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Home Communications Opinion

This is a good time to read and think

by Dave Morgan
December 14, 2020
in Opinion
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This is a good time to read and think

The Netflix story is told by Erin Meyer and Reed Hastings in No Rules Rules/https://www.norulesrules.com/

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There’s no shortage of meaty, impactful industry issues to write about today, some happy, some not: vaccine approvals; looming global recession; agency layoffs; ad tech IPOs; Nielsen’s new ratings; breaking of theatrical windowing; and the cookie-less future of identity, to name a few.

But, with so much going on, I believe there’s never been a more important time for folks to step back a bit, gain some perspective and think bigger. This is a time to read and think.

Use the looming end of the year and holiday breaks as an excuse if you need one.

Reading is where I learn so much, and it drives so much of my deeper thinking and deeper discussions. Here are some recent reads that had a real impact on me. Maybe they’ll interest you, too.

How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi. Racial injustice and inequality are enormous issues in this country. Yes, a change has been made at the White House and that will help with some of the national rhetoric and policies. But, as longtime House Speaker Tip O’Neill always reminded us, “All politics is local.” Unfortunately, most racism is, too. Kendi’s book makes it clear that doing nothing to call out and eliminate racism makes you a part of the problem and a hindrance to efforts to solve it.

Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides’s Trap? by Graham Allison. The U.S. and China are traveling on conflicting and antagonising paths relative to world dominance in trade, arms, space and the future of technologies like quantum computing and artificial intelligence. Many fear that this will lead to inevitable armed conflict. Allison, the founding dean of Harvard’s JFK School of Government and one of the foremost historians and voices on both security issues, Asia and China’s President Xi, has written a very special book analysing similar major power disputes over the centuries, showing how war was avoided in several of them.

The Armies of the Night by Norman Mailer. I’m now so bummed that I was never assigned to read this amazing book in either high school or college, but I am happy to have found it a few months ago. Not only did I get a much better perspective on the Vietnam peace movement, but it is a really fun and entertaining read and a great look into the New York City literary scene and characters in the 1960s.

No Rules Rules by Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer. No question that Netflix has built an extraordinary business and company, and that Hastings and his team have done so in some unconventional ways. This is a great book on why and how Netflix zagged where so many companies zigged. As a long-time follower of the Netflix culture deck, and “no rules” rules like no set vacation policy, I found this to be a great read, loaded with a real (and daunting) playbook to follow. Not for the faint of heart.

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. I recommended this book a few months ago and am doing it again. “Snow Crash” is one of those rare and special science fiction novels that are not only powerful, inspiring and fun to read, but then somehow actually become elements of reality decades after their authorship. Think Jules Verne and Isaac Asimov. If you want to understand what an immersive, virtual, connected, game-centric world might look like – the metaverse – this is a must-read.

We all have many big things to worry about and try to solve. Sometimes, you need to go slower to go faster. This is that time. Take some time to read and think.

This story was first published by MediaPost.com and is republished with the permission of the author.


Dave Morgan, a lawyer by training, is the CEO and founder of Simulmedia. He previously founded and ran both TACODA, Inc, an online advertising company that pioneered behavioural online marketing and was acquired by AOL in 2007 for $275 million, and Real Media, Inc, one of the world’s first ad serving and online ad network companies and a predecessor to 24/7 Real Media (TFSM), which was later sold to WPP for $649 million. Follow him on Twitter  @davemorgannyc


Tags: advertisingbooksDave MorganDigital MediaHow to be an AntiracistIbram X Kendilearningmediamedia businessMediaPost.comNetflixreadingSnow Crash

Dave Morgan

Dave is the CEO and founder of Simulmedia. He previously founded and ran both TACODA, Inc., an online advertising company that pioneered behavioral online marketing and was acquired by AOL in 2007 for $275 million, and Real Media, Inc., one of the world’s first ad serving and online ad network companies and a predecessor to 24/7 Real Media (TFSM), which was later sold to WPP for $649 million. After the sale of TACODA, Dave served as Executive Vice President, Global Advertising Strategy, at AOL, a Time Warner Company (TWX). A lawyer by training, Dave served as General Counsel and Director of New Media Ventures at the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association in the early 1990’s. Dave received a B.A. in Political Science from The Pennsylvania State University and a J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law. He serves on the boards of the International Radio and Television Society (IRTS) and the American Press Institute (API), and was a long-time member of the executive committee and board of directors of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). He and his wife, writer Lorea Canales, live in Manhattan with their two daughters.

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