Podcasts about media leader

Today in the business of podcasting:Acast acquires Backyard Ventures for $20 million, adding more than 200 premium creators across podcasts, YouTube, newsletters, and social to accelerate omnichannel monetization.Spotify asks artists to disclose AI-generated music and will label AI artist identities as "AI Personas," excluding them from editorial and algorithmic recommendations beginning in mid-September.The Media Leader asks seven industry specialists whether podcasting has hit saturation, and the consensus is that the medium is maturing, with ad spend still lagging consumption and discovery shifting to social platforms.Signal Hill Insights analyzes how 4,819 Americans define the word "podcast," finding that only about 33 to 38% mention audio or listening while just 7% of listeners describe podcasts as video only.To find links to these, and every article covered in today's episode, click here. You can also subscribe to The Download's newsletter to receive the full issue straight to your email inbox every day.

Today in the business of podcasting:Acast acquires Backyard Ventures for $20 million, adding more than 200 premium creators across podcasts, YouTube, newsletters, and social to accelerate omnichannel monetization.Spotify asks artists to disclose AI-generated music and will label AI artist identities as "AI Personas," excluding them from editorial and algorithmic recommendations beginning in mid-September.The Media Leader asks seven industry specialists whether podcasting has hit saturation, and the consensus is that the medium is maturing, with ad spend still lagging consumption and discovery shifting to social platforms.Signal Hill Insights analyzes how 4,819 Americans define the word "podcast," finding that only about 33 to 38% mention audio or listening while just 7% of listeners describe podcasts as video only.To find links to these, and every article covered in today's episode, click here. You can also subscribe to The Download's newsletter to receive the full issue straight to your email inbox every day.

Maurits Priem is a Leader with Experience in Consumer Goods, Retail and Commerce Media, who was last VP Monetization at Ahold Delhaize. Also an occasional singer and politician, he's been a regular collaborator in our Candid Commerce Events, where he's joined us as panelist, moderator and "Event Dean". We've finally brought him to the podcast to chat with him about a series of articles he's posted on LinkedIn about his point of view on Advertising (find them HERE). The current picture, the good, the bad and the ugly and, ultimately, how that trillion dollar force can be a force for good.  Tune in to hear about: Maurits' passion for Consumer Goods and Retail from a very young age How the balance between Power and Influence market his career Why advertising can become a force for positive change The four pillars of responsible advertising: emissions, data, content and context How digital advertising creates carbon emissions The importance of privacy, integrity and data sovereignty Why brands should consider what they advertise and where their ads appear How advertising budgets can influence media platforms, social media and AI Why responsible advertising can strengthen performance, trust and brand reputation More Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fmcgguys/  Audio Mixing by Modest Ferrer Voice Acting by Jason Martorell Parsekian Disclaimer The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The FMCG Guys (Dwyer Partners SL) or its partners. The FMCG Guys make no representations or warranties about the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of any information discussed, and accept no responsibility for any decisions or outcomes based on this content. Listeners are encouraged to seek their own professional advice before acting on any of the topics covered.

This episode was produced in partnership with News UK.News UK's The Sun is one of many titles to embrace video in recent months. According to the publisher, its videos have driven 60m views and a 110% increase in returning viewers. Its movement into video has also helped secure new sponsors, including Allwyn, DAZN, Betfair, Cardfactory and 32Red.Owen Griffiths is the commercial revenue director of The Sun. At the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity last month, The Media Leader's content director James Longhurst sat down with him to discuss The Sun's video strategy, what makes the publisher's output unique, and how the World Cup is driving growth this year.Highlights:1:25: Takeaways for publishers from Cannes: Positioning journalists as creators2:15: Expanding video for editorial and commercial purposes6:00: The Sun's first "video-first" and AI-powered World Cup7:29: Is AI a threat to publishers, or an opportunity?8:37: How do journalists feel about becoming creators?9:54: H2 plans: New video experience in beta, expanding membership, growing in the USRelated articles:‘Place as many bets as possible': Behind The Sun's hybrid paywall strategy‘The division between church and state isn't sustainable': Journalists weigh-up life as a creatorWhy do publishers struggle to find their social voice?

The New York Times is something of a rarity in contemporary news publishing: a legacy giant that is seeing double-digit revenue growth and consistent readership growth.It's no surprise, then, that many commercial leaders at other publishers here in the UK have pointed to the Gray Lady as having developed a model they want to emulate.So to kick off our publishing week in focus here at The Media Leader, it was a pleasure to sit down with Tom Armstrong, The New York Times's VP of global advertising.Host Jack Benjamin spoke with Armstrong in sunny Cannes about how NYT's “solar system” strategy of surrounding its reporting with verticals like cooking and games has driven commercial opportunity, the publisher's strategy for international expansion, and how NYT is embracing multimedia journalism.Highlights:1:19: What's driving NYT's growth: Portfolio transformation, subscription-first strategy4:59: Is NYT not just a news company anymore?6:52: International growth strategy8:23: Why it's important for publishers to be sought out by name in the new era of AI search12:07: Pivoting to video (again) - opportunities and pitfallsRelated articles:‘We are a destination': NYT's global ads chief talks the Gray Lady's international ambitionsNew York Times publisher warns journalism faces its ‘Napster moment'‘The division between church and state isn't sustainable': Journalists weigh-up life as a creatorPublishers advised to be ‘niche at scale' amid the winding road to Google Zero

This episode was produced in partnership with Channel 4.At Cannes this year, The Media Leader sat down with several members of Channel 4's commercial leadership team to discuss how the TV company is looking to drive new commercial growth now that Universal Ads is live in the UK and Channel 4 is integrated with a new slew of demand-side platforms.On an previous episode of the podcast, host Jack Benjamin spoke with commercial chief Rak Patel about the latest news, and in this episode, he sits down with members of his sales team to discuss their commercial strategy in greater depth.David Amodio is head of sales at Channel 4, and Jay Kassam is head of business operations and revenue innovation at Channel 4.The trio talked sales strategy, how the broadcaster is making progress with mid-market advertisers, and how they are applying learnings from their time with tech platforms to the TV market.Highlights:2:31: Channel 4's evolved leadership team5:24: Taking a 'platform mindset' to the TV market9:20: What an 'advertiser-first, agency-led' strategy entails as Channel 4 embraces the mid-market17:11: Channel 4's new CEO and hopes for H2 2026Related articles:Universal Ads is live in the UK. Now what? With Channel 4's Rak PatelUniversal Ads goes live in UK, providing TV with ‘easy button'Leading Questions with Rak Patel – Channel 4 SalesMeet the Media Owner: Channel 4 adopts a platform mindset---Thanks to our production partners, Trisonic, for editing this episode. Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audience.

Meta is growing at a remarkable rate. Already one of the world's biggest global advertising businesses, the tech giant's revenue grew 33% year-on-year to $56.3bn in Q1 alone.But while its dominance over the ad industry has crystallised, so has scrutiny into its business practices – and advertisers' role in funding online harms through its platforms.Separate court cases in the US this year found that Meta has designed harmfully addictive platforms, and that it has misled users about platform safety and facilitated child sexual exploitation.A report from Reuters last November found that Meta knowingly earned 10% of its global turnover in 2024 from fraud and scam ads. At the LEAD conference in London this year, a spokesperson for Meta disputed the figure, but acknowledged that revenue from fraud and scam ads “might” have accounted for 3-4% of turnover – still equivalent to between $5bn and $7bn.And now there are concerns over the privacy implications of its line of smart glasses, which the company has positioned as the future of consumer electronics. Wired reported in June that Meta had quietly added facial recognition code into the product, before removing it after the publication of the reporting.All this comes as Meta has increasingly launched tools aimed at automating creative and media decisioning for advertisers, calling into question the role of agencies in a future dominated by tech platforms, their data, and their AI tools.It's a lot to unpack. At Cannes this year, The Media Leader put questions on all these topics and more to Meta's EMEA vice president, Derya Matras.In the interview, Matras notably claimed that Meta has invested $30bn into addressing issues of ad fraud, scams and "other integrity issues". She said, "it's not like we knowingly have bad ads" and that Meta is "incentivised to take action on this" because it is "not good for us."But, since recording the interview, an investigation by the BBC found that Instagram has been running paid ads in India that promote child sexual abuse material on the messaging app Telegram.When one of the ads was reported to Meta by the BBC, Meta reportedly initially responded that the ad did not violate its community guidelines. Meta later told the BBC it had disabled several of the ads and suspended the accounts posting them.A spokesperson for Meta told The Media Leader: “Meta has a zero tolerance policy for soliciting or sharing CSAM, including in ads. We use advanced AI technology to proactively detect violating content and individuals, but we are in a constant battle with criminals who hide among our 3.5bn users and try to evade our detection. That is why our expert teams are constantly working to improve our defenses, develop new technology to root out predators, block links to violating websites, and share intelligence with other companies so they can take action too."A full transcript of the conversation is available on The Media Leader, edited for length and clarity.Highlights:3:27: Reaction to social media bans for under-16s, criticism of failure to address online harms and addictive design11:58: Advertisers want more transparency of where their ads show up on platforms13:29: Why is Meta knowingly earning billions from fraud and scam ads?17:15: Meta is automating creative and media decisioning. Should agencies be concerned?27:04: Are smart glasses still the future of commercial technology? What about privacy implications?30:21: Meta's growth depends on providing good user experience. Is it getting worse?Related articles:Molly Russell charity CEO: Social media's user safety efforts have been ‘performative'‘Right diagnosis, wrong prescription'? Adland torn as Starmer announces under-16s social media ban‘Are we monetising addiction?' Ad industry faces reckoning following social media addiction lawsuit verdictSnap is betting on smart glasses. Should brands?

This episode was produced in partnership with Channel 4.For the second year in a row, the UK's commercial TV companies made a splash at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.After unveiling Universal Ads — the broadcasters' marketplace for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) — last year, Sky, ITV, Channel 4 and Comcast officially launched the product on Tuesday.And on Monday, Channel 4 announced it had partnered with 5 demand-side platforms to make advertising with Channel 4 more accessible to advertisers.During the week, in partnership with Channel 4, host Jack Benjamin sat down with Channel 4's commercial chief, Rak Patel, as well as members of its commercial leadership team, Jay Kassam and David Amodio, in separate interviews.He asked Patel, Kassam and Amodio about the latest news, the state of the UK TV industry, and how Channel 4 is balancing the need to reduce enough friction to make TV easy to buy, while retaining enough friction to make it a trustworthy medium for advertisers.The Media Leader will be releasing the episodes in two parts, the first with Patel and the second with both Kassam and Amodio."You can be easy to buy, but retain your superpower," Patel said. "Broadcast is an oasis... The tech giants are a data warehouse, we are a dream factory."Highlights:1:43: Changes at Channel 4 over the past year8:46: Taking a platform mindset to future-proof Channel 412:38: 'Turn down the toxic' hasn't happened yet. What will move the dial?14:12: Universal Ads is live. What it means for broadcasters, what the UK has learned from the US, and how the product will evolve20:21: What is the go-to-market strategy for reaching SMEs?25:30: 'The wind of change'Related articles:Universal Ads goes live in UK, providing TV with ‘easy button'Leading Questions with Rak Patel – Channel 4 SalesMeet the Media Owner: Channel 4 adopts a platform mindset

Last week, WPP Media released its mid-year global advertising forecast report. As Kate Scott-Dawkins, WPP Media's global president of business intelligence and author of the report said, the growth picture for advertising is "quite buoyant", even in the midst of severe geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty.As the global advertising community descends upon sunny Cannes this week, including us at The Media Leader, deals will be cut, rose will be drunk, parties will be had. But ahead of the pomp and circumstance, The Media Leader wanted to take a close look at where the industry stands after a deeply unstable H1.Host Jack Benjamin caught up with Scott-Dawkins last week to unpack the strong growth picture despite that instability, and look ahead to the end of the year and beyond. The duo discussed the rise of China, the decline traditional ad sellsers, and why AI is driving substantial growth in the ad industry.Highlights:1:39: Unstable global business market, buoyant global ad market6:01: AI's 'Manifest Destiny' and 'Gold Rush' moment9:31: Is platform-driven media consolidation good for advertisers? How big is too big?12:58: Impact of social media ban and potential tech regulation16:13: What happens if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed?19:32: How AI is impacting the labour market, and what it means for consumer spending24:58: The rise of China and the bifurcation of marketing stacksRelated articles:WPP Media upgrades growth forecast despite macro headwindsStrait of Hormuz disruption threatens $94bn of global ad investment over next 18 months

Last week on the show, The Media Leader spoke with Thinkbox's Elliott Millard about how brands can reconsider their cultural impact, and this week, we wanted to continue that conversation with an agency that bills itself as sitting right at the centre of culture.Hamid Habib is the managing director of Arena Media within Havas Village. Habib and Arena Media pride themselves on working on inventive campaigns that embed brands within culture and communities.Habib discusses what it means to work for a “cultural media agency”, how he has moved his clients away from channel planning and toward ecosystem design, and the overarching cultural changes he thinks every brand should be aware of. He and host Jack Benjamin also talk about why brands are underinvesting in gaming, and how AI is changing the role agencies play for their clients.Highlights:4:55: Arena Media's unique client proposition and why brands "grow when they move with culture".11:24: Less channel planning, more ecosystem design: Why the brand and performance dichotomy is not fit-for-purpose.18:00: Important cultural shifts this year: Bifurcation of media behaviours across generations, AI changing customer journeys26:32: Brands need a BANG: Breadth, authenticity, newness, granularity31:33: Zig when others zag: Why Reddit, gaming are underinvested channels45:06: Are agencies still relevant as automated planning, buying and creative becomes common?Related articles:How marketers should reconsider culture and short-term strategies — with Thinkbox's Elliott MillardIs there still room for human creativity in the AI era?Charlie Hugill: Why the future of media is real, human and experientialPlayNet launches to connect gaming with online behaviour

Chaque jour, en quelques minutes, un résumé de l'actualité culturelle. Rapide, facile, accessible.**

This week, from the 3rd to the 5th of June, the World Out of Home Organisation (WOO) is hosting its Annual Congress here in London.The event is expected to draw more than 700 attendees from over 37 countries, and The Media Leader is an official media partner of the conference, occurring during our inaugural OOH Week in Focus.Ahead of the conference, host Jack Benjamin sat down with the World Out of Home Organisation president Tom Goddard to discuss the state of the global OOH industry.The pair spoke about how OOH is working to become easier to buy, how it is improving measurement standards, and whether the media channel is telling the right story about itself to advertisers.Highlights:4:16: The World Out of Home Organisation's recent goals and priorities8:28: OOH's digital transformation and consolidation in ownership12:25: Investment in data and measurement and the need for connectivity and automation17:25: Regulatory headwinds and tailwinds21:34: Making outdoor creative again with trust as the North Star26:55: OOH as a sustainable medium32:17: How to double OOH's market share: make transactions 'frictionless', collaborate moreRelated articles:OOH reports highest-ever annual revenue in 2025The reinvention of OOH is acceleratingWhy measurable doesn't always mean meaningful in marketingIs out-of-home under threat from global regulations?DOOH: The creative imperative

The world of work has been in continuous flux since 2020. Every week another crisis emerges to further complicate the delivery of strategic objectives. This is stressful across the board. But what is it like for those who started work for the first time after COVID? What impact do continuously shifting work priorities and practices have on younger workers and the support they need to progress? In this first episode of series 16, Jen, Dom and Cat chat with Mercy Abel, founder of It Is Who You Know, to uncover the value of mentoring to bridge intergenerational divides and superpower early years careers. Despite university attendance reaching record levels in recent years, the latest UK data shows nearly one million young people aged between 16-24 are now not in education, employment or training. Young people are struggling to enter, and remain in, the labour market. While there are many reasons for this, AI job displacement seems to have hit younger workers far harder than other generations. Unless addressed, this will have disastrous consequences in the years to come. A COVID graduate herself, Mercy Abel experienced first-hand the challenges of entering the workforce for the first time. Having gained immense value from a mentorship opportunity, she has gone on to build an award-winning internship programme to help kickstart early careers within the creative industry.     About Mercy Abel Mercy is a multi-award winning marketer & founder of a future workforce consultancy, Who You Know (WYK) shaping the talent of tomorrow. WYK supports organisations to understand, connect, and recruit incoming talent through intergenerational learning, mentorship, and strategic insight. She is passionate about platforming talent, building community and connecting people to opportunity. She has done this through co-founding an award-winning marketing and creative internship programme named Futures UNLOCKED, providing almost 50 paid internships and free upskilling workshops for a 600+ network of emerging creatives across Scotland. Throughout her career, she has been awarded for 2025's The Media Leader's 50 Black Women Gamechangers in Media, 2024 Campaign's IPA iList, 2023 Media Week 30 under 30, The Media Leader Future 100 Club and 2022 Advertising Association's BRiM Changemaker.   Find Mercy on LinkedIn:                   https://www.linkedin.com/in/mercyabel/ Mercy's website:                                https://www.itiswhoyouknow.co.uk/  

Chaque jour, en quelques minutes, un résumé de l'actualité culturelle. Rapide, facile, accessible.**

This week, The Media Leader is embarking on its first ever Retail Media Week in Focus.The fledgling channel has been having a moment. Investment in retail media has grown substantially – in 2025, adspend in the channel grew 17.5% year on year, according to the latest AA/Warc figures.Brands are seeking to join up the ends of the funnel by targeting consumers based on their shopping habits and measuring directly the link between ad delivery and outcomes within closed-loop retail environments.But, as attendees heard at The Media Leader's Future of Brands event last week, with growth has come some scepticism – is retail media overhyped? Is it just useful for lower-funnel activations? How is it being defined on media plans?One of the largest retail media players here in the UK is Tesco. Recently, The Media Leader reported that Tesco Media had launched new video ad inventory on its website and app as it looks to offer brand advertising opportunities to marketers.Tash Whitmey is the managing director of the Tesco Media and Insight Platform. She joined host Jack Benjamin recently via video call to discuss the latest innovations the company is making, the state of the retail media market and how Tesco sizes up to global competitors like Amazon, and whether shopping habits are changing amid macroeconomic turbulence.Highlights:4:36: What's driving growth in retail media?9:11: Innovations in retail media allowing movement up the funnel15:49: How does Tesco stand up against its competitors, many of which are global?24:57: Measurement standardisation needed27:23: How shopping behaviour is changing amid macroeconomic headwindsRelated articles:Tesco Media launches premium video inventory across website and appIs AI accelerating Google, Meta and Amazon's dominance? Takeaways from Big Tech's Q1Global partners with Sainsbury's and Nectar360 on audio measurement trackingIf retail media networks want to talk like ITV, they have to act like ITV

Watch the new J-TV+ Documentary on Moshiach: The Jewish View Of The Messianic Era - https://j-tv.plus/moshiach-the-jewish-messiah-what-he-will-do-how-the-future-will-look-and-why-his-coming-is-near/Watch the new J-TV+ Documentary on ‘Zionism & Judaism: The False Separation' - https://j-tv.plus/zionism-and-judaism-the-false-separation/Donate to J-TV - https://www.paypal.com/donate?token=xOkdLjitqrGxAPGrg73UHJ9bAw3uj9On7NmtyOuKO1lBJxypvE_6Gft12zN4CiQz9c4cSZSGhaKjxsos

In a new mini-series, former Media Leader editor-in-chief Omar Oakes is joined by former Dentsu International CEO, now AI strategist Hamish Nicklin to argue over the nuances of AI development and its use in the creative industries.In episode two, the duo debate for and against the prompt: “No human will touch a media plan within five years.”Taking the “for” side of the argument is Nicklin, while Oakes represents the “against” side, posing sceptical questions.The topic is inspired from comments made by Brian Lesser, the CEO of WPP Media, to staff in March 2025, in which he indicated that, within the next four or five years, there will “probably” be plans that “leave the building” that no planner ever saw.Some staff, particularly planners, took that to mean their jobs could be at risk. UK CEO Kate Rowlinson later insisted to The Media Leader that Lesser “certainly didn't say [media] plans wouldn't be overseen by humans”.Is it possible for media planning to be fully automated? What would that mean for agencies? Nicklin and Oakes discuss.Highlights:00:46: Recent developments in AI: Novels written by AI, using ChatGPT to treat a dog's cancer6:38: Why AI can dominate media planning and execution: the knowledge base is codified and agent-to-agent transactions are already happening16:34: What about non-digital planning? What about the need for creativity?21:43: If you can automate planning, why do you need an agency at all?24:39: The big pitfalls: insights, relationships33:17: Brand safety and accountability40:45: Second-order effects: Role restructuring, retraining, changes to senior management, personal credit50:38: Verdicts

This episode was produced in partnership with The Guardian.The World Cup is poised to be the biggest media event of the year in 2026, and media owners have been betting that it will help lift their pocketbooks and grow audiences.Live sport has become one of the last, best ways for advertisers to reach mass, live audiences centred around a major cultural event, be it on TV, online, on social or in the news.The Media Leader has spoken with a number of media outlets that view the World Cup as key to their success this year. For The Guardian, the event is not only a major commercial and editorial opportunity, but it is an aptly timed one amid a significant push for US growth.James Fleetham is the director of advertising at The Guardian and Marcus Christenson The Guardian's football special projects editor.For this special partner episode, the pair unpacked the major threads of this year's World Cup, both as a commercial opportunity and an editorial one.Highlights:4:35: What makes the World Cup a unique editorial and commercial opportunity.9:07: The big stories of this year's World Cup and what makes The Guardian unique from its competitors in sport coverage.16:37: Expanding US coverage and leaning into multimedia opportunities amid changing engagement habits.22:35: Will US foreign policy impact this year's World Cup coverage and brand interest?27:03: How The Guardian sells global cultural events: "Be early, be easy, be different."31:06: Approaching new football audiences and continuing interest after the event is over.Related articles:The Guardian promotes its creative canvas amid US investment drivePlanning for a world cup when football never sleepsLeading Questions with Imogen Fox – The GuardianGet your head in the game: Why the World Cup 2026 will determine marketing's MVPsShould advertisers be creating World Cup contingency plans?

Last year, UM unveiled a new global omnichannel media planning proposition: Full Colour Media.The approach, underpinned by a custom body of research developed in partnership with the University of Oxford's Said Business School, seeks to move against the grain of generic, algorithm-driven media planning and towards a recentring of brand-driven advertising.Since the debut of the proposition, UM has gone through a period of continued change as its parent, Interpublic Group, was acquired by Omnicom Group at the end of last year.Susan Kingston-Brown is the global brand president for UM Worldwide.She joined The Media Leader from the agency's new London offices at Bankside to discuss how Full Colour Media has developed over the past year, whether distinctive agency brands are still valuable at a time when some holding groups are consolidating their efforts, and how she has managed the transition to Omnicom with her team at UM.Highlights:5:26: What is Full Colour Media? Why UM embraced a new planning proposition.15:10: Is there a conflict between AI and Full Colour Media?20:20: The value of agency brands amid market consolidation.26:29: How UM has managed the transition into Omnicom35:00: Agency holding group valuations have declined. What's the argument against that investment thesis?Related articles:UM unveils ‘Full Colour Media' proposition to fight brand blandnessUM global brand president: ‘The agency world will look different in a year's time'Will one and one equal ‘more than two'? Omnicom to complete purchase of IPG imminently

Earlier this month, Allwyn's global media director Ross Sergeant announced he would be joining GB News as its chief revenue officer.The appointment comes amid what Sergeant has referred to as an “inflection point” for the company. GB News has cumulatively lost £131.5m since its inception in 2021, with funding provided by owners Sir Paul Marshall and Dubai-based investment firm Legatum. But losses have been narrowing amid double-digit revenue growth and audiences have been growing as well. According to Barb figures, GB News has beaten both BBC News and Sky News in average audience and audience share in seven of the last eight months.But with growth comes scrutiny – from us here at The Media Leader and elsewhere. An investigation by Alan Rusbridger at The New World last week found that “GB News has essentially become Reform TV”, while broadcasting regulator Ofcom has “more or less given up the ghost”.Not only is GB News regularly airing incendiary, biased political views that align with the Reform Party — including by employing the party's sitting MPs, such as Nigel Farage, as presenters — but it's also arguably doing so in contradiction of Ofcom regulations that, seemingly, aren't being enforced.The Media Leader wanted to raise these topics and more with Sergeant, who is now being tasked with selling GB News to advertisers. Many such advertisers, particularly larger brands, have been skittish over concerns around brand safety and suitability and the nascent nature of the fledgling broadcaster.Highlights:1:43: Sergeant's background in media and why he joined GB News.13:30: Is GB News 'Reform TV'?24:40: Flouting Ofcom rules and incendiary rhetoric — does GB News have a brand safety problem?39:23: GB News's growing audience and Sergeant's blueprint for making the broadcaster profitable.50:42: Considering the state of the wider TV market and GB News's sales strategy within it.Related articles:Ross Sergeant joins GB News as chief revenue officer amid growth pushTwitter on TV: the real reasons why advertisers avoid GB NewsScreen scandal: How Ofcom lets GB News get away with it (The New World)

The BBC is at a critical moment as it looks to negotiate with the government over the renewal of its charter.This month, it published its response to the government's consultation in which it highlighted the quote “need for radical reforms to its independence”.Preserving the status quo, the Corporation argued, will quote “not be enough to deliver a BBC that remains recognisable to audiences nor brings benefits to UK society and beyond.”Chiefly, the current funding model quote “cannot maintain the BBC's public service mission for the future”, they argued.The Corporation is indeed facing a number of headwinds: it is losing an estimated £1bn pounds per year in potential license fee revenue as people evade required payments or forego TV ownership.A lack of funding has necessitated controversial cuts in recent years to a number of BBC services, most notably the World Service, which has seen a 21% drop in budget since 2021.It all comes as the Beeb is looking to hire a replacement for outgoing director-general Tim Davie. The aptly-named Matt Brittin, who led Google's EMEA business for a decade, has been tightly linked to the opening.Amid it all, The Media Leader hosted the 15th annual Connected TV World Summit in London last week to discuss the future of TV business and TV technology.At the event, Kerensa Samanidis, the general manager of BBC iPlayer, sat down with Jack Benjamin to discuss the future of iPlayer.The pair spoke about the challenges faced by the BBC as it seeks to compete with global streaming giants, whether the BBC would look to partner with other public-service broadcasters on distribution, and the importance of producing distinctly British content for British audiences.Highlights:1:57: Will iPlayer open up to other public-service broadcasters?4:03: How iPlayer matches up to global streaming giants by being "all things to all people"9:10: Remaining prominent11:11: Considering distribution partnerships: Netflix, YouTube, and cannibalisation concerns16:23: How the BBC's range extends beyond entertainment and dramaRelated articles:‘Be careful who you put in your bed': Broadcasters urged to partner with platforms cautiouslyHow a butterfly flapping its wings led to a tornado at the BBCBBC must remain ad-free and become more distinctive, Radiocentre analysis saysWhy advertisers need a strong BBC more than ever---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

In February, the Institute for Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) released its latest Agency Census. The findings showed an agency market in contraction: employment at creative agencies fell 14.3% last year – and that's before Omnicom completed its acquisition of IPG and subsequently announced it would cut thousands more jobs globally.New hiring dropped over 40%, with young people especially finding careers in media and advertising hard to break into, let alone remain in.However, the Census also registered continued progress in gender representation and ethnic diversity at agencies, even if pay gaps persist and geographical diversity is lacking.Lianree Robinson is the campaigning chair for Women in Advertising & Communications Leadership (WACL). She also works as the CEO of The Marketing Academy Foundation and as a mentor for Who's Your Momma London.If that wasn't enough to keep Robinson busy, she's also begun writing a monthly column for us at The Media Leader.Robinson joins host Jack Benjamin to discuss the findings of the IPA Agency Census, and provide a sense check of the progress the media and advertising industries have made with regard to gender and ethnicity inclusion.Highlights:5:38: IPA Agency Census toplines7:16: What has caused the creative agency labour market contraction?10:20: Challenges faced by under-25s employees19:24: Progress, but "relatively slow progress", on gender representation and ethnic diversity24:43: Persistent gender and ethnic pay gaps27:59: WACL's key priorities31:33: Geographical diversity neededRelated articles:Agency employment declines 6.8% as creative roles hollowed outWhy do female-founded agencies remain the exception?I didn't take the ‘traditional' route into media. That's exactly why it workedAsk Nabs Anything: Handling redundancy, rejection and mental health — with Nabs' Annabel McCaffrey---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

In January, an anonymous group of senior leaders at creative, media and adtech agencies released a memo warning that the industry is failing in its moral and civic duties to society.The memo argued that without an interruption to the status quo, advertising will “be a critical enabler to tech platforms that stoke hatred and division, facilitate hate groups to monetise their content at a time of increasing division in this country and many others, support the social license of the fossil fuel industry and provide broader greenwashing and social-washing services to industries that are under public scrutiny, and roll over in the face of anti-DEI rhetoric and desert those individuals, teams and communities that our industry has made commitments to.”It also argued that British business interests are losing independence to US political interests, that working groups have failed to drive internal change, and that the presence of Big Tech companies at industry-wide events and initiatives has stymied attempts at progress.The memo caused a stir, particularly given its timing just days ahead of the annual LEAD conference convened much of media and advertising's top brass to discuss the importance of trust.Its authors were criticised for remaining anonymous, but they nevertheless succeeded in sparking a conversation and renewed interest in key ethical issues that have arguably been suppressed since Trump's re-election as US president in late 2024.Ned Younger is the director of Inside Track, the non-profit that was responsible for convening these anonymous individuals and facilitating their production of the memo.He sat down with The Media Leader earlier this month to discuss his takeaways from the group, and whether he thinks they will drive real change in the advertising industry.Highlights:2:04: What is Inside Track and how did it convene this anonymous group?6:41: Main concerns expressed by the group10:27: Future direction, calls to action, and the need for better forums of conversation15:16: Why remain anonymous?22:58: The risk of insufficient progressRelated articles:Anonymous group of senior ad industry leaders warns of industry-wide moral failingGovernment plans new powers to tackle online harms: ‘No platform gets a free pass'Meta admits revenue from fraud and scam ads ‘might' have accounted for 3-4% of total revenueThe crisis in advertising: things we can do todayAct Climate Labs launches blueprint to phase out fossil fuel advertising---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

At the end of January, The Media Leader held its first ever Audio In Focus Week. The audio landscape is evolving at a breakneck pace – with growing digital audio audiences, and audio businesses moving into video production. So, we decided to dedicate an entire week's worth of our coverage to exploring the innovations, strategies and voices shaping the media channel.The week was launched in partnership with Octave Audio, the digital audio marketplace owned by News Broadcasting.During the week, host Jack Benjamin sat down with Octave's managing director Russell Pedrick, as well as News Broadcasting commercial director Dave Wilcox, at in News' London Bridge studio to discuss how the company's audio offering has developed over the past year.Octave came under the full ownership of News UK last summer, after News bought out Bauer's share. Bauer went on to launch its own digital audio marketplace, AudioXi.Pedrick was appointed MD in April ahead of the relaunch of Octave, and he's since worked to expand the service to encompasses visual inventory as well, as News Broadcasting products talkSport, Times Radio, Virgin Radio and Talk Radio transform from radio and podcast shows to visual shows commonly watched online and on TV screens.Pedrick and Wilcox discussed audio's transition to video, Octave's new AI product, and why they believe digital audio is undervalued in the current market. Hint: it involves needing better measurement standards. Highlights:5:03: Octave's strategic priorities7:31: Octave AI: balancing generative AI creative with desire for the human element12:04: Audio and video are merging, creating new commercial opportunities18:53: Embracing an omnichannel approach and a platform-led audience strategy24:04: Does podcasting need its own JIC?27:24: World Cup opportunity and why digital audio is undervaluedRelated articles:Octave MD reflects on how ‘audio is becoming a bit of a bolt on' in podcastingPredictions for audio in 2026 from industry expertsWhy the 2026 World Cup should be the ultimate multi-channel showcase Rajar Q4 2025: Top Takeaways---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

Mayhar Tousi joins me for an interview direct from London Protests for Freedom in Iran. He explains what is happening inside Iran, considers if help from outside will come and if it is needed to throw off the regime of the Mullahs. PODCAST INFO:Podcast website: https://yishaifleisher.com/podcastYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/YishaiFleisherTVSUPPORT & CONNECT:Buy Me a Coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/yishaiFight4Israel: https://fight4israel.givecloud.coTwitter: https://twitter.com/YishaiFleisherLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yishaifleisherFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/YishaiFleisher  Support the show

This month, advertising industry trade bodies the IPA, Isba and the Advertising Association are spending a great deal of combined energy highlighting the issue of trust.That includes at the annual LEAD conference, which takes place this Thursday, and in a report released last week by the IPA that found trust-building ad campaigns improve business outcomes.Trust is what drives consumers to purchase goods and services from one brand over another; to give their attention to one media channel over another. And in a world of AI slop, misinformation, and falling trust in traditional institutions — a world in which trust is increasingly at a premium — it's no surprise that the issue has been a core topic among executives in recent months, particularly those leading media channels like publishing and audio.Matt Bourn is the communications director at the Advertising Association. James Best is chair of the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) and Credos, the Advertising Association's think tank.On February 3rd, the duo are releasing a new book, published by Kogan Page, titled Trusted Advertising – How to harness the value of trust in your brand. Bourn and Best joined The Media Leader to discuss takeaways the book, whether advertisers are sufficiently valuing trusted media channels, and what they can do to better build trust in their brands.Highlights:7:37: How the dynamics of trust have changed in the 21st century15:27: Understanding the public's trust in the advertising industry and trust in individual ads22:40: The business case for trust28:18: The tricky phenomenon of trust in influencers34:01: The AI issue: More slop, but also more monitoring36:56: What makes a trusted advertising campaign? Media choice, creative, measuring trust as a KPIRelated articles:Trust-building ad campaigns improve business outcomes, IPA research findsBauer Media Advertising MD Simon Kilby: We're in a world that needs to start supporting trusted environmentsWhy quality pays: the power of trusted editorial in media planning – PPA Magnetic and The Media LeaderDoes trust matter in media?Trust is essential to the future of media. But how can advertisers measure it?---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

It's nearly the end of January, and from a macroeconomic perspective, it's been an absolutely wild month. The US threatened to invade Greenland and institute tariffs on European countries mobilising to resist that effort. In Davos last week, Trump appeared to walk back some of those threats, but it's safe to say uncertainty is and will continue to be at very high levels.Uncertainty raises questions for the media industry, which sits at the centre of global business activity.Earlier this month, The Media Leader convened its annual Year Ahead event in London. The invite-only event is always a great way to kick off the year. This year, Tom Standage, The Economist's deputy editor, gave a fantastic run-down of some of those macro factors to look out for, and we separately interviewed him afterward to ask a couple follow up questions.In addition to Tom, The Media Leader's content director James Longhurst and senior reporter Jack Benjamin to the stage both to recap some of the key themes from last year, and also raise key questions to industry leaders on their plans for 2026.The duo wanted to involve the audience, so they also asked Mail Metro Media's commercial chief Dominic Williams, Thinkbox CEO Lindsey Clay, Bauer Media Advertising MD Simon Kilby, and World Media Group CEO Jamie Credland to share their predictions for the year ahead, too.Highlights:2:02: Key themes from 2025 in media: Consolidation, getting "easier to buy", AI search5:30: Stories to watch in 2026: European-American business relations, trust, ROI on AI9:30: Dominic Williams: The World Cup opportunity11:12: Lindsey Clay: A return to brand building13:39: Simon Kilby: Valuing trusted media amid AI slop and harmful images16:05: Jamie Credland: Quality journalism in an age of AIRelated articles:2026 will be the year of…The Economist: A look at the political economyInside the Grok CSAM scandal and how brands have faced ‘weaponised political pressure' to spend with XWorld Media Group members on how AI will reshape the media industry in 2026Nine AI tool announcements from CES 2026

Last month at the Future of TV Advertising Global event in London, three key brand marketers spoke about how they view the strengths of TV, particularly as they compare to other audio-visual platforms.Richard Brooke is the global media trading and operations director at Unilever. Sorin Patilinet is the global marketing effectiveness lead at PepsiCo. Alison Keith was until recently the head of global marketing effectiveness at Kraft Heinz and, before that, the VP of global media at Coty.The trio sat down with event producer and Media Leader contributor Justin Lebbon to discuss what brands want from the TV and where TV is now situated in their marketing strategies compared to other video platforms.Is TV still "cool"? Does it have a narrative problem with ad buyers? Is YouTube TV? Brooke, Patilinet and Keith unpacked a media channel in flux.Brooke also discussed why Unilever moved to increase its spend on social media platforms last year – a bold move that could well have heralded in a new era of confidence for the creator economy.Highlights:1:25: Reactions to TV consolidation3:40: TV is effective, but the creator economy is the shiny new thing8:21: The definition of “TV” is changing, but the standards of quality aren't the same15:19: Is ad investment consolidation in Big Tech platforms healthy?22:56: Less adspend is going through JICs. Does independent measurement still matter?Related articles:Comcast Ads president: Uneven measurement standards create an ‘existential' challenge for TVChannel 4, ITV and Sky commercial chiefs ask advertisers to ‘turn down the toxic'Watch: TV trends to look out for

It's the most wonderful time of the year. Yes, yes, it's the holiday season and we're just days away from Christmas. But it's also the global adspend report season. Business leaders are getting a holistic look at how the total ad market performed in the UK and around the world, and also what to expect for next year.WPP Media's This Year Next Year report released on 8 December, and it has become something of an annual tradition to host its author and global president of business intelligence, Kate Scott-Dawkins, on this show before the end of the year.She returns once again to unpack this latest report, which forecast global ad revenue to grow 8.8% year on year to $1.14tn in 2025, despite persistent macroeconomic headwinds. Next year, WPP Media is predicting further 7.1% global growth, the majority of which is being captured by a handful of tech platforms.Scott-Dawkins offers her view on the state of the global economy, downside risks for marketers, and whether AI is likely to drive growth next year.This is the final episode of the podcast we at The Media Leader are releasing this year. Thank you to our wonderful guests and to all you listeners out there for tuning in. We'll be taking a few weeks off the holidays but will be back up and running in the New Year.Highlights:1:50: Toplines: an optimistic forecast driven by platform growth6:12: Expect more consolidation9:33: Downside risks: tariffs, uncertain consumer spending, K-shaped recovery14:52: Advertising is leading the global economy17:56: Could the commerce market be upended by AI?20:20: Why the UK ad market is still "pretty healthy"22:33: Things to look out for in 2026: AI search, an upper-funnel correctionRelated articles:WPP Media forecasts 8.8% global ad revenue growth in 2025 but warns of ‘K-shaped economy' risk‘Agencies may get squeezed everywhere': US tariffs cause ad industry angstUncertainty and soft guidance as holding groups struggle for growth in Europe---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

This episode was produced in partnership with Roku.It's been a busy past few months for Roku: in the US, it launched a new low-cost subscription service, Howdy, which aims to be supplementary to the likes of Netflix and Disney+; in the UK, Roku launched 40 FAST channels on its platform.Last month, The Media Leader sat down with Roku's content distribution director, Tom Price. If you haven't listened, it's worth your time – Price spoke about those developments, as well as how Roku works with its content partners to support their programming within the Roku platform.But that was only part 1 of a 2-part series produced in partnership with the company, timed to coincide with The Media Leader's focus on the future of TV at our annual Future of TV Advertising Global Event, held this week.For part 2 of the series, host Jack Benjamin is joined by Mike Shaw, the director of EMEA ad sales at Roku.Shaw discussed Roku's commercial strategy more broadly. He chatted about where Roku sits within the wider CTV ecosystem, how it's working with retail media partners, innovations it would like to help drive in measurement, and how the TV market is changing to become more data-led and programmatic.Highlights:1:37: What will define the future of TV advertising?5:00: Growth and growing pains in CTV9:09: How to use data for brand and performance alike14:20: Linking CTV with retail media and driving innovation amid 'democratisation' of TV20:38: How Roku aims to grow market share in Europe: using TV OS for incremental reach26:36: The future of FAST and bundling amid subscription fatigueRelated articles:How Roku is piecing a fragmented TV landscape back together — with Tom PriceRoku launches FAST channels in UK marketHowdy confirms Roku's growing interest in subscription streamingRoku eyes app bundling opportunity as next-gen aggregator---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

PMG, an independent challenger ad agency, has gone on an investment spree. Over the past few months the agency has hired top talent, and in recent years it has acquired a number of businesses to build out a full-service offering for brands as it looks to challenge holding groups and other indies for business.One major addition it made last month was Josh Krichefski, the former GroupM EMEA and UK CEO, who is now PMG's EMEA president.Krichefski is also notable for working as the president of IPA from 2023 to 2025, a role in which he championed industry talent and the importance of both acquisiton and retention.He joined The Media Leader recently to discuss his new role, PMG's growth strategy and what sets it apart from competitor agencies amid a rapidly changing agency landscape.Krichefski also reflected on his time as IPA president and at WPP, and spoke about his views on the future of the agency model.Highlights:4:30: What attracted Krichefski to PMG after more than a decade at WPP9:43: PMG's go-to-market in EMEA: Transparency, consultancy, data27:01: Reflecting on Krichefski's time as IPA President and his People First agenda32:12: Agency consolidation and the future of the agency model38:26: Why AI is an opportunity, not a threatRelated articles:Josh Krichefski joins PMG as EMEA PresidentIPA president Josh Krichefski: ‘Put health and wellbeing at the forefront'WPP CEO labels group's performance ‘unacceptable' as it looks to SMEs‘We are in a crisis': Advertising: Who Cares? suggests media business models must change---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

One of the key topics of industry research we at The Media Leader have been following is how media companies – be they agencies, owners or brands – can and should restructure themselves to become more fit-for-purpose in a changing media ecosystem.Independent marketing advisory MediaSense has been examining these issues for several years, and last month it released its latest report, in partnership with the World Federation of Advertisers, titled, The Future of Media Organisations. Based on responses from many of the world's largest companies representing $52bn in annual media spend, the report found that media is emerging as a key way to connect disparate marketing functions – from creative to brand strategy. Media, in other words, is becoming less siloed.But that begs the question: how do businesses and their agencies reorganise to fit that new model?Ryan Kangisser is the chief strategy officer at MediaSense. He joins the podcast once again to explain the details of the study, their implications for marketers and agencies, and why integration – rather than scale – is the key to media success going forward.He remarks: "I think [brands] want full-service thinking, not necessarily full-service doing."Highlights:1:48: Toplines from The Future of Media Organisations report: breaking down siloes6:07: If media is taking a bigger role, who owns strategy?11:39: Developing the right data infrastructure to improve audience planning16:20: Global versus local: why there is an erosion of regional specialism24:03: How is the agency model changing?Related articles:Media's strategic role in integrating marketing functions for brandsWhat's the future role of media? It's complicatedRethinking agency remuneration in 2025 — with MediaSense's Ryan Kangisser---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

Last week, The Media Leader hosted its flagship annual event in London, The Future of Media, and for this week's episode of the podcast, the team wanted to bottle one of the headline interviews from the conference.On Tuesday, host Jack Benjamin sat down with Niel Bornman, CEO of Publicis Media Connected UK.Publicis is having a big year – it is, by some margin, the strongest-growing of the major global media holding groups, to the point where its competitors are generally looking to emulate its business model.Bornman unpacked the moves the company has made in recent years to set it up for post-pandemic growth, and weighed whether its data-driven model is pushing advertisers more toward performance media.The pair also spoke about the future of the agency model, debated concerns around principal media, and discussed what needs to change to improve Publicis Groupe's declining share price.Highlights:2:14: How Publicis' data-led model put it in a good post-pandemic position.5:08: Can Publicis maintain its USP as competitors look to emulate its business model?7:18: Are we over-investing in performance marketing?10:45: Boosting share price growth13:15: The future of the agency model in an era of AI19:00: Principal media: yay or nay?Related articles:‘We are in a crisis': Advertising: Who Cares? suggests media business models must changeThe great media agency shake-upWho gains most from the agency shift to strategic partnerships with clients?Can principal media be good, actually?Podcast: What did Publicis get for $4.4bn? Interview with Epsilon UK MD Elliott Clayton---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media.LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

It's one thing to get your CFO's attention and a marketing budget approved. It's another to deploy that investment in a way that builds your brand and delivers on boardroom promises.In a break from our typical interview format, The Media Leader team wanted to bring you one further discussion held at last month's Future of Media Manchester event.To close the day, The Media Leader's content director James Longhurst hosted a panel on the challenges clients and agencies face throughout the year as they seek to meet and exceed boardroom expectations.How do you optimise for business KPIs? How do you balance short-term demands with long-term brand building when every pound spent is being scrutinised? How do you build the case for bigger media budgets during a business downturn?All these questions and more were tackled by: Neil Jones, head of performance media at Boots UK; Laura Kell, chief data and product officer at Havas Media Network UK; Stu Lunn, group managing director at Kinesso; and Rob Linton, managing director, regions at MiQ.The discussion will continue next month, when The Future of Media returns 4-5 November in London. Register here to attend.Highlights:2:16: The start of the budgeting year — how to make the CFO see marketing as an investment8:05: Why AI is being used to drive cost savings21:57: Balancing short-term KPIs and long-term needs34:45: How do you know you've kept your promises to the boardroom?Related articles:How brands can truly ensure their CEO, CFO and CMO work togetherHow to bridge the CEO-CMO gap? Marketers must take an ‘investor mindset', McKinsey advisesAd industry positioned as key sector for driving economic growth---Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

It has been a tough year for many working in media. Jobs appear to be shrinking amid AI transformations and cost-cutting drives necessitated by struggling or transitioning business models.WPP has cut its head count by 7,000 in the past year. Omnicom's acquisition of IPG will lead to “cost synergies”, which also translates to potential redundancies, and similar consolidations are expected to come to the TV market. Meanwhile, publishers continue to get squeezed by Big Tech via the development of AI search, and Big Tech itself is also replacing many of its workers, especially at the entry level, with AI.We view our mission at The Media Leader in part as being as helpful as possible to the industry in which we serve. With that in mind, we wanted to open the conversation about redundancy and see if we could help impart advice on those affected or feeling precarious.Annabel McCaffrey leads the Advice Line team for NABS, the ad industry's wellbeing charity. Last year, NABS received a record number of calls from those in distress, including a 39% year-on-year increase in calls for redundancy support.We asked our readers and listeners to send in their questions on the topic of redundancy and related topics, and host Jack Benjamin put those questions to McCaffrey.Highlights:1:49: Characterising the current state of adland5:21: Is AI replacing jobs, particularly at the entry level? Are jobs applications even being viewed by humans anymore?15:05: Advice for putting a CV together, networking22:53: How redundancy impacts people at different ages39:07: How can organisations do more to support staff and achieve buy-in for mental wellness efforts?Related articles:What to do if you've been made redundant: Tips from expertsWPP cut 7,000 jobs over past yearWhat I learnt from redundancy early in my careerDealing with redundancy---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

Next month, The Media Leader will head up north for The Future of Media Manchester – part one of our two-part flagship event series, with the other held in London in November.While there, we'll be looking to unpack an industry in flux. How is AI changing the media market? What's next for social platforms? And for brand discovery? How can we supercharge investment outside London?Ahead of the conference, Jack Benjamin caught up with one of the speakers who offers a unique view on our industry.Professor Andy Miah is chair in science communication and future media at the University of Salford. He is a bioethicist, an academic and an expert on how technology is shaping our media environments and, in turn, who we are and how we interact with each other in society.Miah and Benjamin discuss the ways in which AI has the power to transform media (for better and for worse): how AI slop is taking over our TikTok feeds, the ethics of chatbots and whether business incentives are aligning with social incentives for technological change in media."The ethics of it certainly can't be left to the platforms to decide," says Miah. "We certainly don't want to restrict innovation to such an extent that it cannot progress, but I think we have the beginnings of a global conversation on how to regulate AI."Highlights:2:37: How new technology is shaping media consumption: optimism and anxiety6:42: Antidotes to enshittification? Content creation, hype cycles and monopolism15:36: How the AI transformation is impacting "the fundamental building blocks of society"30:25: What is artistically great in 2025? AI slop, the attention economy and the race to the bottom36:36: The ethics of chatbots and the beginnings of a regulatory framework for AIRelated articles:In an AI search era, brands must go where LLMs goMark Zuckerberg champions ‘superintelligence' as Meta revenues jumpAI search presents ‘existential' challenge to publishersTikTok stakes claim as ‘home of search' as it launches more AI ad tools---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

We all get older and with age comes wisdom and, especially today, a whole lot of purchasing power.But the ad industry is appearing to suffer from a severe bout of ageism. According to the latest IPA Agency Census, just 8% of people working in agencies in the UK are over the age of 51. Meanwhile, over-51s account for over 33% of the overall UK workforce and 22% of the information and communication sector.To consider the issue in more detail, the IPA released a report in April titled Time for Some New "Age Thinking". Its author, Anna Sampson, is an industry consultant, former agency research lead and has previously written extensively for The Media Leader.Sampson sits down with Jack Benjamin to unpack why media is skewing so heavily towards younger employees, what it risks losing without more experienced people and how leaders can develop strategies for supporting age inclusion even amid lay-offs at major agencies.Highlights:1:50: Age demographics in the UK ad industry6:40: Navigating change amid agency lay-offs and AI efficiencies13:12: What do you lose by not having enough staff who are over 51?18:06: Strategies for age inclusion22:51: Advice for those facing redundancyRelated articles:Jan Gooding: The one unavoidable discrimination we're guilty ofNicola Kemp: The future of media is not Group MenAlly Owen: You peak in media at 34... by 45 you're invisible---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

It's not often you hear of a media agency going out and acquiring a venture capital fund. But in February, independent shop MNC bought Grwth, a VC fund with a focus on consumer brands.Luke Bristow, who has been MNC's CEO for nearly a year, told The Media Leader at the time of acquisition that the model gives MNC skin in the game with clients.“It's a great way for us to not only have an exciting external-facing proposition, but actually for us to put our money where our mouth is,” he explained.Now, a few months after the deal closed, Bristow catches up with Jack Benjamin to discuss how it has changed the strategy for MNC and how the agency now approaches clients.In a wide-ranging conversation, the pair also speak about the rapidly changing media agency landscape, where indies see opportunities for disruption and what consolidation among holding groups means for advertisers.Highlights:1:28: Bristow's background and belief in the indie proposition12:03: The strategy behind acquiring a VC fund24:10: How the client proposition has changed37:01: The current agency landscape: principal media, consolidation, opportunities for indies50:13: Becoming a talent incubator amid industry lay-offsRelated articles:Why MNC is kicking off an acquisition drive by buying a VC fundAI and curation are the media agency evolution imperativesUncertainty and soft guidance as holding groups struggle for growth in EuropeGroupM to retain agency brands as ‘client service brands'---Thanks to our production partners Trisonic for editing this episode.--> Discover how Trisonic can elevate your brand and expand your business by connecting with your ideal audienceVisit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn: The Media LeaderYouTube: The Media Leader

M. Curtis McCoy is a Chief Executive Officer with a demonstrated history of working in the consumer electronics industry. Founder of News Wire Magazine, Curtis understands what it takes to succeed in post-modern business. Enjoy this amazing conversation.

As broadcasters begin to announce their lineups, what will Ofcom do about Nigel Farage? Media news and analysis, this week with media writer and chair of Broadcasting Press Guild Manori Ravindran and The Media Leader's Ella Sagar.Also on the programme: we're in Bristol for the Creative Cities Convention and hear reasons to be cheerful from broadcaster David Olusoga and Screenskill's Laura Mansfield.All that plus, changes at Virgin Radio, why Channel 4 is thinking beyond England.... and, in the Media Quiz, it's American imports and exports.A Rethink Audio Production, produced by Matt Hill. Love our look and sound? Hire thelondonpodcaststudios.com for your next recording - and get 25% off your first booking when you use the code MEDIAPOD.  Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Until recently, Rob Pierre was CEO of Jellyfish, the major digital media agency he co-founded over 18 years ago - a role which made him one of the UK's most successful media leaders. In 2021 he was voted Media Week's Media Leader of the Year to recognise his achievements. Now, having stepped down, we reflect on life without the CEO title, leadership, confidence and his tool for avoiding self doubt. If you've listened to Tiger Therapy before, you'll know that at the end of each episode, I ask guests to nominate something they think is brilliant to come on the podcast. Joanna Flint, Chief Commercial Officer at Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, suggested Rob. Here's what she said about him: “What I love about Rob is his storytelling, his authenticity and his belief. He's a really interesting individual with a global perspective to talk about how to build an incredibly successful business through grit, determination, and being a really good man.”We couldn't agree more. Thanks so much Rob for coming on Tiger Therapy - I loved our conversation!_______Social media: Tigerhall Pippa Woodhead | @pippa.woodheadRob Pierre Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Née à Lille en 2012 sous l'impulsion d'Emmanuel DEBUYCK, ADWANTED s'est construite sur une parallèle à la pub en ligne en proposant aux marques d'accéder à un inventaire d'espaces publicitaires offline. Si le concept séduit les medias, quelques annonceurs, le chemin de la rentabilité est trop long pour que la société tienne. C'est à l'occasion d'une acquisition aux Etats Unis qu'Emmanuel Debuyck donne une nouvelle impulsion à son entreprise. Pour développer son portefeuille tout en renforcant la valeur de sa marque il s'engage dans un build up d'une dizaine de sociétés, dont certaines ont 100 ans et lui permettent d'avoir une forte légitimité. RDS aux États-Unis (fondée en 1919), Mediatel (fondée en 1985) au Royaume-Uni, Carthage, Offremedia (devenu The Media Leader), ou encore CSE en France.Aujourd'hui ADWANTED group développe des technologies, fournit de la data et de l'information au secteur des medias pour les aider dans leur développement et leurs investissements.Pour en parler nous recevons Emmanuel DEBUYCK, fondateur et CEO d'ADWANTED GROUP pour échanger notamment sur son nouveau tour de financement.

Revenue from South Africa, Kenya and Ghana's entertainment industry is projected to grow at a 5.5% compound growth annual rate between now and 2027. That's according to PwC's latest Africa Entertainment & Media Outlook 2023–2027 report. The company's Africa Entertainment and Media Leader, Alinah Motaung joined Business Day TV for more insight into the report and its findings.

In the first episode in our new The Meaningful Media Leader series, Sarah Mansfield, Vice-President Global Media, Unilever & Vice-President, Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) discusses her professional journey in media, shares vital perspectives on the media industry today and outlines valuable insights for the road ahead with our host Ben Downing. From the benefits and ‘watch-outs' of generative AI to driving transparency in cross-media measurement through a collective initiative at ISBA, this broad conversation between Sarah and Ben strikes at the heart ofexplores key areas impacting the media ecosystem, the leadership role of ISBA as one single voice representing advertisers in the UK and delves into the path forward for the industry. “If we work together as an industry we can solve big problems…How we collectively solve big hairy challenges is a partnership with stakeholders; we are better solving them as a collective,” says Sarah during her discussion with Ben. Enjoy the episode and do keep an ear out for future episodes with further media luminaries in this thought-provoking series! We'd love to hear your thoughts about meaningful media. Drop us a line! podcast@havasmg.com. Reach out on our socials: LinkedIn and Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We tell ourselves stories every day about ourselves, who we are, how we react to things, and why we're great. It's important to read through the BS whilst at the same time positively motivating ourselves to do our best. It's not easy but it is important.We have Mike Follet on the show who runs a human behavior tracking company Lumen Research to talk about his insights into the stories we tell ourselves in business and in life.- - -Connect with Mike:Mike Follet - LinkedInMike's writing - The Media LeaderLumen's Twitter - @LumenResearchLumen Research - Website- - -Connect with Sam:Sam's newsletter on creativity - Explosive Thinking Watch the pod - YouTube - Growth MindsetTwitter - @samjamharrisInstagram - @SamJam.zen- - -Chapters00:00 Introduction01:36 Opimising attenion02:44 Importance of context, creative and targeting04:16 Why is advertising interesting09:50 Mike's biggest failure14:17 ADVERT - NordLocker15:46 Fixing their own problems18:52 Advice 5 years ago21:26 Kindest thing - honesty23:04 Conclusion Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/growth-mindset-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Time for a Reset: The Marketing Podcast, Nick King sits down with Olya Dyachuk, Data-Driven Media Director at Heineken. We discuss the importance of sustainability and diversity in marketing, the role of data and technology in media planning, and the need for marketers to prioritise people and consumers. Olya shares how Heineken is leading the charge in responsible media while inspiring brand teams to do more in these areas. Join us as we:Discuss aligning creativity with data to drive marketing resultsLook at how #ROI and a focus on KPIs elevate marketing to the boardroom at Heineken Examine the need to drive #sustainability and #diversity in media management Evaluate the impact of brand equity and positioning on business results Give advice for young marketing professionalsOlya has over 15 years of marketing leadership experience at global brands like Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Bacardi, and Heineken. She is an expert in Global Marketing, Digital, Data and Technology. Olya is a leader, creative thinker, change-maker, problem solver, and a passionate believer in inclusive and sustainable marketing. Olya is the winner of 'Media Leader 2023' in the Advertiser category.The full transcript is available here.Support the show

Did your latest advertisement reach 100k views and get 10k clicks? Or do you have no idea how many people actually saw it or had enough interest in it to try and learn more? If the advertising, marketing, and media you produce is created with the goal of reaching a measurable outcome - whether it's views or clicks or subscribers or sales… …you might just be interested in learning more about Performance Media and the data analytics that goes into it. Catch the latest TAS episode to hear it from Dr. Ramendra Singh. Meet Dr. Ramendra Singh Ramendra's Role as a Media Leader as Crossmedia Ramendra Singh is the Chief Performance Media Officer at Crossmedia USA. Crossmedia is an independent channel-driven agency delivering communications planning, media services and international account management. Crossmedia was born out of a passion to establish an agency model that focuses on what media agencies should do: create innovative, participatory connections between brands and people regardless of channel or budget. Since being founded in 2000, they have seen a paradigm shift in how media agencies are structured, mirroring the Crossmedia approach. Ramendra's Other Work in Marketing Ramendra received the Data Culture Leader Award as part of the BoD Awards from Corinium in 2022. He has served as Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Analytics Officer, and Chief Product Officer at Fortune 500 firms throughout his career. His C-Suite experience spans leading functional areas of Marketing, Product Development, Data Science & Analytics, Technology, and Operations and his global experience spans across multiple industry verticals. To name a few, previously, Ramendra has been Chief Analytics Officer of Performics and Chief Marketing Officer at Brandman University. He is also a senior member on Industry Councils and Advisory Boards. Besides that, Ramendra shares his insights by speaking and publishing on topics such as Performance Marketing, Measurement, Digital Transformation, Advanced Analytics, Decisioning Solutions, Application of AI/ML, and Organisational Improvement. Performance Media, Data Analytics, Marketing In this exclusive analytics podcast episode, Ramendra shares: The story behind his win of the Performance Pioneer award with PMW US His current role as the Chief Performance Media Officer at Crossmedia USA What exactly Performance Media is Combining demand generation and demand capture Using advanced analytics solutions in Performance Media Where we're at in Performance Media regarding advanced analytics The future of plug-and-play with data analytics How the role of a marketer has become broader and how universities should adapt A use case of a Performance Media has benefitted an organisation using data analytics Calculating the KPI for these Performance Media benefits How much mathematicians are involved in creating these media solutions The challenges that come with using data analytics in Performance Media How small businesses can also benefit from Performance Media Services side vs clients side If you are a marketing professional looking to start implementing Performance Media in your organisations through the use of data analytics, this is the episode you do not want to miss. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/analyticsshow/message

In this episode, Wafa, Shreya and Ismahan share their journey of founding Playbook, the most incredible and resourceful Edtech Startup on the block that's been creating a storm! We get the details on how they began this journey with an aim of redefining career progression for women by showing them the endless possibilities that lie ahead of them and the countless ways that they can go further in their career. Moreover they discuss splitting roles and how they envision this to be a platform that can give women access to new opportunities and make a positive impact on their lives and lead change. Shreya Rammohan is the Co Founder and CMO of Playbook, an Edtech Startup where she presently handles marketing and product development. She has over 8 years of professional marketing consulting, research & implementation experience across 10 industrial sectors & in 4 regional markets. From 2018 to 2022, she was the Media Leader for the largest women empowerment network in MENA, Women Power Network, having secured $3million+ in advertising equivalence across notable published media and digital platforms. She has also led the winning startup (Women Who Read) of the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) by the U.S. State Department and Bahrain FinTech Bay “Build for Bahrain” programme.  Ismahan Al Saad is the Co Founder and COO of Playbook where she presently leads operations, finance and investment. With over 20 years of experience in Finance and Investments, Ismahan is the former General Manager of AlSaad Power Projects. She has also been in charge of Business Development, diversifying the company's activities and operational specialities towards increasing income sources. Prior to her career at the Family Business, Ismahan's professional expertise lay in Banking and Finance, where her experience spans 12 years in BNP Paribas.