Isaac spent much of his childhood listening to classic radio programs and creating his own, and he remains an unrepentant radio nerd. He got his start in actualradio in college, as a reporter and DJ at Columbia 's WKCR, after which he interned at NPR News as a fellow at the Washington Center for Politics & Journalism. He's been a producer, newscaster and host at Air America Radio, a newscaster with New York Times Radio, and a host of Newsweek on Air, which he continues to co-host in its new incarnation as For Your Ears Only. Isaac also has a master's in creative writing from Columbia, where he taught freshman writing for two years.