Last week, the world lost one of the most influential people of our generation. As a business man, an innovator and a visionary, Steve Jobs made an everlasting mark on the world through the products he helped develop and their influence on our culture.  

In a very special episode of the Theater of Public Influence, Our podcast team sits down to remember Steve Jobs. Join us as we reflect on the impact of his life, the reactions to his death and the incredible legacy he leaves behind. Whether you're a Mac or a PC, you won't want to miss this episode as we put our own "ding in the universe" in honor of Steve Jobs.

Last week, streaming media giant, Netflix set the internet ablaze when they announced significant changes to their pricing model. The resulting 60% price hike for most customers sparked a torrent of negative backlash on the Nextflix blog and various social media channels.

In the latest episode of the Theater of Public Influence podcast, our roundtable dissects this story from every possible angle.  Could Netflix have handled this change differently?  What (if any) effect did the social outcry have on this decision and similar decisions to be made by other companies?  Was this a necessary move to combat rising costs or a greedy cash grab by a near-monopoly?  What is the cost of bandwidth and who’s ultimately getting paid?  We follow the money and analyze the move by Netflix and the greater question of bandwidth as a commodity which looks more and more like the oil of the digital age.

Angry about the upcoming bump in your Netflix bill?  Join us for some audio group therapy.

We’re taking the show on the road this month as we record live from the New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCO) conference in Rye, New Hampshire.  Along with taking home 9 Lamplighter Awards at this year’s conference, GY&K had the opportunity to host a roundtable discussion on branded content and social media marketing – and through the magic of podcasting, you can grab a seat at the table and listen in on the discussion.

In this episode Ben, Brady and Travis are joined by a group of forward-thinking healthcare marketers, including Nina Coolidge (from the Brain Injury Association of Mass.), Kevin McDonald (KMcD Strategy and Communications Solutions), Amy Lantaigne (Eastern Connecticut Health Network), Andrea Seaton (Grace Cottage Hospital), Jeff Steblea (Market Street Research), Courtney Paige (Stamford Hospital) and Rolf Olsen (Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center).  We discuss the concept of branded content as it relates to the healthcare industry. What kind of content is most effective? How much should you produce and how long should it be?  When to regulate content and when to engage in a social environment? Should you buy content or create your own?  These questions and more are answered in this special edition of The Theater of Public Influence.

As we've shown in our recent TV and music spotlight episodes, traditional broadcast media is facing a host of new competition and advertisers are finding it harder than ever to reach potential customers through entertainment channels.  Enter branded content.  Whether it's through online videos, mobile apps, podcasts or strategic partnerships, branded content offers advertisers a way to engage customers in a meaningful, that provides value instead of interruption. 

In this episode we take a look at some of the best current examples of branded content and draw conclusions on how to make it effective and why it has so much marketing value.  If you listen to one episode of the Theater of Public Influence this year, this is the one to hear.

It's music month here at GY&K! Between the recent in-office performance by Albert Aguilar... yesterday's all-star lineup of performances at SXSW which we co-presented along with our partners, DYN and CloudCamp... and some fun stuff we're cooking up for our phone system, there's a lot to tap your toes about of late.  In the latest episode of the Theater of Public Influence, our podcast team gets in on the action with an in-depth look at today's music landscape.

In the spirit of our recent all-TV episode, we discuss some of the many ways that people get and get exposed to music in the digital era.  CDs are dead and radio is dying.  What does that mean for artists, consumers and advertisers and what's a music enthusiast to do when they have 11,000,000 songs at their fingertips?  All that and more in this audio explosion of tunes, tips and talk.

Episode Links:

Indie Surfer
Stereogum
Brooklyn Vegan
Ryan's Smashing Life
Bradley's Almanac
Daytrotter
Live Music Archive
thesixtyone
22tracks

Dinosaur Feathers
Dr. Dre
Will Hoge
Gregory Alan Isakov
John Waite
Wakey!Wakey!
the Whatnot

The 3rd Annual GY&K Best-of Awards Show - 2010

Another year has come and gone and it’s time once again for us to look back on the year that was and choose the biggest, buzz-worthiest, most attention-getting, influential, talked about items of the year.  The Theater of Public Influence podcast sat down this week to record its 3rd annual “Best of” awards episode.  Your fearless podcast hosts have pulled together 5 nominees in 8 categories category and YOU the listener voiced your opinion and determined this year's winners. 

If you only listen to one arbitrary best-of list podcast this year, THIS is the one!  Join Ben, Brady, Mike Stevens, Nate and Jenaleigh as we reveal your winners in each of the following categories:

Award Categories
Best in Movies
Best in Music
Best in TV
Best in Gadgets
Best on the Web
Best in Advertising
Biggest News Story
Brand of the Year

Cut the cord!  In the latest episode of the Theater of Public Influence, Ben Brady Mike S. and Travis explore some of the various ways that consumers can cut their cable subscription in favor of online content. 

With more and more television content available online from Hulu to Netflix to the network websites themselves, the value-conscious viewer can conceivably get their weekly TV fix without giving a dime to the cable company.  But, with many new devices and services on the market, bringing that content from your computer screen to your wall-sized flat-screen HDTV can be a daunting process. 

As usual, your hosts help you cut through the clutter and break down the pros and cons of Roku, Apple TV, Google TV and a good ol' computer hooked up to your TV.  All this, plus GY&K Q&A, (a bit more than) 30 Seconds of Rage and more!

In the latest episode of the Theater of Public Influence, Ben Brady, Mike S. and Travis gather round to talk about a host of hot topics.  First up, we Check Out the new interactive music video by Arcade Fire (www.thewildernessdowntown.com). Then we grab the remote as AMC's The Walking Dead launches us into a discussion on the branding and positioning of cable TV networks (12:50).  Finally, advertisers wage their battle to destroy the evil forces of the DVR. The Mad Men parody agency, Smith Winter Mitchell catches our attention with commercials in disguise (23:53).  In the second half of the show, we bring back GY&K Q&A (31:24) and answer some questions about concerts, online shopping and email newsletters. All that, plus :30 Seconds of Rage with Mike Stevens (49:46).  It's 53 minutes and 31 seconds of audio dynamite!

Mike Stevens is absent but the rage is still flowing like wine … or fermented tea anyway.  In this episode, Ben, Brady, Mike G. and Liz sit down for a two-for-one helping of Check it Out.  First up, we take a look at Kombucha, the fermented tea beverage that's stirring up controversy at Whole Foods stores.  Can its miraculous healing power outweigh its taste and hidden alcohol content?  Next, we get into a heated debate over low-fi video production spurred by a pre-show viewing of HBOs The Neistat Brothers. There is certainly nothing else like this handmade home movie television show and Ben is determined to keep it that way.  Finally, we wrap things up with a new segment called GY&K Q&A, in which our panelists have to give quick answers to stupid questions - play along at home by sending your questions to auditorium@griffinyorkkrause.com  

The Theater of Public Influence is back and we've got company.  We're joined this week by Dan McCarthy, Boston editor for Urban Daddy.  Sharing our passion for cutting through the clutter and helping you find the things worthy of your attention, UrbanDaddy is a free daily email devoted to bringing you the single thing you need to know every day about your city. On this Episode, Dan takes center stage and tells us about Urban Daddy's unique brand of infotainment, how the company got started and how they've found a place in the social networking landscape.  All this, plus cougar hunts, consumer space flight and midgets will be sure to keep your attention for the next hour.

Editors Note:  Due to technical difficulty, the audio quality of this episode may not be as high as you've come to expect from our show.  Rest assured that we've worked out the bugs for next time.  We do apologize, and hope that it does not detract from your enjoyment.