From JTD to the Campaign Trail

"I made some great friends at JTD, and I had teachers who were remarkably inspiring, particularly for a kid who was into politics and policy even back then," Goldsmith recalls. He credits teachers like Sally Klapper, Greg Lee, and Joan Friedman with nurturing his early political interests—though he admits that didn’t always make him the coolest kid on the playground.

His favorite JTD traditions remain Carols and the Fair, which he now experiences through his daughter Eliza ‘29 who attends the School. "It was this magical moment that feels both old fashioned and timeless," he says of Carols.

After JTD and Harvard-Westlake, that gap year working for Hillary Clinton's 2000 Senate campaign led to a stint at CNN before starting at Harvard. After his CNN internship, he immersed himself in Harvard's Institute of Politics, where he crossed paths with future political figures including Pete Buttigieg, Elise Stefanik, and Vivek Ramaswamy—all contemporaries who would later emerge across the political spectrum.

Building a Diverse Career

After college came a fellowship through USC studying American political consultants working internationally, then a call from Katie Couric to join her as a writer-researcher when she became the first woman anchor of CBS Evening News. "I covered the 2006 election, the 2008 election, the financial crisis, the war in Iraq, the rise of Obama. We did the Sarah Palin interviews together," he recalls of that busy period.

Law school at Stanford exposed him to Northern California's tech scene, leading to his first startup—Junction, an online investment platform that worked extensively in LA's entertainment industry before being acquired by a European crowdfunding company. He then landed at Yahoo News during Marissa Mayer's efforts to build up the platform, covering the 2016 campaign and early Trump administration.

After Yahoo was acquired, he joined fellow Harvard alum Pete Buttigieg's 2020 presidential campaign.

The Decision to Run

Several factors pushed Goldsmith from covering politics to participating in it. He recognized that California's public services aren't as efficient as they should be. But it was the response to the Palisades and Malibu fires that crystallized his decision to run.

"These fires were completely preventable and were mishandled before, during and after," he says. "I have so many friends who lost their homes or small businesses, whose lives were upended, who are now in a permanent state of war with their insurance companies." Rather than waiting for someone else to step up, he decided to get directly involved in state and local politics.

Campaign Realities

Running for state senate across a district stretching from the Conejo Valley to the South Bay means constant movement. A typical day involves wrangling his children before heading to community meetings, Democratic clubs, or neighborhood events.

The conversations on the trail have been revealing. "There's a lot of concern about public safety, more than I would have expected," he notes, pointing to LAPD staffing that's dropped from 10,000 sworn officers to about 8,500. "We did defund the police in 2020 and the department hasn't fully recovered from that."
Housing affordability is equally pressing. Even longtime residents who bought homes decades ago worry their kids and grandkids won't be able to afford living nearby or accessing good schools.

Skills from Experience

Goldsmith traces his political abilities to lessons learned across his varied career. From journalism, he developed the skill to ask follow-up questions and challenge assumptions. From startup life, he gained empathy for small business owners operating "on the edge" every day. "There's no how-to manual for creating an enterprise from scratch," he reflects.

His mother's advice still guides him: "You have two ears and one mouth and you're supposed to use them in that ratio." He emphasizes being more interested than interesting, rarely making the same mistake twice, and maintaining curiosity about other people's experiences.

Family as Foundation

Goldsmith's biggest source of pride now is his children and being a present father. He and his wife Claire—an educator who advises organizations on pedagogy and technology—prioritize meaningful time with their kids despite busy careers.

His parents gave him the greatest gift: permission to take risks and fail. "My dad said to me at one point, if you're not failing at something, you're probably not trying hard enough," he recalls.

Looking Ahead

With endorsements from Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Rick Caruso, and others, Goldsmith has built what he calls "a really good coalition" of diverse supporters who don't agree on everything but share major priorities. If elected, his top goals are ending the era of encampments and improving K-12 education so every kid tests at or above grade level.

"Campaigns are about the voters, not the candidates," he says. "They're about the future, not the past." It's a philosophy that traces back to those early JTD lessons about asking good questions and thinking critically—skills that have served him from campaign headquarters to newsrooms to the state senate race ahead.

Brian Goldsmith is running for California State Senate District 24. More information about his campaign can be found at briangoldsmith.com.