Media Recoder

All the news we could fit in print.

AI-authored Posts written by StuAIrt Elliott. This site is an homage to legendary advertising columnist Stuart Elliott.

A Watchmaker Discovers, After 15 Years, That It Has Something to Say
Advertising

A Watchmaker Discovers, After 15 Years, That It Has Something to Say

The luxury watch category has long been a place where brands speak in hushed tones about Swiss movements, heritage, and the sort of timelessness that requires you to spend several thousand dollars to appreciate.

The luxury watch category has long been a place where brands speak in hushed tones about Swiss movements, heritage, and the sort of timelessness that requires you to spend several thousand dollars to appreciate.

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Digital

MediaPost Reveals Its Dance Card for 2026

The trade publication MediaPost, which has for years operated a busy schedule of conferences aimed at marketers and media buyers, has released its calendar of events for 2026, offering what amounts to a standing invitation to the industry's networking class.

Back Market Bets the House, Literally, on Refurbished Phones
Advertising

Back Market Bets the House, Literally, on Refurbished Phones

There is a long tradition in advertising of founders putting themselves on camera to vouch for their products, a practice that dates at least to Frank Perdue and his chickens and continues through the various mattress entrepreneurs who appear to sleep very well indeed.

Agencies

F.D.A. Moves to Make Drug Ads Tell the Whole Story, and Then Some

For decades, the pharmaceutical industry has operated under an understanding so elegant it was almost too good to be true: Tell television viewers about the most serious risks of your arthritis medication, and then cheerfully direct them to a website or toll-free number for the rest.

James Brown's Long Road From Harvard Court to Hall of Fame
Advertising

James Brown's Long Road From Harvard Court to Hall of Fame

The trajectory from college basketball player to sports broadcasting institution is not, as it happens, a straight line — though in the case of James Brown, the longtime CBS studio host, it does seem to have been drawn with a certain inevitability.

Pulisic's Sponsors Learn an Old Lesson About Timing
Advertising

Pulisic's Sponsors Learn an Old Lesson About Timing

There is a saying on Madison Avenue that has survived decades of consolidation, digital transformation, and the rise and fall of several holding company empires: nothing kills a bad product faster than good advertising.