Defend & Deliver

Brand Safety Institute

This series is for people who want to make smarter business and marketing decisions. We will focus on current and emerging business dynamics and brand safety. We promise that engaging with what we make will help you achieve your business goals and more. Brought to you by The Brand Safety Institute.

Episodes

  1. Aug 15

    How the Media Bias Chart & Ad Fontes Media Is Transforming Advertising

    A patent attorney's spare-time infographic went viral in 2016. Now the FTC has subpoenaed her over it.In this episode of Defend & Deliver, host Louis Jones sits down with Vanessa Otero, creator of the Media Bias Chart and founder of Ad Fontes Media, to unpack how a side project became a tool that ad agencies use to decide where brands belong, and why she's now fighting a federal subpoena on First Amendment grounds.We cover:→ How the Media Bias Chart actually works, and what its two axes (reliability and left-right bias) really measure→ Why "the middle" doesn't mean "best," and how balanced bias still counts as bias→ The FTC civil investigative demand sent to Ad Fontes and ~16 other companies, and why Vanessa sees it as an attempt to chill protected speech→ Why advertising decisions about where ad dollars appear are themselves a form of speech→ The difference between content creators, journalists, and news influencers, and why the distinction matters more than ever→ How AI content proliferation is reshaping the information landscape, and why Vanessa focuses on tracking "the real stuff"→ Ad Fontes' media literacy curriculum for middle school through university, and why it works→ Vanessa's thesis that the world is developing demand for a "healthy information diet," much like the shift toward healthier food choices over the past 50 years.A conversation about trust, truth, and why human connection to content endures even in an age of infinite AI-generated noise.Defend & Deliver explores the role content plays in connecting consumers to brands, brought to you by the Brand Safety Institute, where we help companies mitigate reputational risk by guiding them to the content that's best for them.🎙️ Host: Louis Jones👤 Guest: Vanessa Otero, founder of Ad Fontes Media and creator of the Media Bias Chart

  2. Aug 15

    Will AI Replace Humans In Advertising? | Rob Norman

    What does the next era of media actually look like? Rob Norman, former Chief Digital Officer of WPP's GroupM and the longtime author of its This Year, Next Year report, joins Louis Jones on Defend & Deliver to map the shifts already in motion.In this episode, Rob breaks down:Why media ownership is becoming politically polarized, from X and TikTok to Paramount, HBO, and MetaHow streaming became the default for long-form video, and what that means for advertisers buying into Amazon's Thursday Night FootballWhether Meta has hit a tipping point on brand safety after $80 billion on the metaverseThe case for YouTube as the single most powerful channel in mediaWhy we may be living in a "post-conclusion age" where clear predictions are harder than everPlus a rapid-fire round on the most influential media executive and company today.ABOUT ROB NORMANFormer Chief Digital Officer, WPP's GroupM. Over three decades in media and digital advertising, former director of BBC Global News, and an ongoing advisor to advertisers and digital businesses across the US, UK, and India. A longtime voice on brand safety, misinformation, and media-market integrity.LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robnormangroupmABOUT DEFEND & DELIVERDefend & Deliver is the podcast from the Brand Safety Institute, where host Louis Jones sits down with the leaders shaping the future of media, advertising, and brand safety. Every episode digs into how the industry protects brands, builds trust, and adapts to what's coming next.The Brand Safety Institute drives a healthy, sustainable advertising ecosystem through thought leadership, community, education, and certification.Learn more: https://www.brandsafetyinstitute.com

About

This series is for people who want to make smarter business and marketing decisions. We will focus on current and emerging business dynamics and brand safety. We promise that engaging with what we make will help you achieve your business goals and more. Brought to you by The Brand Safety Institute.