DAILY SHOW WRITER ON SOCIAL CHANGE: The Communications Network interviews Elliott Kalan, head writer for the Daily Show, about how comedy can drive change. Read about how comedy can make big social issues digestible, and why being specific (e.g. saying “I was at an Arby’s” instead of “I was at a restaurant) makes for better jokes. Kalan will be a speaker at the organization’s annual conference this Sept 30 – Oct 2.

AND MORE COMEDY: frank, the communications-for-good group, assembles videos of three speakers on using comedy to press for social change. Penn State University professor Sophia McClellan says you can you can change the way people think “by making thinking critically fun”; blogger Jenny Lawson talks about using comedy when discussing mental health, and comedian Lizz Winstead gives her thoughts on storytelling and comedy.

RESEARCH PRIZE: Speaking of frank, the group is accepting submissions for its annual prize for research on public interest communications. Submissions are open now through November 6. The top prize is $10,000 and there are two $1,500 prizes. The prize is for research that is intended for a peer-reviewed journal, or has appeared in a peer-reviewed journal in the past 2 years. Research may come from any discipline, and will be judged by its relevance to using communications to driving social change.