From June 22-25, Hearst Magazines returned to the Croisette with Hearst House, marking its third consecutive year at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Throughout the week, Hearst House once again served as a destination for conversations with influential editors, creators, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders exploring the ideas shaping media, marketing, and culture today.
The week opened with Main Character Energy, where Cosmopolitan Editor-in-Chief Willa Bennett sat down with model and media personality Olandria Carthen for an intimate conversation about personal branding, cultural influence, and the ways mass media is evolving through individual voices.
Later that day, Esquire convened its global editorial leadership for The Masculinity Crisis: Style, Substance & the Global Male Consumer. Editors from the US, UK, and France explored how modern masculinity is being redefined across style, relationships, ambition, and identity, and what those shifts mean for marketers seeking authentic connections with today’s male consumer.
On Tuesday, Bennett joined Esquire Editor-in-Chief Michael Sebastian and Feed Me founder Emily Sundberg for Media, Influence, and the Art of Engagement. Together, they unpacked what it means to build relevance in today’s fragmented media landscape and how brands can participate meaningfully in culture rather than simply reacting to it. In the evening, Cosmopolitan welcomed television personality Maura Higgins for The Authenticity Era, an unfiltered conversation about navigating fame, reinvention, and the increasing value of authenticity for creators, audiences, and brands alike.
Wednesday’s programming focused on two powerful forces shaping consumer behavior. Michael Clinton, founder of ROAR Forward and author of Longevity Nation, explored the opportunities emerging from an aging yet increasingly active population, highlighting how innovation, purpose, and reinvention are redefining the second half of life. Later, Good Housekeeping Editor-in-Chief Elspeth Velten joined financial creator and entrepreneur Vivian Tu for Building Fandoms Through Trust, examining how practical, utility-driven content earns lasting audience loyalty in an increasingly crowded media ecosystem.
Throughout the week, Hearst House also served as the home of the Signal and Noise podcast, where industry veterans Rio Longacre, Krish Raja, and Brett House recorded live conversations with leaders across data, technology, and AI, extending the dialogue beyond the stage and into the future of marketing and media.
Together, the week’s programming reflected Hearst’s unique ability to convene influential voices across editorial, entertainment, business, and technology. From evolving identities and creator influence to longevity, trust, and artificial intelligence, Hearst House once again became a destination for the conversations defining what’s next for brands, media, and culture.
