Blog: Roger Parry on The Future of Media.

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Roger Parry has had a rich and varied career to date – his first job in 1976 was as personal assistant to Charles and Maurice Saatchi the founders of Saatchi & Saatchi. From 1977 to 1985 he was a television and radio reporter with the BBC, ITV and LBC. He worked on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4, BBC News and Thames News.

In the 1990s he was part of the team that restructured Aegis Group and built up Carat the media buying network. In 1993 he was appointed the President of Carat North America. In the late 1980s he was Development Director of the advertising group WCRS which became The Engine Group. In the mid 1980s he was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. He was there at the same time as Adair Turner, Howard Davies and Archie Norman.

From 1995 to 1998 he was CEO of the UK media company More Group plc. In 1998 Parry was appointed as a Trustee of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre having been involved with the project since 1987 when he wrote the original business plan – whilst a consultant at McKinsey. In 2005 he was appointed as chairman a post he held until 2013. He was succeeded by Lord Falconer.

In 1998 Parry was one of the founding directors of Clear Media which has become one of China’s leading outdoor advertising companies. In 2001 Clear Media was floated on the Hong Kong stock market with a value of US$450 million. Parry was Deputy chairman.

From 1998 to 2005 was CEO of Clear Channel International which, at the time, was the World’s largest operator in radio broadcasting, live entertainment and outdoor advertising. In 2006 Clear Channel was taken private in a buyout valued at US$27 billion. The live entertainment division was later floated as a new company under the name Live Nation Entertainment

In 2007 Parry become Executive Chairman of international marketing communications group Media Square plc which he subsequently took private in a management buy-out in 2011 to create an employee owned business called MSQ Partners.

From 2001 to 2009 he was Chairman of Johnston Press plc, the UK’s largest regional newspaper group. Based in Edinburgh it owns more than 300 titles including The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post. From 2001 to 2011 he was Chairman of magazine publisher Future plc (based in London, Bath and San Francisco) which owns more than 100 titles including Total Film, Digital Camera and Xbox Magazine.