Baratunde Thurston

Baratunde Thurston is a storyteller, comedian, and cultural critic. He is creator and host of the podcast “How To Citizen with Baratunde,” founding partner of and a writer for media start-up Puck, and host of “America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston,” a six-episode series that aired on PBS in 2022. Thurston is an Emmy-nominated host who has worked for The Onion, produced for “The Daily Show,” advised the Obama White House, and wrote the New York Times best-seller How to Be Black. Among other endeavors, he co-founded and led a comedic digital company, Cultivated Wit. Thurston received the Social Impact Award for “How to Citizen” (one of Apple’s favorite podcasts in 2020) at the 2021 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards. He serves on the boards of BUILD.org and Brooklyn Public Library.