In the ad business, the relatively good life of 2007 is as remote as the whiskey highs of 1962. “Here we go again,” moans Andy Nibley, the former CEO of ad agency Marsteller who, over the past decade, has also been the CEO of the digital arms of both Reuters and Universal Music. “First the […]
Search results
Posted inEditor's Pick
Patient Observation
I had a perfectly normal childhood in Wichita Falls, a place Advertising Age once called the most average city in America. But I didn’t truly understand where I was from until I stepped inside the gates of the local state hospital and realized that every town has another side.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Alex Bogusky Tells All
Alex Bogusky, advertising Dadaist, postmodern media manipulator, pop-culture Houdini, daddy of 21st-century advertising, and now a seeker of meaning on the dirt path of life, invites me and his monk into the FearLess Cottage. … “So, I have to ask,” I start. “Is there any notion of a midlife crisis in this? You do happen […]
Posted inUncategorized
The Web Is a Customer Service Medium
The Web Is a Customer Service Medium The web was surprisingly good at emulating a TV, a newspaper, a book, or a radio. Which meant that people expected it to answer the questions of each medium, and with the promise of advertising revenue as incentive, web developers set out to provide those answers. As a […]
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Lessons in Fame from P.T. Barnum's Autobiography
From Lapham’s Quarterly, lessons on fame and advertising from The Life of P. T. Barnum, which was published in 1855. “Put on the appearance of business, and generally the reality will follow.” And what follows then? Profit. How is this miracle achieved? First, through false superlatives and inflated rhetoric, e.g., “The world-famous _______ is the […]
Posted inUncategorized
Geoff Van Dyke: My Top 6 Longreads of 2010
Geoff Van Dyke is deputy editor of 5280 Magazine in Denver. *** The Future of Advertising, by Danielle Sacks, Fast Company A must-read for anyone in the media business. Innocence Lost, by Pamela Colloff, Texas Monthly Instrumental in getting a Texas man off death row and out of prison. Burger Queen, by Lauren Collins, The […]
Posted inUncategorized
The Web Is a Customer Service Medium
The Web Is a Customer Service Medium The web was surprisingly good at emulating a TV, a newspaper, a book, or a radio. Which meant that people expected it to answer the questions of each medium, and with the promise of advertising revenue as incentive, web developers set out to provide those answers. As a […]
Posted inUncategorized
George Lois on Advertising and the Death of the Magazine Cover
George Lois on Advertising and the Death of the Magazine Cover “[Magazine covers] are very carefully researched. They test them: ‘Do you like this line better than this one?’ If you have to depend on blurbs to have people buy your magazine then you’ve got a piece of shit! You don’t have a brand! You […]
Posted inUncategorized
Meet the Newest Longreader: Joyce King Thomas
I’m thrilled to announce a new partner in Longreads: Joyce King Thomas. Joyce is the former executive vice president and chief creative officer of McCann-Erickson. She created Mastercard’s “Priceless” campaign, among other outstanding work. Joyce will be working with me on advertising initiatives for Longreads. She and I actually go way back: She’s been a […]
