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The Complete Feed
Explore every Signal & Noise podcast, article & video in one place from all our guests & contributors.


Evangelists, Not Mascots: Why AdTech CEOs Are Failing at Marketing — and How to Fix it with Joe Zappa
AdTech has powerful tech but weak marketing. In this Signal & Noise episode, Joe Zappa (Sharp Pen Media) explains why CEOs must lead messaging with clear beliefs—not jargon. Learn how to stand out in a crowded market, build strong narratives, avoid “AI slop,” and turn authenticity into a competitive advantage.
5 days ago


Structure the Ambiguity: Lucas Longacre & Zach Grumet on Product, AI, and the Real Work of Building
Lucas Longacre joins Signal & Noise and debuts with Zach Grumet to explore product management, leadership, and “structuring ambiguity.” They cover unclear problems, team friction, decision-making, and how AI is reshaping product development. Featuring insights from FinTech, HealthTech, and SaaS, this episode highlights why strong product leaders focus on clarity—not just shipping features—in an increasingly complex landscape.
Mar 25


Rewriting the Rules of Programmatic: Adam Heimlich on Agentic Bidding, ARTF, and Building Chalice AI
What if dashboards are dying—and analytics is becoming more human? In this episode of Signal & Noise, Brett House and Rio Longacre talk with Adam Greco about “Vibe Analytics,” a future where AI, natural language, and warehouse-native stacks replace rigid dashboards. They explore how this shift could democratize analytics, impact tools like Adobe and Amplitude, and reshape how marketers, analysts, and data teams measure and use data.
Mar 23


Vibe Analytics: The End is Nigh for Analytics Tech? Brett and Rio chat with Adam Greco.
What if dashboards are dying—and analytics is becoming more human? In this episode of Signal & Noise, Brett House and Rio Longacre talk with Adam Greco about “Vibe Analytics,” a future where AI, natural language, and warehouse-native stacks replace rigid dashboards. They explore how this shift could democratize analytics, impact tools like Adobe and Amplitude, and reshape how marketers, analysts, and data teams measure and use data.
Mar 16


RampUp Requiem: Rio Longacre & Krish Raja on Identity, Data Collaboration, and the Future of AdTech
At RampUp in San Francisco, hosted by LiveRamp, industry leaders gathered to discuss the future of identity, data collaboration, retail media, and AI in advertising. In this Signal & Noise episode, hosts recap the event and share insights from top AdTech voices on how privacy, data, and AI are reshaping modern marketing.
Mar 12


AI Doesn’t Fix Data Problems — It Amplifies Them: Acxiom's Crystal Wallace on Governance, Agentic Workflows & the End of “Monolithic SaaS”
In this episode of Signal & Noise, hosts Rio and Brett sit down with Crystal Santos Wallace for a candid conversation about what AI is actually doing inside modern agencies.
Drawing on her experience across global holdcos and at Omnicom Group and Acxiom, Crystal explains why AI doesn’t fix broken data — it amplifies it. They explore the shift from monolithic platforms to agent-orchestrated systems, why governance is becoming mission-critical, and how synthetic audiences and
Mar 9


The UX Reckoning: Designing for an Agentic AI World with Drew Burdick, Founder of StealthX
The marketing industry spends more than $4,000 per U.S. household every year.
Analysts estimate that 20–30% of that spend may be lost to waste, inefficiency, and outright fraud — tens of billions of dollars annually.
So here’s the uncomfortable question:
If everyone knows the plumbing is broken… Why does the system keep running?
In this episode of Signal & Noise, Rio Longacre and Brett House sit down with Sarah Caputo & David Nyurenberg to unpack what rarely gets said out
Mar 2


The Cost of Keeping Quiet: Ad Fraud, Incentives & The Silence Protecting Billions, with Sarah Caputo & David Nyurenberg
The marketing industry spends more than $4,000 per U.S. household every year.
Analysts estimate that 20–30% of that spend may be lost to waste, inefficiency, and outright fraud — tens of billions of dollars annually.
So here’s the uncomfortable question:
If everyone knows the plumbing is broken… Why does the system keep running?
In this episode of Signal & Noise, Rio Longacre and Brett House sit down with Sarah Caputo & David Nyurenberg to unpack what rarely gets said out
Feb 20


From Boom to Burden: Is Commerce Media a Growth Driver or a Brand Tax?
Commerce media is exploding—projected to surpass $100B in US ad spend by 2028—but beneath the hype, a harder question is emerging: is this truly incremental growth, or just a rebranded tax on brand dollars?
In this episode of Signal & Noise, hosts Rio Longacre and Brett House sit down with Amie Owen, Global Chief Commerce Officer at IPG Mediabrands, to cut through the noise surrounding retail and commerce media.
With Amazon and Walmart controlling roughly 80-85% of U.S. retai
Feb 17


The CDP Reckoning: Reality, Hype, and Life After the Magic Quadrant
The Customer Data Platform, or CDP, was supposed to be marketing’s system of record. Instead, it’s become one of the most fragmented—and misunderstood—categories in the stack.
In this episode of Signal & Noise, hosts Brett House and Rio Longacre sit down with Matthew Niederberger, Founder of MarTech Therapy, for a candid, practitioner-level conversation about where the CDP market actually stands today—and where it’s headed next.
Matthew brings 20+ years of hands-on MarTech ex
Feb 10


When Boundaries Disappear: Erez Levin on TABOOS, Antisemitism & Moral Accountability
In this episode of Signal & Noise, hosts Rio Longacre and Brett House sit down with Erez Levin—former Google leader, ad quality advocate, and cultural reformer—for a wide-ranging conversation about speech, norms, and the dangerous space between censorship and permissiveness.Erez has spent his career challenging broken incentives—from paid media’s obsession with outcomes over quality to workplace norms that quietly discourage responsibility. In this conversation, he turns that
Feb 3


Referee to Co-Pilot: Ad Verification in the Age of AI with Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify
Ad verification is no longer just about blocking bad ads—it’s becoming a core input into how media is planned, optimized, and measured. In this episode of Signal & Noise, hosts Rio Longacre and Brett House sit down with Mark Zagorski, CEO of DoubleVerify, to unpack how verification is evolving in the age of AI.Mark brings a rare perspective, having led multiple AdTech companies across market cycles—from building and selling eXelate to Nielsen, to turning around Telaria, and n
Jan 27


CES 2026: The Signal Clearly — Special Episode, Live from Las Vegas with Rio Longacre & Brett House
From the show floor to the executive suites, CES 2026 wasn’t just another technology expo — it was a global turning point for AI, media, data, and the future of digital experiences. In this special edition of Signal & Noise, co-hosts Rio Longacre and Brett House bring you their top takeaways, on-the-ground interviews, and operator-first analysis straight from Las Vegas. In this finale episode of our CES series, Rio and Brett break down how AI has moved from feature to foundat
Jan 20


CES 2026–"This is 1942": Brett and Rio Have a Candid Conversation with Lou Paskalis
Recorded live in Las Vegas during CES 2026, this special Signal & Noise conversation brings together Rio Longacre and Brett House with one of the industry’s most trusted—and outspoken—voices: Lou Paskalis.
In this wide-ranging discussion, Lou digs into the future of the industry in light of the rise of a tidal wave of AI-generated content, synthetic versus authentic signals, regulatory changes versus human discernment, and how trust is shifting from institutions to people...
Jan 19


AWS re:Invent 2025: Beyond the Hype—Agentic AI, Interoperability, and the Return of IRL
What actually mattered at AWS re:Invent 2025—once the keynotes ended and the hype faded?
In this belated, boots-on-the-ground debrief from Las Vegas, Signal & Noise hosts Brett House and Rio Longacre break down the real signals from re:Invent 2025, drawing on executive conversations, daily floor recaps, and firsthand time with partners and practitioners across the ecosystem. Joined throughout by Credera's Alyssa Furth, the episode focuses less on announcements, and more on wh
Jan 6


Signal & Noise Special Edition: Advertising Week 2025
Signal & Noise: Live from Advertising Week 2025 dives into the most urgent conversations shaping modern advertising — from AI enablement and data transparency to the evolution of streaming, publishers, and the creator economy. Hosts Rio Longacre and Brett House speak with industry leaders to unpack how technology, innovation, and authenticity are redefining outcomes and quality in media. Tune in for fresh insights from the front lines of ad tech’s most transformative moment..
Nov 5, 2025


Publisher Monetization Woes: Is the News Media in Jeopardy? with Jessica Hogue
Hearst Consumer Media Chief Data Officer, Jessica Hogue, joins us to unpack how a 137-year-old publisher is rebuilding its data foundation—linking first-party identity, contextual intelligence, and tighter supply paths—to grow revenue beyond the open auction. We tackle AI’s “zero-click” squeeze, brand-safety overblocking, and the push for outcomes without backsliding into last-click. Enjoy!
Sep 17, 2025


Stop Blocking the News: Brand Safety, Performance, and the Case for Journalism
This episode of Signal & Noise features industry veteran and well-known personality Lou Paskalis in a wide-ranging conversation on the state of advertising, brand safety, and the future of news media. The discussion explores why marketers have historically avoided advertising in news, the misguided reliance on keyword and domain blocking, and new research showing ads next to quality journalism don’t harm brand perception...
Sep 5, 2025


Rise of the Machines: Is the Media Buying FTE Model DOA
In this episode of Signal & Noise, Brett, Rio, and special guest Shiv Gupta (Founder & CEO of U of Digital) dive into the seismic impact AI is having on the advertising industry. Listen as they explore Meta’s bold push toward fully automated media buying, question the future of the agency FTE model, and examine how AI could upend traditional workflows while opening the door for new roles, business models, and human-centered strategy.
Aug 6, 2025


Ad Fraud: Are the Bad Guys Winning with Dr. Augustine Fou
In Episode 3, Brett and Rio take aim at a problem that quietly siphons billions of dollars and erodes trust every single day: digital ad fraud.
The question is neither theoretical nor hyperbole: for many brands, it genuinely feels like the bad guys are winning. Bot farms masquerade as premium publishers, MFA sites inflate metrics, and even “safe” channels like CTV are showing cracks with pervasive illicit activity...
Jul 1, 2025
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