Stream of Reading (Prepare to be Forwarded) – An Archive of What I'm Reading
Decoding the historical context behind the emcee’s economic nationalism on his new album 4:44 Until 4:44, Jay-Z’s albums could be understood as an indictment of the immorality of capitalism by a man luxuriating in its fruits. Jay-Z argued that there was something revolutionary in this, in a black man born in the projects proving himself a better…
Transparency in agency relationships is a growing issue. Pivotal analyst Brian Wieser downgraded ratings on the four major agency holding companies on Monday, warning that the growing noise over agency kickbacks has caused him to “reassess some of our views on long-term holding company growth.” In a note to investors, he added that since marketers are…
With the major investigation into media buying kickbacks in the USA by the ANA about to conclude, and our own ISBA recently making headlines about the poor state of media agencies in the UK, Mark Ritson reviews what we have learned so far. Just over a year ago Jon Mandel, the former CEO of media…
Advertising agencies in the US have been systematically padding their profits by using non-transparent practices such as taking rebates from media companies and not disclosing them to clients, according to the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), which released the highly anticipated findings of an eight-month investigation into the sector on Tuesday. The ANA — which…
Jon Mandel Media agency rebates and kickbacks, long thought to be something that happened overseas — or only in pockets of the U.S. market — are actually widespread, said former Mediacom CEO Jon Mandel, so much so that it caused him to leave the agency business. Mr. Mandel made his remarks in a blistering presentation…
Agencies are not transparent about their actions. Agencies recommend media that is off-strategy when it works for their gain. Agencies accrue media earned by advertisers’ spending and resell it to other advertisers. Agencies demand pay-for-play from vendors in order to be recommended, and cross the line in partnership relationships. These are among the claims made…
Barbara Lee speaks during a town hall in 2015. (Dan Honda/Bay Area News Group) On September 14, 2001, Rep. Barbara Lee, who represents Oakland and Berkeley, stood up in the House of Representatives to cast the lone vote against the Authorization for Use of Military Force, a measure that paved the way for the war…
close story-meta Photo President Trump mocked Mika Brzezinski, a co-host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” on Thursday. Joe Scarborough responded on Friday. Credit Al Drago/The New York Times President Trump remained embroiled in a rumpus with two cable talk-show hosts on Friday, a surreal dispute featuring allegations of extortion, dueling tweets and low-rent insults that has…