This week, we’re joined by Joe Marchese, operating and build partner at Human Ventures and veteran media exec. We discuss why the obsession with performance marketing has created incentives for many intermediaries to focus on giving the appearance of being responsible for a sale rather than actually contributing to the sale, and how that’s led to short-term approaches that skips the basics of building lasting brands. Plus: What the meting of Kamala Harris says about the direction of news and political campaigns, why Netflix points to a shrinking TV ad market and the perils of operating content and commerce businesses as part of one company.

• Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter
• Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter
• Alex Schleifer's Universal Entities
• Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Skip to topic:

• 00:00 Introduction
• 06:09 Netflix vs. Apple TV: The Future of Streaming
• 16:51 The Meme Election
• 24:42 The Role of AI in Media and Advertising
• 35:59 The Evolution of Content Creation Tools
• 38:07 The Cookiepocalypse and Ad Tech Cynicism
• 40:31 Performance Media and Brand Building
• 44:37 Content and Commerce: The Houdinki Case Study
• 51:32 The Future of Digital Media and Monetization
• 58:56 Media Investments and Optimism
• 01:01:00 Good Product

The assassination attempt on Donald Trump was a stress test for the Information Space, and a reminder of just how much the media has changed. You had mainstream news outlets jockeying with individuals holding forth with a collection of expertise, conspiracies, jokes, memes and partisan potshots. Some of it was informative, some of it was hilarious, some of it was infuriating, and much of it was… entertaining? We unpack yet another crazy plot twist and look forward to what it means as the media business girds for what looks very likely to be a return to power of Donald Trump and an ascendent political movement that’s to a large degree successfully vanquished the packaged news media.

• Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter
• Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter
• Alex Schleifer's Universal Entities
• Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Skip to topic:

• 00:00 Introduction
• 02:50 Personal Media Consumption Experiences
• 04:13 The Evolution of Media and Information
• 08:08 Trump's Influence on Media and Politics
• 15:13 The Future of Media in a Polarized World
• 26:23 Trump's Media Mastery and Political Impact
• 38:34 Tech's Political Landscape
• 42:44 Big Tech vs. Small Tech
• 44:26 The Role of Media in Politics
• 49:55 The Rise of YouTube as a Podcast Platform
• 53:58 The Evolution of Digital Advertising
• 01:03:51 Good Product

The tidal wave of crap is a reality in the Information Space. This week, we discuss the rules of winning in the Information Space, including why it helps to get into fights, present as authoritative and authentic, and above all else to be willing to be shameless.

• Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter
• Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter
• Alex Schleifer's Universal Entities
• Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Skip to topic:

• 00:00 Introduction
• 03:00 Threads and Social Media Dynamics
• 06:16 The Rise of Authenticity
• 11:17 Traditional Media's Role
• 16:19 AI and Productivity
• 32:41 The Role of Hyperbole and Conspiracy Theories
• 34:20 The New Rules of the Information Space
• 42:53 The Importance of Podcasts in Modern Media
• 52:56 Good Product