Welcoming Gen-Z: Be Inclusive or You'll Be Irrelevant

On August 3, Turner, Horizon Media and MediaVillage.com will welcome 350 interns who are working this summer in New York City-based media, advertising, marketing and entertainment companies. The 4th annual 1stFive.org Summer Interns Experience is gathering the first class of Generation Z to join our community for a shared introduction to our business and to each other. Born after 1995, Gen-Z is the first to have grown up in a world in which the Internet and mobile devices were always present. They're our first window -- our prism -- into future generations that will be born into a world with technological innovation beyond our conception: driverless cars, pilotless airplanes, ever-present media, the Internet of Things, robotics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, blockchain, Nintendo Go on steroids. This generation has grown up in a time of unprecedented access to information and global connectivity, but they have also grown up in a world of upheaval and constant disruption. From the September 11th terror attacks to the real estate bubble burst and subsequent recession; from the incessant attacks on Hillary Clinton they were born into to the radicalizing triumph of Donald Trump, tumultuous events have been the backdrop of their lives so far. Chaos is the norm. Change is simply a reality.