Google Search is a barometer for what the world is talking about. What have we been curious about? What were the big issues we've been vested in this year? Brace yourself for a no-nonsense exploration of the year's most impactful themes, and trends, dissected by Rose Herceg and Mel Silva who will leave no stone unturned.

With the ground swell of citizen journalism sprouting on new media platforms, the battle for truth has never been more challenging, urgent and polarising. Especially, amongst this generation who trust their peers more than figures of establishment, traditional media outlets are struggling to maintain their relevance and credibility. With Discord, Reddit, Twitter, TikTok, Twitch and other similar platforms serving as both entertainment and news outlets today, will accurate reporting ever become possible again? If so, what does that look like? This panel explores the roles that old and new media can play in informing society the truth, including issues related to authenticity, bias, trust and the guard rails we need to build for our future generations. SPEAKERS Rose Herceg, President WPP Australia and New Zealand Rose Herceg leads WPP’s business in Australia, supporting the agency leaders, promoting WPP’s collective capabilities and bringing together people and resources on behalf of clients. Rose was previously Chief Strategy Officer of WPP AUNZ, which became a wholly owned part of WPP in 2021. In this role, she led client-facing activity at the WPP level, helping to deliver the company’s integrated offer of communications, experience, commerce and technology across its network of agencies. Earlier in her career, Rose founded Pophouse, one of Australia’s leading agencies for innovation, social trends and business strategy. She sold this to STW Group in 2007 and joined as a strategic consultant. She became Chief Strategy Officer of WPP AUNZ following the WPP merger with STW in 2016. Rose is the author of three books on business leadership and innovation and is one of Australia’s leading social forecasters and futurists. Jim Carroll - Senior Advisor for Australia and New Zealand, NewsGuard Jim is one of Australia’s most experienced media executives having been the long serving Director of News and Current Affairs at both SBS and Network Ten and also holding senior roles at the Nine and Seven Networks. He led editorial strategy and news teams for more than 30 years and travelled extensively as a journalist covering major international stories including a period heading Seven’s European Bureau. Jim has worked across all platforms starting in newspapers, moving to radio, then television and digital. He also served as a senior advisor to the NSW Premier and is a former member of the Australia Day Council (NSW). Jim now consults to major media organisations, co-authored last year’s review into the ABC’s complaints process, is NewsGuard’s Senior Advisor – Australia, and a Director of the Australian Science Media Centre. He holds a degree in economics and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Cat McGinn - Head of Curated and Commercial Content, Unmade + HumAin Cat McGinn is a writer, strategist, and content creator based working across the advertising, marketing, and publishing industries. She is currently the Head of Curated Content at digital publishing company, Unmade. In addition to her professional work, McGinn is also a writer and journalist. She has written for a variety of publications, including The Guardian, Crikey, and The Sydney Morning Herald. She is also the author of the book "The Specimen Days Project", a collection of essays about her experiences as a woman in the advertising industry. Jed Horner - Trust and Safety, TikTok AUNZ Dr Jed Horner leads TikTok’s Trust & Safety policy for Oceania, including Australia and New Zealand. Previously, he's held roles working in industry, academia, government and for independent oversight bodies, including New Zealand's Office of the Children’s Commissioner. Jed’s work is aimed at keeping TikTok safe, ranging from major events to enforcement of policies across areas of interest to users, brands and the broader community. Rebecca Huntley - Social Trends Researcher Dr Rebecca Huntley is one of Australians foremost researchers on social trends. She holds degrees in law and film studies and a PhD in Gender Studies. She has lead research at Essential Media and Vox Populi and was a director at Ipsos Australia. For a number of years, she ran her own research and consultancy firm working closely with climate and environment NGOs, government and business on climate change strategy and communication. She is now Director of Research at the agency 89DegreesEast. She is the author of numerous books including How to Talk About Climate Change in a Way that Makes a Difference (Murdoch books, 2020). Rebecca was a broadcaster with the ABC’s RN and presented The History Listen and Drive on a Friday. She writes regularly for The Monthly, Australian Traveller Magazine, The Guardian and the SMH. This is an open house session. Open House sessions are open to all, however capacity is limited so guests will be seated on a first come, first serve basis. For an invite to this session contact Amelia Tipping, Amelia.Tipping@hkstrategies.com