Vice: From media juggernaut to Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Media People Newsletter
Written and curated by Victor Genova · June 14, 2024 · Issue #12

Welcome to the twelfth issue of the Media People Newsletter. Subscribe here if you haven’t already. In this issue:

• IAB Canada President Sonia Carreno stops by the podcast

• The rise & fall of Vice Media from a former Managing Editor

• Why leading a sales team is like coaching a swim team

• From the Media People Podcast archives: [Then] Mirum President, Mitch Joel [2015]

It’s episode 100 and we welcome back our episode nine guest, Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada President, Sonia Carreno.

Sonia was only a handful of months into her presidency when we first chatted back in 2015. Nine years later, Sonia returns to talk about how the IAB Canada has evolved under her leadership, while providing insight into how the organization tackles issues and shapes policy impacting the digital media industry.

A big thank you to all of our loyal listeners and past guests. We couldn’t have hit the 100-episode milestone without your support.

Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and online at mediapeople.ca.

How Vice Went From a $6 billion Media Empire to Bankruptcy

There was a time when Vice was the news media company. What started as a lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics magazine in Montreal back in 1994, blossomed into one of the biggest news/media companies of the last 30 years. So how did Vice go from unstoppable to Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023? Did they lose touch with their audience? Business mistakes? Failure to evolve? Former Vice Managing Editor, Michael Moynihan gives The Free Press’ Bari Weiss a candid look at how the company imploded.

Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What Sales Team Leaders Can Learn From Swim Team Coaches

If sales were a sport it would be like swimming. To be successful at both requires a healthy mix of cooperation and competition. Take the most decorated Olympian of all time, Michael Phelps. Phelps has 23(!) gold medals to his name. But what you may not realize is that 13 of those gold medals came from individual events where he denied other members of USA Swimming a chance at gold. While the other 10 come from relay events where he swam with, and supported, his teammates. So what can sales leaders learn from amateur swimming? Hint: It includes personal bests, measuring YOY revenue growth, and creating a culture where innovation and teamwork are rewarded.

From the Media People Podcast Archives: [Then] Mirum President, Mitch Joel

What do you think is the highest accolade an individual in the media industry can receive? Is it a Cannes Lion? A Media Innovation Award? In my opinion, being referred to as a ‘Rockstar’ carries much more weight than any statue ever could. And that’s exactly how Marketing Magazine has described this episode's guest, Mitch Joel.

There are many things you can call Mitch: from best-selling author to public speaker, to blogger, to podcaster to media agency president. The list goes on.

Today we sit down with Mitch Joel- Canada’s rockstar of Digital Marketing to learn about life growing up in Montreal, working as writer covering the Canadian music scene, co-founding a record label, and being the President of Mirum, a digital media agency that started out life at Twist Image.The episode originally aired in July of 2015.

Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and online at mediapeople.ca