More related content on the BRIDGE
- Media Panel 8 December 3:30 - 4:00PM
Africa’s Media Operating System
From newsroom ops to creator platforms, how does African media scale? What capital misses, how culture drives adoption, and where global partners fit?
Impact Stage - Music Fireside 8 December 4:10 - 4:25PM
The Universal Language Connecting a Divided World
At a time when words divide and algorithms amplify differences, music remains one of the world’s last true bridges, uniting billions through shared rhythms and emotion. This session’s focus is on music’s enduring role as a global connector, exploring how sound becomes story, how emotion becomes economy, and how artists become ambassadors of something greater than entertainment. Audience members learn how data, digital platforms, and live experiences can bring us closer rather than further apart. Music may be an industry, but it is also a common language. It’s one that still has the power to rebuild trust, empathy, and belonging in a fractured age.
Explore by Instagram - Meetup Meetup 10 December 1:30 - 2:30PM
Content Business Meetup
A space for media and content entrepreneurs to meet investors, exchange ideas, and explore opportunities within today’s evolving content economy. This session fosters open networking and meaningful conversation, creating room for early connections and future collaborations.
Impact Stage - Creator Economy Fireside 8 December 4:45 - 5:05PM
Bizarre Foods With Andrew Zimmern
Before the rise of bite-sized content and algorithm-driven storytelling, some creators built influence the long way, through deep curiosity, lived experience, and long-form craft. In this intergenerational conversation, award-winning chef and storyteller Andrew Zimmern reflects on how he went from kitchens to global screens, using food as a bridge to culture, identity, and understanding. Joining him is a new-generation creator who ascended through digital platforms, bringing a fresh perspective shaped by real-time audiences and algorithmic winds. Together, they explore what has changed, and what hasn’t, when it comes to building trust, telling human stories, and connecting across cultures. What can today’s creators learn from the depth and patience of pre-social-media storytelling? And how can legacy storytellers adapt to a world moving at the speed of the scroll while keeping meaning at the center?
Explore by InstagramModerator
- Media Panel 9 December 2:45 - 3:15PM
Longform’s Next Act
In a media environment dominated by sensationalism and short-form content, longform journalism has struggled to keep its grip. According to the 2025 Reuters Institute Digital News Report, 62 percent of online news consumers now prefer bite-sized updates. Yet platforms like YouTube and Substack show renewed demand for depth, with Substack alone reporting a fivefold rise in paid subscriptions since 2020. The question is no longer whether audiences have the attention for longform, but whether the industry is delivering it in ways that resonate. Publishers and creators are now reimagining longform for a global, digital-first audience, using new distribution models and partnerships to balance reach with resonance, and to define the next era of credible, enduring media.
Forum StageSpeakers
- Marketing Panel 9 December 4:10 - 4:30PM
LinkedIn Leadership: Why Every Company is a Media Company
Executives as brand and marketing channels — increasing number of companies leaning into exec presence (ex: PayPal hiring a content strategist for their CEO) Companies launching editorial teams and/or hiring editors to produce quality content — Anthropic, OpenAI, Lyft, Experian, loads of others
Central Stage
