Team
Host
Co-Hosts
Production Team
Executive Producer
As Executive Producer and Co-Creator of StarTalk Radio and TV show, Helen has lead this 4-time Emmy-nominated and three-time Webby Award winning show to prominence and is responsible for overseeing the continued development of the show toward more creative formats and platforms, with the aim to reach an ever-expanding public interested in learning more about science. Helen has also had an extensive and varied career within NASA. Previous roles have included researcher at the Marshall Space Flight Center, Science Reporter/Co-Anchor for the NASA news program “Today in Space”, Congressional liaison for NASA HQ in support for hearings of the Science Subcommittee on Space, NASA liaison to the American Museum of Natural History, Director of Communications for NASA’s Astrobiology Institute, where she founded the NASA Astrobiology Magazine and acted as Editor-in-Chief. She currently works in communications and outreach at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City. Helen is also an accomplished opera singer. She has performed numerous major roles in various regional theaters in the US, and has also toured at opera festivals across Italy and France.
Senior Producer
Lindsey lives in New York City where she aims to distill complex science into flavorful morsels. In 2023, she and Neil deGrasse Tyson co-authored the book, To Infinity and Beyond. She was a producer and writer of the four-time Emmy-nominated StarTalk TV show on the National Geographic Channel and edited the book, Cosmic Queries. In college, torn between passions of science and writing, she pursued both—earning a B.S. in Biology and B.A. in Journalism while being a Division I softball player. If you ever meet Lindsey at a dinner party, she’ll be the one attempting to extract your nerdiest passions and deepest-held opinions about alien life. Find her on TikTok: @spacetok
Producer
Tamsen produces for StarTalk, which means bossing Neil around during episode recordings. Besides astrophysics, Tamsen’s interests in science include human evolution, plant biology, Earth systems, and an obsession with biological soil crust (DON’T step on the biological soil crust!). She has a master’s in journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY where she focused on health and science reporting, as well as audio and video production. She also writes poetry and fiction.
Associate Producer
Lane is a producer and writer from San Francisco, CA. While her college degree is not in STEM, she watched all the space documentaries on Netflix and thought “There’s gotta be more.” And there was! A whole universe of it. Her satirical work has been featured in McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, The Yale Record, Points In Case, and other humor publications. Currently, Lane can be found writing and performing comedy around Los Angeles. In her free time, she likes to sew clothes, make art, and relive only the high points of being a Division I athlete in her head.
Director of Business Development
As Director of Business Development, Alex uncovers all the ways in which StarTalk can further its recognition as a household name in science by partnering with like-minded institutions and entities. Prior to collaborating with StarTalk, Alex spent nearly eight years working under the VaynerX portfolio alongside CEO and founder Gary Vaynerchuk, consulting Fortune 500 brands, executives, and celebrity talent on how to propel their digital presence and business objectives.
Social Media Manager
Amanda is a Social Media Manager with years of experience in community management and social media consulting. After working with clients in the automotive and franchise verticals, Amanda settled in at StarTalk, where she’s grown passionate in spreading science literacy and building a community through our social platforms. Along with the work she does in the social sphere, she also owns a vintage car rental business out of Detroit, Michigan.
Social Media Associate
Doggedly-determined, data-driven curator of content, creator of clips and producer of social media series. Also probably reading your comments. Fueled by the ambition of spreading science literacy as broadly as possible.
Manager, Technical and Ad Operations
Brian Pennington has worked on the technical side of StarTalk since 2014. He built and maintains the StarTalk website, oversees ad production, publishing episodes on all platforms, and fixes anything that breaks. As a developer, Brian has also worked on websites for major sports brands, cable networks, and universities, as well as for individual clients from circus performers to makeup artists. Brian’s passion is music, and he’s been a DJ for more than 20 years. He has filled dance floors at scores of clubs, music venues, warehouses, museums, and radio airwaves. Brian grew up in West Virginia, spent a decade in New York City, and now lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife, cat, and not nearly enough vinyl.
Strategic Advisor
Her career was built in marketing, but Diana is a space nerd at heart. In 2016, while consulting for big sports brands like Liverpool FC and the NBA, she found herself wondering if she could support her favorite podcast by offering the same digital marketing skills she was providing to sports teams. Turns out she could, and she did!
Diana lives in the woods of the Pacific Northwest with her engineer nerd husband Brett, her future astrophysicist daughter Nora, her yappy dog Doodle, and her 60-lb. sulcata tortoise Merle. In addition to advising for StarTalk, she leads marketing for Privateer and founded Zaya, a boutique digital marketing agency.
Head of Business Affairs
Peter Trevino joined StarTalk in 2015. A former talent manager and TV/film producer, Peter has worked with numerous blue-chip corporate clients and some of the most successful celebrities in entertainment, including Nicole Kidman, Naomi Watts, and Simon Baker, earning a reputation as an executive who can effectively bridge a project’s needs to close a deal. Peter has been a member of the Television Academy and GLAAD’s National Council of Ambassadors, and served as Chair of the California Student Aid Commission. He graduated from Columbia University, earned his Contract Law Certification from Harvard, and currently lives in New York City.