Interview on Huffington Post

I talk to the Huffington Post about Emojis and why I'm passionate about  being the face of Grandparents Gone Wired.

How "Catfish" Star Nev Schulman Is Using Emojis to Get Older Adults Connected This Thanksgiving  

By Ben Kassoy

Nev Schulman's emoji game is strong. He uses the airplane emoji as shorthand for his hectic travel schedule, the cheese emoji to follow his dad jokes, and the heart eyes when texting his girlfriend.

"And the fire, when she sends me sexy pics," says the star and executive producer of MTV's Catfish: The TV Show. "Oh, and I assigned her the poodle emoji, my sort of emoji representation of her."

Nev is in a long-distance relationship, so he's accustomed to keeping in touch via text with his girlfriend, not to mention his family and friends. Thankfully, Nev says, even his grandparents are tech-savvy so they're constantly texting, Facebooking, and even liking his photos on Instagram.

For many older adults, though, staying connected is harder. About 77% of people over 65 can't figure out a smartphone on their own, which can lead to isolation and health issues. Nev is dedicated to changing that, though; he's the face of Grandparents Gone Wired, a campaign from DoSomething.org and Mentor Up.

This holiday season, Grandparents Gone Wired activates young people to teach their grandparents -- or other older adults -- how to text and how to use emojis. The latter can certainly be a challenge, which you can see in the hilarious Grandparents Gone Wired PSA.

Nev talked to us about the campaign, why even seniors get catfished, and which emoji best represents him.

"I kind of thought it was a monkey. I'm hairy and kind of cute."

Click here to read the interview !