In an Elevate Publishing discussion on Tuesday about what makes modern media companies successful, Vox Media CEO Jim Bankoff hit all the classics--a commitment to quality journalism, a diversified revenue portfolio and the ability to provide premium advertising at scale--but he also stressed the bright future of audio. And well he should: Vox Media has...
Gerrymandering is an ongoing threat to fair elections, yet many Americans still don't know the severity of the threat it poses. Disenfranchising voters and preventing competition in general elections are only a fraction of the sweeping negative effects that manipulating electoral boundaries can cause. Using the 37th U.S. House district in Austin as an example...
We've all been there: it's 3 AM and you're wide awake. In the stillness of the night, each minute noise raises the hair on the back of your neck. Is it a late-arriving neighbor? The cat? A dangerous intruder? 3 AM is an inherently terrifying time. It's also a great time for an early morning...
Netflix is looking to win over more total TV time among its subscribers around the world, but instead of prioritizing the largest screens in consumers' homes, the company is laser-focused on the smallest ones. The streaming giant, which last week reported nearly 214 million global subscribers, is laying the groundwork for more aggressive mobile engagement...
At Amazon Advertising's annual UnBoxed event on Oct. 26, the ecommerce giant announced a slew of new features and tools it said will enhance brands' ability to tell their stories and improve customer relationships. Experts agree advertisers are likely to find the new features attractive, which will in turn help Amazon capture additional media spend--particularly...
Discord allows users to purchase Boosts for their favorite servers, which gives those servers access to additional content and features, such as additional emoji slots and an animated server icon. If you've purchased a Nitro subscription on Discord, you receive two server Boosts that you can use to instantly boost your favorite server(s). Nitro subscribers...
Facebook reported revenue of $29.01 billion for the third quarter of 2021, up 35% year over year, but short of analysts' projections of $29.57 billion. If it weren't for Apple's iOS 14 changes, the platform said it would have seen positive quarter-over-quarter revenue growth. Profit, as well as users, grew, but while investors mostly shrugged...
The world's biggest brands will improve their internal structures around sustainability over the coming year as they aim to boost public trust in their messaging, with a growth in the introduction of the role of the chief sustainability officer. With COP26 set to begin in Glasgow--a summit viewed as a vital moment in the world's...
YouTube said it removed more than 1.8 million videos during the second quarter of 2021 for violations of its child safety policies. YouTube vice president of government affairs and public policy Leslie Miller said during a Senate subcommittee hearing Tuesday morning on protecting children online that the platform removed roughly 7 million accounts believed to...
October is National Disability Employment Awareness month. While there have been significant strides celebrating disability, such as Unilever's revolutionary innovations, disability inclusion often remains an afterthought or one-dimensional compliance check box for many advertisers and agencies. We've seen brands rapidly and dynamically shift marketing and hiring practices in support of marginalized communities and minority groups,...
The increasingly blurred lines between physical and virtual forms of interactivity have largely ignored the roughly 252 million people in the world either blind or significantly visually-impaired. Mastercard's latest payments product, the Touch Card, is intended to rectify that. The card's release is presented as part of a broader effort to demonstrate that inclusiveness, and...
Americans have a great fondness for paper towels. Nearly every U.S. household uses them to clean up spills and wipe down surfaces. Indeed, shoppers around the country spend about the same amount on the product as the rest of the world combined. Throughout the pandemic, U.S. consumers have bought even more. Sales of paper towels...
Almost two years into a global pandemic, and organizations across the globe are still experiencing seismic shifts in their businesses, while many are still working through those changes. Businesses should be asking a few important questions to find actionable solutions, including 'how can we turn these disruptions into real, tangible growth opportunities?' Panelists from Marriott,...
Climate news seems to get bleaker by the day. From a Texas-sized island of plastic swirling in the Pacific Ocean to mountains of discarded clothing washing up on the shores of Ghana, consumers are paying attention. And they're demanding action and accountability from brands. In response, brands are experimenting with new materials, processes and business...
Before the credits to 1999's The Best Man finished rolling at the theater, Kimberly Wilson was ready to mail her internship application to BET headquarters. Wilson was already looking for a career change when she saw actress Nia Long's character, Jordan Armstrong, a music and TV producer at the network. "I remember looking at the...
When October rolls around, millions of Americans take comfort in the familiar harbingers of fall: The leaves turn colors, the sun sets earlier, Starbucks pours pumpkin spice lattes--and a six-block line forms outside the nearest Spirit Halloween. Odds are, in fact, that you've stood in that line yourself. Not only do 65% of adults now...
Agencies sometimes spend six months or more working on a pitch for a coveted potential client, only for that client to decide at the eleventh hour that the pitch will end in an auction over the phone--lowest fees win. New business execs at ad agencies characterized that process--which is commonly referred to as reverse auctions,...
For decades, organizations such as the Humane Society of the U.S. and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have worked toward creating a more humane world for animals. But until recently, efforts to convince consumers, businesses and governments to ban the production and sale of fur largely fell on deaf ears. The pandemic,...
Comscore is bringing on a new chief financial officer as it looks to make continued progress in the TV measurement space. Top line Jon Carpenter, who has been chief financial officer of Publishers Clearing House since 2016, will join Comscore beginning Nov 29, the company said today. "Jon's world class background and leadership experience are...