The Media CEOs Betting Big on Journalism’s Future: Jim Bankoff & Meredith Kopit Levien
In a challenging decade for media, New York Times President and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien and Vox Media CEO Jim Bankoff have bucked trends and found ways to grow their respective organizations. Meredith has overseen a massive expansion of the Times’ digital subscriber base since becoming CEO in 2020. And after spending decades scaling up Vox Media, Jim is splitting the company between James Murdoch's Lupa Systems and Penske Media Corporation.
In a live interview recorded at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes, France, Kara talks to Jim and Meredith about how they’ve adapted to a changing media landscape and the effects of AI on the publishing business. They also talk about the importance of independent journalism, the waning public trust in media, and how news organizations can earn it back.
(A note to listeners: Vox Media is the parent company of the Vox Media Podcast Network, which produces “On with Kara Swisher.”)
Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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Can Journalism Survive AI? — with NYT CEO Meredith Kopit Levien
Meredith Kopit Levien, CEO of the New York Times, joins Scott Galloway to break down the future of media.
They discuss the Times’ subscription strategy, the battle between AI companies and publishers, and why high-quality journalism is still a human business. Plus, a candid conversation on parenting in the digital age.
We’re also now live on Substack.
Subscribe at profgmedia.com to get ad-free versions of all our podcasts, the full archive of Scott’s newsletters, and exclusive content including deep dives, livestream conversations, and subscriber Q&As.
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The New York Times ‘will not be cowed’, with CEO Meredith Kopit Levien
From attacks by President Trump to active lawsuits against Microsoft and OpenAI, The New York Times is engaged in a fierce fight to preserve the future of independent journalism. It also keeps building a multi-faceted, excellence-obsessed brand with more users for games, recipes and podcasts than ever before. President and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien joins Bob Safian live on stage at the Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco to explore The Times business model, how news coverage relates to the organization's fast-growing lifestyle products, and the impact of AI as a threat and a tool.
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Acquired Live at Radio City Music Hall (Presented by J.P. Morgan)
It’s finally here! Today we are releasing Acquired’s first “concert film” — the full video recording of our Radio City live show from this summer with Jamie Dimon, Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien, Barry Diller, and cameos from around the Acquired Cinematic Universe including Christina Cacioppo, Ben Clymer, and Howard Schultz.
To watch the full production on any device, please head over to Spotify where you’ll find it available for free in the Acquired feed right alongside all our other episodes: https://open.spotify.com/episode/77Kl3BsiEQLpli2Q2ozZuf?si=4f4609e343504fd0
Sponsors:
Live Show Presented By: J.P. Morgan
Shopify
ServiceNow
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Note: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.
How to play the long game, with New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien
Meredith Kopit Levien is the CEO of The New York Times, which is perhaps the most famous journalism organization in the world, and certainly one of America’s most complicated companies.
The Times is 172 years old, and has only recently become a force on the internet. It’s hard to remember, but back in 2014 and ‘15, people thought the Times was doomed — that it would be replaced by BuzzFeed and Vice and Vox. Instead, the company has undergone a radical and sometimes painful public transformation, and emerged as something closer to Netflix or Spotify – a subscription business with a huge investment in product and engineering.
Meredith has led a lot of that change, and in particular, she’s led the charge in turning a Times subscription into much more than paying for news – NYT Cooking and Games are hit apps, and of course she bought Wordle last year in a bit of a coup.
We talked about that structure, how Meredith intends to appeal to a broader audience with all those products when the country is basically divided in half politically and one half doesn’t care for the Times at all, and about platforms and growth. And like all media organizations, the Times has a complex relationship with Google, so we talked about that, too.
Links:
Our Strategy | The New York Times Company
NYT CEO outlines plans to reach 15 million subscribers by 2027
Why the New York Times is buying the Athletic
Wordle has been bought by The New York Times, will ‘initially’ remain free for everyone to play
The Economics at the Heart of the Times Union Standoff
'Unstoppable innovator': The meteoric rise of Meredith Kopit Levien, the next New York Times CEO
Transcript:
https://www.theverge.com/e/23416720
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
It was produced by Creighton DeSimone and Hadley Robinson and it was edited by Amanda Rose Smith
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Our Editorial Director is Brooke Minters and our Executive Director is Eleanor Donovan.
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EP 35: NYT CEO Meredith Kopit Levien, Bankless’ David Hoffman and Zach Weinberg Crypto Debate, Live at Live at Primary's NYC Summit
In episode 35 we have the very first live and on-stage Cartoon Avatars from Primary's New York City Summit. Logan talks with New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien about the modern state of journalism and its function as a business. Plus the crypto debate picks up once again as Zach Weinberg debates Bankless Co-Founder David Hoffman on crypto, with Sahil Bloom moderating in front of a live audience.
(0:00) Intro
(1:06) Rashad and pickleball
(5:56) College football
(9:03) Elon Andreessen leaked email
(10:54) Cathie Wood’s ARK investment fund
(19:25) Welcoming Zach, David and Sahil
(20:04) David Hoffman’s view on Web3
(21:58) Zach Weinberg’s view on Web3
(24:29) Web3 vs existing tech
(27:39) Why contracts are complicated
(31:24) Layering a financial system
(34:09) Crypto in unstable regimes
(36:45) How brands use Web3
(41:12) Crypto broad scope
(43:09) Why are VCs backing crypto?
(47:06) SEC regulation
(49:10) Introducing Meredith Kopit Levien
(53:47) NYT’s online subscription model
(58:32) Mile markers for achievements
(1:02:25) Being product-led in journalism
(1:05:22) The Daily
(1:11:48) Is polarization good for business?
(1:15:20) Setting long-term goals
(1:17:25) Rapid fire questions
(1:19:04) Outro
Show Notes:
https://twitter.com/PrimaryVC
https://www.primary.vc
Mixed and edited: Justin Hrabovsky
Produced: Andrew Nadeau and Rashad Assir
Executive Producer: Josh Machiz
Music: Griff Lawson
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About the Show
A Saturday morning podcast hosted by Logan Bartlett (Partner and Managing Director at Redpoint Ventures) covering the tech news with his friends and other people with industry expertise.
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode of The Logan Bartlett Show, we sit down with the people behind today’s most important startups and extract the tactics, lessons, and frameworks they’ve learned the hard way. Conversations span hiring to GTM, product, growth, fundraising and everything in between - collectively forming the ultimate playbook to make you a better CEO, investor or board member.
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Bonus Interview from Pivot Miami: Meredith Kopit Levien, the President and CEO of the New York Times
Scott shares his interview with Meredith Kopit Levien, the President and CEO of the New York Times, which took place during Pivot Miami this past week.
Meredith discusses the future of news and journalism, the NYT's moves around subscription, and how it plans to innovate.
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