Behind the Numbers: The Most Interesting Thing At Advertising Week New York 2025 Is ... ?

Date: September 19, 2025
Host: Marcus Johnson (EMARKETER)
Guests: Jeremy Gorman (Senior Director), Daniel Konstantinovich (Senior Editor), Marissa Jones (Analyst)

Episode Overview

This episode takes a deep dive into the standout topics and must-see sessions at the upcoming Advertising Week New York 2025. With over 500 events on the agenda, the panel from EMARKETER sifts through the options to highlight and debate the most interesting sessions, reflecting on timely issues facing marketers, advertisers, and agencies today. The conversation covers the role of social media as a decision engine, the evolving CTV/streaming landscape, and existential challenges facing advertising agencies—all in the context of transformation driven by AI, consumer behavior shifts, and industry fragmentation.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Social Media as a Decision Engine

Session Highlighted: Can I Get a Second Opinion on Social Media? (Thursday at 12:20)

• Jeremy’s Pick: Jeremy is drawn to a session exploring how social platforms, especially Reddit, are becoming crucial for consumer decision-making—even in traditionally "unsexy" sectors like healthcare, mortgage, and home buying.

  • Quote:

    “People aren't necessarily focusing enough on basically social as a decision engine...it's a really interesting topic.”
    — Jeremy Gorman [03:54]

• Debate on Trust: Marcus raises concerns about the reliability of health-related information sourced from social media, noting that while people turn to platforms like Reddit and TikTok for advice, trust remains a critical issue.

  • Quote:

    "Most doubt social media health information...if they are going to trust a platform in this regard, it's most likely to be TikTok."
    — Marcus Johnson [06:03]

• AI’s Impact: Daniel and Marissa question if generative AI will cannibalize Reddit’s recent growth since AI often pulls information directly from Reddit, but users may not actually visit the site.

  • Quote:

    “A lot of people are starting to go to like ChatGPT for very similar purposes...I think that does pose a threat to the...use case that Reddit provides.”
    — Daniel Konstantinovich [08:14]

• Reddit’s Challenge: Keeping users engaged after they get quick answers is highlighted as an issue, especially in comparison to more immersive platforms like YouTube.

2. Streaming and CTV: Growth, Challenges, and Fragmentation

Session Highlighted: Streaming Strategic Advantage: How Precision Meets Scale (Monday at 9:40)

• Marissa’s Pick: Marissa is fascinated by the dynamic CTV landscape, particularly how precision targeting is battling against major issues: low ad reach, fragmentation among providers, a slow shift to ad-supported subscriptions, high churn in sports content, and inconsistent measurement standards.

  • Quote:

    “Are they going to go beyond that to address that there are many problems for advertisers in the CTV landscape?”
    — Marissa Jones [11:10]

• Panel Insight:

  • Marcus questions whether tariffs or price increases threaten the sector, arguing premium players like Netflix have staying power, even amid significant cost increases.
  • Daniel and Marissa wonder how smaller streaming services will fare as industry consolidation accelerates.

• Industry Moves: Jeremy notes strategic moves such as potential mergers (Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery) as players seek scale to survive—“a game of musical chairs.”

  • Quote:

    “Somebody is going to be left without a chair, and who is going to be the one that gets squeezed out of this market?”
    — Jeremy Gorman [14:16]

• Fragmentation Solutions: Discussion around aggregators like Amazon providing programmatic inventory as a partial salve for fragmentation, but measurement and ROI comparison remain big frustrations.

• CTV’s Future: Daniel points out that, per EMARKETER forecasts, CTV will constitute a third of total TV viewership by 2027, so the pressure to resolve these pain points is only growing.

3. The Future of Advertising Agencies in an AI-Powered World

Session Highlighted: The Agency Model of the Future (Wednesday at 2:30)

• Danny’s Pick: Danny focuses on the “precarious state” of ad agencies, squeezed by AI, declining numbers of young hires, and brands bringing more work in-house.

  • Quote:

    “Traditional ad agency business models are under threat from a lot of reasons. I mean, AI is probably the biggest—or if not the biggest.”
    — Daniel Konstantinovich [16:37]

• AI’s Impact: Brands like Coca-Cola are now experimenting with AI for creative without agency dependence, prompting concerns over the value proposition agencies can deliver.

• Agency Adaptation:

  • Agencies must demonstrate unique value and possibly adjust their pricing models and service scope in response.
  • The panel observes large holding companies pivoting toward servicing small and mid-sized businesses, even though this territory is also being targeted by tech platforms.

• Economic Headwinds: Marissa adds that ongoing economic uncertainty and shrinking ad budgets intensify the urgency for agencies to adapt.

  • Quote:

    “Studies showing that marketers worldwide are anticipating budget cuts...is that going to be addressed at all?”
    — Marissa Jones [19:32]

• Industry Survival:

  • Jeremy speculates that agencies may reluctantly expand services to previously overlooked clients for revenue stability—describing it as a "tricky position."

Memorable Moments & Notable Quotes

• On Social Media as Discovery:

  “If you're not part of that conversation, what chance do you have at really being discovered?”
  — Jeremy Gorman [07:20]

• On CTV Market Survival:

  “If you're a traditional player and you can get bigger, then you're going to have a better catalog and then you're less likely to be squeezed out.”
  — Jeremy Gorman [14:21]

• On Agency Value:

  “There's always going to be a market for a human creative touch... but large clients... might decide, hey, we don't need costly agency relationships.”
  — Daniel Konstantinovich [17:06]

• Fun Banter:

  “This is... I'm gonna need the ref to take a second look. Slow motion replay please.”
  — Daniel Konstantinovich [21:41]

Timestamps of Major Segments

• [03:48] — Jeremy introduces the rise of social media platforms as decision engines, with a focus on Reddit.
• [05:12] — Debate about trust in social as a decision engine, especially in sensitive sectors like healthcare.
• [09:34] — The team discusses whether AI will supplant Reddit’s value as a source.
• [10:45] — Marissa spotlights CTV strategic challenges and what she hopes the panel will address.
• [14:12] — Industry consolidation and survivability of smaller streaming services.
• [16:30] — Danny unpacks the existential threats to agencies, including AI, hiring trends, and economic pressure.
• [19:31] — Discussion on agencies’ pivot toward SMBs and competitive pressures from tech giants.
• [21:15 & 21:41] — The team jokes about who picked the most interesting session and banter over the episode “winner.”

Conclusion

Marissa’s pick on CTV strategy (and its many unresolved challenges) is crowned the most interesting session, but all three highlighted panels touch on fundamental industry inflection points for marketers. Recurring themes crystallize: AI’s disruptive influence, the race for consumer attention amid platform shifts, persistent measurement headaches, and the pressure for every sector—from agencies to streaming providers—to adapt or risk irrelevance.

For marketers and advertisers facing the 2025 landscape, these sessions and this conversation offer a compass for where the industry debate—and disruption—is heading next.