Christopher Graves to give Keynote Address for W&L’s 55th Media Ethics Institute
Christopher Graves, CEO of one of the world’s largest public relations networks, Ogilvy Public Relations, will give the keynote address for the 55th Media Ethics Institute at Washington and Lee University. The talk will be held on Friday, March 15, at 5:30 p.m. in Stackhouse Theater, Elrod Commons.
The title of Graves’ talk is “Going Native: Will branded, sponsored content turn journalism into leagues of cacophony?” It is free and open to the public.
“News media are rushing toward a new savior, a new business model to bail them out,” Graves said about his March 15 talk. “It could be called native advertising or branded content or sponsored content or even brand journalism, but this melding of marketing and journalism floods online properties. Former advertisers rejoice in their new-found liberty, throwing off the bonds of editorial gatekeepers and declare ‘every company is a media company.’ In the battle between the fading traditionalists and the reborn content marketers, what becomes of content itself?”
Graves’ keynote address is delivered in conjunction with the Media Ethics Institute occurring on March 15 and 16. The Media Ethics Institute is sponsored by the Knight Program in Journalism Ethics and W&L’s Department of Journalism and Mass Communications.
Graves, who also serves on the board of Ogilvy’s parent company, the Ogilvy & Mather Group, joined Ogilvy PR after 23 years in business news including, 18 years with Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal and CNBC.
He was one of the founders of the Wall Street Journal Report on TV (now three decades old), vice president in charge of news and programming for CNBC Asia, vice president in charge of news and programming for CNBC Europe and managing director of Far Eastern Economic Review magazine which won magazine of the year twice in Asia during his tenure.
Graves is a frequent public speaker and moderator, appearing as a guest host on CNBC Squawk Box and at such events as the Clinton Global Initiative, World Economic Forum and Boao, (China’s most influential forum). He has hosted, debated with or interviewed such heads of state and celebrities as Tony Blair, Singapore founding father Lee Kuan Yew and Robert Redford, to name a few.
Graves is a contributing author of two recent McKinsey books: “Korea 2020” and the business bestseller “Reimagining Japan.”
Graves serves on the board of the Council of Public Relations Firms, is a trustee of the Institute for Public Relations, is on the board of Caring for Cambodia (a foundation that builds schools) and on the Leadership Council of Opportunity Nation (a bi-partisan coalition of 200 NGOs devoted to restoring social and economic mobility).
Awards include WPP Atticus Grand Prix for original writing (for “Reimagining Japan”), Agency of the Year, Asia Pacific PR Professional of the Year, Asia Pacific Consultancy of the Year, an EMMY nomination and more than a dozen awards from The New York Film and Television Festivals and the Asian Television Awards. In 2011, Graves was chosen to serve on the jury for the Cannes Festival of Creativity (PR Lions).
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Julie Cline
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