A panel of experts from all sides of the debate will lead a discussion on the controversial marketing tactics used by PETA and other non-profit organizations.
What are the benefits of having a controversial profile? Should nudity and graphic images be used to promote a cause? Panelists include: PETA’s Senior VP Dan Mathews, the group’s newest “Rather Go Naked” model Cornelia Guest, New York Times advertising columnist Stuart Elliott and Newsweek and Daily Beast celebrity columnist Lloyd Grove.
Tickets: $12
Brief Bios
Dan Mathews is the irreverent force behind the colorful crusades carried out by PETA, one of the most high-profile and enduring pressure groups of all time. Dan started out at PETA as a receptionist and soon rose through the ranks while devising stunts to increase public awareness of animal rights issues. Mathews launched PETA’s legendary “Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign nude on the streets of Tokyo, has promoted animal rights costumed as a carrot, a cow, and a priest, and has persuaded a nonstop parade of stars—including Pink, Sir Paul McCartney and Pamela Anderson—to protest, pose nude, or even go to jail for the cause. He was named among the world's most influential gays by Out magazine and has lectured at Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia University. His irreverent memoir, Committed, has been published in the U.S., Australia and across Europe.
Cornelia Guest grew up in the center of New York’s most extravagant social set, in which fur coats were commonly found, including on Cornelia—before she became a vegan. She is the daughter of fashion icon and society columnist CZ Guest and polo champion Winston Frederick Churchill Guest. She was dubbed “Deb of the Decade” in the late 1980s and wrote "The Debutante's Guide to Life". She currently designs her own line of jewelry as well as a collection of handbags, wallets, and dog accessories made with an animal-friendly alternative to leather; both lines launched this fall at Bloomingdales. Cornelia is the latest personality to star in PETA’s “Rather than Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign.
Stuart Elliott has been the advertising columnist of The New York Times since May 1991, writing the weekday advertising report as well as other news articles and features. He also writes a weekly e-mail newsletter, In Advertising, for The New York Times on the Web and previously produced radio reports and podcasts for the Times on advertising and marketing topics. Mr. Elliott has covered advertising, marketing and media topics for two decades and speaks around the country, moderates panels, and has appeared on television programs like Nightline, Biography, 20/20, The News with Brian Williams and more. Mr. Elliott received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. Follow Stuart Elliott on Twitter and Facebook.
Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for The Washington Post.