Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman

In this bonus episode of Math & Magic, we’re highlighting more of our favorite marketing stories — and they aren’t stories about when success came easily. Hear from Happy Baby Organics founder Shazi Visram, IBM Chief Global Affairs Officer Jonathan Adashek, Capital One Chief Brand Officer Marc Mentry, Sesame Workshop CEO Sherrie Westin, and Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick about times when mistakes were made, risks were taken, or pitfalls were avoided. Often, those are the moments when the most valuable lessons are learned.

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Through the many seasons of Math & Magic, we’ve heard from dozens of brilliant creative minds about the importance of authenticity. In this bonus episode, we’re highlighting some of our best marketing stories and how staying true to yourself can lead to not only a better life, but a better business. Media mogul and The Breakfast Club host Charlamagne tha God talks about his own origin story and how it inspires his radio personality. CMO Hall of Fame marketer Marisa Thalberg shares how her personal life inspired an unexpected second career. Plus, Martha Stewart explains what publishers originally missed about her vision for a lifestyle magazine, and Liquid Death founder Mike Cessario tells us how he threw traditional marketing out the window.

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Diego Scotti has made a career of building businesses and brands that span industries and consumers, with leadership roles at American Express, Verizon, Condé Nast, J.Crew, and most recently PayPal, where he served as Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Consumer Group and Global Marketing and Communications. He shares what that wide-ranging experience has taught him about connecting with consumers when culture is moving faster than ever, the importance of collaboration, and the power of purpose-driven marketing. Diego also reflects on how growing up in Argentina shaped his approach to business and shares great stories about the legendary mentors who helped shape his career.

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Millions of Americans feel like Hoda Kotb is a good friend. She’s an acclaimed journalist and TV pioneer, best known for her years at NBC and the TODAY Show. More recently, she’s turned her focus to joy, stepping into entrepreneurship with her company Joy 101 and launching a new podcast with iHeartPodcasts centered around joy. Born in Oklahoma to Egyptian immigrant parents and raised in West Virginia, Hoda built her career step by step, starting at Greenville News Center 15 in Mississippi and working her way to the top. She has plenty to share about perseverance, hard work, and the lessons she’s learned along the way. Plus, she talks about what’s surprised her about podcasting, how she thinks about joy, and what she imagines for the future of news media.

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Marc Mentry has cracked the code on community, culture, and live events to transform a brand and provide customers with high-value, unique experiences. As Executive Vice President of Brand Marketing for Capital One, Marc leads from the front line. Marc shares how the brand made its remarkable journey upmarket, from embracing its identity as a fintech company to creating its iconic tagline, “What’s in your wallet?” He talks about the value of unforgettable live experiences like The Eras Tour, Jingle Ball and March Madness and about the powerful opportunities that come from real, authentic relationship-building.

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In honor of the 45th anniversary of MTV, we’re rereleasing a classic episode: the real story of MTV, as told by the founders. Today MTV is a cultural institution, but people forget what a long shot it was to get the channel off the ground. Bob Pittman led the team that created MTV. In this special episode, he reminisces with co-founders and friends John Sykes, Judy McGrath, Fred Seibert, Tom Freston and Jarl Mohn about what it was like to create the '80s version of a start-up and lead a TV revolution by dreaming up the rules as they went along. From why the first MTV logo was designed on crinkled paper (it spent a little time in a trash bin), to how a tiny record store in Tulsa helped save the business, to why you should really think twice about going on a Lost Weekend with Van Halen... all the way to how a terrible cereal inspired one of the greatest ad slogans of all time: “I want my MTV,” we’ve packed this episode full of stories that marketers, fans and entrepreneurs will all want to hear.

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As a Radio Hall of Fame inductee, best-selling author, TV personality, and producer, Charlamagne Tha God is a singular shaper of culture. He’s the co-host of iHeartRadio's The Breakfast Club morning show, driving millions of listeners daily, and he’s expanded his collaboration with iHeart to create The Black Effect Podcast Network. Live from Miami at POSSIBLE 2026, Charlamagne talks with Bob about attention, engagement, and authenticity. He shares his strategies for building trust with listeners, including how he’s evolved from being transparent to truly vulnerable on the air. Plus, hear his thoughts on brand safety, influencers, and the ever-expanding ways to meet your audience where they are.

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Working across 190 countries to deliver research-driven early learning, Sesame Workshop is the non-profit behind the longest running children’s television show and so much more. SherrieWestin is at its helm as President and CEO. Sherrie sits down with Bob to talk about the power of mission-driven work and how to stay relevant for generations of kids to come. From addressing social and environmental issues, to keeping pace with fast-moving technology and adapting to funding cuts, Sherrie leads with self-awareness and empathy while always keeping her eye on research and impact. Plus, Sherrie shares highlights from her time at ABC News and The White House and talks about her new book, “What I Learned from Mom: 27 Celebrated Individuals on How Mother's Wisdom Shaped Their Lives.”

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From the free market to medical research to philanthropy, Mike Milken has had an outsized impact on it all. In the 1970s he ushered in an explosive era of innovation that changed the world of business and even the world itself. By the ‘90s, when facing his own life-threatening cancer diagnosis, he was determined to accelerate medical research and produce faster cures. Over the decades his work has addressed a vast range of medical problems, public health concerns, economic challenges, and international issues. The Milken Institute is a powerhouse think tank driving research and dialogue and its Global Conference is a can’t miss event for leaders every year. In a rare interview, Mike reflects on his legacy, discusses the leaders he’s invested in, and speaks passionately about the future of the American Dream.

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Chief Business Officer at iHeartMedia, Lisa Coffey has run the gamut in media sales. She started out as part of traditional media, at newspapers like USA Today and The Wall Street Journal and at the magazines of Time Inc. Then she made the jump to digital, first at LinkedIn and then spending a decade at Amazon before being named Chief Revenue Officer at LoopMe. Now she’s working across traditional broadcast radio along with podcasts, music, digital radio and live events. She’s currently leading the charge to transform advertising on broadcast and talks about collaborating with TikTok, setting shared goals, and how she's helped bring ‘Guaranteed Human’ to life at iHeart.

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