Comedian, author and former director of digital for The Onion, Baratunde Thurston has many strings to his bow – and a lot of them centre on the point where comedy and technology meet. He joked with us about politics, racism and Mitt Romney’s binders of women.
Thurston is now the founder of Cultivated Wit, a ‘creative laboratory’ spawning original projects that combine comedy and technology – and never for evil means. This led to the first-ever Comedy Hack Day, resulting in projects such as ShoutRoulette, where you can argue with a stranger online in real-time.
Through his work at The Onion and his own projects, like Location-Based Racism (well worth a look), Thurston is no stranger to the power of comedy. We asked him if humour is the keystone of a successful content strategy, and how a comedic approach to serious issues such as racism can engage the online generation.
