Strauss Zelnick

Brandweek, July 3, 2000 by Michael Schrage

Do you think that it's marginal or significant for top executives in pop culture companies to be exposed to the diversity of new media?

If you are not out in the community, if you're not out in Silicon Valley, if you're not reading trades, if you're not online, if you're not talking to people who are half your age who know twice as much as you do about new media, then you're way behind the times. I spend virtually all of my waking hours thinking about the conjunction of traditional entertainment and new technology, and I still feel woefully undereducated because the world is changing so quickly.

There are a lot of people in entertainment who do live in the past and certain elements of the past will never change. The creation of entertainment really hasn't changed in the last 100 years in many meaningful ways. However, if you're able to preserve a creative approach that's rooted in history and apply to it a knowledge of and acceptance of new media and new technology, then I think you have the best opportunity to succeed in a highly competitive environment.