Hasta La Creative!

Will Hamilton, of Hamilton Associates, reports from last week’s AdForum Worldwide Summit in New York.

Welcome to Ad Age’s Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing, media and digital news. What people are talking about today: New York Times TV? After its successful foray into podcasts, The New York Times is setting its sights on living room screens. Mark Thompson, president and CEO of The New York Times, hinted at the company’s NewFront presentation that the NYT could bring some of its most popular pieces of content and sections to living room screens, Ad Age’s Jeanine Poggi reports. While no actual projects have been announced so far, programming could include a TV show around the people the NYT featured in its series “Overlooked,” about women and minorities who didn’t get obituaries in the Times but should have. Also in consideration is a TV-version of “The Daily” podcast; a TV show around its “Modern Love” column; and a cooking show tied to writer Sam Sifton. And even crossword puzzles might make it to a TV show. Separately, as Poggi also reveals, The Times is beefing up its business coverage and will rename its business section later this year to better reflect how technology has changed the world and work life.

Influencers infiltrate the NewFronts

Consider this plain news or the warning shot it was to older attendees furtively Googling names. As questions continue about whether influencers will retain their value, Viacom trotted out a veritable Who’s Who of young influencers and creators, Ad Age’s Anthony Crupi reports, with the company’s pitch awash with digital natives like JoJo Siwa, Arturo Castro and Liza Koshy. Among the programs Viacom has in the pipeline is “Road to VidCon,” a multipart series that follows a young creator’s journey to the annual conference devoted to all things YouTube.

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Ogilvy Group UK has finalised its management team as it moves to a single agency brand.

A day after Sainsbury’s confirmed its market-reshaping plan to merge with Asda, the latest sales figures reveal it is the latter that is now in the healthier shape.

Meet M&C Saatchi’s new chief strategy officer, the self-confessed sci-fi “nerd” determined to shake adland from its cosy acceptance of “good” work.

Too many marketers and agencies talk about being “always on digital”, without realising it can be wasteful, annoying and neglectful of other important media channels, Blue 449’s global chairman argues.

Laurent-Perrier Champagne is creating an indoor summer garden with a giant birdcage overlooking Leicester Square.

There’s a new marketing executive making the wake-up calls at Mattress Firm. The Houston-based retailer has appointed Scott Thaler chief marketing officer. Thaler, an ad agency veteran who had been with Zimmerman Advertising, most recently as chief integration officer, started working at the brand in April.

Thaler, who leads an internal team of around 50, succeeds Sicily Dickenson, who parted ways with the company earlier this year after roughly a year in the job.

“This brand has grown to be a major mover in the sleep and mattress industry; we’re helping to bring it to the next level,” Thaler says, adding that he’s focused on consumer experience. “Building the brand doesn’t help in today’s retail world if a retail brand is not around long enough for consumer to be shopping there,” he says.

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JoJo Siwa. Illustration by Ad Age

Viacom’s first foray into the annual NewFronts shuffle was a veritable Who’s Who of young influencers and creators, as the programming colossus on Monday afternoon trotted out the likes of, uh, Arturo Castro and (checks notes) JoJo Siwa and, erm, De’arra and Ken during a one-hour event that functioned as the official coming-out party for Viacom Digital Studios.

Now, if you’re like us, the last time you were still in MTV’s target demo Dick Cheney was vice president. As such, the introduction of each of the aforementioned Viacom personalities during this afternoon’s event likely triggered some furtive Googling and more than a few drawn-out sighs.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

JoJo Siwa. Illustration by Ad Age

Viacom’s first foray into the annual NewFronts shuffle was a veritable Who’s Who of young influencers and creators, as the programming colossus on Monday afternoon trotted out the likes of, uh, Arturo Castro and (checks notes) JoJo Siwa and, erm, De’arra and Ken during a one-hour event that functioned as the official coming-out party for Viacom Digital Studios.

Now, if you’re like us, the last time you were still in MTV’s target demo Dick Cheney was vice president. As such, the introduction of each of the aforementioned Viacom personalities during this afternoon’s event likely triggered some furtive Googling and more than a few drawn-out sighs.

Continue reading at AdAge.com