BBC Earth: using YouTube to grow fandom

Global media isn’t just transforming, it’s reorganizing itself around fandom, creators, and direct-to-audience ecosystems.

Welcome back to The Media Odyssey Podcast! In this special episode from MIPCOM Cannes, Evan Shapiro sits down with Pedro Pina, VP of YouTube in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and Jasmine Dawson, SVP of Digital at BBC Studios, for a panel on BBC Studios’ success on YouTube and how traditional media and creator platforms are rewriting the rules of international entertainment. From YouTube’s rise as a global television network to BBC Studios’ creator-native reinvention, Pedro and Jasmine reveal why the next era of growth will be driven by companies that think and act like creators.

The conversation unpacks how YouTube fuels global fandom, how BBC Studios turned brands like Bluey, BBC Earth, and Top Gear into multi-format ecosystems, why audience-first strategy now beats commissioner-first strategy, and how experimentation is becoming the most valuable competency in modern media.

Key Takeaways:

1. Fandom Is the New Distribution Strategy

BBC Studios no longer thinks about audience in terms of reach, but in terms of fandom. YouTube has become a hub for building that fandom globally, which in turn boosts performance everywhere else: CTV, streaming partners, traditional broadcast, consumer products, and even e-commerce.

2. YouTube Isn’t Replacing TV, It’s Expanding It

The panel debunks a persistent myth: YouTube doesn’t cannibalize TV. BBC Earth and Bluey grow viewership across broadcast and streaming as their YouTube fandom grows. It’s incremental, not competitive, where YouTube acts as a widening funnel for premium IP.

3. The Audience Is the Buyer, Not the Commissioner

Evan frames the shift perfectly: the market’s new “buyer class” is the consumer themselves. Instead of pitching to gatekeepers, studios can reach fans directly, monetize them in dozens of ways, and use feedback loops to continuously experiment, refine, and grow.

4. Hiring Creators Is a Competitive Advantage And a Necessity 

BBC Studios has creators in leadership roles and runs a formal “Creators in Residence” program. Creators bring real-time instincts for platform behavior, format experimentation, and data fluency that traditional media teams simply do not have.

5. Success Requires a Mindset Shift: From Push to Pull

Legacy media is built on push distribution: make a show, send it out, wait for ratings. YouTube is a pull ecosystem driven by community, watch time, and algorithmic reinforcement. The only way to “win” the algorithm is to deeply understand and serve your audience.

6. Experimentation Beats Perfection

Both Pedro and Jasmine emphasize the same principle: experiment constantly. A/B test, try new formats, abandon what doesn’t work, scale what does. YouTube lowers the cost of experimentation and speeds up learning if companies embrace it and approach YouTube analytics as data scientists.

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Connect with us on Linkedin:

Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/

Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/

The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast

Pedro Pina - https://www.linkedin.com/in/pedro-pina-06a413/?originalSubdomain=uk 

Jasmine Dawson - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasminesdawson/ 

• (00:00) - Welcome and Introduction
• (00:37) - YouTube's Presence at MIPCOM
• (01:10) - Exploring the YouTube-BBC Studios Partnership
• (06:02) - Case Study: BBC Earth on YouTube
• (08:38) - The Creator Economy and Audience Engagement
• (13:31) - Practical Insights and Strategies
• (20:03) - Challenges and Opportunities in the Digital Era
• (25:22) - Final Thoughts and Takeaways