About The Media Roundtable

The Media Roundtable consists of Media, Brands, and Marketers coming together to change the way we express our differences in News Media and Opinion Journalism.

Our approach is different than keyword blocking, public shaming, and reactive boycotts that drive people further apart. Based on proactive, direct, and collaborative engagement between brands, creators, networks, and platforms we aim to shift the incentive structure away from supporting outrage, accusation, and vilification and toward media that fosters truth and civility in journalism.

Our goal is to help our members balance their business objectives with brand values by supplying tools to enable brand safety and suitability through proactive planning and strategic responses around controversial coverage.

Dan Granger

Founder & CEO

Oxford Road

Vanessa Otero

Founder & CEO

Ad Fontes Media

Keith Allred

Executive Director

National Institute for Civil Discourse

Bob Bordone

Founder and Principal

Cambridge Negotiation Institute

American Media is a vital ingredient for a healthy democracy. However, the current state of modern media has become toxic. News content now often seeks to persuade, while editorial content often seeks to divide. Instead of championing balanced coverage of different points of view, we have reverted to earlier forms of partisan publications, rewarding outrage over outcomes, entertainment over excellence, and destruction over dignity.  

The American people have had enough. Media Roundtable is an alliance of leaders in Media, Marketing, and the Business community coming together to replace our current vicious cycle with a virtuous one. Instead of waiting for positive change and accountability to be initiated by government involvement, or pressure from third parties, we will make efforts to get our own houses in order, for the sake of the public whom we serve. Each participant will seek to live up to our stated values in their own way and with their best intentions and efforts.

We’re here to support Advertisers, Marketers, and Media in their efforts to give preference in exposure and ad dollars toward content that exhibits the following values: 

• Clarity: A clear distinction between News and Opinion Content

• Truth: News sources that show non-partisan third-party validation of fact reporting with a preference toward original fact reporting

• Fairness: News sources that show non-partisan, third-party validation of effort to provide balanced coverage of divergent points of view and take on a non-partisan posture as a respectful adversary in holding people in power to account

• Respect: Opinion sources that avoid name-calling, ad hominem attacks, or vilification of individuals or groups who are not acting in violation of the law, in favor of listening and on-topic argumentation based on the merits of ideas

• De-Escalation: Sources and platforms that avoid promotion and exploitation of divisive figures and ideas for the sake of increased reach and engagement

• Tolerance: All sources that seek to promote earnest efforts for collaboration, bargaining,  and tolerance between parties with conflicting objectives and views