School (2019-2025)
- PhD in Social Psychology, Cornell University
- Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Princeton University
- Former Assistant Professor of Psychology, The New School for Social Research
- B.A. in Psychology and Cognitive Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Other ventures
- Author, "American Intellectual Antisemitism" (forthcoming)
- Creator, "Pragmatic Judaism" podcast
- Here I Am (Zionist activist community)
What kind of podcast
When new episodes drop
- 01
- 02
- 03
- 04
- 05
- 06
- 07
- 08
Notable episodes
- 01The Muslim Woman Who Stood for Israel and Lost Everything Because of It | Muslim Activist Anila Ali
Features a prominent Muslim activist offering a powerful interfaith perspective, describing her religion as being 'hijacked' and her father's advice that her 'best allies are the Jewish people.'
- 02Queer Spaces Say "No Zionists Allowed." This Queer Activist Built a New One | Co-founder Nate Shalev
Directly confronts the complex and painful fractures within progressive spaces post-October 7th, exploring the intersection of LGBTQ+ identity, Judaism, and Zionism.
- 03Jews Only Show Their Best in Crisis. We Must Learn to Do It in Peace | Rabbi Chaim Steinmetz
Focuses on internal Jewish community dynamics, using the memorable frame of the Jewish people being both 'loving' and 'irritating' to discuss the challenges of unity.
What you'll be asked on this show
Davidai often opens with a broad, identity-defining question, most notably his signature, "What kind of a Jew are you?" He also uses variations like, "What are you fighting for?" to get to a guest's core mission. A key technique is to seize on a guest's specific word choice (e.g., "You used the word 'irritating'; can you elaborate?") to probe for deeper meaning. He frequently pauses the narrative to ask for definitions of terms to establish a shared vocabulary for his audience. Davidai explicitly frames his interviews as a space for "complicated conversations" and "touching on third rails," connecting guests' personal histories to broader societal trends and moments of conflict.
It's a single-host, long-form interview show. Davidai often opens with a signature identity question to frame the conversation. He explicitly states his desire to explore "complicated" topics and frequently asks guests to define terms (like pronouns or slang) for the audience, ensuring a baseline of understanding.
Questions Shai Davidai keeps coming back to
13 cataloguedIf you're going on this show as a guest, expect some version of each of these. Each note explains when Shai Davidai reaches for it.
personal
3- Q.01
“What kind of a Jew are you?”
This is the show's signature opening question, used to frame the guest's core identity from the start.
- Q.02
“What are you fighting for?”
A broad opening question used to get to the core of a guest's mission and purpose.
- Q.03
“Do you remember where you were when 9/11 happened?”
Uses a classic journalistic question to ground a major historical event in personal memory.
origin
2- Q.01
“If we had met on October 6, 2023, who were you and what were you like?”
Establishes a "before" picture to highlight the profound changes brought by a pivotal event.
- Q.02
“Why is there a need for [your march] when there is already [a bigger march]?”
Challenges the guest to articulate the unique purpose of their project or community against a larger backdrop.
process
2- Q.01
“Can you explain [term] for the audience?”
He frequently asks guests to define terms like pronouns, slang, or historical concepts to ensure listener comprehension.
- Q.02
“What did the difficult conversations look like?”
Asks about the process of navigating internal conflict within a group or movement.
technique
1- Q.01
“You used the word '[specific word]'; can you elaborate?”
A technique to probe deeper into a guest's specific word choice and underlying meaning.
mindset
1- Q.01
“How do you stay loving when people are irritating?”
Seeks to understand the guest's personal mindset for navigating internal community conflict and disagreement.
advice
1- Q.01
“How can a regular person push back against propaganda?”
Seeks actionable advice for the audience on a major theme of the show.
controversy
2- Q.01
“And then what changed?”
A simple but effective question used to pinpoint the turning point in a guest's narrative.
- Q.02
“Why would someone be blind to antisemitism because they're afraid of being accused of Islamophobia?”
Explores the psychological and ideological underpinnings of political blind spots.
future
1- Q.01
“How do we get world Jewry involved even in times of peace?”
Looks beyond the current crisis to ask about the challenges of long-term community engagement.
Signature segments
- · Opening question: "What kind of a Jew are you?"
- · Show intro: "Here I Am with Shai Davidai"
Topics covered repeatedly
Who gets booked here
Guests are typically Jewish or allied leaders, academics, artists, and activists who are publicly engaged in conversations about Jewish identity, antisemitism, or interfaith relations. Most guests have a distinct perspective on or role they have played in the post-October 7th landscape.
- Nate Shalevon Queer Spaces Say "No Zionists Allowed." This Queer Activist Built a New One | Co-founder Nate Shalev
- Rabbi Chaim Steinmetzon Jews Only Show Their Best in Crisis. We Must Learn to Do It in Peace | Rabbi Chaim Steinmetz
- Anila Alion The Muslim Woman Who Stood for Israel and Lost Everything Because of It | Muslim Activist Anila Ali
- Rebecca Schgallison Your Kid's Textbook May Be Lying to Them | Rebecca Schgallis & David Litman from CAMERA
- David Litmanon Your Kid's Textbook May Be Lying to Them | Rebecca Schgallis & David Litman from CAMERA
- Dr. Miri Bar Halperinon Your Therapist May Be Making Your Jewish Trauma Worse | Trauma Specialist Dr. Miri Bar Halperin
- Ari Frenkelon Artists Who Share Every Opinion Are Hurting Their Own Work | Actor & Filmmaker Ari Frenkel
Where to find this show
Audience & reach
The episodes analyzed do not contain any evidence of sponsors or advertisements.
Subscriber and view counts are pulled live from YouTube and re-verified on a 30-day cycle. Listener estimates for the RSS feed aren't published here unless they're host-verified.
Pitch Shai Davidai
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People also ask
- Who is the host, Shai Davidai?
- Shai Davidai is an Israeli social psychologist and former assistant professor at Columbia Business School who became a prominent activist voice against campus antisemitism after a speech he gave went viral in October 2023.
- What is the main focus of the podcast?
- The podcast explores the rise in antisemitism and evolving Jewish identity following the October 7th attacks, through long-form interviews with Jewish and allied leaders, academics, and activists.
- Is the podcast still running?
- Yes, it appears to release new episodes on a weekly basis.
- What is the format of the show?
- It is a single-host interview show, featuring one-on-one conversations that are typically over an hour long.
- How can I pitch a guest for the show?
- The podcast description and public information do not provide a direct method for pitching guests.
- Where can I listen to the podcast?
- The podcast is available on major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Built from the show's public RSS feed, YouTube, the host's own websites, and the cited sources below. Computed and AI-extracted fields are labelled. Facts only — no private info, no fabrication, no transcripts republished.
Sources & how this page was built
This page is AI-assisted, grounded in the public sources cited below, and host-verifiable. We publish facts only; we do not republish transcripts. If anything here is wrong, the host can claim and correct the page above.Model: gemini-2.5-pro · high confidence
- [01]Shai Davidai | Columbia Business Schoolbusiness.columbia.edu
- [02]Here I Am With Shai Davidai - Apple Podcastspodcasts.apple.com
- [03]Official Website | Shai Davidaishaidavidai.com
- [04]Who Is Shai Davidai? The Columbia Professor Protesting Protesters - TIMEtime.com
- [05]Shai Davidai - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- [06]Columbia professor takes on antisemitism | The Jerusalem Postjpost.com
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