Former White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Discusses Public Relations and Diplomacy

IGP Carnegie Distinguished Fellow and Columbia SIPA alumna Karine Jean-Pierre MPA ’03 is a renowned communications expert with experience serving as a former senior advisor to President Joe Biden and as the 35th White House Press Secretary.

On October 1, IGP Student Scholars and Student Circle members enjoyed the unique opportunity to learn directly from Jean-Pierre and put their interview and media skills to the test during a hands-on media preparation workshop.

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Jean-Pierre was joined by Elyse Surette-DiMuzio, former social media advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they provided students with real-time feedback on their on-camera presentation. The workshop rotated students through two studios – a traditional media filming studio and a social media content studio – where they practiced delivering effective on-camera messaging, answering media questions with confidence and clarity, and filming engaging and informative social media videos.

Jean-Pierre returned to IGP on October 2 for a closed-door roundtable discussion of the ins and outs of public relations and public diplomacy with David Betres, communications advisor to Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield (Ret.) and former public engagement and outreach lead at the United States Mission to the United Nations. IGP Faculty Advisory Board Member and CNN Contributor Timothy Naftali moderated the conversation.