
The Media Leader Podcast
The Media Leader is the leading source of analysis, data, opinion and trends in commercial media and advertising.Hosted by senior reporter Jack Benjamin, we speak to senior industry leaders and rising stars about the key challenges media faces as part of our mission to stand up for courage, inclusion and excellence in media.Find out more at uk.themedialeader.com and subscribe to our daily newsletter.
Latest episodes

Dec 19, 2022 • 27min
Why 2023 will be 'the year of the public screen' - with JCDecaux UK co-CEO Dallas Wiles
JC Decaux's co-CEO in the UK, Dallas Wiles, tells Omar Oakes why the outdoor media company thinks 2023 will the year of the public screen. He reveals why, contrary to what many predicted, people have not fled cities during the pandemic and we have already arrived at "the new normal".Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Dec 15, 2022 • 21min
Why 'Right Reach' is needed in a fragmented media world - with Zenith UK CSO Richard Kirk
The basic relationship between reach and business results has "eroded dramatically", Zenith UK chief strategy officer Richard Kirk argues in an opinion piece for The Media Leader. In some cases, this fundamental principle of commercial media no longer exists, the Publicis Groupe media agency has discovered.Kirk speaks to Omar Oakes about why the relationship between audience reach and an advertiser's sales has broken down, why 'Right Reach' is a better predictor of success, and what this means in practice for media planning and buying. Read Kirk's Strategy Leaders column: We can better manage media fragmentation by measuring ‘Right Reach’Strategy Leaders features on the Thursday edition of The Media Leader‘s daily bulletin with thought leadership, news and analysis dedicated to excellence in commercial media strategy.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Dec 13, 2022 • 23min
Is TikTok building the new shopping mall?
Kris Boger, general manager, UK, global business solutions at TikTok, talks to Omar Oakes about how and why this social media platform is going big on commerce, what advertisers and agencies are asking TikTok as they try to make sense of this platform, and whether questions TikTok parent Bytedance’s Chinese ownership are fair. Find out more about our upcoming event in London The Future of Audio and check out the outline agenda.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Dec 8, 2022 • 19min
Why 'fast fashion' media needs to stop - with Good-Loop founder Amy Williams
Amy Williams, founder and CEO of ethical advertising platform Good-Loop, tells Omar Oakes why creating more sustainability is akin to ending the practice of 'fast fashion' and how the industry needs to change to make advertising and media production carbon neutral.We go into more depth about how to confront the climate emergency in advertising and media in our webinar with The Guardian, featuring the newsbrand's environment editor Fiona Harvey, the Conscious Advertising Network, Purpose Disruptors, Heineken, Deliveroo and Essence, discussing practical steps to get carbon neutral and how to avoid messaging pitfalls.If you missed FVTA Global this week, where were you? Check out our reports on the key sessions with the global advertising bosses at Netflix and Disney+, each of which are now offering cheaper, ad-funded tiers on their streaming services.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Dec 5, 2022 • 28min
Trusted media, quality data and 'church v state' - with commercial director Dave Randall *sponsored*
Dave Randall, Future's commercial director, discusses with Omar Oakes why using first-party data well is so important to the publisher and how its audience data platform Aperture has developed. Dave and Omar also discuss how 'specialist interest websites' and TV stand out in a Future survey about trust in media, and how a modern publisher establishes 'church v state' lines between editorial and commercial when journalists are asked to write sponsored content.Our own 'church v state' disclaimer: this episode is sponsored by Future. The conversation topics were agreed in advance but the conversation was recorded and edited by The Media Leader's editorial team without intervention.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Nov 30, 2022 • 21min
The future of retail media - with Wavemaker global head of ecomm Mudit Jaju
Mudit Jaju, global ecommerce lead at Wavemaker talks to reporter Ella Sagar about how the retail media ecosystem has changed since the pandemic, who does retail media really well and what new partnerships between ITV and Channel 4 and retail media partners mean for the industry.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Nov 25, 2022 • 24min
Why there's a crisis of trust in media - with Nick Manning
Nick Manning, founder of media agency Manning Gottlieb OMD and media consultant, talks about his recent column in which he argues advertisers can no longer be passive observers as their spending funds a media ecosystem which is suffering from a "crisis of trust".Notes:Nick's column: "How advertisers should deal with the crisis of truth in media"The editor: "We will champion talent, sustainability and trust in media"Join us on Weds 30 November for a special presentation we're running with The Guardian: "Confronting the climate emergency" - Omar Oakes speaks to industry leaders, activists and The Guardian's environment editor about how advertisers and media companies should respond to the climate crisis with practical steps and priorities. Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Nov 18, 2022 • 32min
How media attitudes to women's football have changed - with England champion footballer Jill Scott
England footballer Jill Scott — part of the Euro 2022-winning team — speaks to talkSPORT reporter Jordan Jarrett Bryan at our recent Future of Media event in London.Jill and Jordan spoke about her experience of dealing with the media as a women’s footballer, how media attitudes towards women’s football have changed, and how far away the women’s game is now with being seen as an attractive area for brands to invest in advertising and sponsorship. **As seen (sort of!) on ITV's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!**If you missed this year's two-day Future of Media conference, don't worry: we'll be back in 2023. Check out the agenda.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Nov 14, 2022 • 22min
Will outdoor advertising ever return to 'normal' after Covid? - with Route CEO Denise Turner
Route Research CEO Denise Turner talks to Omar Oakes about how the outdoor media sector has recovered in 2022 after Covid-19 lockdowns in the UK and what the 'new normal' looks like as more people regularly work fro home.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader

Nov 7, 2022 • 31min
Why being 'right' about the future of media isn't everything
Omnicom Media Group’s head of futures Phil Rowley has recently joined The Media Leader‘s stellar list of regular columnists. His debut column argues that predictions can still be highly useful even when they’re wrong.Rowley speaks to Omar Oakes about the science of predicting, whether predictions are getting harder and whether brands are becoming more conservative when it comes to innovation in media and marketing.Of course there is a lot to say about what’s happening at Twitter under the rule of Elon Musk, as well as Meta’s huge investment in the “metaverse”.Visit The Media Leader for the most authoritative news analysis and comment on what's happening in commercial media. LinkedIn - The Media LeaderTwitter @TheMediaLeader YouTube - The Media Leader