May 13, 2009

Contact: Anna Christopher, NPR

WHITE HOUSE ADVISER DAVID AXELROD TO PLAY “NOT MY JOB”
ON NPR QUIZ SHOW WAIT WAIT…DON’T TELL ME!

SOLD-OUT SHOW TAPING MAY 14 IN WASHINGTON, D.C.;
AIRING MAY 16-17 ON NPR STATION NATIONWIDE

NOTE: TRANSCRIPT TO BE AVAILABLE FRIDAY, MAY 15

May 13, 2009; Washington, D.C. – Senior White House adviser David Axelrod will follow in the footsteps of his boss – the President – when he subjects himself to the rigors of answering questions completely outside his purview, on the NPR news quiz show Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!®. The Peabody Award-winning show is visiting Washington, D.C., on May 14, to tape in front of a sold-out crowd at George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium, and will air the weekend of May 16-17 on NPR Member stations nationwide. It is also available as streaming audio and a free podcast at www.npr.org/waitwait

Axelrod will join the Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! cast on stage to play “Not My Job,” when famous people are quizzed on subjects about which they know absolutely nothing. President Barack Obama (then a senator) sat in the hot seat in 2005, when he was asked about superstitious baseball player Wade Boggs – and got all three questions right. Others who have played along include Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, asked about the habits of rock stars; U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, quizzed on various types of scooters; and Star Trek alumnus Leonard Nimoy, who answered question about child-rearing expert Dr. Spock.

"Many people compare Mr. Axelrod to Karl Rove, but we think that Rove was smarter, as evidenced by the fact that Rove never agreed to come on our show," said Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me! host Peter Sagal. "We've got lots of questions for Axelrod, but all of them involve finding out how and where the President is sneaking his cigarettes."

Now in its 12th year, Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! uses current stories (from the global to the silly) for questions and comedy. Joining Sagal is official judge and scorekeeper, NPR newscaster Carl Kasell, and a rotating panel of humorists, journalists, comedians and others. Contestants vie for the most coveted prize in all of public radio: a custom-recorded greeting by Kasell for their answering machines. Panelists for the Washington, D.C., show are Roxanne Roberts of The Washington Post; comedian and TV personality Mo Rocca; and stand-up comic Paula Poundstone.

Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!, produced in Chicago, goes on the road to produce the show in a number of markets each year. The program has an audience of 2.75 million listeners weekly on nearly 500 NPR Member public radio stations; its audience has grown in every ratings period since its premiere in January 1998. For stations and broadcast times, visit www.NPR.org/stations

The show is produced by NPR and Chicago Public Radio; Doug Berman is Executive Producer.