The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
South Beach Sessions – Jacob Soboroff
Date: January 8, 2026
Recorded at: The Elser Hotel, Downtown Miami
Episode Overview
This rich, deeply human episode of South Beach Sessions features journalist and author Jacob Soboroff. The discussion orbits around Soboroff’s latest book, Firestorm: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster, which threads together personal loss, the realities of disaster and climate change, and the intersection of journalism with truth, hope, and policy. Le Batard and Soboroff dive into tough questions about the media’s credibility, immigration, the emotional toll of reporting trauma, and how optimism survives in cataclysmic times.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Jacob Soboroff’s Journey: Journalism, Connection, and Purpose
- Roots in Civic Life: Soboroff recounts growing up in Los Angeles, being a “theater kid,” and having parents active in civic life (03:40).
- Catalyst for Career Change: 9/11 spurred him to switch from acting to politics at NYU, eventually interning for Mayor Bloomberg and segueing into journalism and media (03:40–05:47).
- The Pursuit of Connection: Describes his deep need to connect with people, from Bloomberg’s office calls to meeting strangers on polling lines or war zones (08:53–09:34).
- Learning from Huell Hauser: Inspired by the inclusive Californian TV host and his respect for every person’s story (02:27).
“There’s gotta be something with me deep down where there’s something about connecting with other people…the shared humanity that we have.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [08:53]
2. Journalism and Its Human Core
- Soboroff’s Self-View: Initially reluctant to call himself a journalist, now embraces the term as a commitment to fact-gathering and conveying “facts on the ground” honestly (13:14).
- Objective Reporting and Its Limits: Both Le Batard and Soboroff acknowledge the subjectivity inherent to human experience and reporting.
- Journalism’s Role: Soboroff cites Cronkite—journalism as holding a mirror to society (15:28).
“We all can tell a story…Are you being fair in how you describe it? Are you giving as much information as possible…?”
— Jacob Soboroff, [14:35]
3. Immigration, Family Separation & America’s Moral Flashpoints
- Policy Through the Decades: Soboroff emphasizes that US border policy, regardless of party, has long been punitive and relies on deterrence (16:17).
- Trump’s Family Separation Policy: Widely condemned as cruelty, it starkly revealed America’s “X-ray vision” for injustice (16:17–17:35).
- Ongoing Reality: “Mass deportation” is current family separation, just under a new name—impacting millions, not just the “worst of the worst” (28:38–29:35).
“If you hate it in 2018, open your eyes and see what’s going on all around us right now.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [28:38]
- The Human Toll: Soboroff’s vivid memories from detention centers haunt him, but he asserts these should not be forgotten (21:03–22:45).
“There are 5,500 children that were separated deliberately for no other reason than to harm them... Physicians for Human Rights called it government sanctioned child abuse… It met the definition of torture from the United Nations.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [22:45]
4. Misinformation, Disinformation, and Media Distrust
- Media's Declining Credibility: Le Batard laments how “fake news” accusations, confirmation bias, and fractured media have undercut trust—even for deeply ethical reporters like Soboroff (33:28–34:51).
- Bubble Mentality: People increasingly find media that matches their worldview, making impartial reporting harder to cut through; Spanish-language radio and online platforms are cited as examples of this fragmentation (35:16–36:24).
- Journalists’ Mission: Despite cynicism, Soboroff finds hope in serving an audience craving fact-based, empathetic storytelling (24:25; 38:52).
“I’m not going to win everybody over. But what I can control is what I can control…I’m here if they want it.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [38:52]
Book Deep Dive: Firestorm: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster
5. Personal Loss and Collective Disaster
- Reckoning with Destruction: Soboroff’s childhood home burned in the Palisades fires. This personal loss, and seeing his neighborhood “carbonize,” catalyzed reflection on the broader crises of climate-fueled disasters (01:05–01:35; 40:35–43:26).
- The Book’s Purpose: Not a detective hunt for arson, but a people-centered story about surviving—and learning from—the most expensive wildfire event in US history (40:35; 43:26).
- Misinformation’s Role: Politicians—Trump, Elon Musk, Stephen & Katie Miller—used the disaster for political gain and spread disinformation, worsening recovery and response (40:35–43:47).
“As I watched so many people go through so much…there were people out there who could be using the Internet and their megaphones as government officials, fanning the flames of pain…That bothers me.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [43:47]
6. Resilience, Community, and Hope Amid Disaster
- Unexpected Grace: Despite devastation, Soboroff found stories of firefighters, scientists, day laborers, and regular citizens working together in crisis—a reminder of human resilience and solidarity (49:48–51:16).
- Helpers and Healing: The “prevailing emotions” Soboroff reports are not despair or anger, but selflessness and hope. Examples include firefighters risking their lives and ordinary residents helping their communities (51:16–53:48).
- Personal Catharsis: Writing the book allowed Soboroff to process his own grief and rediscover pride and hope in his city and neighbors (58:53–62:49).
“There is no more human story than being at the center of something like this…there is hope. We all do feel. I think people will walk away saying this is extremely complicated…But…there are people out there who have decided in the wake of this to make it their life’s mission to try to…make sure nothing like this ever happens again.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [53:48]
- The Parakeet Allegory: He recounts resilient parakeets returning to a burnt landscape, a poignant metaphor for Los Angeles’ endurance (56:05).
- Emotional High Points: The stories that moved him most: sacrifices made by firefighters, and the closeness of families like Herb and Loida Wilson—a couple separated from their home, united in heartbreak and resilience (69:28–72:36).
Climate Change, Disasters, and the Future
7. The “New Age of Disaster”: Now, Not Later
- Present-Day Apocalypse: Soboroff rejects the idea that climate catastrophe is a far-off threat; droughts, fires, hurricanes, and migration crises fueled by disaster are happening now (76:25).
- Global Impact, Local Stories: Reports from Guatemala (crop failures), Greenland (ice melt), and Florida (hurricanes) demonstrate a pattern of escalating, interconnected crises (76:25).
- Misinformation Amplifies Disaster: Politically motivated disinformation worsens both response and long-term recovery from climate-fueled disasters (40:35–43:47).
- Hope Through Action: The book surfaces those who turn disaster into public service, from fire scientists to candidates running for office after losing their homes (53:48; 55:50–56:05).
“If you want to understand what the future looks like, pick up this book and read it.”
— Jacob Soboroff, [78:06]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On the power and pain of journalism:
“There is no purer form of love than trust…I have felt so loved writing this book by the people that I’ve met and by the connections that I have forged…”
— Jacob Soboroff, [72:46] -
On the cost of telling hard truths:
“Those are the types of people that call me on social media, snowflake. But you know who the real snowflake is? The person who doesn’t want to hear anything else about anybody else’s pain or feelings or…truth.”
[73:50] -
On optimism in the face of devastation:
“It encapsulates sort of how I feel about the fires as a whole…We’re a resilient bunch here in LA. And I’ve never been prouder to be an Angeleno.”
[56:05] -
On personal loss and memory:
“I lost all my memories. They’re still up here, but they burned up with everything else. And that’s true of everybody on Altadena, too. And so it’s grief…This book’s a gift to my family as much as it is a gift to myself…”
[58:53–62:46]
Important Segments & Timestamps
- [01:35] – Title & premise of Soboroff’s book
- [03:40] – Soboroff’s entry into politics and journalism after 9/11
- [08:53] – The deep need for connection and empathy in his work
- [13:14] – Embracing the identity of a journalist and what it means in practice
- [16:17] – U.S. immigration policy and the reality of family separation
- [21:03] – The emotional and psychological toll of reporting trauma
- [24:25] – Audience demand for truth and the existence of supportive journalism communities
- [28:38] – “Mass deportation is family separation supersized”
- [40:35] – Writing Firestorm: connecting personal loss, disaster, and politics
- [49:48] – Stories of resilience and hope amidst destruction
- [56:05] – The parakeet allegory: hope in survival and return
- [62:46] – Processing grief, memory, and the meaning of home through writing
- [69:28] – Most emotional parts: chronicling others’ stories of loss and hope
- [73:50] – Taking criticism as motivation; empathy as strength
- [76:25] – Climate disaster is now, not next century
Tone, Style, and Takeaways
Soboroff’s presence is earnest, empathetic, and undauntedly hopeful—he treats even grief as a wellspring for connection and purpose. Le Batard’s tone is one of deep inquiry, sometimes exasperated at society’s failings—but always seeking clarity, justice, and optimism. The episode seamlessly weaves personal narrative, investigative reporting, and a direct challenge to listeners’ passivity in the face of disaster and division.
Summary Takeaway for Listeners
This episode is both a sobering look at America’s converging crises—climate change, immigration, distrust in media—and a heartfelt meditation on how individuals and communities navigate, survive, and hope through them. Soboroff’s Firestorm serves as both a chronicle of disaster and a testament to resilience, urging us to pay attention, seek connection, and demand better from ourselves and our society.