I'm going to be a contestant on British quiz show Pointless! It's a popular quiz show which, I think, averages ~3 million views per episode - largely in the UK. I'd love to get in a promotion for EA or something EA-ish. There is a 20 second personal intro (e.g. at 3:24) and sometimes 5 seconds to talk about where your prize money would go.
Has anyone considered if there's anything effective to get across in a short time to a large general audience? Would be very interested if there are resources/previous discussions - and welcome opinions too. This isn't necessarily an elevator pitch for EA though- it may just be a brief reference in my personal intro (I'm unsure how formulaic the show is).
Initial thoughts are, I study AI so would probably talk plans to work on safe AI. Could talk about giving 10% to charity. I could also name-check CEA or 80,000 hours, or possibly someone like GovAI if I got as far as winning money.
I applied last night, had a pre-screening interview just now, and filming is on Monday (edit: now delayed to Spring 2022) - so haven't thought through much... Any advice on picking up lots of general knowledge in a weekend would be lovely too.
Well done and good luck! I generally agree with Aaron. I would say something like: Hi I am x, I do x y. My hobbies are (ideally something relatable, interesting and/or funny for the audience). I am interested in effective altruism, which is.... As part of that, I try to give 10% of my money to effective charities
Other suggestions:
Smile and engage listeners upfront
Don't sound like an ad
Sound relatable and humble and not preachy/morally superior. People are most influenced by credible & similar sources
Helpful points, thanks! I think that will be the challenge: sounding like a nice relatable person and not an ad, while also fitting in a plug. I think the formula is to have one topic only in your intro- so would prefer not to but probably will have to sacrifice the hobbies to talk EA... and rely on innate charm and humility to get myself across!