NEW YORK, NY (June 2018) – Beloved storytelling nonprofit The Moth —the team behind the wildly popular The Moth Radio Hour and Moth Podcast—welcomes noted magazine writer and editor Suzanne Rust to the team as the first-ever Senior Curatorial Producer. In this newly created role, Rust will seek out under-represented and undiscovered voices to share their true personal stories from Moth stages around the world.
Suzanne joins The Moth from Family Circle, where, as Lifestyle Editor, she researched and culled stories from across the country for the pages of the publication. While there, she created the Folio Award-winning “Modern Life” column that highlighted diverse families nationwide. Previously in her role at Real Simple, Suzanne wrote and researched three monthly columns including “Real Life,” a well-read monthly profile piece featuring Real Simple readers. Other career highlights include editorial positions for Black Issues Book Review and Rizzoli Periodicals; a stint as reporter for the Italian-based Radio 105 Network; and freelance projects for Essence, TheGrio.com, WomenAndCo.com, and Mom.me, among others.
“We are beyond thrilled that Suzanne has joined The Moth family and will help us continue to discover and elevate unique voices that yet to be heard,” says Catherine Burns, Artistic Director, The Moth. “With her seasoned ear, powerful connections, and keen editorial eye, she’s truly the perfect person to shape this newly-created curatorial role.”
“I have a great passion for human interest stories -- something I’ve been able to cultivate
over my years in media, identifying those tales that make you think, laugh, cry -- or all of
the above,” says Rust. “As a longtime Moth fan, I’m excited to leverage that passion,
along with my career experiences to help them identify a host of new and diverse
voices.”
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About The Moth
The Moth is an acclaimed nonprofit organization dedicated to the art and craft of
storytelling, which celebrated its 20th Anniversary in 2017. Since launching in 1997, The
Moth has presented over 30,000 stories, told live and without notes to standing-room-
only crowds worldwide. The Moth conducts seven ongoing programs: The Moth
Mainstage, which tours internationally, has featured stories by Malcolm Gladwell, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, John Turturro, Molly Ringwald, and Tig Notaro, as well as a scientist,
a pickpocket, a hotdog eating champion and hundreds more; The Moth StorySLAM
program, which conducts open mic storytelling competitions in 29 cities; 26 in the US
plus Sydney and Melbourne, AU, and London, UK; The Moth Community Program, which
offers storytelling workshops and performance opportunities to adults who are too often
overlooked by the mainstream media; The Moth High School StorySLAMs, which bring
the thrill of personal storytelling to high schools in New York and educators around the
world; The Moth Podcast, which is downloaded more than 47 million times a year; The
Moth Corporate Program, which provides industry-specific storytelling solutions; and the
Peabody Award-winning The Moth Radio Hour which airs weekly on 470+ public radio
stations nationwide. The Moth’s second book, THE MOTH PRESENTS ALL THESE
WONDERS: True Stories about Facing the Unknown (Crown Archetype; Hardcover;
$25.00) was published in March 2017. Learn more at www.themoth.org.
Press contact: Meryl Cooper, The COOPERation, press@themoth.org 917-974-0022