A Comedian's Guide to Making Science Joyful and Accessible

Friday, February 12, 2016: 8:00 AM-9:30 AM
Marshall Ballroom South (Marriott Wardman Park)
Chris Duffy, 90.9 WBUR, Boston's NPR News Station, Boston, MA
As the creator/host of You're the Expert, a live show, podcast, and public radio program on Boston's WBUR, I will describe the lessons I've learned along the way when trying to combine science and comedy in a broadcast show. I'll talk about our successes in growing audiences and making complex scientific topics accessible to the general public. I'll also discuss our challenges in striking the right tone for humor and in developing a process to prep scientists for off-the-cuff questions. Using both anecdotes and audio clips, I'll illustrate the successes and failures we've had along the way to building a truly funny show about science.