Yaccarino joined NBCUniversal in 2011 and since has revolutionized television’s advertising business by unifying individual sales teams across networks while leading an innovative cross-company data strategy.
She has worked closely with government officials, including former President Donald Trump’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition; in addition, she collaborated on the Ad Council’s Covid-19 vaccination campaign in 2021.
As Chairman of Global Advertising & Partnerships
Linda Yaccarino Wikipedia has led media sales teams with an in-depth knowledge of audience data for nearly two decades, garnering her extensive renown as an expert in media monetization strategy across networks and properties of NBCUniversal. She developed the first combined ad/sponsorship program for Los Angeles 2028 Olympics; and led its transition to One Platform trading model now industry wide.
Friends report that Long Island native and current employee at NBCUniversal since 2011 Catherine Keatinge is entering her new role with Twitter fully aware of its risks and challenges. As a powerful figure in advertising she was instrumental in the launch of Peacock, which entered a competitive streaming market, in 2020.
Twitter will appoint her as its new CEO with only a minimal team, and it remains unknown whether she has much leeway in adding staff for ad sales or other areas. With her background in advertising, however, she may quickly initiate this aspect of business for Twitter.
The Future of Work
Yaccarino has earned recognition within the advertising industry for her expertise at integrating and digitizing ad sales at NBCUniversal during her time there, as well as championing diversity and social justice initiatives like #WhyTrustMatters which highlights integrity within media partnerships as well as #ShesMy which upholds women. Additionally, she worked with White House officials during COVID-19 pandemic to launch an educational vaccine ad campaign.
Yaccarino is also a board member of the World Economic Forum, serving as chairman of its Taskforce on Future of Work and committee on media, entertainment and culture. Many have seen Yaccarino’s membership of this illustrious global business organization – comprised of political power brokers and global business leaders whom Musk has harshly criticized – as evidence that she would return Twitter to its former corporate culture or limit free-speech initiatives; however, Yaccarino has stated her primary concern will be running the company’s business operations rather than trying to change that culture or limit free-speech efforts or return Twitter in general.
Leading with Empathy
Linda Yaccarino earned the nickname of “the velvet hammer” for going above and beyond in her work at NBCUniversal as “the strategic and operational bridge across all networks, properties and business units”. This example shows just what an impactful leader she was.
Yaccarino’s commitment to diversity on and off screen makes her an outspoken advocate for female presence in media. Her leadership style combines hard-nosed negotiation tactics with warm and relational interactions – something which her predecessor, Roseanne Barr, could only dream about!
Now that Yaccarino has taken control of Twitter, it will be fascinating to observe her efforts at creating an environment of trust among advertisers, an increasingly scrutinized group of consumers concerned with content quality on the platform. Her dedication and experience may pave the way towards leading it into its next chapter.
Transforming the Upfront Marketplace
Yaccarino has been an indisputable force in an ever-evolving television space. She led the restructuring of NBCUniversal’s ad sales business for the 21st century, led the 2020 launch of Comcast NBCUniversal’s ad-supported streaming service Peacock and has spearheaded discussions regarding new metrics to measure audience as they transition online.
At the same time, she has worked tirelessly to position NBCUniversal for success in the future of advertising through innovations like NBCUx – a programmatic platform and suite of audience targeting tools – as well as groundbreaking partnerships with Apple and Snapchat.
Yaccarino faces her greatest challenge as head of Twitter, where she must oversee an increasingly toxic social media giant due to its controversial founder Elon Musk’s influence on its content and usage patterns. Yet friends report she is entering her new position with calm and clarity.
