Creative company Ralph has hired industry vet Gareth Jones to the newly created role of global chief growth officer, as well as acting managing director of its New York office. Founded 20 years ago in London, Ralph has turned out entertainment-driven digital work for clients including Netflix, HBO, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Hulu, AppleTV+, Spotify and others. This has led to the opening of offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Tokyo, along with a recent partnership with talent and content management firm Tulsea in Mumbai. Jones brings a wealth of relevant experience to his new roost, most recently serving as SVP, global marketing director at VML and WundermanThompson. He was previously managing director of Possible Seattle, chief brand and content officer at DigitasLBi, and global marketing director of LBi in London. Jones’ global role includes growing the Ralph brand as a highly accomplished firm responsible for some of the entertainment industry’s most viral moments for hit shows including Squid Games, Breaking Bad, Stranger Things, The Bear, Black Mirror and Dexter. He will also serve as acting managing director of Ralph’s NY office as the agency looks to fill that role. Ralph was established by CEO/founder Chris Hassell and Iain Barrington-Light in 2005, first as a digital production and gaming company before later adding creative capabilities to develop highly engaging fan-first content and campaigns for top brands, including many of the world’s leading entertainment companies. Ralph has since expanded focus to include the making of documentary films, and recently launched Ralph magazine, a high-gloss quarterly print publication celebrating “Pop Culture For The Fun Of It,” covering music, film, TV, food & drink, comedy, comics, and more….
ALS sidelined this Israeli TV journalist. AI is helping him make a comeback.
When a renowned Israeli TV journalist lost his ability to speak clearly because of ALS, he thought his career might be over. But now, using artificial-intelligence software that can recreate his widely recognized gravelly voice, Moshe Nussbaum — known to generations of viewers simply as "Nussi" — is making a comeback.
Nussbaum, 71, was diagnosed two years ago with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive disease also known as Lou Gehrig's disease that attacks nerve cells that control muscles throughout the body.
At the time, he vowed to viewers of Israel's Channel 12 News to continue working as long as he was physically able. But, gradually, it became more and more difficult.
It was a devastating blow to the career of a leading, no-nonsense reporter who for more than 40 years had covered many of Israel's most important stories from the field. He had appeared from the scenes of suicide bombing attacks and the front lines of wars in Gaza and Lebanon, and had covered scandals in Israel's parliament and high-profile court cases.
After Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war in Gaza, Nussbaum was unable to report from the field. It was the first war of his career he had ever sat out, he noted in a recent interview with colleagues at Channel 12, the country's largest station.
Even though he was having trouble moving and speaking, he launched a segment interviewing injured soldiers from Israeli hospitals. His questions were slow and halting, but he kept it up for the first half of the war. Then, as it became increasingly difficult to speak, and to be understood, his interviews became less frequent.
On Monday, Channel 12 made the surprising announcement that it would bring Nussbaum back to the air in the coming... Read More