Should an agency be judged by its diversity?

In 2025, Cannes Lions was dampened by controversy after three awards were withdrawn over fabrication of case studies and concerns around their legitimacy.DM9’s “Efficient way to pay” was retracted after the DDB agency was caught using AI to fabricate news coverage and misleading the jury. Two others Lions were also removed from the agency. In response, Cannes Lions updated the entry process and introduced a set of "integrity standards" to ban agencies for up to three years that submit "wilfully false" campaigns.Campaign's UK editor Maisie McCabe recently spoke to Cannes Lions on the new awards process and "necessary" reset to the standards. In this episode, Campaign's editorial team discuss how the awards will be different this year, both for those that have entered and the juries that are judging them, and what the industry makes of the changes. Plus, the team reveal how the Cannes Lions is making efforts to reduce bias in the judging rooms. Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes McCabe, creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun and reporter Eszter Gurbicz. It was edited by Haymarket's producer Inga Marsden.Further reading:Cannes Lions retires Creative Company of the Year AwardDecade-old Sainsbury’s ad used in Gut’s 2024 Media Grand Prix-winning case studyCannes Lions entries rise 'reflecting strong global participation'Icaro Doria steps down as co-president and CCO of DM9 following Cannes controversyAdland’s ‘New Year's’ resolution should be to revive its integrity at Cannes LionsMaybe Cannes Lions isn't capable of picking all of the best work Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2025, there was a major rollback of DEI initiatives, and in 2026 the gender pay gap widened in advertising, while it shrinks in other sectors. However, the IPA Census reported the proportion of women in C-suite surpassing 40% in adland for the first time, and ethnic minority representation at senior levels improved following two successive years of decline.Campaign’s School Reports highlight and critique an agency’s efforts to improve its diversity, which has received some criticism for focusing too much on race and gender and overlooking class.In this episode, Campaign's journalists are asking whether, in a time of declining DEI initiatives, an agency should be judged by its diversity, how much do clients care, and is agency diversity becoming less of a priority.Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes premium content editor Nicola Merrifield, deputy media editor Shauna Lewis and UK editor Maisie McCabe.Further reading:Why has adland's gender pay gap got worse?School Reports 2026: The end of “performative window dressing” for diversity Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Campaign's Media 360 opened its doors last week to a room of senior marketers, media owners and agency leaders. Food critic and Masterchef presenter Grace Dent opened the two-day conference in Brighton with speakers including co-host of The Rest Is Politics, Alastair Campbell, The Guardian's global chief advertising officer Imogen Fox and Michelle Spillane, managing director, Paddy Power Online at Flutter UK.This episode features the event's co-chairs: Sannah Rogers, chief executive of Zenith UK, and James Bailey, chief executive of Dentsu Media UK and Ireland. They chat to Campaign's tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley about their reflections on the media industry following the conference and discuss the biggest changes affecting the media industry and the people in it.Before the interview, media editor Beau Jackson and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis chat with Shelley on their reflections after day one, on themes of trust, community and Big Tech.Further reading:PepsiCo on how a media shake-up boosted OOHBauer’s Thomas Garry wins Media360 Challenge 2026How Just Eat and British Heart Foundation manage brand risk in influencer marketingGuardian ads chief: Brands need to embrace cultural turbulence'If you ask us to make an AI ad, we will inherently fail': Particle6 on AI in production Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The advertising and media industry is going through a period of massive change, as a result of AI, economic and global pressures, organisational restructures and redundancies. In the latest market report from Campaign Red called “The Great Reboot”, we reported that the top holding companies cut 12,000 people from their businesses.As the industry is contracting, how are the people within it, its leaders and those seeking employment obtaining mentorship to push themselves and the industry forward?So far this year, we have seen the launch of mentorships schemes from The Marketing Skills Trust, Ogilvy UK and Rapp UK, an expansion of Lollipop mentoring’s existing programme and launch of Zoo.London’s career community.In this episode, Campaign's editorial team discusses why mentoring is so important in periods of rapid change, if adland puts enough value on the power of mentoring, and what happens if it’s neglected altogether. Fiona Cameron joins the episode as vice president of women’s professional support programme Bloom, and former learning and development partner at Group M, now called WPP Media. From Campaign, the episode features deputy editor Gemma Charles, deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings, and hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley.Further reading:Campaign Inspiring Women Awards winners 2026: Mentor of the YearWhat does it take to be an ad agency chief executive? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adland’s agency networks have been forced to think differently, after a challenging year for holding companies with economic instability, a mega-merger and AI disruption.Publicis began calling itself a “platform organisation” years ago, while Omnicom restructured to become a “premier marketing and sales company” after the acquisition of IPG last year. In February, WPP’s chief executive Cindy Rose said: “We don’t want to be a holding company any more”, but a “single operating company” instead.Campaign Red released a market report called "The big reboot", looking into the top network's 2025 FY results and what the post-holding company era looks like for the industry.In this episode, Campaign's editorial team is discussing why the largest agency groups are moving away from the holding company label, and what this "reboot" means. Editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier, media editor Beau Jackson and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis join the episode hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley.Further reading:Arthur Sadoun on why “pressure” from investors doesn’t matter, Publicis' “resilience” and the competitionPublicis grows 4.5% in Q1 as Arthur Sadoun pans “squeeze to please Wall Street”Q1 expected to be “worst quarter” for WPP’s new business in 2026WPP reports 6.7% revenue decline in Q1 2026Omnicom revenue grew 3.9% in Q1 after IPG acquisitionChapter 1: RevenueChapter 2: HeadcountChapter 3: M&AChapter 4: Share priceChapter 5: New businessChapter 6: Creative awardsAA/Warc: adspend forecast for 2026 drops amid methodology shake-up“The fragmentation of media is clear”: adland reacts to AA/Warc Expenditure ReportAA/Warc: adspend to break records and smash £50bn ceiling in 2026 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Media has seen a string of deals in the last year, poised to consolidate key areas of the market. Paramount Skydance seeks to complete its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros., and in the UK, Sky ponders its bid to acquire the broadcast and ad sales division of ITV. In publishing, after several other attempts fell through, European media group Axel Springer, which owns Business Insider and Politico, has agreed to buy the Telegraph Media Group for the sum of £575m.So, pending various approvals, what would such deals mean for the media landscape and its advertisers?Campaign's editorial team gather in the studio to discuss why media owners are consolidating, the impact on media buyers and what it means for competition. Hosted by media editor Beau Jackson, this episode includes Campaign’s UK editor Maisie McCabe, editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis.Further readingWill Sky’s proposed takeover of ITV be good for advertisers?ITV confirms talks with Sky about £1.6bn sale of M&E unitParamount Advertising takes sole control of UK sponsorship deals Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Publicis Groupe acquired sports marketing and entertainment agency 160over90 this month, in a move it claims will “disrupt” the sector.In this episode, the Campaign team discusses why Publicis has made this "big bet" now, whether the sector needs disrupting and how influencers are changing the game. The team discusses why some say "the gap between brands and consumers is widening" and how athletes are becoming their own "self-contained media platforms, because their performance in the game is so intrinsic to their personas".Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings, creativity and culture editor Shauna Lewis and deputy news editor Marianne Calnan-Holland.Further reading:What does the fan experience of the Fifa World Cup look like from the UK?Coca-Cola World Cup spot explores emotional journey of footballWhy is gaming not a media channel?Beyond borders: why countries don’t define modern fandomFifa 2026’s longer tournament window presents a golden opportunity for fan activationsBurnley FC and X unveil social documentary on women’s teamBurnley FC and X partner with Sure For Men for UK’s first X Original series Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last year WPP, Apple and Amazon increased their in-office days, with the latter two tech companies mandating five days in office. In February this year, adland’s best-performing holding company Publicis Groupe increased its mandated staff attendance from three days to four.In the age of AI and efficiency, this episode of The Campaign Podcast is asking if being in the office more does actually increase productivity, if its possible to measure productivity and if adland will soon be in the office for more days a week. Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes deputy editor Gemma Charles, deputy media editor Shauna Lewis and deputy creative and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings.Further reading:Should adland follow Publicis and WPP’s four-day office mandate?This is adland: 2025Updated: latest hybrid working policies at “new big six”Why do more office days no longer boost staff’s sense of belonging?Hybrid working in adland: who struggles most with stricter in-office policies?Hybrid working Credos report: Less than half of adland happy with home/office splitMark Read: 'People are happier when they’re in the office'Is a four-day working week viable for adland? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In March, Meta and Google were found liable for designing addictive platforms that harmed a young user's mental health, a verdict both platforms disagree with and plan to appeal. Channel 4 also released its documentary called Molly vs The Machines about a 14 year old girl who took her own life after seeing harmful content online. Plus, the UK Government began a consultation for a potential ban for under 16s to improve digital safety, following Australia's ban in December, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer saying we “have to act”.Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and other platforms rely on advertising to make money. So whether a government ban or strict regulation of the platforms is the solution, this episode questions how much responsibility should the brands funding these platforms have.Jake Dubbins, managing director at Media Bounty and co-chair of Conscious Advertising Network, joins the episode alongside Campaign's UK editor Maisie McCabe and editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier. This episode is hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley.Further reading:Ian Russell challenges Instagram boss to “chat” at Cannes LionsMolly vs the Machines showed us that advertising choices aren't neutralCan we talk about whether fraudulent ads are the tech platforms' biggest problem?Ofcom research finds rise in concern over online risks versus benefits Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In-house agencies have been growing over the last few years, as brands have been taking more work in-house and building bespoke teams. In the last few weeks, Allwyn launched an in-house studio, ITV shifted its retained creative account from Uncommon to ITV Creative and Uncommon’s executive creative director Richard Biggs jumped to BBC Creative. Campaign Red analysed this trend and last month produced an in-depth global report, The Inside Job, looking into what disciplines brands are in-housing, why they are luring agency talent and how they are collaborating with external agencies. In this episode, Niki Garner, director of ITV Creative, joins The Campaign Podcast to discuss the in-housing evolution, why she hires from agencies and how in-house teams can provide the most value. Garner was also named In-house Agency Leader at Campaign’s In-House agency awards last year.Joining from the Campaign team is data journalist Jamie Rossouw, co-author of The Inside Job, and premium content editor Nicola Merrifield. This episode is hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley.Further reading:How to build a successful in-house agencyAllwyn's media director: in-house shop Studio 59 aiming for “newsroom mentality”BBC Creative appoints Natalie Lau as head of planningITV Creative lead dismisses past 'snobbery' aimed at in-house agenciesITV promotes I’m a Celebrity… South Africa with hand-drawn animation“The darker side of water”: behind the scenes of Channel 4’s “The fountain of filth”Lego ad calls 'play' with array of characters performed by Tom HollandSpecsavers highlights audiology services by 'rebranding'Over four in 10 in-house agencies want to be brand’s lead agency, IHALC research findsITV, Reckitt and Pepsi in-house leaders to speak at Campaign's In-Housing SummitThe Lists 2025: Top five in-house creativesCampaign In-House Agency Awards 2025: winners revealed Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.