Life After News
What happens when the newsroom lights go out—and life begins again?
Life After News explores the raw, funny, and deeply human stories of journalists who’ve walked away from the adrenaline of breaking news to reinvent themselves in surprising ways. Hosted by former TV news director Jason Ball, the podcast goes behind the headlines to talk with anchors, reporters, producers, and executives about identity, resilience, and what it takes to start over.
From career pivots to personal awakenings, these conversations reveal how the skills learned under deadline pressure translate into entirely new chapters of life. It’s not just about leaving the news—it’s about discovering what comes after.
Whether you’re in media, on the edge of a career change, or just fascinated by reinvention, Life After News is your invitation to listen in, learn, and maybe imagine your own next chapter.
Life After News
Strip Clubs, Sedated Puppies & Hidden Cameras: Inside David Goldstein’s Wildest Investigations
If David Goldstein showed up at your door, you were having a bad day. For decades, the longtime Los Angeles investigative reporter exposed corruption, waste, and abuse from LA city workers drinking and hitting strip clubs on the clock, to pet stores sedating puppies to make them easier to sell, to delivery drivers snacking on your food before it got to your door.
Now two years into retirement from KCBS/KCAL, David joins Jason to talk about the real work behind those headline-making investigations: the stakeouts that lasted weeks, the legal tightrope of hidden cameras and two-party consent, the adrenaline of on-camera confrontations, and the toll the job takes on your brain and your life.
They also get into what happens when the story is your own house, after the Palisades fire, and why the future of investigative journalism may depend on nonprofit newsrooms stepping in where TV budgets are stepping back.
About David Goldstein
David Goldstein is a longtime investigative reporter who spent decades at KCBS and KCAL in Los Angeles. His reporting exposed corruption, taxpayer waste, and consumer abuses across Southern California — leading to firings, early retirements, new policies, and even changes in state law. Known for his hidden-camera work and on-the-street confrontations, David built a career on stories that didn’t just make noise — they made change.
Stay Connected
If you’re listening along with Life After News as we close out the year, Jason wants to hear from you:
- What do you think of the show so far?
- Who would you like to hear as a guest?
- Is there a direction you’d like the show to explore in 2025?
Send your feedback, guest ideas, or big swings you want us to take and if you’re enjoying these conversations, please follow, rate, and review the podcast so more people can find Life After News.
Let Life After News inspire your next chapter. Because leaving the news doesn’t mean the story’s over—it means a new one’s just beginning.