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Blathnaid Healy joins CNN

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Blathnaid Healy has joined CNN Digital Worldwide as Senior Editor in its London newsroom. Blathnaid joins CNN from Mashable, where she established the company’s first London office and built an editorial team that developed a multimedia editorial agenda and voice across all platforms. At CNN, she will oversee the network’s EMEA-based digital news team and its output. Blathnaid will be responsible for the commissioning and production of news content, focusing particularly on mobile and video. She will also work closely with CNN’s Atlanta, New York, Dubai and Hong Kong operations to build on and enhance the network’s ‘follow-the-sun’ editorial strategy, integrating closely with CNN’s broader newsgathering teams across all platforms.
“Blathnaid has vast experience in building and leading digital teams with a spirit of creativity and entrepreneurial innovation,” says Inga Thorder, Editor and Programming Director, CNN Digital Worldwide. “She was instrumental in building Mashable’s global workflow and experimenting with different storytelling and has exactly the kind of qualities we prize here at CNN. She is a big part of the global investment we’re making in our digital operation.”
Blathnaid adds “This is an exciting time to be joining CNN. You can see its commitment to digital everywhere you look and the energy behind that is evident across the editorial team. I’m looking forward to playing a part in the next chapter here.”

CNN expands Cathy Ibal’s role

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Cathy Ibal has joined CNN International Commercial’s executive team and taken on a wider remit, adding CNN’s advertising sales across Middle East and Africa to her existing responsibilities in Southern/Central/Eastern Europe, Turkey and CIS. In her expanded position, Cathy will lead CNN’s advertising sales teams across all of these regions and extend her work with CNN International’s digital, data and branded content divisions to deliver smart, integrated advertising and brand solutions to a wider range of clients. She will also be responsible for developing CNN’s long-term strategic relationships with key brand partners in these regions, as well as continuing to identify opportunities for advertisers in innovative areas such as CNN Digital. Cathy will now report directly to CNN International Commercial President Rani R. Raad.

“I am immensely pleased to see homegrown talent like Cathy taking responsibility over these key territories and leading one of the most accomplished advertising sales teams, not just at CNN International but the entire industry,” says Rani. “I look forward to Cathy continuing to grow these regional sales markets and working with clients on brand solutions that simply aren’t possible or as effective anywhere other than CNN.”

Cathy adds “Over the last 15 years, I have developed a full appreciation of the power of CNN, our content and unique approach to developing commercial solutions that can completely change the way a brand is perceived around the world. I’m delighted to add Africa and the Middle East to my existing remit and work with clients in all of these regions to collaborate on impactful and exciting partnerships that leverage CNN’s momentum in areas such as digital, data, branded content and the enduring power of TV and quality video.”

CNN to push news through Facebook Messenger

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CNN International is set to be pushing more personalised news through private message on Facebook Messenger.  The company has unveiled new capabilities for businesses and publishers on Messenger, allowing users to chat directly with CNN to get breaking news and personalised stories.

“With three billion global users, messaging apps represent the single most crucial global growth platform for businesses,” says Alex Wellen, Chief Product Officer, CNN. “Messaging apps are particularly ripe for news – they enable both the intimacy of a one-on-one conversation as well as the medium to broadcast a crucial message at scale. When someone adds the CNN Channel to Facebook Messenger, they are doing something far more intimate than “following” an account, they are putting CNN right alongside the people that matter most to them, and demanding a two-way, personal conversation.”

Samantha Barry, Head of Social News, CNN, adds “We know that more and more people around the world are engaging with messaging apps, and it’s not just to chat with friends. They’re using those same platforms to share news and content. The language we’re using on these apps is more personal, conversational and bespoke to the messaging audiences.”

 

Meltwater acquires Encore Alert

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Media intelligence solutions company Meltwater has acquired Encore Alert, a Virginia-based software as a service (SaaS) platform that uses artificial intelligence to sift through online information 24/7 to derive critical insights that can be used to improve a company’s marketing and PR efforts.

“We are all drowning in social media and the challenge we have is to identify information that is important and actionable,” says Jorn Lyseggen, Founder and CEO, Meltwater. “The team at Encore Alert is passionate about this problem. For the last three and a half years, they have worked tirelessly to condense this clutter down to a handful of daily alerts using sophisticated artificial intelligence. Their algorithms are successfully helping top brands to stay on top of emerging crises, important events and critical trends.”

James Li, CEO, Encore Alert, adds “We are very excited to be joining the Meltwater family. As the volume of online conversations about brands continues to increase at an overwhelming rate, the need for smart alerts that show marketing and PR professionals what to focus on is stronger than ever. The team at Meltwater shares this vision and we’re excited to work with them to bring this solution to their thousands of incredible customers worldwide.”

Snapchat launches Chat 2.0

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Snapchat has evolved it’s chat offerings in one update. The newly launched Chat 2.0 will allow users to send multiple chats to other users, start talking or video chatting immediately and provides the option for voice notes as well as video chats. The update will also see the introduction of Auto-Advance Stories which now automatically loads new stories into a continuous stream and lets users skip through or exit stories quicker. Snapchat will also be refreshing its terms of service and privacy policy in an effort to make these clearer. These updates are a potential new way for brands to enhance communications with their customers through live stories and creative content, with chats becoming more interactive and now allowing for video, text, audio and drawing to take place simultaneously within the same interface.

Al Jazeera to cut 500 jobs

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Al Jazeera is set to cut around 500 jobs as part of a workforce optimisation initiative. The broadcaster has said that this would mostly affect those in positions at the company’s headquarters in Qatar and it is expected that the first job losses could occur in the next week. Al Jazeera broadcasting network was launched in 1996 and now has over 70 bureaus worldwide. The news comes just months after the announcement of the closure of Al Jazeera America’s cable TV and digital operations.

Brunswick Group promotes 16 Partners globally

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The Brunswick Group has promoted 16 Directors to Partners across the firm globally. Partners were selected following an extensive and thorough process and include Annalisa Barbagallo in Brussels, Katie Loanilli in London and Will Anderson MBE in Abu Dhabi, who has spent a total of six years with the Brunswick Group and will continue to focus on the telecoms and businesses operating across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region.

“The challenges our clients face are increasingly complex and require a broad range of expertise to help navigate them,” says Susan Gilchrist, Group CEO, Brunswick Group. “I am therefore delighted by the calibre and diverse experience of colleagues we are inviting to join the Partnership this year. The group includes a real cross-section of our specialist offers, sector expertise and international network, further strengthening our ability to help clients address their critical issues. Along with our recent senior hires, I know they will make a strong contribution to the continued development of the firm.”

Publicis makes changes to structure and leadership

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Publicis Groupe has reorganised its media capabilities globally into Publicis Media, as part of efforts to increase growth and provide value to clients. The organisation has made a number of structural and leadership changes in order to do this; primarily consolidating its six global agency brands: Starcom, Mediavest, Spark, Zenith Optimedia and Blue 449, into four global agency brands: Starcom, Zenith, Mediavest|Spark and Optimedia|Blue 449. Each agency will be lead by a Global Brand President who will be responsible for leading clients, driving growth and enabling best work, with Lisa Donohue as Global Brand President for Starcom, Vittorio Bonori as Global Brand President for Zenith, Brian Terkelsend as Global Brand President for Mediavest|Spark and Andras Vigh as Global Brand President for Optimedia|Blue 449.

Publicis Media’s new structure will cover top 20 markets, led by Tim Jones, Regional CEO for the Americas. Iain Jacob will be Regional CEO for EMEA and Gerry Boyle will now be Regional CEO for APAC. There will also be four US CEO’s who will report to Tim Jones; Chris Boothe for Mediavest|Spark, Dave Ehlers for Optimedia|Blue 449, Lou Rossie at Zenith and Lisa Donohue continuing as CEO at Starcom.

“We are driven to get to the future first,” says Steve King, CEO, Publicis Media. “Publicis Media is a fresh opportunity to simplify our organisation, invent more modern approaches to gain efficiency, introduce structures for greater collaboration and effectiveness as well as drive new levels of scale and client value.”

Maurice Lévy, Chairman and CEO, Publicis Groupe, adds “The new Publicis Media imagined by Steve King is fully equipped to fit the future and best serve our clients. A leaner and simpler structure will bring more value to our clients and further accelerate our growth.”

Majid goes mobile

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Majid TV, part of Majid Entertainment, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Media, is set to launch a website as well as a new app in order to take its characters to a global audience. The website and app will bring characters to life through TV clips, music, games and issues of the magazine, all available at the touch of a button. Majid TV was initially launched in September 2015 due to the increasing popularity of Majid Magazine and Majid comics across the Arab-speaking world.

“This represents a significant step forward for Majid Entertainment, but more importantly we know it’s something that children can enjoy while their parents can be safe in the knowledge that they can trust the fun edutainment content being viewed,” says HE Mohamed Ebraheem Al Mahmood, Chairman and Managing Director, Abu Dhabi Media. “The launch of Majid TV has been a fantastic success and allows us to reach millions of households in the region. However, the launch of the website and app, which will also link into our videos on YouTube, means Majid Entertainment will have a global reach 24 hours a day.”