Bilanz declares Kall media manager of the year
In its latest issue, the business magazine *Bilanz* named Martin Kall, CEO of Tamedia, “Media Executive of 2008.” The controversial head of the Zurich-based publishing group had already been named the most influential media executive in 2007.
In its current issue, the business magazine Bilanz named Martin Kall, CEO of Tamedia, as the media manager of 2008. The controversial head of the Zurich publishing group - partly due to the recent events surrounding the Bern daily newspaper Der Bund - was already declared the most influential media maker in 2007.
The ranking list was drawn up by a five-member jury consisting of Josefa Haas, Head of the Media Institute of the Swiss Press Association, Karl Lüönd, media consultant and publicist, Rainer Stadler, media editor of the NZZ, Kurt W. Zimmermann, columnist, publisher and owner of Consist Consulting, and Stefan Barmettler, deputy editor-in-chief of Bilanz.
In its statement, the jury wrote: "The golden age is over for the time being at Tamedia, which focuses mainly on print products (20 Minuten, Tagesanzeiger, Sonntags-Zeitung, Annabelle) - as it is elsewhere in the media industry. But Martin Kall, who has been at the helm of the Zurich publishing group for a good six years, is steering the company calmly through the rough seas. It is thanks to his prudence that the Bern-based Espace Media Groupe (Berner Zeitung, der Bund) was integrated into the Group without any major problems."
Kall's specific achievements are described as follows: "The 47-year-old German has been regarded as a pacesetter in the industry for some time; he set benchmarks with the highly profitable free newspaper 20 Minuten, the launch of the Tagesanzeiger regional editions and the start of the online news network. The internet alliance of the Berner Zeitung, Basler Zeitung and Tagesanzeiger has quickly become the leading news platform in Switzerland, with 1.6 million visitors per month."
With regard to the cooperation at TA, the jury writes: "Critics had suspected that Kall, who had been able to run the company unchallenged in recent years, would be tightened under the new Chairman of the Board of Directors Pietro Supino (rank 9). Contrary to expectations, the manager and his publisher have found a fruitful courant."
Alongside Martin Kall, the same fighters have been battling for the top spots in the Bilanz rating for years. Behind Kall in second place was Südostschweiz publisher Hanspeter Lebrument, followed by Pierre Lamunière, publisher of Edipresse, who remains the undisputed top dog in French-speaking Switzerland. Hans-Peter Rohner, whose Publi Groupe is suffering badly from the economic downturn, has fallen from third to 13th place and thus dropped out of the top group. Ralph Büchi, CEO of Axel Springer Switzerland and publisher of Bilanz, and Albert Stäheli, the new CEO of the NZZ Group, have risen up the rankings.
(Pictures: Keystone)
The ranking list was drawn up by a five-member jury consisting of Josefa Haas, Head of the Media Institute of the Swiss Press Association, Karl Lüönd, media consultant and publicist, Rainer Stadler, media editor of the NZZ, Kurt W. Zimmermann, columnist, publisher and owner of Consist Consulting, and Stefan Barmettler, deputy editor-in-chief of Bilanz.
In its statement, the jury wrote: "The golden age is over for the time being at Tamedia, which focuses mainly on print products (20 Minuten, Tagesanzeiger, Sonntags-Zeitung, Annabelle) - as it is elsewhere in the media industry. But Martin Kall, who has been at the helm of the Zurich publishing group for a good six years, is steering the company calmly through the rough seas. It is thanks to his prudence that the Bern-based Espace Media Groupe (Berner Zeitung, der Bund) was integrated into the Group without any major problems."
Kall's specific achievements are described as follows: "The 47-year-old German has been regarded as a pacesetter in the industry for some time; he set benchmarks with the highly profitable free newspaper 20 Minuten, the launch of the Tagesanzeiger regional editions and the start of the online news network. The internet alliance of the Berner Zeitung, Basler Zeitung and Tagesanzeiger has quickly become the leading news platform in Switzerland, with 1.6 million visitors per month."
With regard to the cooperation at TA, the jury writes: "Critics had suspected that Kall, who had been able to run the company unchallenged in recent years, would be tightened under the new Chairman of the Board of Directors Pietro Supino (rank 9). Contrary to expectations, the manager and his publisher have found a fruitful courant."
Alongside Martin Kall, the same fighters have been battling for the top spots in the Bilanz rating for years. Behind Kall in second place was Südostschweiz publisher Hanspeter Lebrument, followed by Pierre Lamunière, publisher of Edipresse, who remains the undisputed top dog in French-speaking Switzerland. Hans-Peter Rohner, whose Publi Groupe is suffering badly from the economic downturn, has fallen from third to 13th place and thus dropped out of the top group. Ralph Büchi, CEO of Axel Springer Switzerland and publisher of Bilanz, and Albert Stäheli, the new CEO of the NZZ Group, have risen up the rankings.
(Pictures: Keystone)
