Josh Bernstein (born February 24, 1971) is an American explorer, author, executive producer,

survival Survival, or the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things (or, hypotheti ...

expert, anthropologist, and TV host best known as the host of '' Digging for the Truth''. He later appeared for one season as the host of the Discovery Channel's '' Into the Unknown with Josh Bernstein''.

Personal life

Josh Bernstein was born and raised in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, and attended the

Horace Mann School , motto_translation = Great is the truth and it prevails , address = 231 West 246th Street , city = The Bronx , state = New York , zipcode = 10471 , countr ...

. In 1989, he went to

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

where he double-majored in

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...

and

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

, and double minored in Native American and

Near Eastern Studies Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studie ...

. He served two terms as president of the Beta Theta chapter of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. After graduating from college, he spent a year in a post-graduate program in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

studying, among other things,

mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ...

and ancient texts. He is Jewish. His father was born in

's Old City, and his paternal grandparents and great-grandparents are buried in Israel. Bernstein's father died of a heart attack six weeks before Bernstein's 15th birthday. A year later, his three-year-old sister was killed in an automobile accident. Bernstein has an identical twin brother, Andrew. Bernstein is a fellow of

The Explorers Club The Explorers Club is an American-based international multidisciplinary professional society with the goal of promoting scientific exploration and field study. The club was founded in New York City in 1904, and has served as a meeting point fo ...

and the Royal Geographical Society. He is a passionate traveler, technical SCUBA diver, and professional photographer, with published credits in

Vogue magazine ''Vogue'' is an American monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine that covers many topics, including haute couture fashion, beauty, culture, living, and runway. Based at One World Trade Center in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, ''Vogu ...

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

Men's Health ''Men's Health'' (''MH''), published by Hearst, is the world's largest men's magazine brand, with 35 editions in 59 countries. It is also the best-selling men's magazine on U.S. newsstands. Started as a men's health magazine by Rodale, Inc. ...

, Self, Marie Claire,

Men's Fitness ''Men's Fitness'' was a men's magazine published by American Media, Inc and founded in the United States in 1987. The premier issue featured Michael Pare from the television series '' The Greatest American Hero''. The magazine's slogan was "How ...

, Outside, and Backpacker magazines. Bernstein was briefly married to Lily Snyder of Sotheby's, Manhattan. They were married in a ceremony in Jerusalem, Israel, in September 2011 but divorced in 2013.

Professional life

The History Channel: ''Digging for the Truth''

''Digging for the Truth'' was an adventure-archaeology series on

The History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

exploring ancient mysteries around the world. The series premiered with Bernstein as host in January 2005 and became the highest-rated series in the history of The History Channel. Season 3 premiered on January 22, 2007, again setting a record for the network with the highest-rated series/season premiere to date (over 2.1 million viewers). The April 16, 2007, episode marked Bernstein's final appearance as host of Digging for the Truth. The series continued for a 4th season without Bernstein before it was removed from primetime and then cancelled. ''Digging for the Truth: One Man's Epic Adventure Exploring the World's Greatest Archaeological Mysteries'' is a print companion to the television series, authored by Bernstein, that reveals much more of the personal trials and challenges he faced making the series. It received critical acclaim and was released in hardcover in Winter 2006, and paperback in the Fall, 2007.

Boulder Outdoor Survival School

In addition to his former role as host of ''Digging for the Truth'', Bernstein was the president and CEO of BOSS, the Boulder Outdoor Survival School, the oldest and largest traditional living skills/survival school in the world. Bernstein first attended BOSS as a student in 1988, when he was 17. He returned in 1989 as an apprentice, then worked his way up to instructor, marketing director and finally CEO in 1997. Bernstein sold his ownership of BOSS in January 2014, to focus on a new educational initiative.

Into The Unknown With Josh Bernstein

On February 20, 2007, Bernstein announced that he was leaving The History Channel and Digging for the Truth to join the Discovery Channel as an executive producer and host of specials as well as a new prime-time series called "Into the Unknown with Josh Bernstein." The new series premiered during the 2008 Olympics in August 2008. The show was canceled after one season. While Bernstein has not commented publicly on the matter, some speculate there was a shift in the "vision" and programming slate of the network when Discovery Channel President Jane Root was replaced by John Ford.

Media appearances

Bernstein has appeared on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

, and

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

News programs, including '' Good Morning America'' and ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It ...

''. He appeared on ''

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' on January 15, 2007. Bernstein is known for wearing many hats, mostly

cowboy hat The cowboy hat is a high-crowned, wide-brimmed hat best known as the defining piece of attire for the North American cowboy. Today it is worn by many people, and is particularly associated with ranch workers in the western and southern Unit ...

s, which has led to him being likened to Indiana Jones. Although the

History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

played up the comparison in its promotion of '' Digging for the Truth'', Bernstein frowns on this comparison, observing that he never wears a fedora (Indiana Jones' trademark hat), and his fashion sense has nothing to do with the fictional archaeologist. He has also been featured in the premiere issue of ''

Men's Vogue ''Men's Vogue'' was a monthly men's magazine that covered fashion, design, art, culture, sports and technology. The premier issue was August 2005. On 30 October 2008 Condé Nast announced that they intended to fold the magazine into ''Vogue'' prope ...

'' magazine, the cover of the

Style Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to: * Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable * Design, the process of creating something * Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...

section of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' and featured in ''

People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

'' magazine's

Sexiest Man Alive ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the l ...

issue.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernstein, Josh 1971 births Living people American anthropologists American explorers Television personalities from New York City American entertainment industry businesspeople Cornell University alumni Discovery Channel people Horace Mann School alumni Jewish American male actors People from Manhattan American expatriates in Israel Fellows of the Explorers Club 21st-century American Jews