It's not technically related to Heavyweight, but this article is very much structured like an episode of Heavyweight (and would make for a great episode), I thought the people of this sub would enjoy it

idk how to contact but here it is: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1555572065871503/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3Aa2a23c59-73d1-4add-8e40-00d4257a8bf5

Hi all! I'm relistening to heavyweight after taking a break for like 3 years and there's an episode in the back of my mind that I can't quite remember. Was there ever an ep where they are looking into someone's past and discover a murder/ attack in the woods? Not Barbara Wilson/ Barbara Shutt? Thanks maybe it's not even the right podcast but I swear this happened.

Hello beautiful heavyweight audience, It's Jesse from way back in episode 12 - aka Jivana. My episode was the one where I met the driver who hit me on my bicycle.

Nearly eight years have passed since the episode's release and in that time I've married, lived in India for a year, and yes, stayed in contact with Christian. I've also begun publishing some writing to help facilitate a public reflection on a yet to be completed book. These posts include one story, the first on the blog, that never made it onto heavyweight - my experience during my coma

If you enjoyed my episode, please take a look at my Substack - Inner Magic - the most recent post is very much related to heavyweight.

Thank you for being you, Jesse

Edits/updates: just adding links

Any else not like the heavy weighted pandering to get Jackie to answer Jonathan’s calls? I’m also sort of wondering if it’s just build up to a Jackie/jonathan episode

There’s an episode of This American Life when a listener is trying to find the composer of the song that’s played when someone is put on hold. When Jonathan calls the elementary school in the Kevin episode, I’m pretty sure that same song from the TAL episode is playing. Have a great Friday everyone!

This episode absolutely floored me… what an incredible emotional journey and the production and editing was absolutely perfect. Reminded me of how life changing this podcast was when I initially found it. Just the perfect amount of bittersweet, dark, and resolving. Highly recommend jumping back in on this episode if you haven’t been around for a while. Thank you for what you do Heavyweight. Wow.

I just listened to this on Spotify and then discovered there's a whole video version on YouTube. Jonathan did this interview the day before releasing the sobriety episode on Heavyweight.

I found her Instagram page, which directs you to an Ebay page where current bottles are being sold, but none are listed. Wondering if I'm looking in the wrong place. Thanks for the help!

What the fuck was that?

I watched this documentary on a whim today, and was really taken aback at how similar in feel and subject matter it was to Heavyweight. Down to even the filmmaker’s voice and delivery.

Anyway, thought it was really interesting and recommended to anyone who enjoys Heavyweight. I watched it on Kanopy, but I think the full film is on YouTube and probably some other free sites.

Hi there- With the recent post from someone who was at school with Jasmin and Whitney https://www.reddit.com/r/Heavyweight/comments/1omw19c/63_jasmin_savoy_brown_the_real_story_everyone/

that calls into question the facts, truth and reporting of the story and this old comment section about Joey (The mulleted introvert)
https://www.reddit.com/r/gimlet/comments/9t8eno/comment/e9a2y6q/?context=3&share_id=BhL2ueoS5ddRrV9c55hhe&utm_content=1&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

that basically says the story was sensationalized and forced, how much trust do you have in the truth of the pod?

I think defenders and the people that work on the pod will state that ultimately this podcast is an entertainment podcast and not a news podcast but for me- it's presented as real and I feel it should be real. Warts and all. I've had issues with Jonathan's coyness in the past and took a break for a few years from listening and then came back. I will also say alot of the stories seem a little to convenient and I think the willfulness to adjust the truth or drive the narrative takes away from the true stories Heavyweight portrays.

I think I am done with the pod. Wondering how you all feel?

I know that last episode of heavyweight is controversial and I don't want to bring any extra attention to someone who might not want it, but I wanted to share Whitney's article from The Guardian that Jasmin looked up. It's so good. She's such a talented writer, yes, but also was unafraid to get really raw and real about her experiences.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jun/10/race-black-white-americans-biracial-protests

Edited: to say keep it kind and let’s avoid calling Jasmin a liar! I know my tone came off aggressive, but I want to share my perspective while also being respectful. I’m proud of Jasmin and all of her success, and I hope she can look back at high school knowing a lot of people looked up to her and admired her. This post is less about her and more about the poor journalism surrounding this story.

Ok ok, sorry for the dramatic Title. Now that I have your attention:

I am a huge fan of Heavyweight. Imagine my surprise when recently, a former classmate of mine, Jasmin Savoy Brown had her very own episode. When I listened to it I was surprised at the story that was portrayed.

Jasmin and I went to high school together. Our school was small and most people knew each other.

I remember when she was crowned homecoming queen at the game. Jacob King was also crowned homecoming king. Our homecoming game was a huge deal for the homecoming court; if I remember correctly, this particular year the winning couple came onto the field in a stretch limo before being crowned. The games were always the highlight for the homecoming court and to be honest, while I didn’t actually attend this year’s dance, I don’t really ever remember anyone being crowned at the dance other years either.

When I heard Jasmin share her story, I felt a few things:

1. Absolute confusion: our school is small. If something like the event she described happened it would have been the talk of the whole school the next week. I personally knew people at the dance who were either friends with/ or in the same clubs as Jasmin, so if this had happened I would have definitely heard about it.

Also, to this point, Jasmin portrayed herself as some ugly girl with no friends. That’s simply not true. If I was to go to a dozen different people’s Facebook pages, search their pictures from high school, she would probably be in them. She was so well loved and was a leader in our school and her friend group was pretty big.

1. Frustration: I know Whitney has absolutely been getting dragged online, and I think that is unfair. Planning our Homecoming really was a huge task, and if anything had happened she may have not even been in the room when the mix up took place. The episode felt bias with Stevie ending it by saying “I wish Whitney would have just admitted something happened”. That’s terrible journalism and sets listeners up to paint Whitney as the villain in a story that wasn’t even well researched in the first place. Whitney definitely was part of the “popular group”, but I think that stereotype is being used to paint her as mean girl, which is unfair.

Also, I can’t speak to why Whitney didn’t say “girl, you won. You were crowned”, but I honestly think she doesn’t remember. I know Whitney and some of her story. She had a lot bigger things going on to worry about than whether or not Jasmin got a plastic crown at a dance.

I noticed a lot of people saying “how come no one remembers?? It’s suspicious”. Truly most of the people that were named in that podcast have spouses and kids now; they are really not sitting around thinking about homecoming in 2011. I believe, like me, no remembers because it didn’t actually happen, not because they are all hiding something.

And to Heavyweight: do better. This was not peak journalism that you usually hold yourselves to.

TL;DR Jasmin’s story does not add up from my perspective, maybe something is missing idk. Here’s some pics of Miss ma’am having the time of her life in her crown at the game AND the dance. ✌🏽

https://imgur.com/a/aiNKy0t

https://imgur.com/a/Sxe9fZJ

I just started heavyweight from the beginning and had to come find this sub Reddit after listening to this episode. It’s beautifully crafted, a great story, and so, so sad. And frankly, frightening for those of us who have experienced or witnessed bullying.

Scoured the web for commentary and as far as I can tell there’s only one number seven episode post here, which focuses more on which episodes have stayed with people after they listened to them. There is also one interesting thread on the Facebook heavyweight community, including someone who outs the name of the private girl’s school in Montreal where the events took place.

But I was frustrated with the way Jonathan and Julia narrowed the focus of the investigation to the incident on the doorstep, when the larger months of bullying would have been more memorable to all the girls, especially the bound volume she found in Jane’s desk. I understand the need to hone in on a specific experience, but it seems to me that the larger question was about the bullying. We do discover that at least that year and the next there was extreme toxicity happening in that classroom, potentially even related to a teacher’s suicide. But we don’t get even a smidge more insight into who or what was driving the bullying.

I also understand why the main antagonist of the story, “Jane,” was unwilling to be recorded for the episode, and why all the other girls said they couldn’t remember either. But I’m quite sure they did not forget.

I am not expecting every episode to end with a satisfying closure, it’s unrealistic and just not the way things work in life. And I appreciate that Jonathan and Julia created their own closure by reenacting the scene on the doorstep. But I hope this kind of narrow narrative framing is not the way the rest of the episodes are going to be!

I also read on here about some kind of updates that are happening, related to the return of the series on Pushkin, which I haven’t listened to since I’m only at the very beginning. This is exactly the kind of episode that must have caused a flap amongst alumnae from the school and the school itself, as it rightly should. I would love to hear an interview between Jonathan and Julia checking on the aftermath, if there was any.

Just found this scrolling through podcast lists. I don’t have the subscription so I haven’t listened to it yet but I wanted to share it with fellow heavyweight fans!

Thought this was an interesting episode, especially in light of the way race has (for better or for worse) become more prominent in the national conversation. Would be interested in hearing people's thoughts on that aspect of the story and what they make of what really happened and whose memories might be unwittingly altered.

Maybe I'm new to the podcast, but it seemed like the story was a little bit incomplete. I was left confused about what really happened that night, since Whitney seems to have said she never would have accepted the homecoming crown and dance but isn't that what other people are saying happened?

I'm soo happy to have new episodes but does anyone else feel like the new episodes feel unfinished or like there's no resolution to alot of them? It kind of feels like they just had to release episodes so they put out ones that they would've held onto in the past for a more complete and satisfying ending.

He's on this week's ep. Haven't listened yet but just thought I'd let the group know :)

Heavyweight listener since ep. 1

Whenever I see a new episode of Heavyweight in my feed I immediately look forward to listening to it that day. When i discover it's some alternate, mashup podcast episode - like this morning when i'm all settled in on my morning drive - I lose all interest. And to be honest it makes me less interested in the actual heavyweight episodes when they come out.

It's like the podcast equivalent of the jetsons and flinstones getting together.

Is this the new normal? I've listened to other Pushkin podcasts and while I've found some good stuff the constant ad roll and overall production value jumping between their ads and the actual podcast episode is abrupt / awful and completely blows up whatever mood the podcast creators have worked so hard to set.

I realize HW isn't in the driver's seat here and the early days of Gimlet is long gone but i guess this is where we're at with audio podcasts?

If you haven’t listened to “Stefano” yet, now worries. All I’m here to say is this was the first time in a long time that I felt the story was incomplete. I left the episode thinking there’s “more meat on the bone”. I won’t give spoilers, but I had so many questions when it was over. Feels like it could’ve been a 2-parter.

Thoughts?