Conference Presentation, Fireside Chat, Panel
A Conversation with Kerry Washington, Pilar Savone, & Sherrese Soares | Global Conference 2024
Milken InstituteKerry Washington, Pilar Savone, Sherrese Soares, Lisa Ling, Sherrese Clarke Soares, Charisse Clark-Sorres
- Audience demand is shifting toward truth-driven narratives covering mental health, sexuality, and marginalized communities, which are expected to function as a profitable business model despite current buyer hesitation and a industry trend toward broader, less risky mass-audience stories.
- Legacy media giants are facing a disruptive "Napster moment" that will likely force the rationalization of internal costs and the elimination of duplicated efforts as they transition from broad to "mile deep and an inch wide" targeting strategies.
- Market dynamics are evolving toward decentralized access and varied partnership modalities, with audience feedback replacing corporate prescription as the primary driver for identifying future stars and economic models.
- Content libraries are identified as a primary asset of value amidst cord-cutting pressures, while future creator value is predicted to hinge on owning content and intellectual property to ensure long-term relevance over a 20-year horizon.
- Investment strategies aim for high-teen to low-20s annual returns by diversifying across specific demographics such as regional Mexican music, Afrobeats, Latinx audiences, heavy metal, and hip-hop to manage risk in a non-homogenous world.
- The industry anticipates continued disruption from young consumers' instant content consumption habits, rendering traditional broadcast lineups obsolete and inspiring innovation through new decentralized channels that mirror the rise of YouTube hosts.
- Enduring value is expected to emerge from diverse storytelling that takes the courage to be specific, with future success reserved for creators who maintain creative control and avoid infantilization by legacy business infrastructures.