TC Jewfolk’s Most Read, Listened To Of 2023

This is the time of the year when I take a deep dive into Google Analytics and take a look at what you, faithful readers of TC Jewfolk, chose to read. I’ve got to say I legitimately forgot some of these stories were this year. That’s what life since Oct. 7 has been like for so many of us, particularly those of in the Jewish news business.

But thanks to you, our readership has increased more than 20 percent from last year. We’ve published more than 380 pieces of content on the website alone this year, more than we ever have before.

We do this not because the work is easy; it’s not. The emotional swings are wild at times. I wrote about meeting the 8th-grade class from the Suburban Detroit day school I went to – including the grandson of my middle school Hebrew teacher – on the edge of Ramon Crater in Israel. And then hours later writing about the passing of beloved Rabbi Sim Glaser, and updating the story with quotes from his colleagues while sitting on a bus somewhere in the Negev.

But this is what being the Twin Cities’ indispensable source of local Jewish news is about. Telling the stories that inform, connect and engage. Some are stories that uplift. Some are stories that enrage. Some tell hard truths when we don’t want to hear them. But all are a part of the fabric that makes our Jewish community what it is.

So without further ado, here’s the most-read new content each month:

January: Bet Shalom Hosting Sing-A-Long Of Debbie Friedman’s Music

February: Orono Mayor Minimized Holocaust; Council Member Fundraised For Proud Boys

March: Holocaust, Genocide Education Mandate Passes First Hurdle

April: Temple Israel Announces Passing Of Rabbi Sim Glaser

May: Sophie Stillman’s Journey From Minneapolis To The IDF

June: Talmud Torah of St. Paul Closes Its Day School

July: ElMar’s Bagel Pop-Ups Taking Off In Plymouth

August: Near-Death Experience Leads To Family Forcing Legislative Action

September: Holocaust-Denying School Board Candidate Shows Up At TC Synagogues

October: Netta Epstein, Former Herzl Camper & Ozo, Killed In Hamas Attack

November: Mitchell Hamline School of Law Facing Calls Of Antisemitism

December: Minneapolis’ Leslie Fhima Not Chosen In Emotional ‘Golden Bachelor’ Finale

Most Listened to Podcasts

Who The Folk?! Emma Nadler

The Jews Are Tired: Babka Social (with Serge from Babka)

Not Your Bubbe’s Nosh: Jewish Fusion And OMG! Yummy (with Beth Lee)

This was a big year for the Jewfolk family, formally launching our Cincy Jewfolk platform and bringing on Sam Fisher as our editor in the Queen City. TC Jewfolk also won three Simon Rockower Awards for Jewish Journalism at the American Jewish Press Association’s annual conference this summer in New Orleans, competing in a category against the largest digital Jewish media organizations in the country:

Thank you so much for your support. Whether it was reading, listening, donating, commenting or sharing, we really appreciate you being a part of our community. Your donations are vital to our ongoing success and have enabled us to reach so many of you, whether online or in real life.

And whether you’re a daily reader, catch up in our weekly newsletter, listen to our podcasts or engage with us on social media, you are a part of the Jewfolk community, a reason why we’re able to grow and get better each year. We thank you for your contributions and conversations and just generally being part of our world. We’re honored that you made us part of yours.