In 1979, while a college freshman atNew York University, Flom got a job as a trainee field merchandiser atAtlantic Records hanging record posters in stores.[2] In 1981, he moved to the sales research team and, in 1983, into Atlantic'sA&R department.[2] At 20, Flom departed NYU to work full-time at Atlantic. Bands he signed at the time includedSkid Row andStone Temple Pilots.[3]
In 2018, Flom co-wrote a children's book titledLulu Is a Rhinoceros with his daughter Allison Flom—a book which follows a bulldog named Lulu who identifies as a rhino.[12]
In 1993, he joined the board ofFamilies Against Mandatory Minimums and soon after became a founding board member of theInnocence Project.[13] As part of his work with the Innocence Project, Flom launched the podcastWrongful Conviction with Jason Flom in 2016. The podcast features interviews with men and women who have spent time in prison for crimes they claim they did not commit and other activists, advocates and experts.[14][15] Notable guests on the podcast includeKim Kardashian,[16]John Grisham,[17]Meek Mill,[18]Amanda Knox,Raymond Santana,[19]Brendan Dassey,[20] andRodney Reed,[21] among others. The podcast reached #7 on theiTunes charts within its first 2 weeks of release, and has since been downloaded over 10 million times.[22]
In 2018, Flom and Jeff Kempler foundedLava for Good. Its podcast series are hosted by human rights and justice experts, activists, attorneys, journalists, as well as formerly incarcerated persons. The Lava for Good lineup includesWrongful Conviction,[23]Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng,[24]Righteous Convictions with Jason Flom,Bone Valley,[25]The War on Drugs,[26]False Confessions,[27] as well asJunk Science.[28]
2021 saw Lava for Good honored with a Webby Award win in the Crime & Justice category forWrongful Conviction: False Confessions.[29] In 2022, Lava for Good won a Silver Anthem Award for Human & Civil Rights - Best Strategy.[30]Wrongful Conviction andWrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng were honored with Silver[31] and Bronze/Listener's Choice Awards,[31] respectively, at the first inaugural Signal Awards announced in January 2023.
Flom also sits on the board of directors of the Legal Action Center, which uses legal and policy strategies to fight discrimination, build health equity, and restore opportunity for people with criminal records, substance use disorders, and HIV or AIDS.[32]
In 1999, Flom received the Torch of Liberty award from theAmerican Civil Liberties Union.[33] He was named Music Visionary of the Year in 2000 by theUJA Federation.[34] In 2004, the Correctional Association of New York honored him with its social justice award and in 2005 Flom received the T.J. Martell Foundation Humanitarian Award. In 2008, Flom was honored as Partner in Pursuit of Justice by the Bronx Defenders and was awarded with City of Hope's Ambassador Award.[35] He received the Innocence Project's Award for Freedom and Justice in 2009[36] and the Spirit of Life award by Russell Simmons' Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation in 2014.[37] Flom was honored by the Innocence Project of New Orleans in 2017.[38] At the 2022Clio Awards, Flom was presented a Clio Music Impact Award for his work in criminal justice reform.[39] In 2023, he the lifetime achievement award atMuhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards.[40]
