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Hi ala,
Mike Gillis, head writer for the Onion, was on a panel with Alexandra Petri, staff writer for The Atlantic. The panel was ably steered by Ally Jarmanning, senior reporter, WBUR, who spent most of the conversation smothering laughter.
In a panel called “No Laughing Matter: Satire in the Age of the Political Absurd”, the trio examined whether it is easier or harder to write parody during a time when, for example, government officials are claiming to have teleported to a Georgia Waffle House.
At one point, Gillis plucked at his shirt. “If you noticed my shirt is a little baggy…” he stretched out his legs, wiggling his shoes, “and my pants and shoes aren’t that nice, it’s because I’m a parody of a regular WBUR Festival guest.”
“Maybe you’ll come out of this (session) thinking anyone can become a WBUR Festival speaker,” he concluded.
Can you?
We'll be asking that question of one of the people who makes those decisions. It is just one of the many things we’ll be covering in next week’s webinar with Andrea O’Meara, director of The WBUR Festival, the annual Boston-area NPR event that I have adopted as one of my new favorite events. O'Meara joins us on Wednesday, June 17, 2026 at noon for the next edition of our Ask an Event Manager series.
Hope you'll join us!
Bobbie and the entire Innovation Women team
P.S. Speaker Friends Live Chicago is coming! Join us on June 24, 2026. See below.
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