AUTHOR / JOURNALIST / EDITOR
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER / PODCAST HOST
Benyamin Cohen
Meet Benyamin
Winner of the Georgia Author of the Year Award
Benyamin Cohen manages the official social media accounts of Albert Einstein. He is the News Director of the Forward and was the founding editor of both Jewsweek and American Jewish Life magazine. Cohen is the author of The Einstein Effect: How the World's Favorite Genius Got into Our Cars, Our Bathrooms, and Our Minds and My Jesus Year: A Rabbi's Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of His Own Faith, which was named one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly and for which he received the Georgia Author of the Year award. He is based in Morgantown, West Virginia, where he lives with his wife, three dogs, a cat, and a flock of chickens known as the Co-Hens.
Book author
The Einstein Effect: How the World's Favorite Genius Got into Our Cars, Our Bathrooms, and Our Minds (Sourcebooks, 2023)
Albert Einstein was the first modern-day celebrity and, decades after his death, still has the world's most recognizable face. His influence is seen in much of the technology we use every day: GPS, remote controls, weather forecasts, even toothpaste. But it's not just his scientific discoveries that continue to shape our world. His legacy underpins the search for aliens, the resuce of refugees, the invention of time machines and the debunking of fake news. He appears in new books, TV shows and movies – and fans are paying millions for Einstein relics at auction.
Cohen embarks on a global quest to unearth Einstein ongoing relevance today. Along the way, he meets scientists and celebrities, speaks to dozens with the last name Einstein (including two rabbis), and even tracks down the brain of Einstein, stolen from his body during the autopsy. Cohen shows us the myriad ways the Nobel Prize winner's influence is still with us, giving an in-depth – and often hilarious – look at the world's favorite genius like you've never seen him before.
Purchase the book on Amazon, Audible, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org or wherever books are sold
"My Jesus Year: A Rabbi's Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of His Own Faith" (HarperOne, 2008)
For his memoir, Benyamin spent 52 Sundays going to 52 different churches of varying denominations: Baptist, Pentecostal, Episcopalian and many more. He danced at a megachurch, attended America's largest Easter service, hung out with Christian wrestlers and kosher gospel singers, went knocking door to door with Mormon missionaries and eventually ended up at a confession booth in a Catholic church.
The book was featured on Good Morning America, CNN, NPR and USA Today. Cohen received the Georgia Author of the Year Award for this book and Publishers Weekly named it one of the best books of the year.
Visit the "My Jesus Year" website >
News director
The Forward
After serving in similar roles at the Mother Nature Network and From The Grapevine, Benyamin became the News Director of The Forward in January, 2021. In that role, he leads the award-winning newsroom and helps build and engage publication's audience.
The Forward was founded in 1897 and is the oldest and most iconic name in American Jewish journalism. The publication's fearless, independent coverage on cultural, social and political issues has made it one of the most influential media outlets in the country.
Sign up for his morning newsletter >
Einstein's digital avatar
Social Media Manager for the World's Favorite Genius
In conjunction with the Albert Einstein Archives, Benyamin helps run the official social media channels for the world's favorite genius on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. On Facebook alone, Einstein has 20 million fans – more than Tom Hanks and Oprah, combined.
In this role, Benyamin serves as one of the caretakers of Einstein's legacy – traveling across continents to meet people who are inspired by the man Time Magazine called the Person of the Century.
Benyamin's book about the modern relevance of Einstein goes on sale July 18, 2023, and is available for pre-order now.
Podcast host
"That Jewish News Show" (2023)
Hosts Laura E. Adkins, the Forward's opinion editor, and Benyamin Cohen, its news director, bring you beyond the headlines and interview the newsmakers behind those stories.
"Our Friend from Israel" (2018-2020)
An interview show featuring intriguing Israelis from across industries: artists, athletes, academics, actors and even an alien hunter.
"Hadassah on Call: New Frontiers in Medicine" (2019-2022)
An interview show featuring medical experts from Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, discussing the latest advancements in each of their fields.