| EVENT INTELLIGENCE 06.12.08 12:31 PM |
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M.C.s Gone Wild: Keeping Talent From Going Off-Book and Out-of-Bounds
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 | Jon Stewart at a 2005 Magazine Publisers of America event
Photo: M. Szwajkos/ Getty Images |
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The great thing about napkins or centerpieces or tents is that they don’t talk back. They don’t have a bad day, forget their audience, or have a few too many cocktails before an event. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for people, and when a planner enlists someone as a host or M.C., a certain element of risk and unpredictability gets added to the mix. And a poor performance can upset guests, sponsors, journalists—and, of course, the process of producing the event itself.
For example: Rosie O’Donnell made some jaws drop at the New York Women in Communications’ Matrix Awards luncheon last year, dropping the F-bomb and unleashing a less-than-refined rant directed at Donald Trump. In 2005, Jon Stewart ruffled feathers while mediating a panel for the Magazine Publishers of America, during which he skewered—some thought inappropriately—the magazines of -panelists Dave Zinczenko (from Men’s Health) and Kate White (from Cosmopolitan). And tongues wagged after Stephen Colbert addressed the 2006 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner crowd, which included the commander in chief himself, with an irony-rich routine that many felt punched, rather than poked fun at, the president.
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RELATED TOPICS
M.C.s, New York Women in Communications, Matrix Awards, Magazine Publishers of America, White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, AOL, Men's Health, Cosmopolitan magazine, Jon Stewart, Rosie O'Donnell, Stephen Colbert |
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