OUT FRONT AND CENTER


Mediapost's Outfront Conference on Tuesday held its audience for nine hours filled with nine panels and a star studded cast of speakers to include MSNBC's Chris Matthews and former Vice President Al Gore, Chairman of Current Media.

It was perhaps the only conference I can recall attending that held my interest for a full day.... a testament to the determination of Ken Fadner, Chairman at Mediapost and Joe Mandese, Editor in Chief to maintain a strong presence in key media channels. It signals a trend away from large multi-purpose, multi-channel venues towards more impactful "niche" conferences.

Sessions ranged from Dynamics of the Upfront TV marketplace to Advanced Metrics and a discussion on the acceptance of 3D TV.

Chris Matthews provided a respite from media issues to have a lively chat with the audience about everything from the Tea Party to Immigration, Sarah Palin and Obama. His commentary tonight will focus on "The Real McCain". On media ..."Your judgment about what to watch is driven by what you can learn".

Al Gore, no less entertaining, focused on sustainability in advertising driven by an ad model that should be subtle, targeted, efficient, not expensive and not intrusive. How "not intrusive" plays into the social network equation will be interesting to watch as I consider any commercial insert between the social interaction of two people or a group/community to be social interference or an "intrusion".

All considered the conference gets a AAAA rating.


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