Episodes

Why Sincerity Scales: Freddy at the World Cup, the Knicks Win, and Ferrari's PR Disaster
June 17, 2026

Why Sincerity Scales: Freddy at the World Cup, the Knicks Win, and Fe…

Sonia Baschez sits down with Jay Kapoor, General Partner at VSC Ventures and host of the Climb podcast, to break down three viral pop culture moments from sports and marketing, and what they tell us about sincerity, brand str...

Listen to the Episode
Scarcity as Strategy: The Odyssey in IMAX, Norwegian vikings & Harvard’s F*** AI Speech
June 11, 2026

Scarcity as Strategy: The Odyssey in IMAX, Norwegian vikings & Harvar…

Sonia sits down with Dino Delic, head of data driven communications research lab at Meltwater, to break down Christopher Nolan's Odyssey IMAX strategy, World Cup brand activations, and Ronnie Cheng's viral Harvard commencemen...

Listen to the Episode
Own Your Audience: Spielberg's Podcast Debut, Celebrity Narratives & YouTube's New Directors
June 4, 2026

Own Your Audience: Spielberg's Podcast Debut, Celebrity Narratives & …

Sonia sits down with Visa Veerasamy, writer, marketing consultant, and author of Friendly Ambitious Nerd, to break down Steven Spielberg's first podcast appearance, how YouTubers are skipping film school and breaking box offi...

Listen to the Episode
Lessons from Hollywood: Storytelling, Building Your Audience & the YouTube-to-Horror Pipeline
May 28, 2026

Lessons from Hollywood: Storytelling, Building Your Audience & the Yo…

Sonia sits down with Brianne Kimmel, founder of Worklife Ventures and GTM Advisor at ElevenLabs, to break down how AI is reshaping content creation, what Barnes & Noble's stance on AI books means for publishers, and why horro...

Listen to the Episode
Hollywood & AI: Reese Witherspoon, Spencer Pratt, CMO Fatigue + Spotify
May 21, 2026

Hollywood & AI: Reese Witherspoon, Spencer Pratt, CMO Fatigue + Spoti…

Sonia sits down with Robin Simon Wood, SVP of Production at New Motion, to break down how Hollywood women are talking about AI, why CMO fatigue is real, and Spencer Pratt's clipping campaign for LA mayor. The big thesis: if y...

Listen to the Episode
AI, Accountability & Ads: Coinbase, Netflix, OpenAI, + Cannes Lions
May 14, 2026

AI, Accountability & Ads: Coinbase, Netflix, OpenAI, + Cannes Lions

Sonia sits down with Hiten Shah, founder of Crazy Egg, KISSmetrics, and Nira, to break down how companies are using AI as cover for layoffs, how Netflix reversed its brand promise without blowing up, and why Cannes Lions just...

Listen to the Episode
The Loyalty Trap: OpenAI, Disney Adults, Devil Wears Prada, & The World Cup
May 7, 2026

The Loyalty Trap: OpenAI, Disney Adults, Devil Wears Prada, & The Wor…

Sonia sits down with Moshe Isaacian, a freelance brand marketing strategist who's worked with Lego, Snapchat, Nike, Toyota, and Epic Games, to break down how companies are talking to their customers in 2025. The big thesis: a...

Listen to the Episode
Brand Reset vs. Brand Regret: Xbox's Nostalgia Win, Nike's Marathon Fail, & Netflix's TikTok Play
April 30, 2026

Brand Reset vs. Brand Regret: Xbox's Nostalgia Win, Nike's Marathon F…

Sonia sits down with Christina Garnett, author of Transforming Customer Brand Relationships and fractional Chief Community Officer, to break down Xbox's fan-first rebrand, Nike's marathon messaging disaster, Netflix's TikTok ...

Listen to the Episode
Brand Reset vs. Brand Regret: Xbox's Nostalgia Win, Nike's Marathon Fail, & Netflix's TikTok Play
April 30, 2026

Brand Reset vs. Brand Regret: Xbox's Nostalgia Win, Nike's Marathon F…

Sonia sits down with Christina Garnett, author of Transforming Customer Brand Relationships and fractional Chief Community Officer, to break down Xbox's fan-first rebrand, Nike's marathon messaging disaster, Netflix's TikTok ...

Listen to the Episode
The Clipping Economy: Why Every Band, Brand & Startup Is Faking Organic Growth
April 23, 2026

The Clipping Economy: Why Every Band, Brand & Startup Is Faking Organ…

Sonia sits down with Jason Levin, founder of Memelord Technologies, to talk about: organic marketing isn't dead, it just got industrialized. And if the audience loves the music, does it matter how they found it? We're talking...

Listen to the Episode
The Clipping Economy: Why Every Band, Brand & Startup Is Faking Organic Growth
April 23, 2026

The Clipping Economy: Why Every Band, Brand & Startup Is Faking Organ…

Sonia sits down with Jason Levin, founder of Memelord Technologies, to talk about: organic marketing isn't dead, it just got industrialized. And if the audience loves the music, does it matter how they found it? We're talking...

Listen to the Episode
Video-First Marketing: Hot Democrats, Literary AI Scandals + Zendaya's Fake Wedding
April 9, 2026

Video-First Marketing: Hot Democrats, Literary AI Scandals + Zendaya'…

Sonia sits down with Sophie Vershbow, a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, and Esquire (and who spent six years doing social media for Random House), to break down how polit...

Listen to the Episode
Video-First Marketing: Hot Democrats, Literary AI Scandals + Zendaya's Fake Wedding
April 9, 2026

Video-First Marketing: Hot Democrats, Literary AI Scandals + Zendaya'…

Sonia sits down with Sophie Vershbow, a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, and Esquire (and who spent six years doing social media for Random House), to break down how polit...

Listen to the Episode
Optimism as Content Strategy: Project Hail Mary and Artemis II + How to Pitch the Media
April 2, 2026

Optimism as Content Strategy: Project Hail Mary and Artemis II + How …

This week Sonia Baschez and guest Yury Molodtsov discuss Project Hail Mary, which crossed $300M globally in its second weekend — only a 32% drop from opening, which almost never happens. Sonia and Yury get into why space-as-a...

Listen to the Episode
Optimism as Content Strategy: Project Hail Mary and Artemis II + How to Pitch the Media
April 2, 2026

Optimism as Content Strategy: Project Hail Mary and Artemis II + How …

This week Sonia Baschez and guest Yury Molodtsov discuss Project Hail Mary, which crossed $300M globally in its second weekend — only a 32% drop from opening, which almost never happens. Sonia and Yury get into why space-as-a...

Listen to the Episode
Manufacturing Demand: AI Backlash, Miley Cyrus + Beehiiv's Social Strategy
March 26, 2026

Manufacturing Demand: AI Backlash, Miley Cyrus + Beehiiv's Social Str…

AI is getting bad PR, and audiences are fighting back. 78% of Gen Z can now identify AI-generated images and will scroll past them, causing CTR to drop 40%. Hatchet Book Group pulled Shy Girl after weeks of speculation that s...

Listen to the Episode
Manufacturing Demand: AI Backlash, Miley Cyrus + Beehiiv's Social Strategy
March 26, 2026

Manufacturing Demand: AI Backlash, Miley Cyrus + Beehiiv's Social Str…

AI is getting bad PR, and audiences are fighting back. 78% of Gen Z can now identify AI-generated images and will scroll past them, causing CTR to drop 40%. Hatchet Book Group pulled Shy Girl after weeks of speculation that s...

Listen to the Episode
Be Someone to Root For: Michael B. Jordan, Disney & Stripe
March 19, 2026

Be Someone to Root For: Michael B. Jordan, Disney & Stripe

Timothy Chalamet won zero Oscars this week. Sinners won four. Michael B. Jordan's humble acceptance speech reminded us what we're actually rooting for—humility, craft, and people who remember where they came from. Meanwhile, ...

Listen to the Episode
Word of Mouth 2.0: Claude, Twitter, Timothée & Sinners
March 12, 2026

Word of Mouth 2.0: Claude, Twitter, Timothée & Sinners

ChatGPT uninstalls surged 295% after the Department of Defense deal, the Pope told priests to stop using AI for sermons, and Netflix just opened its ad inventory to Amazon audiences. We break down all of it. Disney/Hulu's mar...

Listen to the Episode
Word of Mouth 2.0: Claude, Twitter, Timothée & Sinners
March 12, 2026

Word of Mouth 2.0: Claude, Twitter, Timothée & Sinners

ChatGPT uninstalls surged 295% after the Department of Defense deal, the Pope told priests to stop using AI for sermons, and Netflix just opened its ad inventory to Amazon audiences. We break down all of it. Disney/Hulu's mar...

Listen to the Episode
5 Marketing Fails: Friend AI, OpenAI, AMC, McDonald's & H&M
March 5, 2026

5 Marketing Fails: Friend AI, OpenAI, AMC, McDonald's & H&M

The McDonald's CEO posted a video eating the Big Arch burger and couldn't bring himself to swallow it. Sam Altman publicly backed Anthropic's stance against the Department of War, then swooped in to take the same contract hou...

Listen to the Episode
5 Marketing Fails: Friend AI, OpenAI, AMC, McDonald's & H&M
March 5, 2026

5 Marketing Fails: Friend AI, OpenAI, AMC, McDonald's & H&M

The McDonald's CEO posted a video eating the Big Arch burger and couldn't bring himself to swallow it. Sam Altman publicly backed Anthropic's stance against the Department of War, then swooped in to take the same contract hou...

Listen to the Episode
AI Agents are here: ChatGPT, Google Pomelli & OpenClaw
Feb. 26, 2026

AI Agents are here: ChatGPT, Google Pomelli & OpenClaw

ChatGPT launched ads this week and they're underwhelming. No personalized targeting, no memory integration, just basic in-line search ads that feel like Google in the 90s. Meanwhile, OpenClaw is setting the internet on fire a...

Listen to the Episode
AI Agents are here: ChatGPT, Google Pomelli & OpenClaw
Feb. 26, 2026

AI Agents are here: ChatGPT, Google Pomelli & OpenClaw

ChatGPT launched ads this week and they're underwhelming. No personalized targeting, no memory integration, just basic in-line search ads that feel like Google in the 90s. Meanwhile, OpenClaw is setting the internet on fire a...

Listen to the Episode