What 27 Years at Horizon Taught David Campanelli About Media

What does it take to spend 27 years at one agency and still feel like you're just getting started?

David Campanelli, President of Global Investment at Horizon Media, joins Adam Katz to unpack how the media world has evolved and how he’s stayed ahead of it every step of the way.

They cover everything from his early days at Horizon to leading global investment strategy, and what he’s learned about staying grounded while thinking big.

Here’s what’s inside:

• How David worked his way up and what’s changed (and what hasn’t) over nearly three decades
• Why consistency and connection matter more than ever in today’s hybrid world
• The value of learning through the “mundane” in the age of AI
• How Horizon is shaking things up with blu, their connected marketing platform

This one’s about playing the long game, building real culture, and keeping your edge through it all.

👉 Hit play and find out why business still comes down to people, even in the age of algorithms.

TRANSCRIPT

Adam Katz
Welcome to Breaking Through the Mayhem hosted by Sightly. We have an amazing guest, somebody who I have known for a bunch of years consider him a friend at this point, one of the great people in the industry. Hard to stay in a role that he has for as long as he has. He always evolves. Really, really smart guy. And also a good guy. So welcome to the show, David Campanelli, nice to see you.

David Campanelli
Thank you very much. Nice to see you. I remember our first interaction and I often remember these. I had no idea who you were. And I had a problem and called you up and you fixed it without question with no relationship. Prior relationship. And you took care of it. And I never forget people who do stuff like that, so I will remember that.

Adam Katz
I appreciate it. Thank you, thank you. You know, it's funny, like the first interactions that come from a negative that turn into a positive are like my whole life. So I think you're, you're like a spitting image of my career, my podcast, everything I've ever done. So thank you. I appreciate that a lot. And, same mutual respect back for you and especially, the amazing agency that you work for.

So, to kick things off, why don't you tell people a little bit about yourself? For people that don't know you?

David Campanelli
Sure. So I head up the investment teams here at Horizon. I've been here for 27 years now. Worked my way up through the ranks and really kind of, as the company grew, provided a lot of opportunity. And yeah, so overtime I grew up on the TV side originally video side over time. But as the years went on to gain more investment lead of different media types, most recently the digital investment team probably 6 or 7 years ago now, and then very recently, the past eight months or so, the kind of performance digital teams or social programmatic.

So, now it's really everything, investment related runs up through me, which has been continually challenging as you have to learn new media types and how the nuances, how everything works. But it's been an interesting ride for these 27 years.

Adam Katz
I love that. How many people were at Horizon when you started?

David Campanelli
So when I started back in 98, I think there were around 100 in the New York office and, I don't know, a couple dozen in LA. And now we're like 3000 people, something like that. So it's been yeah, it's been quite a ride And people always ask not to ask questions on your podcast, but, people always people always ask, you know, how have you been there for so long?

Why have you been there so long? And it's I don't know, it's almost cliche to say, but it really was like, it's a different agency every five years. In the early years, because of the growth, how many more people we had, clients we had and, and just how much we were growing, which always provided me great upward opportunity, that we just had, you know, were growing, growing, growing.

So I always had opportunity to move up and, I guess, did a good enough job along the way to, to to warrant being moved up. But also in the last, you know, ten years or so now, it's, it's also growth, but also just how much the industry is changing.

And like I said, taking on new media types, particularly the performance, digital stuff. I hadn't had a ton of exposure to a little bit exposure, programmatic. Less to social and search. And now learning that stuff from scratch is, you know, has been kind of invigorating, you know, really think 27 years and you're going to have a whole bunch of new stuff.

But, but it's been, it's been a nice challenge.

Adam Katz
That's unbelievable. I mean, 100 all the way to now, how many people have been there as long as you.

David Campanelli
There's a handful. I have one person reports to me who's been here longer. Another person who started, like, two months after I did. Of course. Bill. There's a handful of people. Not too many. Not too many left.

Adam Katz
It's unbelievable. It's really cool. Did. Was this your first job? 27 years, or were you?

David Campanelli
So my first job out of college was at ESPN in production up in Bristol.

I studied TV production in school and I thought I interviewed ESPN sports and TV production like I'm set for life, and it was the best bad experience of my life because it was a really tough job. It was six days a week. It was nights. You're watching games and creating highlights. So games are on at night and you're working 530 to like 230 was the shift.

There were six days a week. And, you didn't get paid overtime. It was just it was, it was rough. And I remember sitting, back in the day of ESPN when it was live, was like a newsroom. And you tell the teleprompter, run the teleprompter. So you do that for like a two hour shift, and then you'd sit in the newsroom for two hours just waiting and I remember sitting there and in the newsroom we're like, it's, you know, 8:00 at night.

And the Peter Gammons and Harold Reynolds and Carl Roberts are getting ready for the,

Adam Katz
Peter Javits brings me back.

David Campanelli
Oh, yeah. They're getting ready for baseball tonight at 10:00. And the Sports Center team is, you know, producers and staff are getting ready. It was kind of cool to listen, but then at some point, I was like, these guys are, you know, my age now 50 years old, they probably have families and kids.

And they're two working Tuesday nights at 10 p.m.. I don't know if I want that for the rest of my life. I, I don't want to work.

Adam Katz
You also don’t know if you were, you were going to be Peter Gammons. Let's be real too.

David Campanelli
Well not on air. I'm talking about -

Adam Katz
People that were your peers.

David Campanelli
I'm talking about like, I mean, I was an assistant, a production assistant. I'm talking about the people who, you know, executive producers.

Adam Katz
Those are the people that are always in the picture at the end of the season where they give the one. Thank you on Thanksgiving this year for the rest of the NFL career with, you know, they all look so happy for that one moment.

And they're been doing this for 30 years.

David Campanelli
It's tough, it's a tough gig. Just the hours, the time of it. Like working nights working weekends. You're on when sports are right? I work Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The year I was there. I had Thanksgiving off because Thursday was my day off. That was the only reason why I had it off.

So it was just I just recognized like, I don't, I don't know, I don't want to be 40 and be working nights and not see my kids

Adam Katz
Who's the coolest person you met while there?

David Campanelli
Coolest?

Adam Katz
Or most iconic.

David Campanelli
It was when Rich Eisen and Stuart Scott did the -

Adam Katz
Oh my God.

David Campanelli
Sports Center. It was Dan Patrick and Kenny Mayne doing the 11.

So they're all cool to work with. I mean, work with them. I didn't really work with them very closely. I remember not loving Stuart Scott on air when I was just watching and then as the highlight assistant, you would write down, like you'd watch the game, you logged what would happen and then you'd pick out the plays that we're going to go into the highlight.

So the time was short. You just run the highlight, literally a tape in your hand and the script in your hand to the studio. And it was like, go on and 30s or whatever. And they would just try and the anchor would try and read what you were. Okay. But the 2 a.m. sports and there's usually a break and you could, like, sit down and like, talk them through the highlights because, you know, Stuart Scott's not watching 27 games that night.

Right. He's hearing from the assistant whatever. And some of the guys didn't care. They're like whatever get out of my face. Stuart Scott would like pull up a chair. He'd ask you to sit down, take you through the whole thing you've like in his words. So I was like, oh, he cared. That was really great. And then, like, Dan Patrick was the best at you literally run in as the highlights going on at 1115 it's 1114, your hand on a piece of paper, and he makes it his own, like on the floor.

Adam Katz
And he's good to go.

David Campanelli
Yeah. It was unbelievable. And then there were other guys that I won't name since this is being recorded who just like, butchered everything you wrote. And just with the rework you said and like, it was just, you could tell the guys who were, like, really good at it, but they say.

Adam Katz
So you went from ESPN to Horizon. That was the

David Campanelli
I did. I answered an ad in a newspaper, which I don't think people do anymore. And, I had no idea what media buying was not a clue. I studied production in school, no idea what it was. I knew it had something to do with TV and it was 9 to 5.

And that's what I cared about.

Adam Katz
What was your first role at horizon?

David Campanelli
Technically, it was on the national team, which was like 4 or 5 people, and it was technically the network radio assistant, but it was adjacent to the TV stuff right away. And within a few months I was, TV buyer and stayed with that for quite a while.

Adam Katz
What a crazy run.

David Campanelli
Yeah.

Adam Katz
That's awesome. Yeah. But what were the most pivotal moments that kind of helped shape the path throughout the process? Like, do you have any, any profound moment that you feel really propelled you or helped you get where you are today?

David Campanelli
Me personally, or the agency as a whole?

Adam Katz
Your choice. Your world?

David Campanelli
Well, I would say for the agency was certainly a couple of moments. I mean, Bill started the agency before I was around and, and, you know, made really something out of nothing. When I joined were certainly on a growth trajectory. But Geico is a small client of ours at the time, and they grew and we help them grow for many years.

That was big. I think that I remember the big a couple of big wins. We had a really big kind of watershed moment, for me at least, was when we won the Capital One business in 2012 or 13. I think it was, that was that was a that was a big you know, we've arrived kind of, kind of

Adam Katz
Took you back a little bit to your ESPN days. There's a lot of a lot of relationship between Capital One and ESPN.

David Campanelli
That is true. That is true. We've helped grow that too. So that's kind of the agent side. Personally, I don't know if I can think of a moment. I think, I've been like I said, I was very lucky that the agency grew so much. It was always, you know, opportunity never really felt like there was a ceiling on, my growth couple months after I started, Bill hired Aaron Cohen to be the chief investment officer for.

I mean, it was, again, I was like six or I guess he oversaw probably local and stuff to so it was more than that. But, he's like a legend in the business and, and, was a great mentor, but I was an assistant, maybe a buyer, I guess probably an assistant still and a, you know, EVP, chief investment officer or whatever, whatever the title was.

Exactly. I was working directly with him for all those years. So that was really, really helpful. But I would also say I, I, I, I feel like I learned as much from people that I saw who didn't do things the right way as I did from people who did things the right way. I try to tell people that like, observe everything, and you sure take stuff from people you admire that are doing things the right way.

But also notice people were not doing things the right way and learn from that too. And there's a couple of those throughout the year, a couple people that I that I can think of.

Adam Katz
We’ll keep those nameless You know.

David Campanelli
We'll keep them nameless, but it definitely gives you a sense of like, oh, I'm not going to do that.

Like, I can see how that's a problem. I'm not going to do that too, that's to me, just as important. When people talk about mentors and how much they learn from mentors, and that's really important to know. I'm not trying to, diminish that at all. But again, as I learned just as much from people that

Adam Katz
Did things all wrong.

David Campanelli
They think they did things well.

Adam Katz
What would you say has kind of been what would you say? Dave, has been your evolution as a leader. What do you know, it's obviously different times than it was in the early 2000s all the way to now. Like, how would you say you've evolved? Where do you think you've grown?

David Campanelli
You know, I don't know if I, I honestly think a lot of the leadership qualities I have now are the same things I started with when I was an assistant, and I wasn't necessarily leading anybody then, but I have always, always tried to treat everyone the same way I mean, by that is, I show just as much reverence and attention to an assistant as I do an executive vice president.

You know, obviously I'm going to have more face time with certain people at certain levels now than than others. But, you know, one of the biggest surprises for me the most is when people always act like I like someone who wants a half hour to talk about something, an assistant, a buyer, or someone comes in and they want to talk, you know, just say hi or whatever.

And I make time for them that they're like, you must be so busy. I can't believe you made time for it. Like, it's the easiest thing to do. It really is the easiest thing to do. Set aside the time and make people feel, you know, valued. So, I guess I'm in a different position, so I, you know, work with people a little bit different way, but that's always been the biggest thing to me is just to make everyone feel heard and valued is the biggest step to leadership. And, I try never to

Adam Katz
Try to never forget where you came from is the way I would define that, you know, like, you're like I was I was handing things to Stuart Scott back at 3:00 in the morning about Darren Hurst and on the angels back in, in the 90s and now, and now I'm here.

So got to always remember where you came from, which I think is amazing. How do you think about adopting a better culture right now within your team? And Horizon as things have changed? Like where do you typically focus your time? How do you think about that?

David Campanelli
So I think the hard thing right now is, I think what are the hardest things right now is how do you continue to have a human personal touch in when everything is so technology heavy and data heavy and, AI leaning or heading towards AI?

And I think that's important for us as an agency dealing with our clients. I think it's important as, in my position dealing with, media sellers. But I think it's also important dealing with your own people. And, we're all in a somewhat hybrid work or a work environment now, we're in the office three days a week.

But it's less face time they used to get. There’s less social time than you used to get. So how do you make people feel? So that's just an example of how technology helps because it gives us some flexibility. But it also, you know, creates a challenge. I there's some people I don't see they might be remote or even if they're here, I don't see as often because it's only three days a week,

Just less chance to bump into people and meet them face to face. And instead of on zoom, and, you know, the social side of it to just, up for lunch, up for drinks, whatever it is, has always been a part of, like, creating bonds with people. So I think, I think it's, showing up and continue even as the world changes and technology changes, making sure people still feel that personal touch, because it's very easy to isolate and use screens and walk around with my nose in my phone and not say hi to people in the hallway and stuff like that.

It's very, very easy. And it's, it really is amazing how far, just acknowledging people and saying, hi, how does it goes?

Adam Katz
I've been seeing horizons everywhere. Right? You guys are winning again. Really taken off. You deserve it. And I see from an outsider what you guys put in every day and the level of empathy, care and innovation that you bring to your clients.

How have you guys been evolving lately in a big way to meet new needs of this world?

David Campanelli
We’ve repositioned ourselves in the past year or so, around what we're calling our connected marketing platform, blu.

We didn't go out and buy a bunch of different companies and kind of piece them together to build our, our, our platform. We built it from the ground up and built it from the ground up, really, with the hindsight of what we're calling, you know, second mover advantage, and seeing how it was done, other places and what was done wrong, what was done right.

And learning from that and building the best connected platform around. So we're still in the early stages of it, but where we've gone, you know, over the last year and a half has really been remarkable. And it's paying off in terms of, you know, new business wins with spectrum charter spectrum win a couple months ago, which is really a massive win for us.

Adam Katz
That take you back to Connecticut or what? Aren't they up there, there?

David Campanelli
Yeah, it is in Stamford. Not in Bristol. The beta right now is an LM based audience builder. And more. But the data sources where the audience was built from and then allows you to adjust or correct that growth, add to it whatever you want. It's very intuitive and really democratizes data access, you know, any longer having to rely on data scientists, you know, building these audiences, it's really the power in everyone's hands.

So it's a really powerful tool. It's really, you know, helping, lead us forward in this space. And like I said, that's not possible without AI. AI also like everyone else. It's going it's it's already started shaping our day to day work, streamlining where we can and taking shortcuts where it helps. And it'll continue to do so.

I the flip side that I start to worry about is where AI has been helpful in replacing kind of the mundane tasks, often junior level tasks, but the mundane stuff that no one likes to do or I worry a little bit, really just on a global basis is,

Adam Katz
As a person, not just Horizon.

David Campanelli
As a person, not just for, doing the mundane stuff is what you learn from. There's no shortcuts, there's no easy way you get into the mundane, shitty stuff before you can.

Adam Katz
Kinda like when you move to a new neighborhood and all you use is Waze now, and you don't even know the blocks on your own, in your own neighborhood. I think that's the way I would describe it. Like the other day, it was pathetic. I was driving around where I live now, and I don't even know the street names.

David Campanelli
You need to, I try, I do that like, I use Google Maps all the time as a, as a as a guide. I don't just, just, like, blindly follow it like I need to know or I'm going to. Because someday the satellites go down and I don't know how –

Adam Katz
You know what I’m saying. I get it, man. That's why I like it if you're. I agree with that. You know, it's like it, it's such a push and pull as a leader right now with these things. Because the beauty of learning through the mundane, but also the beauty of like, just watching a person grow, is one of my favorite parts about leading anybody. Right? So it's like, it's just such a crazy time,

David Campanelli
I mean, I think everything is changing so much faster than I used to. It took 30 years for cable to catch up with broadcast. Never really did. And then in a matter of a couple of years, streaming's past both of them, you know? So it's it's, and just as another example on the video side, it's, it's, it is just shocking how fast things happen. And AI is coming and it's coming fast.

And like you said, it's a push and pull. We have to be prepared for it and utilize it as a tool, without a doubt. But I think we also have to be I think everybody has to be careful about what you lose when you're overreliant on another overall. When when you start to implement. AI what do you start to lose? You know.

Adam Katz
Do you sometimes feel like you're like you're feeling like the old guy in the room when you say that or you feeling like it's you're being fair, like, where do you where do you look at the balance of power when that's happening?

David Campanelli
I don't feel like the old guy because I understand its value and its importance and embrace the need to adopt any kind of automation and efficiencies, and AI brings both of those things.

But I do think there are areas where you can lose out if you're not really thoughtful about how you implement it. And if you, for example, wipe and this isn't a horizon example, this is more again this year that's happening in the world. Wipe out all of your entry level positions because I can do that work.

Where's your next, where are your next leaders coming from? Where are those people learning if they have, how do you ever get to the professional level, the manager level, if you don't have them? Have people trained as assistants, you know, so it's so it's how do you, how do you, protect against something like that?

You know, I, I also worry, I hear a lot of times people talk about, Oh, we just had to create a PowerPoint, so we'll just throw it in AI. Or ask AI the question, we'll put dump AI, answer in there, and we'll use that. Okay, so we're a new business. We got a bunch of questions. They're all, every agency is answering them in ChatGPT.

The same stupid answer that sets us apart. What makes us different? Where's our unique perspective and thinking now? Saying that I'm exaggerating a little bit because there's a role for some of that. Some of that stuff is basic, you know, that you that you, you know, information that is repetitive and you can churn it out. You can use AI to help you do that.

But are the people in control of filling that information out abusing AI or over using it and,

Adam Katz
Actually human checking it, seeing if has creativity, understanding the brand that they're speaking to I think part of the the the I think one of the beauties of where this could go and you know, I've, I thought this for a couple of years with what we're up to, but I think this will allow less of an assembly line at times and get to more of a brand nuance, if this is used correctly.

And I think that's where I see Horizon taking things, which I think will be which will set you guys apart with Dave's, with what I'm hearing, how much you care about each brand, the way things are put in, you want it to come out that way. If you guys start from an approach of thinking, you know, less assembly, more brand first, and then you start to build off of that.

I think that will set apart things over the next few years. And I think that's a big piece that I think you'll definitely shepherd knowing you.

David Campanelli
Yeah. I think the best way for us to think about it, our, company, ethos has always been business is personal and it is how do you use AI and maintain business as personal.

And that's what our challenges are. And we're going to use AI to the best of our advantage to continue to move us forward, but not lose that personal aspect either.

Adam Katz
What is your mentality going to be? And that's why I've always felt this way about things. In terms of other questions I have for you. Like I always ask this to some of my guests, if you could have dinner with any person can't be dead and can't be your family, who would you pick?

David Campanelli
They can't be dead. And then my pet answer is, was always Kurt Vonnegut until he died. So let me think.

Adam Katz
Can’t be dead. Can't be your family because I would ago my dad, no matter what, as I tell every person, he’s not alive. And I would love that. But, like, what? What would be your thought? Who would you take out?

David Campanelli
My answer. I would love to have dinner with Nick Offerman. You know who Nick Offerman is?

Adam Katz
Wow, that's interesting. I've never heard that. That would be the least answer I may have.

David Campanelli
How do you know who Nick Offerman is?

Adam Katz
I do, by the way, but that's why I'm like.

David Campanelli
So he started out as a theater actor. He, moved to California to become an actor and instead became a carpenter because he didn't want to rely on, you know, casting directors, you know, determining his fate and became a really great actor, but also, you know, builds canoes and guitars and has a massive wood shop where he some sells fine furniture and he's written books and, is really well read and articulate, and, he's a really interesting.

Adam Katz
You like him better with the mustache shaved full beard. Which, which, which

David Campanelli
Full beard probably.

Adam Katz
How does he have to show up at the dinner.

David Campanelli
But no, he's a really fascinating guy. And I, you know, he doesn't do a ton of podcasts, but I have listened to all the ones he's been on, and he has really interesting insights about life and stuff that stays on you.

Adam Katz
You like people that are, I wouldn't say controversial, but definitely diverse in their capabilities based on that.

David Campanelli
I like people who are, yes, worldly and and have their interests in a lot of different places. Yeah.

Adam Katz
If you were, if you were helping your kids in this upbringing, how are you trying to help them stay personal?

David Campanelli
Jeez, I have three kids of three very varying ages, from 19 to 8.

Adam Katz
And that's why I was curious how you're doing it right now.

David Campanelli
A lot of different of, here's the simplest thing. When we go out to dinner, we don't have any phones out, and we make our kids from the time they can speak, order their own food and look waiter or waitress in the eye and, and articulate what they want and say.

Adam Katz
What if they want nine things on the menu, just letting them go off, well, are they allowed to order ice cream for breakfast.

David Campanelli
We have some guidelines of what they can order, but it's important that they do it for themselves. And that's a small thing. But it's very emblematic, I think, of one engaging with humans and not your screen.

And two as kids, being able to have the confidence to speak to adults and speak to them politely and, you know, respectfully. And I think not just that, but that is symbolic of how we try and raise good kids who can have, you know, conversations with humans and not just, you know, absorbed in their screens.

Adam Katz
It's going to be crazy. The difference between, like, you're a 19 year old and eight year olds right now with the way things are moving as fast as they are. But listen, this was a lot of fun talking to you. One of my, one of my favorites. So thank you for joining us.

David Campanelli
Thank you for having me.

Adam Katz
And, hopefully we'll have you again soon. You know, and maybe I'll get Nick Offerman on, and that that will be, I'll surprise you with him on the next episode. Thanks a lot, Dave.

David Campanelli
Yeah, thank you very much.