Overpriced shoes? A Hail Mary “Payless.” And… Will malls look more like…towns? Plus, rants and raves on Youtube “Superwoman” Lilly Singh, Capital One Cafe’s, and personalized celebrity videos from Cameo.com It’s episode 89 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! Click the play button below: And if you’re reading this by email, click here for the audio. Sample and subscribe

This was the headline: “Fox adopting YouTube’s Six Second Ad Format.” “This is the first time that a broadcast television company has committed to the ad format, which YouTube introduced last year,” the companies said. That means Fox TV will be airing six second spots across its platforms, including linear television. And don’t think that this trend will stop there, folks. At my hivio event last year I presented research which explicitly tested what consumers – listeners – wa

Will the curtain come down on movie theaters? And… The New York Times can’t save the newspaper industry. Plus, rants and raves about why bad movies fail at the box office: It’s the critics’ fault, of course, the NFL’s peculiar standards on what brands can and can’t advertise during games, and why being a ghost writer for a YouTube star is the hot new career choice. It’s episode 65 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. This ep

YouTube has announced that they will no longer support 30-second ads that viewers can’t skip, starting 2018. No more. Nada. Zip. Why? A YouTube spokesman said… We’re committed to providing a better ads experience for users online. As part of that, we’ve decided to stop supporting 30-second unskippable ads as of 2018 and focus instead on formats that work well for both users and advertisers. This change will not affect shorter ads – the 20-second videos and six-second bumpers

If you’re waiting for a new music format – a knight in shining armor – to save your flagging ratings, then you will be waiting for the rest of your professional career. Because there never will be one ever again. What’s the next big new format? Radio has been asking that question forever. Most recently, the answer was Classic Hip Hop. Is it the next big thing? Maybe not (from Radio Ink): If you listened to Radio One CEO Alfred Liggins on his earnings call you might come to th

Starbucks’ media empire strikes back! And… Brands beware: McDonald’s YouTube Fail. Plus, rants and raves about the bot that argues with Internet trolls so you don’t have to, new research revealing that many of us lie about what we watch on TV, and a great Airbnb promotion where the grand prize is a night in Dracula’s castle – in a coffin. It’s episode 52 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we go inside media to re

Millennials say “out with blogs, in with podcasts!” And… Is TV doomed – thanks to ad blockers? Plus, rants and raves about “lit-bait,” the 4-year-old with the most-viewed YouTube channel in the world, and the final word on whether or not removing naked ladies was a smart move for Playboy magazine. It’s episode 50 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! Click the play button

Kim Kardashian has great talent after all. And… Publishers spanked by Facebook’s changing newsfeed algorithm. It’s episode 45 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, rants and raves about the grand opening of Kelloggs All Day Cereal Cafe, PBS’s Capitol Fourth TV fakery, Lyft’s “Ghost Mode,” and an easy way to put your podcast on YouTube. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! Click the play button below: A

Inside the biggest trends in digital advertising. And… Tribune Publishing is now “tronc.” No, really! It’s episode 43 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, rants and raves about pants that can notify you if your zipper, um, needs tending, lyft’s inventive and clever new video campaign with Shaquille O’Neal, and how YouTube’s CEO skips half of her own pre-rolls! Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! Clic

Netflix’s Secret Way to Predict Your Likes. And… Twitter Streams NFL Games – that’s GREAT – for the NFL. It’s episode 40 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, rants and raves about how YOU can “hack the media” the Donald Trump way, what it means when 2,000 YouTube channels have more than 1 million subscribers, and a free slogan maker that makes some really heinous taglines. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugl

Rush Limbaugh’s contract is up and it’s decision time – not only for Rush but for the industry which awakens to a 2016 where, for better or worse, Rush is the most famous name in radio. And it’s time for Rush Limbaugh to go. Now this is nothing personal. Rush has had an amazing symbiotic relationship with radio over the years he has been behind the mic, and for that a great many listeners, broadcasters, and clients are grateful. And when Rush moves on, obscurity will not be t

You’ll never guess how much music matters to Millennials! And… What happens when Stars ARE the Network? It’s episode 29 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, Playboy says “goodbye” to nudity, Meryl Streep thinks there aren’t enough female movie critics, and there’s actually something called “Paranormal Date.” Brand authority Tom Asacker and Media Strategist Mark Ramsey go inside what’s really happening in media. Listen

Yes, you can get rich with online video – but not through YouTube. And… Paramount’s new business model makes theater owners AND consumers happy. It’s episode 23 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, rants and raves about Google’s new chat-bot that can debate the meaning of life, how Sony Music is “disfavoring” artists through its investment in Spotify, and how J.J. Abrams Star Wars presentation at Comic-Con is footage-f

The secret to marketing movies like brands. And… Will Vessel crush YouTube? It’s episode 18 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Plus, rants and raves on what a Vine superstar has in common with one of the Staples Singers, faulty statistics in determining that millennials are flooding back into movie theaters, Ben Affleck’s Slave-gate coverup, and a great co-promotion between HBO’s Game of Thrones and UBER. Listen as we go i

In a November survey by Morgan Stanley (released this week and reported in Quartz), more than 2,000 American adults were asked what audio platforms they used. Their answers: Now this question is roughly analogous to what broadcasters would call “reach.” It does not really address frequency of usage or “time spent listening.” Radio tops the list with 86% of respondents saying it’s part of their usage routine. That’s by far the highest number (although not as high as Nielsen wa

What does Facebook’s aggressive move into video mean for their future? And YouTube’s? Also: It’s a trend – publishers as platforms, where fans make content but publishers make bank. It’s episode 10 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! Click the play button below. And if you’re reading this by email, click here for the audio. For show notes go to the Media Unplugged site.

Is online video killing the TV star? Absolutely not! Also: What does it mean when the debut novel from a YouTube star breaks records and outsells even Harry Potter? It’s episode 9 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we go inside media to reveal the ugly truth! And if you’re reading this by email, click here for the audio. For show notes go to the Media Unplugged site. Don’t forget to subscribe to Media Unplugged a

Does This American Life’s “Serial” Podcast signal a new “Golden Age” for Podcasting? Nope. And we’re going to explain why. Also: Why is Beats crushing Bose – on YouTube? It’s episode 8 of Media Unplugged with branding authority Tom Asacker and media strategist Mark Ramsey. Listen as we take the steam out of some overheated PR. Click the play button here: And if you’re reading this by email, click here for the audio. For show notes go to the Media Unplugged site. Don’t forget

I’ve watched with some bemusement a debate in broadcasting circles: Does it makes sense for broadcasters to embrace an abundance of digital tools – including video – to tell their stories and reach their audiences across platforms? Or should radio folks simply do better radio? After all, can you really compete with Hollywood? With ABC and NBC and CBS? Well of course you can. Indeed, people are doing it every day. And they’re doing it without the benefit of the magnificent sta

Quick Summary: How can your media brand leapfrog your competition? Not by shortcuts but by “smartcuts.” Here are a few examples that you can put right to work: Lateral thinking, agility, leveraging platforms, 10X thinking, and more…. Shane Snow is the co-founder of Contently, the publishing platform for brands, journalists, and storytellers. Shane is a journalist who’s written for “Fast Company,” “The New Yorker,” “Wired,” and “The Washington Post.” Shane also is the author o