By Rick Griffin
More than 1,200 people are expected to attend the 12th annual Interactive Day San Diego (IDSD) on Friday, May 6, at the Hilton Bayfront, 1 Park Blvd., downtown San Diego. The daylong conference, featuring more than 40 speakers and a digital marketing certification course, is regarded as the premier digital marketing and ad technology conference on the West Coast.
Morgan Spurlock, founder of New York-based Warrior Poets, will be the closing keynote speaker. His speech will focus on branded storytelling as it relates to the future of digital experiences of all kinds. Spurlock was an Academy Award nominee for best feature documentary for his first film “Super Size Me.” His other projects have included Showtime’s “7 Deadly Sins” and the FX series “30 Days.” Spurlock also was the host of the CNN television series “Morgan Spurlock Inside Man.”
In addition to his film and television work, Spurlock has been on the forefront of digital content creation. His company led Hulu’s push into original programming with its first series, “A Day in the Life.” He also helped ignite Yahoo’s original content strategy by producing three separate series in recent years, including “Failure Club,” “Mansome” and “Losing It with John Stamos.” Other recent digital projects have included “Connected,” AOL’s first long-form series, and “Smartish,” an upcoming premium-branded content channel for Maker.tv, owned by Maker Studios.
Among other speakers at IDSD: Dr. Don Norman, UCSD Design Lab and former VP at Apple Inc. (Business Week named Norman one of the top designers in the world); Dan Novak, Qualcomm Technologies; Brian Quinn, Kenshoo; Ha Phan, GoPro; Ronell Smith, Moz; Francesca Pujals, Google; Ellyn Rice, Mindgruve.
Also: Pam Scheideler, Deutsch Los Angeles; Laura Karmarkar, Mirum Shopper; Greg Seremetis, Frequentz; Thad Kahlow, BusinessOnline; Jeremy Duimstra, MJD Interactive; Ryan Thompson, Caesars Entertainment; Stacey Subject, Centro; Lee Vann, Captura Group; Heather Blank, MediaMath; Dan Khabie, Mirum; John Hartman, Piston; Jeffrey Gerttula, CBS Sports Digital; Felix Gomez, Yume; Evan Jones, Fender; Jim McArthur, Folklore; and Andrew Caravella, Sprout Social.
Five tracks will be offered, including data and analytics, design and inspiration, branding and marketing, content distribution and development and technology. By attending three of fours sessions in a single track, two of four keynotes and passing a test based on the speakers’ presentations, attendees can receive a digital certificate and logo for posting on LinkedIn profiles. IDSD also will feature a PitchTech competition where founders and entrepreneurs can pitch their startups in front of innovators, angels, venture capitalists and influencers.
Admission prices are $449 for students and nonprofits, $499 for members of SDX and the American Advertising Federation, and $599 for non-members. Group rates are available. Attendees can save $100 by using promo code “SDX” when registering at www.InteractiveDaySanDiego.com. IDSD is presented by SDX, formerly the San Diego Ad Club. A “Cinco de Mayo” themed pre-conference mixer will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, May 5, at the Andaz Hotel’s RoofTop 600 lounge.
Joel Davis succeeds Jeff Block as Channel 10 VP and GM
Joel Davis has been promoted from station manager to VP and GM at KGTV/Channel 10, one of 33 TV stations in 24 U.S. markets owned by The E.W. Scripps Co.
Davis, with 28 years of experience in the TV industry, succeeds Jeff Block, who has left the company (his last day was Friday, April 29). Block, with more than 40 years of experience in the TV industry, said he is planning to take some time off and eventually relocate to San Francisco where he worked for more than 20 years prior to arriving at KGTV in August 2008.
During his tenure at Channel 10, Block was promoted in April 2013 to divisional GM overseeing Scripps-owned stations in several other U.S. cities in addition to San Diego, including Bakersfield, Boise, Las Vegas, Nashville, Phoenix, Twin Falls and Tucson. After relocating to the Bay Area, he is expecting to work as a consultant.
Davis arrived at the local ABC affiliate as news director in 2009. He restructured the news team, leading to increased viewership and additional Emmy awards, the station said. In 2014, he was promoted to station manager.
Before KGTV, Davis was a managing editor at WFTV in Orlando, Fla. In that top-20 market he coordinated daily news coverage, including investigations. Other newsroom experiences included news director at KFSN in Fresno from 2001 to 2006, and news director at KBAK in Bakersfield. He also served as interim general manager at KERO, the Scripps station in Bakersfield.
MJE Marketing staffer inducted into honorary land economics society
Public affairs firm MJE Marketing has announced that Kristen McDade Byrne, senior strategist, has been inducted into the San Diego chapter of Lambda Alpha International (LAI), an honorary society for the advancement of land economics.
Byrne, with 24 years of experience in local government and community relations, has worked on a variety of public land projects with MJE, including the Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project, SANDAG’s San Diego Forward regional plan, Dr. Irwin Jacobs’ Plaza de Panama project in Balboa Park, San Diego State University’s campus master plan, Salk Institute’s master plan update, San Diego Zoo’s Park Boulevard Promenade project and San Diego Rescue Mission relocation.
LAI membership is based on contributions to the field of land economics, including 10 years or more of experience and commitment to public service. Its 2,000 member include architects, engineers, real estate developers, planners, government officials, professors, bankers, attorneys, real estate consultants and officials of organizations and national and international associations.
Byrne was recently promoted at MJE from VP of public affairs and communication to senior strategist. Prior to MJE, she was a partner with MNA Consulting, which merged with MJE in 2008. Founded in 1994, MJE is celebrating its 22nd year in business.
PRSA will host mixer for new pros
The Public Relations Society of America’s San Diego-Imperial Counties chapter will host a social and networking mixer for new pros from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, at Solace and Moonlight Lounge, 25 East E St., Encinitas. “Taco Tuesday” refreshments will be available. Also, drinks will be available at happy-hour prices. Cost to attend the mixer is $8 for members, $10 for nonmembers. For information and to RSVP, visit prsasdic.org.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.
