About
Brian Blum founded Blum Interactive Media in 1996, specializing in writing and multimedia content development. My focus is interviewing interesting people and telling their stories – for print, video and audio. All of my work, even if it’s more technology or business oriented, starts with a one-on-one conversation.
My clients include non-profits (Shavei Israel, Gift of Life); universities (Bar Ilan and JCT); corporate (Teva Pharmaceuticals); and journalism (AIMGroup, Israel21c and The Jerusalem Post). I also have several book editing clients. I have been blogging since 2002 at This Normal Life and for Israelity. More recently, I have been expanding my interviewing work to creating video profiles.
I started my career in radio and studio production in the 1980s. By the 1990s, I had become a leader in the burgeoning multimedia CD-ROM industry. I served as an award-winning producer for a number of leading new media companies, including Mindscape in the U.S. and SuperStudio in Israel, where I managed dozens of health, edutainment and infotainment products.
I was elected the International President of the IICS (the International Interactive Communications Society), the largest professional association for the multimedia industry, in 1992. My book on multimedia, “Interactive Media: Essentials for Success” was published by Ziff Davis Press in 1995. I also taught multimedia at San Francisco State University and the Herziliya Interdisciplinary Center’s Digital Media Studies Program.
When the Internet replaced the CD-ROM business, I founded and served as CEO for Neta4, a VC-backed startup that raised $3.3 million and grew to 25 employees in Israel, New York and San Francisco. In 2000, I joined Jerusalem Global Ventures as Entrepreneur-in-Residence.
In 2001, I became a VP of Marketing for telecommunications provider Comverse where I spoke at industry conferences around the world; served as the company’s liaison to the Mobile Entertainment Forum; and product managed the company’s public-facing website, corporate Intranet and multimedia presentations
Since 2004, I have focused primarily on my writing. My first major client was AIMGroup.com, a consulting firm covering the newspaper industry, classified advertising, interactive media and social networking. I work as an analyst, blogger and editor; my beats have included real estate, automotive, and Canada. I have edited several reports covering Craigslist.
For Shavei Israel, I interview a fascinating mix of Lost Tribes and “Hidden Jews,” such as the Bnei Menashe of India and the Jews of Kaifeng, China. For Bar Ilan University and the Jerusalem College of Technology, I interview scientists and professors doing some of the world’s most cutting edge work in optics, nano-technology, genetics and cancer prevention. For Israel21c, I interview the next generation of hi-tech entrepreneurs at Israeli startups.
In addition to my published book on Interactive Media, I am in the process of publishing a new book on home renovations in Israel (the first of its kind in English) with a focus on iPad and Kindle delivery. I have edited three books: on a rabbi’s crisis of faith; a guide to a successful marriage (written by a marriage counselor); and a fictional work about a young man’s journey through radio and love in the 1950s.
I am one of the veteran bloggers in Israel, launching This Normal Life all the way back in 2002. My freelance writing has appeared in a wide variety of publications including The Jerusalem Report, The Jerusalem Post, Haaretz and Hadassah Magazine.
Given my long interest in radio, I have been engaged in some very enjoyable multimedia projects in the past few years. I wrote and produced the audio for a curriculum to teach Hebrew to English speakers. An audio version of my blog appeared on The Jerusalem Post website for many years. For fun, I host a two-hour weekly music program on Radio Free Nachlaot that presents eclectic, indie, pop, rock and more.
Despite a love of writing, my fascination with technology has led me to create several software endeavors. In addition to Neta4, I built Bloggerce, a free web tool that allowed bloggers to quickly turn selected posts into eBooks; the Streets of Jerusalem, a prototype for 3D map-based video advertising in the Holy City; and iAccomplish, an app for the iPhone and iPad that helps users understand where they spend their time during the day and is based on principles from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). iAccomplish will be available this December on the Apple app store.
I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I “published” a neighborhood newspaper when I was eight-years-old. In my teens, I was already writing for the Millbrae Sun. I earned a B.A. in Creative Writing from Oberlin College and an M.A. in Instructional Technology (with a focus on interface design) from San Jose State University.
I moved to Israel from the San Francisco Bay Area in 1994 and live in Jerusalem with my wife and three children.
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