Pfizer Takes Over SXSW’s Podcasting Lounge for the Second Year in a Row
Each spring, industry leaders, media members, celebrities – and basically everyone who is anyone in tech, film and TV, and music – has been heading to Austin for one of the year’s most anticipated events: the South By Southwest (SXSW) Festival.
Pfizer has been attending in various capacities for many years, but in 2024 we held court at the SXSW Podcast Lounge, taking it over for the day and recording three live sessions of our award-winning Science Will Win podcast in front of packed crowds. Those discussions -- about scientific storytelling, the future of cancer, and our ongoing efforts to create the next breakthrough that changes people’s lives – were illuminating and rewarding, so this year we ran it back again with a new trio of sessions.
2025’s Pfizer Takeover of the Podcast Lounge at SXSW featured three provocative sessions around the use of podcasting in scientific communications, the ways digital tools are helping improve the healthcare experience for patients, and the need for a unified front in the fight against cancer.
Our first session, Future of Scientific Communications Through Podcasting, was hosted by Aaron Strout, former CMO of Real Chemistry, and featured Erica Santiago, Director, Executive/Digital Communications Lead & Podcast Strategy at Pfizer, Veronica Taylor, SVP of Acast’s Creator Network and Shoshana Ungerleider, MD, Host and Producer of TED Health Podcast. They spent an hour discussing the increasing, essential role podcasts have in communicating science and breakthroughs to diverse audiences.
The second panel, How to Leverage Digital Tools to Become an Empowered Patient, dove into the recent surge in digital health services that is revolutionizing the way we access medical care. Host Stephanie Agresta, Managing Director at Ascendancy Events, welcomed Lidia Fonseca, Pfizer’s Chief Technology Officer, Karin Bilich, Head of Content at Noom, and MT Grant, SVP & GM Thrive for Health to discuss the ways digital tools are allowing patients to take charge of their health journey.
Pfizer’s third session, Outdoing Cancer is a Team Sport, was moderated by Tyrone McClain, Senior Director, Public Affairs, Pfizer and featured Carmen White, US & Global Oncology Health Equity Lead, Pfizer, Pam Traxel, American Cancer Association, Cancer Action Network, Mary Stutts, CEO, Healthcare Businesswoman’s Association (HBA). Together they emphasized the need for patients, community leaders, healthcare providers, technology innovators, and payers to collaborate in the fight against cancer as we work to outdo the disease responsible for so much heartbreak around the world.
Stay tuned—the recordings will be available in April for you to experience these sessions for yourself! See you in Austin in 2026!