The Sternberg Effect
joshsternberg
A potential secret weapon for publishers: research
Last year, a few eyebrows raised when Business Insider, the digital outlet that brought you such gems as “Jews, why do people hate them?” and the first-person journey of riding in that wondrous thing called an airplane, bought the research firm eMarketer. The deal, however, made a lot of sense, as Business Insider had a … Continue reading
The media industry is ripe for change. But can it?
Hello, and welcome to Tuesday, the blandest day of the week. Since we’ve been pushed out of our normal routines, I’ve come to the realization that we are all just living in a perpetual Tuesday. This is a hill I will die on, and will repeat this on every platform should I have the chance: … Continue reading
It's time to treat the platforms like media companies
Hello, happy Monday! Welcome to the Media Nut, a little slice of the internet to talk about all things media. I’m not quite sure what happened, but over the weekend, this little two-week-old newsletter jumped from 700 subscribers to 1,111. Thank you all for kicking the tires. While I don’t expect anyone to ever read, … Continue reading
Backwards down the jobs number line
Hello and happy Friday? At least I think it’s Friday. Who knows anymore? Today we learned just how brutal it is out there. This morning, the Bureau of Labor Statistics put out the unemployment numbers for April: 20.5 million. That’s a 14.7 percent unemployment rate. In February, in the ‘before times,’ the unemployment rate was … Continue reading
How Michael Jordan helped create the notion of 'brand'
Hello! Welcome to the Media Nut, a newsletter about legumes. Kidding. There are lots of new subscribers (thank you, Nieman Lab; and thank you to everyone who’s subscribed! This is only the 9th edition and there are already 667 subscribers. Amazing!). Here’s a link to what this newsletter is all about. The tl;dr – an … Continue reading
Publishers only receive half of an ad spend
Ad tech. Two little words that cause so much headache, heartache, and according to a report published today by the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) and the Association of Online Publishers (AOP) and PwC, bewilderment. (If not a little anger.) Tracing the advertising spend supply chain—from 15 brands, eight agencies, five DSPs, six SSPs … Continue reading
Why did it take so long?
For a dozen years, Brian Williams played the unreliable narrator of a particular story: that he was in a helicopter, in Iraq, in 2003, as it was shot down. “The story actually started with a terrible moment a dozen years back during the invasion of Iraq when the helicopter we were traveling in was forced … Continue reading
Streaming during a pandemic
Hello and welcome back to the Media Nut, a newsletter about media. Hope you had a nice weekend. Or, whatever a weekend is these days. When we moved to suburban New Jersey two years ago, we decided, for the first time in my life, to not call a cable company for television services. Living in … Continue reading
Conventional wisdom may not be so wise
Happy Friday! Congrats on making it through the week. Thank you for allowing me into your inbox. There’s something interesting about conventional wisdom, particularly when it comes to the media world. Consider the following: Companies across the board are slashing their advertising budgets. Which, on the surface, makes sense. The first line item to get … Continue reading
The economic picture sharpens during earnings season
There’s a scene in Men In Black that I keep thinking about. Will Smith’s character tours the MIB headquarters after becoming an agent and he pushes a little ball that then zips all over the place, knocking things down, breaking things, causing a general ruckus. Tommy Lee Jones’s character, after snatching the ball in a … Continue reading
Trump flips the agenda-setting script
In February 2016, the then-CBS head honcho Les Moonves said about the then-presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign, “It may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS.” It’s a quote I think about often. And not just for the media business. The coronavirus has, incidentally, created a perfect opportunity for President Trump … Continue reading
What will happen to the awards?
(Photo credit: Star vector created by macrovector) In the advertising and marketing worlds, where navel gazing is a key component of keeping the industry afloat, awards, especially those from the very outlets that cover the industry, are important. For revenue, sure, but also for networking. Go to an industry event and you will meet people. … Continue reading
Coronavirus exposes the media business's frailty
Hello and happy Monday. Welcome to the first edition of The Media Spy. After a brain fart on Friday afternoon to start this newsletter, 340 very good and smart people signed up. Amazing! I am humbled and grateful. Thank you. The coronavirus has exposed the frailty of the media business. Not like we didn’t know … Continue reading
So you want to read a media newsletter?
Hello! Welcome to The Media Spy, yet another newsletter to collect dust in your inbox until you decide to unsubscribe. This is going to be an experiment of sorts, as I swim through this real thing called life (or until I land my next gig). And I thank you for being a companion on this … Continue reading
Loose thoughts on the media business
Welcome to The Media Nut by me, Josh Sternberg. Executive Editor, Morning Brew. Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue. In the meantime, tell your friends!
Unnecessary Journalism Phrases
- How about “lifeless body” when describing a dead person? Here’s a good (bad)...
- bobbymacReports: A growing number of stories with a growing number
- Alliterative Journalism Phrases
- Apologies on the lack of posts
- While not necessarily an unnecessary journalism phrase, friend...
- 50. Old Man Winter - 11/7/11
- Push The Envelope Submitted by unretrecissement and her...
- 49. A.M. in the Morning/P.M. in the Afternoon/Evening, at Night - 11/3/11
- 48. Emergency Situation - 11/2/11
- 47. Roll(ed)(ing) in his/her grave - 10/31/11
