Robert "Bob" Wiltfong (born November 26) is a TED Talk speaker, author, and former correspondent on ''

The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night talk and news satire television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central in the United States, with extended episodes released shortly after on Paramount+ ...

'' on

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...

." Wiltfong was a true-life newscaster for 10 years, making him the first correspondent in ''Daily Show'' history to have worked as a traditional news reporter. In an interview, Wiltfong revealed that he decided to exit the world of non-satirical journalism after the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

, during which he lost a close friend, cameraman

Glen Pettit A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. The word is Goidelic languages, Goidelic in origin: ''gleann'' in Irish language, Irish and Sc ...

. Wiltfong has won 4 regional, individual Emmys for television performance and has been nominated for 14 others. He was part of

's 2004 winning submission for the prestigious

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...

and was featured on the election year wrap up DVD put out by Comedy Central. He was a member of Neutrino, an improv comedy team in New York City. Additionally, Wiltfong has been featured in national commercials for

AOL AOL (formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City, and a brand marketed by Yahoo! Inc. The service traces its history to an online ...

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

, Staples,

Domino's Pizza Domino's Pizza, Inc., commonly referred to as Domino's, is an American multinational pizza restaurant chain founded in 1960 and led by CEO Russell Weiner. The corporation is Delaware General Corporation Law, Delaware-domiciled and headquartered ...

and is the recurring character Chet Wallum on "

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...

". In 2010, Wiltfong was selected to star in a national ad campaign for

Nationwide Insurance Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and affiliated companies, commonly shortened to Nationwide, is a group of large U.S. insurance and financial services companies based in Columbus, Ohio. The company also operates regional headquarters in Scott ...

, playing the Nationwide spokesman in a series of nationally broadcast television commercials that aired throughout 2010. In 2020, Wiltfong published a book with Tim Ito titled ''"The BS Dictionary: Uncovering the Origins and True Meanings of Business Speak"''. That book's content became the subject of a TEDx Talk Wiltfong delivered in Vienna, Austria in October 2022. The presentation was later upgraded to a full-on TED Talk a year later.

References

External links

The BS Dictionary: The Origins and True Meanings of Business Speak
Book website
How to Take the BS Out of Business Speak
TED Talk * 1969 births Living people American male comedians American male television actors Male actors from Omaha, Nebraska Comedians from Nebraska 21st-century American comedians {{US-tv-bio-stub