Former Ozy editor-at-large Eugene Robinson, who was at the now-infamous media company for nearly a decade, has been named AVP of marketing content at global creative and experience agency Wongdoody.
In his new role, Robinson will lead original content development for the agency, such as thought leadership and white papers, and implement a global video content strategy. He will report to Stephanie Peirolo, SVP of marketing and communications at Wongdoody.
In an interview with Campaign US, Robinson, who is not an agency executive, said he is excited about the move to an agency, and that Wongdoody is “on the same page about how to do stuff” creatively.
“Creativity is the core of what we do, and Eugene has been creating great content that people want to consume for years, as a journalist, a writer, a TV and film personality, and a musician,” said Skyler Mattson, president of Wongdoody in a press release. “We tell our clients that they need an outside perspective to drive innovation. That’s why we hired a journalist and artist to take our global marketing to the next level.”
Robinson has a long history with the beleaguered Ozy Media. He was the first employee hired at the company in 2012 and rose through the ranks to oversee content strategy and development.
In September, he was cited as having suspicions about the media company’s traffic numbers in a New York Times article that revealed Ozy’s co-founder Samir Rao impersonated a YouTube executive on an investor call with Goldman Sachs. The report called into question the Ozy’s audience numbers and other practices.
Robinson, who wrote a tell-all column in the Times in October revealing his experiences at the company, says he received offers from various companies after Ozy began to make headlines.
After the article, a PR crisis unfolded for the media company. Co-founder Carlos Watson called the article a “hit-job” and chalked up the incident to a mental health crisis. The FBI launched a probe into the company, employees left, advertisers ended their contracts and the company dissolved its board of directors, telling employees in early October that it was shutting down.
Watson later backtracked and said on The Today Show that Ozy is still “open for business,” but has not provided further details.
Ozy Media is now being investigated by the Justice Department and the SEC.