Happy New Year! Last year Jim had over 50 thoughtful conversations on The CMO Podcast, and he's kicking off 2025 with a doozy. The business of entertainment is increasingly the business of brand building, so Jim is beginning this year with a woman who really gets entertainment.

His guest this week on The CMO Podcast is Dea Lawrence, the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer of Variety, the number-one source of entertainment business news. Variety was founded 120 years ago–amazing–and it has evolved into a multi-platform content company. Its iconic publication is available in 84 countries, but Variety in 2025 is so much more: 90 plus live events, podcasts, television specials, a content studio, and on and on. Variety is privately owned by Penske Media, which also owns Rolling Stone and Deadline Hollywood.

Dea is not just a COO and CMO, she is also an actor, which has helped build a foundation for her experience rising to become an executive. Dea has been CMO at Variety since 2015; in the last three years she has also been the Chief Operating Officer. Join Jim and Dea as they ring in the new year with a conversation full of predictions and resolutions!

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