The Impossible Network 006: The Publisher With A Purpose – Gordon Young
Guest Overview
On this week’s episode, we interview Gordon Young – co-founder of The Drum, Europe’s largest and most awarded marketing website and magazine.
Since launching his first print publication as a schoolboy in Glasgow, Scotland, Gordon’s impossible creative journey has taken on a path of increasing media influence, scale and reach.
Driven by the core belief that marketing has the power to change the world Gordons journey is far from over.
In this episode, Gordon and I discuss his early journalistic exploits, his mother and father’s’ parental influence and his passion for publishing.
He shares his perspective on risk-taking, the role of technology and creativity in western education and the imperative to prepare and protect against the threat of AI and China’s advancing technological progress, and the future role of government in a rapidly changing world. Gordon also discusses marketing’s role in business and society, the sanctity of journalistic free speech, and his view of social justice and activism.
Of course, Gordon discusses serendipity, change, risk, failure, partnership, and his “impossible ‘ advice for ambitious people who wish to follow a similar path.
After finishing the episode, we jumped back in to discuss The Drum’s Chip Shop awards – awards that celebrate pure, unadulterated creativity.
I hope you enjoy this wide-ranging discussion with Gordon Young.
What we discuss:
- His entrepreneurially influenced upbringing.
- How disruption and innovation started early for Gordon
- Skipping formal education to leap into media entrepreneurship straight out of high school
- His early experience of contract publishing
- His expansion to launch the Glaswegian
- His thoughts on University and risk-taking when young
- His view on the evolution of education and skills
- His view of AI developments in China
- The West’s imperative to focus on education and creativity
- How we should be thinking about the future of Government as an institution based on the pace of change
- His idea for a new political party
- Why marketers have the best skill set to make sense of the new world order
- How the Drum expects their readers to drive it
- The channels they are building to debate and understand it
- The dangers and the opportunity for western democracies
- The future role for the Drum and its reader-driven empowerment mission
- His broader definition of marketing organizations
- How serendipity impacted him
- How Brexit will impact on the UK
- His optimism for the UK
- His principles
- His hardest choice
- His impossible advice
- And the Chip Shop Awards
Where to find on social
- The Drum
- https://www.thedrum.com
- Youtube
- On Instagram
- On Twitter
- On Linkedin
Links in show
- Alibaba Hotel of the Future