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Speaker Bios

Carolyn Bekkedahl
President/Chief Revenue Officer
Mochila

Carolyn Bekkedahl is currently President/Chief Revenue Officer at Mochila, an early stage digital company focused on the distribution of premium content and advertising. Prior to joining Mochila, she was president of the Entertainment and Active Lifestyle groups at American Media Inc., with P&L responsibility for 10 magazines. While at AMI, she successfully relaunched Star magazine, resulting in a 50% increase in ad revenue. In her Publisher and Group Publisher roles leading Shape Magazine, Bekkedahl drove unprecedented EBITDA growth for Shape, leading to its inclusion on Adweek’s Hot List for 3 consecutive years. She has been active in Advertising Women of New York and Magazine Publishers of America and is a founding member of the Internet Content Syndication Council.

Mary Ann Bekkedahl
Executive Vice President, Group Publisher
Rodale Inc.

Mary Ann Bekkedahl is responsible for the advertising sales and trade marketing efforts as they relate to all Rodale print and digital properties including Prevention, Men’s Health, Runner’s World, Running Times, Best Life, Bicycling, Mountain Bike, Organic Gardening, Women’s Health and their respective websites.  She also oversees the company’s integrated trade marketing programs, corporate ad sales and custom publishing. Prior to her current role, Bekkedahl served as Senior Vice President and Global Brand Director for Men’s Health. She has earned spots on both the Adweek Hot List and Advertising Age’s A-List.  In 2004, MIN named her one of the “most intriguing people” of the year.

Jeff Berman
President of Sales and Marketing
MySpace

Jeff Berman oversees MySpace’s online marketing, content and programs, ad solutions, branded sales and the development of relationships with major advertising partners. He previously served as the company’s Executive Vice President of Marketing and Content, responsible for spearheading the development and implementation of marketing initiatives for popular MySpace franchises. In 2007, Berman oversaw the launch of MySpaceTV, where he developed partnerships with leading media companies and major sponsors. Before joining MySpace, Berman ran his own strategic, political consulting firm. From 2001-2005, he served as Chief Counsel to U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and Staff Director of the Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts. Prior to working on Capitol Hill, Berman was a public defender and served as an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center.

Jordan Bitterman
Senior Vice President, Media, Marketing & Content
Digitas

Jordan Bitterman has been with Digitas since August 2005. He is responsible for overseeing the account management and media activities for American Express. Bitterman has also played a central role in the development of Digitas’ brand content offering, The Third Act. Before joining Digitas, Bitterman was VP Group Media Director at FCBi where he was responsible for all online media efforts on behalf of Merck pharmaceuticals. Prior to that, he was at Digitas’ sister company Modem Media. He spent many years early in his career at Ammirati Puris Lintas (now Lowe & Partners). Bitterman began his professional career at the White House in The Office of Presidential Press Advance.

 
Henry “Hank” Boye
Publisher
Harvard Business Review

Henry “Hank” Boye joined Harvard Business Review as publisher in September 2007.  He oversees commercial operations of the magazine, including advertising sales, circulation, marketing, and strategy.  Prior to joining Harvard Business Review, Boye was the General Manager of the National Journal Group, the Washington D.C.-based unit of Atlantic Media focused on policy and politics. In his first two years there, the group generated 35% revenue growth and nearly tripled profits.  Boye also led a relaunch of National Journal Group’s digital media platform, which included expanding into new channels like mobile platforms. Before that, Boye was an engagement manager at McKinsey & Company in Pittsburgh.

Jim Cooper
Executive Editor
AdweekMedia

Jim Cooper oversees all Mediaweek’s news and feature coverage. He also manages the daily editorial operation of Mediaweek.com, the news and opinion sections of Adweek and Brandweek and authors the monthly “The Download” column. Cooper joined Mediaweek in January 1998 as a senior editor covering the cable industry. He was promoted to news editor in April 2000, and to managing editor in April 2004. Prior to Mediaweek, he had been programming editor at Cablevision Magazine and a staff writer at Broadcasting & Cable. He began his journalism career as a staff writer for The Courier-News, the Gannett Co.-owned daily in Bridgewater, N.J.

Stacey Deziel
Managing Partner, Director of Client Services
MediaCom Interaction

Stacey Deziel joined MediaCom as Director of Client Services for MediaCom Interaction in April 2008. As Client Service Director, Deziel helps organize account teams to better service client needs and develop best practices across divisions. Prior to joining MediaCom, Deziel was Executive Vice President, Media Director for FCBi, the digital division of DraftFCB. During her 14 years with DraftFCB, she helped forge the agency’s integrated marketing practice, including the cross-training of talent, since the inception of DFCB’s digital division. She has also held media positions with Time Inc. and Ogilvy & Mather Direct.

Gail Glickman Horwood
SVP, Programming & Strategy
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

Gail Glickman Horwood is SVP, Programming & Strategy at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Prior to joining MSLO she spent almost six years at Time Inc. serving as Executive Director, InStyle.com and Executive Director, Creative Development for Time Inc. Interactive overseeing Time Inc.’s  women’s brands. She was formerly the VP of Content for Zagat Survey, where she managed both digital and print product initiatives. She was editor-in-chief of epicurious.com, an affiliate of Condé Nast Publications and a member of the launch team for that site in 1995. Prior to that she was Managing Editor/Style Editor of Worth magazine and an editor of Condé Nast Traveler.

Richard Glosser
Executive Director of Emerging Media,
Condé Nast Digital

Richard Glosser is responsible for developing Condé Nast Digital’s video, mobile, podcast, and other new media initiatives. For almost 20 years, Glosser has been identifying and building new business opportunities and brands in traditional and digital media, and has worked across all facets of production and distribution of film, television, cable, broadband, and emerging platforms. Prior to Condé Nast Digital, Glosser had senior leadership roles at CSTV, Bolt, and NBC. His early career was at Sony Pictures Entertainment, where he was Founder and President of SPE's digital media division, Columbia TriStar Interactive.  During his tenure at Sony, he launched Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune online and was part of the launch team of SPE's basic cable network, Game Show Network.

Nancy Hallberg
Chief Strategy Officer
The Parenting Group

Nancy Hallberg is responsible for strategic planning and business development for The Parenting Group’s creative, online and research assets, including Parenting, Babytalk and Parenting.com.  Hallberg had previously been Group Vice President, Marketing at The Parenting Group from 2004 to 2006 before joining Condé Nast as Director of Custom Research for Online and Consumer Marketing.  She returned to The Parenting Group in her current role in 2007.   Before joining The Parenting Group in 2004, Hallberg worked as Executive Vice President at Euro RSCG Brann.  Other experience included stints at Young & Rubicam, NW Ayer & Partners and Yankelovich Partners, Inc.

Jessi Hempel
Writer
FORTUNE

Jessi Hempel writes about technology, advertising and media for FORTUNE. Her subjects range from a feature on IBM’s growth in India to the first profile of Sheryl Sandberg after she left Google to become COO of Facebook. Most recently, she wrote about Research in Motion’s attempt to woo iPhone-obsessed consumers to the Blackberry. Before joining FORTUNE, Hempel was Innovation Department Editor at BusinessWeek. Hempel started her career reporting for TIME Asia in Hong Kong. She has appeared on an array of radio and television programs, including CNBC's "Wakeup Call" and FOX's "Good Day New York," and is a regular guest on ABC's "World News This Morning."

Dan Hickey
Vice President, Digital Content
Meredith Corporation

Dan Hickey is vice president for digital content at Meredith Corporation. Dan oversees the editorial and creative operations for Meredith's Women's' Network, which serves more than 15 million women on a monthly basis through award-winning sites such as BHG.com, Parents.com and Fitnessmagazine.com.

Gary Hoenig
General Manager & Editorial Director
ESPN Publishing

Gary Hoenig was named General Manager & Editorial Director of ESPN Publishing in January 2007. Since April 2003, Hoenig served as Editor-in-Chief of ESPN The Magazine. He had previously been the magazine’s Executive Editor since its launch in 1998. In June 2005, he added the role of Editorial Director of ESPN Books. Before joining ESPN The Magazine, Hoenig was involved with the 1993 inception of ESPN Total Sports magazine. Before joining ESPN, Hoenig was Co-Founder and Editor of NewsInc. He began his career in print journalism at The New York Times, and has also held positions at the Washington Star, Newsday and New York Newsday.

Avinash Kaushik
Author, Blogger, Analytics Evangelist
Google

Avinash Kaushik is the author of the recently published book Web Analytics: An Hour a Day. He is also the Analytics Evangelist for Google.  Kaushik puts a common sense framework around the often frenetic world of web research and analytics, and combines that with the philosophy that investing in talented analysts is the key to long-term success. He is also a staunch advocate of listening to the consumer, and is committed to helping organizations unlock the value of web data.  Kaushik works with some of the largest companies in the world to help them evolve their online marketing and analytics strategies.

Jacki Kelley
Executive Vice President / Media
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia  
 
Jacki Kelley is responsible for media sales across all MSLO assets including print, digital and broadcast. Prior to joining MSLO, Kelley held executive positions at both Yahoo! and USA TODAY. At Yahoo! Kelley was Vice President of Worldwide Sales Strategy and at USA TODAY she led the sales effort for print and digital sales as the SVP/Advertising Sales. Kelley is a member of the AAF Hall of Achievement for advertising executives who have achieved significant results before the age of 40, and also serves on the board of the American Advertising Federation.

James Kiernan
Vice President, Group Client Director
MediaVest Worldwide

James Kiernan is a VP, Group Client Director for MediaVest, specializing in digital and emerging media. Kiernan came to MediaVest in June ‘04 to contribute his leadership and expertise to the P&G account and help build the MediaVest digital practice. Prior to joining MediaVest, Kiernan worked at FCBi for five years and prior to that, OgilvyOne. He is recognized as an industry leader having served on the advisory boards for iMedia, AdTech and several media companies, and was selected as a "Rising Star" by Media Magazine in 2006. He has written articles published in iMedia Connection and MediaPost. Kiernan joined the New York advertising community in 1997.

Edward Lang
Senior Vice President and General Manager, Mobile and International Online
Playboy Media Group / Playboy Enterprises, Inc.

Edward Lang joined Playboy Enterprises, Inc. in August 2006 and is responsible for the global strategy, expansion and oversight of Playboy's mobile and wireless businesses.  Lang most recently held the position of Vice President, Mobile Initiatives with Sony Corporation where he concentrated on building and extending the mobile business through market and product development while developing strategic partnerships and increasing sales.  Previously, Lang served as COO for a mobile-marketing and production company where he was involved in launching the mobile offerings for Vibe, Spin, "America's Next Top Model" and the Grammy Awards Show.  Before that, he served as Executive Director for Mobile Content at AOL.

Paul Levine
SVP, Corporate Development & Interactive Platforms Group
National Geographic Global Media

As head of the Interactive Platforms Group, Paul Levine leads the global division responsible for National Geographic's Mobile, Games and Maps businesses. In addition, the group is also playing a lead role in National Geographic's cross platform e-Publishing efforts. In 2008, Levine successfully launched the National Geographic Mobile and Games businesses to the trade and to consumers, and orchestrated a successful reorganization of the renowned National Geographic Maps unit. Before coming to National Geographic, Levine spent a number of years at AOL where he led business development, strategy, and strategic alliance efforts for various business units. Levine is also a former practicing attorney, and an expert in intellectual property, licensing and technology transactions.

Nina B. Link
President and Chief Executive Officer
Magazine Publishers of America

Nina Link joined Magazine Publishers of America (MPA) in 1999, and has reinvigorated the organization through highly strategic initiatives in government affairs, advertising, circulation and professional development. And under her direction, the MPA website (www.magazine.org) has become one of the most popular resources for media professionals, and the Magazines 24/7 annual conferences has become the leading digital summit for the consumer magazine industry.  Previously, Link served as Group President, Publishing and Interactive for Sesame Workshop, where she was responsible for the magazine publishing, book publishing, database, interactive software and school divisions. Before that, she headed her own consulting firm, The Link Group, Inc., designing and developing multimedia educational and training programs.

John P. Loughlin
Executive Vice President, General Manager
Hearst Magazines

John P. Loughlin was named Executive Vice President and General Manager of Hearst Magazines in September 2005, where his duties include leadership of the group’s digital businesses, consumer marketing, finance, production and distribution, as well as strategy. In addition, he serves on the board of Comag Marketing Group LLC and is responsible for CDS Global, North America’s largest magazine fulfillment business.  Prior to joining Hearst, Loughlin served as President of TV Guide Publishing Group, where he led the repositioning of TV Guide to a full-size, full-color magazine.  Previously he was President and CEO at Primedia Consumer Media and Magazine Group and before that was President of Meredith Corporation’s television broadcasting group.

Paul Maidment
Editor
Forbes

A journalist and broadcaster working online since the mid-1990s, Paul Maidment joined Forbes in January 2001 in a dual position as editor of Forbes.com and executive editor, Forbes. During his editorship, Forbes.com has become the No. 1 business news Web site.  The site has won several awards and launched a stream of groundbreaking features and services. Previously, Maidment was the founding editor of FT.com, the Financial Times' award-winning Web site. He held senior editorial positions at Newsweek and at The Economist, and started his career with the Asian edition of The Wall Street Journal and in radio and television with the BBC in Hong Kong.

Kate Maxwell
Senior Editor
Condé Nast Traveler

Kate Maxwell oversees Condé Nast Traveler's award-winning front of book section, “Word of Mouth,” covering up-to-the-minute trends and travel news and also commissions features and writing across the magazine. She appears regularly on national television outlets such as NBC’s Today, E! News and the Fox Business network. Maxwell also hosts video city guides on Condé Nast Traveler’s website CNTraveler.com. Prior to joining Condé Nast Traveler, Maxwell was deputy health editor of the UK’s Daily Mail. She also worked at British Condé Nast Traveller for three years, editing its “Word of Mouth” section and writing features. 

Simeen Mohsen
Director of Business Operations
InStyle.com

Simeen Mohsen is currently the Director of Business Operations for InStyle.com with general management responsibility for the site. She also leads mobile efforts for the Style & Entertainment Group within Time Inc. Mohsen was a key member of the team that launched PEOPLE.com’s mobile website in November 2008. Mohsen began her career at Time Inc in 2004 within the Consumer Marketing Division. Prior to Time Inc, she was a Manager at A.T. Kearney, a management consulting firm, where she served clients in the retail and consumer products industries.

Roger Neal
Senior Vice President and General Manager
BusinessWeek.com

Roger Neal is Senior Vice President and General Manager of BusinessWeek.com, a position he assumed in August, 2006. In this role, he is responsible for growing revenue, traffic, and visibility for BusinessWeek.com as it builds its position as a major site for business content on the Web.  Neal brings close to 25 years of experience in online content development, strategic planning, business development, new media, marketing, and publishing. Prior to joining BusinessWeek, he served as Director of Business Development at eBay, where he was responsible for generating revenue growth through key strategic partnerships.  Neal has also held senior positions with AOL and Time Warner, Inc.

 
Eric Patterson
Vice President of Marketing
GamePro Media

Eric Patterson brings over 15 years of marketing and business operations experience to GamePro Media, where he currently manages all consumer marketing, product marketing, and advertising operations. Formerly Vice President and General Manager of Consumer Services for BitTorrent, Inc., Patterson helped legitimize the content delivery technology and built its consumer portal, which distributes thousands downloadable movies, TV shows, music files and games. Prior to BitTorrent, Patterson served as Director of Publisher Services for the CNET Networks program Download.com. Under his direction, the program saw 30 percent revenue growth and was named ‘Best Business Development Tool of the Year’ by Software Business in 2005.

Geoff Reiss
General Manager
Newsweek Digital

Geoff Reiss joined Newsweek in September 2008 as General Manager, Newsweek Digital. In this new position, he oversees all things relating to the Newsweek Web site, including strategy, operations, technology, traffic development and design. He is spearheading the Web site’s redesign, scheduled for this year. Reiss comes to Newsweek from Associated Content, where he was CEO since July 2007. Before that, he spent eight years at ESPN in a variety of roles. Before his ESPN career, Reiss was at Starwave/ESPN Internet Ventures for seven years as Senior Vice President, programming and production, Vice President and director of sports publishing. From 1987-1993, Reiss worked at SPY Magazine, ending his tenure there as Vice President, General Manager.

Carley Roney
Cofounder and Editor in Chief
The Knot Inc.

Carley Roney is Cofounder and Editor in Chief of The Knot Inc. The Knot was launched in 1996 to enhance the wedding planning process with the convenience of emerging Internet technology. Since then, Roney has successfully established The Knot as the #1 brand in weddings. She led the launch of The Nest for newlyweds, The Bump for first-time parents, and directed the integration of registry powerhouse WeddingChannel.com and other brands into the company’s multimedia portfolio. In 2008, she was named one of Crain’s New York Forty Under 40. Prior to founding The Knot, Roney was the President of RunTime Inc., and has also served as a Creative Director and Editor.

Josh Stinchcomb
Executive Director
Condé Nast Digital Media/Business Group

Josh Stinchcomb is executive director of the Condé Nast Digital Media/Business Group where he oversees sales and marketing for Wired.com, Ars Technica, Portfolio.com, Reddit, and Golfdigest.com. Stinchcomb originally joined WIRED in 1996 and has had several roles including West Coast Account Representative and, most recently, Director of Integrated Marketing for WIRED Media in New York. Most recently, he was awarded Sales Team Leader of the Year by min: media industry newsletter and has spoken at many events including Ad Tech: Chicago.

Cyndi Stivers
Managing Editor
EW.com

Cyndi Stivers joined EW.com in July 2008 as Managing Editor, overseeing all editorial content for Entertainment Weekly’s web site. Prior to joining EW.com, Stivers served as EVP of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, where she supervised the launch of Martha’s 24-hour Sirius channel. Before that, she was founding President and Editorial Director of Time Out New York, which received four National Magazine Award nominations during her tenure. She was in charge of all North American operations, which included Websites for New York and Chicago, and the print/online hybrid, Time Out New York Kids. Her online experience extends back to the early ‘90s, when she launched Premiere on CompuServe.

Sophia Stuart
Executive Director, Mobile
Hearst Magazines Digital Media

Sophia Stuart joined Hearst Magazines Digital Media group in June 2006 and was promoted to Executive Director in Sept 2008.  She is responsible for building mobile content and services across Hearst Magazines’ brands in the USA and rejoins Hearst after leading digital media ventures for the company’s UK operations (National Magazine Company) from 1999 to 2001.  From 2001 to 2006, Stuart directed a range of digital projects including online, 3D animation, motion capture and mobile applications for clients including New Line Cinema, 20th Century Fox and Neven Vision.  She began her career as a journalist in the UK, writing about art, fashion, media and technology.

Bill Stump
Vice President, Brand Editor and Editor
menshealth.com

Bill Stump oversees Men’s Health’s branded website and integrates editorial content across all channels, including online, books, specials, and the print magazine. Previously, Stump was VP/New Product Development for Rodale Inc., where he launched Women’s Health and iyogalife.com, among other new products. He has also served as Editorial Director, Rodale International Magazines, managing global content for all Rodale brands and launching 23 new editions of magazines in international markets. He began his Rodale career as Senior Writer for Men’s Health. He came to Rodale in 1998 from Reader’s Digest, where he worked as a staff editor. He previously worked in daily newspapers and newsweeklies as a reporter and editor.

Bruce Upbin
Managing Editor
Forbes

Bruce Upbin is a Managing Editor at Forbes Media in charge of new editorial product development across all platforms. Prior to that he was an Assistant Managing Editor running the magazine's technology and health coverage as well as special sections on innovation and creativity. Upbin joined Forbes as a Reporter in 1995 and has served as Deputy Chief of the reporting staff, Midwest Bureau Chief, and Senior Editor. Since 2005, Upbin has launched five new sections and, in 2006, became one of the youngest Forbes editors to be named Assistant Managing Editor. He has written a dozen cover stories and regularly provides business commentary on CNN, NPR, CNBC, BBC, Forbes on Radio and Fox News.

Domenic Venuto
Senior Vice President, Media and Entertainment
Razorfish

Domenic Venuto leads the Media & Entertainment Practice at Razorfish. He has more than 15 years of consulting experience developing digital strategies and building solutions for large-scale, end-to-end projects. He counsels dozens of media companies on how best to meet the needs of today’s fickle consumers, whose changing media consumption patterns are challenging old and new business models alike. Recently, he helped to launch Flip.com, CondéNet’s first foray into user-generated content and social networking. He has also played instrumental roles in the relaunch of WWD.com, Portfolio.com, Wired.com, Concierge.com and other magazine websites.  Before joining Razorfish, Venuto was a Senior Manager in Arthur Andersen’s business consulting division.

Jacob Weisberg
Chairman and Editor-in-Chief
The Slate Group

Jacob Weisberg is the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of The Slate Group, which publishes Slate and other web sites. Weisberg served as Editor of Slate from 2002 until 2008. He joined Slate in 1996. He has been a Contributing Writer for The New York Times Magazine, a Contributing Editor of Vanity Fair, a Reporter for Newsweek in London and Washington, a weekly editorial-page Columnist for the Financial Times, and has held positions at The New Republic and New York Magazine. He has served on the Board of ASME since 2006. Weisberg is the author of several books, including The Bush Tragedy, which was a New York Times bestseller in 2008.

Lauren Wiener
Senior Vice President
Meredith Interactive

Lauren Wiener leads Meredith Interactive’s digital and emerging media business and oversees the Meredith Women’s Network. She is responsible for all sales and marketing, business development, product development and brand communication for nine premium websites, including Meredith’s flagship brands Better Homes and Gardens (BHG.com), Ladies’ Home Journal (LHJ.com) and Parents (Parents.com) as well as Healia.com. Wiener joined Meredith in 2003 as Managing Director of Sales and Marketing. She was previously Vice President and General Manager of both Primedia’s American Baby Internet Group and its Seventeen Internet Group. Before that, she spent two years at Starmedia Network, Inc., where she helped a startup grow into the largest Spanish and Portuguese new media company.  She has also held positions at MTV Networks and the Boston Consulting Group.

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