Inside PBS Blog

This post is part of a series we kicked off earlier this spring, in which we introduce the incredible members of the Engage Advisory Board. Read our interviews with blogger Mark Glaser, online community guru Howard Rheingold, multimedia producer Evelyn Messinger and video game scholar Alice Robison.

John Bell is a digital influencer.  As part of our Advisory Board, John has encouraged us to explore new ways of reaching our audience, just as he has done for the likes of the Lance Armstrong Foundation and TJMaxx as Managing Director of Ogilvy's 360° Digital Influence team.  When he's not changing the way companies interact with their consumers, John teaches graduate level courses at the Johns Hopkins University.  Read his insightful answers and learn about his passion for digital innovation.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? How close to/far from that would you say you are today?

When I was 16, my stepfather arranged a meeting with the GM of the local ABC affiliate in New Haven. I was looking for a summer job or some type of internship that paid good money. I had obnoxiously long hair, unwashed I'm sure. I sat across the desk from this man…"the man," actually. I proceeded to tell him all that was wrong with commercial television from insipid episodes of I Dream of Jeannie to game shows. I wanted to change everything. Bless that guy for all his patience with the inane hubris of a teenager who thought he knew it all. I can't help but shake my head at my own behavior. Still, as with many things, there was a grain of truth to my feelings. I was a public television fan before I even knew it.

What excites you the most about what you're seeing online these days, and why?

The democratizing of media through easy to publish tools, the effect of search on our lives and the growing impact of consumer opinion on the marketing landscape is the biggest shift in power in decades. We are living through an exciting period where media is being redefined and brands are built in new ways. I see this in the marketplace and I see this even within my own microcosm of Ogilvy. We are a company that has waved the flag of "the big idea" from a culture dominated by creatives who were artists and storytellers and experts at delivering messages. Well that's changing. Engagement is the new "creative." And figuring out what that engagement value is that will convince someone to spend more than a millisecond with your brand  - why they should give a crap - that's key, that's creative. Imagine the shifts not just across agencies but brand marketers everywhere. And I sense that this is just the beginning.

What interests you most about being a member of the Engage Advisory Board?

The independent spirit of the producers who create programming within the PBS ecosphere - they are tremendous talents. They have such potential to reinvent programming, not just stories. In some ways the explosion of social media was the answer in my mind to what public television could become. Now is the time to experiment and reinvent what public media is all about. Now is the time to encourage the great talents that make TV programs to create something that may have no name for a while but can be experienced in Facebook, via Twitter, video on the Web and platforms we don't even know the names of yet. This is pioneer territory. And the simple act of assembling this disparate group of advisors is a tremendous opportunity for us to help mash it all up.

John says "now is the time" for PBS to reach out and change the way we communicate with our audience.  How can we do a better job of connecting with you?  How should we be experimenting with programming for the Web and other new platforms?

Related Posts

Meet Video Game Scholar Alice Robison

Meet The Engage Advisory Board: Blogger Mark Glaser

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