MENTOR
Scott is a keynote speaker and guest lecturer who inspires, educates and entertains
“Inspiring and thought provoking... but also simply a good time. He cracked us all up!”
“His talks have sparked students’ interest to
attend more extra-curricular lectures, which is
the best possible outcome we could have attained.”
“He kept the audience engaged, he was funny and so relatable to our students and community members...
We had good media coverage which is
always awesome for the college.”
"Follow your dreams... you'll end up back home,
but it'll feel like high school. Babe Ruth will be there, and you won't be wearing pants."
- Scott Dikkers
TOPICS
DECODING SATIRE AND MISINFORMATION IN A MODERN MEDIA AGE
Scott can help!
Have you ever seen a story in your news feed from The Onion and thought it was real?
Nowadays, it’s hard to tell satire from real news.
He is the founding and longest serving editor of The Onion, the original fake newspaper.
Audiences at colleges universities and other educational organizations have a great time when he comes to speak on their campus. He brings plenty of laughs, of course, and outrageous stories about the crazy characters, wild mix-ups, and legal troubles you might expect to hear about — from The Onion’s storied history, all the way up to the present day. Scott shares an important message that’s uniquely relevant with three big takeaways:
THE FUNNY STORY BEHIND THE FUNNY STORIES
Scott tells the tale of his beginnings in comedy and getting The Onion started, and shares funny stories about how he struggled in the early years, and then achieved great success.
As a farm boy with no education, he’ll paint the picture of a starry-eyed kid who loved reading Mad Magazine and dreamt of one day getting his work published to improbably founding the world’s first humor website and heading up America’s
longest-surviving humor publication.
Scott connects his experience to the college audience’s lives by pointing out how much more opportunity they have to start something new like The Onion today, explaining that this is a magical time in their lives when they can make just about anything happen for themselves.
1. Read critically
2. Check your sources
3. Spread the truth you know
How are we supposed to separate knowledge from conspiracy, truth from lies? It’s not easy anymore. We live in a world where far too many people believe the Earth is flat, or that we didn’t land on the moon, or that nanobots are going to turn us all into flesh-eating zombies. Scott will make a big impact with attendees, stressing the importance of approaching everything we read with questions and curiosity instead of blind acceptance.
Since the day The Onion was founded, Scott has been compelling people to think about where they’re getting their information. Today, a lot of people are understandably confused about how to navigate this strange media landscape we find ourselves in. We have news feeds now instead of newspapers, and we all need to be more Discerning media consumers. This gets to the core of what education is all about.
We’re all in the media now, whether we like it or not. We distribute information to our friends, family, and to our broader followers, so we all need to be responsible journalists. We didn’t sign up for this, but that’s the price of living in the modern digital world.
Scott engages with students and community members who love asking him questions and getting into lively discussions about media literacy and other topics, from creative writing to entrepreneurship and marketing.
Attendees will walk away from his talk entertained for sure, but also clear-eyed about the importance of being informed and just maybe, they’ll think twice next time they see something a little too crazy to be true in their news feed.
INVITE SCOTT
Contact Sheldon Senek at Eagles Talent to inquire about Scott's availability
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973-313-9800
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SCOTT DIKKERS is widely regarded as one of the most influential pioneers in comedy history. A bestselling author, comedy writer, and comedian, Scott performs stand-up and has appeared on well-known TV shows like Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Saturday Night Live, using his love of comedy to overcome personal trials and tribulations. More about substance than hype, Scott emphasizes the need for the creative process to be open, challenging, and engaging for teams and individuals to achieve their dreams.
SCOTT DIKKERS is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, comedy writer, and comedian widely regarded as one of the most influential pioneers in comedy history. His visionary leadership at The Onion, his groundbreaking comic strip Jim’s Journal, plus his multiple top-10 comedy podcasts have garnered him tens of millions of fans all over the world. Rolling Stone named him one of its top 10 favorite writers. Entertainment Weekly designated him “the funniest person in America” and placed him on the “It List” of the hottest celebrities in show business. He graced the cover of Time magazine as one the top 50 movers and shakers online. He’s the winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor, a Peabody, and more Webby awards than any other individual or organization. Considered a one-of-a-kind comedy legend throughout the entertainment industry, he literally wrote the book on comedy, the bestselling How to Write Funny, which spawned a training center at the famed Second City in Chicago where he mentors young creators who have gone on to win Emmys, Grammys, and Oscars. An accomplished stage presenter who performs stand-up and has appeared on national TV shows like Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Saturday Night Live, With The Onion, Scott broke the mold for satire, and he spells out his unlikely success with hilarious stories that will bring audiences to tears with laughter. More about substance than hype, Scott makes clear how the creative process needs to be open, challenging, and engaging for all of us to achieve our dreams.
