Caty Borum Chattoo

Biography

Caty Borum Chattoo is Director of the Center for Media & Social Impact (CMSI), an innovation lab and research center at American University that creates, showcases and studies media designed for social change; and Assistant Professor at the American University School of Communication in Washington, D.C. She is an award-winning documentary producer, scholar, professor and strategist working at the intersection of social change, documentary and entertainment storytelling. Her book about the role of comedy in social change, with co-author Lauren Feldman, "A Comedian and An Activist Walk Into a Bar: The (Serious) Role of Comedy in Social Justice," is forthcoming from University of California Press. Her documentary book, "The Blackfish Effect & Other Stories: Documentaries & Social Change in the Information Age," is forthcoming from Oxford University Press. In 2017, she launched The Laughter Effect, a research and creative initiative that examines the role of comedy in social justice. Her social-justice documentaries have aired internationally and nationally on the Sundance Channel, Pivot, NDTV (India), PBS World, Link TV, KCET, DirectTV and theatrically. CMSI's biennial national convening, "Story Movements," brings together creative producers, social justice activists, scholars and others to illuminate civic media and social change. A former collaborator with TV producer Norman Lear and former SVP in social impact communication at global agency FleishmanHillard, her peer-reviewed research on the intersection of storytelling, creativity and social change is featured in leading journals, including Journal of Communication, Journalism, Mass Communication and Society, and more. Borum Chattoo's creative and research work in media and social change has been supported by more than 25 grants from media foundations, including the MacArthur Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Unbound Philanthropy, and others.