The Publisher Podcast by Media Voices

This week, Victoria Turk, Senior Editor at WIRED UK talks to us about all the work they're doing on their brand extensions, from their flagship WIRED Live event to the WIRED World Special 2019 and their weekly podcast. She also discusses what they do to stand out in a crowded market, how the print and digital teams have evolved, and the many skills you now need to get ahead in journalism. In the news roundup we discuss whether the sale of Mic heralds the end of new media hopes, Glamour US going online online, DMGT's latest results, and whether there's any stopping the relentless rise of Stories.

This week we hear from Jeff Kofman, founder and CEO of Trint, about the dark abyss of transcription, whether Google and Facebook are serious about funding journalism and the good the bad and the ugly of social media. In the news roundup the team discusses a bad week for UK media companies including Johnston Press going into administration, Esquire cutting back its print offering, and Shortlist going digital-only. The team go Thanksgiving mad (not in a good way).

This week we hear from Popbitch co-founder Camilla Wright about the origins of the influential celebrity gossip site, whether celebs ever try to plant stories about themselves, and the romanticism of clandestine meetings in dark pubs. In the news roundup the team discusses the NME's return to profitability and future success, the disappearance of the LADS from Facebook's engagement rankings, and take a quick spin through a lot of other media news. Chris will buy a pint for the first person to send him every Rihanna song title he mentions this episode.

This week we hear from Rafat Ali, co-founder and CEO of boutique travel publisher Skift. We spoke about what connects the dots between paid content, travel, dining and wellness, his belief in trendlines not headlines, his long-term aspirations for Skift vs short-term VC plays and why he wants to be useless to his business. In the news round-up we put a bow on the discussion about Waitrose Magazine’s editor quitting over comments he made to a freelancer, discuss whether Channel 4’s move to Leeds will pop the London media bubble, and discuss whether Facebook is more powerful than the British parliament.

This week, Claire Sanderson, the editor in chief of Women’s Health (UK) talks about the magazine's circulation growth, why they love working with influencers, and how mental health has become such a vital part of overall wellness. She also explains how integrating the print and digital teams helps them to drive audiences between both platforms, and why VR will be a huge part of health and fitness in the future. In the news round-up the team discuss Apple's invention of something called a 'human editor', Twitter's return to profitability and Refinery29's refining of its publishing strategy. A maudlin Chris derails the round-up with a philosophical question.

This week, Claus Enevoldsen, Head of Growth for news aggregation platform Flipboard, talks about being a technology company with media values, how their human-led algorithms work to surface quality content, and why now is the perfect time for a platform like Flipboard. He also dives into the reasons behind their rise in both users and referral traffic over the past year. In the news roundup, we ask WTF is going on with Facebook and Nick Clegg, Facebook and video metrics, and Craigslist and journalism. The team makes liberal use of censor bleeps.

This week we hear from Grace Harrison, founder of true crime magazine Foul Play on managing a magazine as a side hustle, what mainstream titles can learn from independents, and what makes Foul Play an altogether classier type of true crime title. In the news roundup we discuss LadBible's imminent takeover of Unilad to create the Ultimate Lad, the sad news that Johnston Press' debt his forcing the sale of its titles, and whether 5 minute long videos can work for Snapchat. Peter voices his fear of extraterrestrials.

This week, Julio Bruno, CEO at Time Out Group talks about the brand reaching a milestone 50th birthday, the growth of their different revenue streams, and how they stay true to the Time Out brand across 315 cities. He also explains why the print magazine is still a vital part of the business, and how their unique approach to Time Out Markets is their biggest opportunity next year. In the news roundup we discuss the Battle of the Lads, Meredith cutting 4,500 jobs, and whether the Observer was right to publish an op-ed from the prime minister (yes). Esther and Peter debut their music hall double act.

This week, Sally Hampton, Consumer Magazines Publisher at DC Thomson spoke to us about how she manages such a wide range of magazines, the biggest shifts she's seen in print publishing, and a surprising new growth opportunity for niche Scottish titles. She also explains why she's so optimistic about the future of magazine media. In the news round-up the team discuss the Independent's paid-for subscription model, whether it matters if print audiences don't follow when newspapers go digital only, Apple foibles, and Comcast's purchase of Sky. Peter's view of the Telegraph's readership is Dickensian.

In this very special live episode of Media Voices the team discuss the future of free media in front of an audience at Magfest '18, the UK's premiere magazine-focused event. On stage in the far-flung city of Edinburgh, the team are joined on stage by Mike Soutar, chairman of ShortList Media Limited, and Radio Times Editor Mark Frith to discuss the fate of free magazines. We'd like to extend our thanks to Magfest for inviting us to speak - for the three of us it was validation of Media Voices' journey to this point, and hearing from the other fantastic guests has given us plenty of ideas for future episodes! Visit www.magfest.co.uk for more information.