The twin challenges of both monetizing content and managing the transition from a print-dominated world to a digital-dominated world are not for the faint of heart. For some, the scale and scope of this challenge would be at best daunting and, at worst, induce a level of anxiety and paralysis that would make many if not most media executives sprint in the opposite direction. Yet this is exactly the challenge that Troy Young took on when he stepped into the role of President of Hearst Magazines in November, 2018.

On this episode of The Medium Rules I sit down with Troy to discuss his take on the media landscape as it pertains to Hearst’s incredible collection of brand titles and his game plan to transform Hearst from a print to an online content and publishing powerhouse for the 21stCentury. We cover Troy’s background growing up in Western Canada, his journey from the agency world in Toronto in the nineties to working in NYC and eventually becoming CEO of Say Media, and then moving to Hearst in 2013 as Global President, Digital. In that role and under Troy’s leadership Hearst increased its aggregate traffic across Hearst’s digital properties from 63 million visitors/month to 108 million. In 2015, Troy was named Adweek’s Magazine Executive of the Year, an honor that recognized him for unifying Hearst’s “print and digital brands into a single, well-oiled machine whose traffic has surged”, and for his development of MediaOS, "a combined CMS, ad sales and data strategy tool for all Hearst properties.” As an added bonus, Troy gives us his Top 5 desert island vinyl picks, a few of which might surprise!

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