Digitas, the digital marketing giant that also serves as one of the co-founders of the long-running NewFronts confab, isn’t afraid to address controversial subjects in its annual presentations. One former outing, for instance, dubbed ‘Skip Ads’, encouraged marketers to approach the process from more of a storytelling angle as opposed to straightforward product-hawking. Last year’s presentation addressed the importance of taking a stand on social issues in an increasingly polarized world. And past NewFronts events have featured appearances from radio host Elvis Duran and former Out editor Phillip Picardi.
This year’s theme, says Scott Donaton — Digitas’; global chief content and creative officer — is ‘Trust’. More specifically, the agency will explore the ways in which people have lost trust in digital media businesses, influencers, and even one another amid a rise of misinformation online.
The presentation is particularly timely as all major social platforms — including YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter — have been struggling to stem the spread of fake news and conspiracy theories, with top execs being summoned to testify in front of Congress about the rampant issue. YouTube has even implemented a new algorithm that seeks to cut down on the spread of “borderline” videos that don’t violate its Community Guidelines but are harmfully misinformative.
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“There is opportunity for brands to redress the trust that has been broken in the industry today by using actions, insights, and storytelling to deliver relevant, personalized experiences and content,” Donaton tells Tubefilter. “Brands that offer authentic experiences — that match actions and words — and that deliver on quality; enable consistent, connected experiences; protect our data; and respect our privacy will be the ones most likely to succeed.”
For more from Donaton, check out our interview pre-NewFronts interview with the creative exec below.
And you can check out the full playlist of our ‘Road To The 2019 NewFronts‘ interviews right here.
