OUR TEAM

Jack Myers is founder of MediaVillage, Advancing Diversity.org and The Myers Report. He’s the nation’s leading media ecologist, having dedicated his career to studying and reporting on the media business. His five decades of behind-the-scenes work with brands, agencies, content publishers, studios, emerging tech companies, non-profit organizations and educational institutions has made Jack one of the most influential leaders in the history of the media and advertising business.

Jack has received the Excellence in Education Award from the Global Forum on Education & Learning, the George Foster Peabody Award, and an Academy Award nomination for Documentary Filmmaking. He’s written five books on the intersection of media and culture, including his visionary 2007 book Virtual Worlds: Rewiring Our Emotional Future; Hooked Up: A New Generation’s Surprising Take on Sex, Politics and Saving the World in 2012; and The Future of Men in 2016.

Through his research on technological and generational trends, Jack anticipated the industry’s need to invest in and train a new workforce, leading to his founding of MediaVillage and AdvancingDiversity.org. Today more than 100 content partners in the MediaVillage Knowledge Exchange connect with thousands of professionals, educators, students and job seekers who subscribe to free daily MediaVillage reports and rely on MediaVillage.com for meeting preparation and professional development.

Jack began his career in advertising sales and marketing with Metromedia Outdoor, ABC Radio, CBS-TV and UTV Cable. He majored in Radio-Television at the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University and has a master’s degree in Media Ecology from NYU Steinhardt. Jack is Chairman Emeritus of the International Radio and Television Society Foundation (IRTS), founder of the Newhouse 44 Mentoring Program, serves on multiple advisory boards, and is the recipient of the Mac Dane Humanitarian Award from the UJA. Jack and his wife, Ronda Carnegie, have established the 501C-3 Jacaronda Foundation to provide college loan relief to deserving young professionals.

Juan Ayala is a Brooklyn-based writer, podcast producer and host at MediaVillage. Since 2017, under his column Multicultural TV, he has covered programming aimed toward diverse and multicultural audiences, as well as the LGBTQ+ and Latin communities. Since 2021, he has hosted the podcast “Multicultural TV Talk” for MediaVillage, where he interviews with stars of television and media, focusing conversations on diversity, representation and inclusivity in entertainment. In addition, he hosts “Actors With Issues” a podcast where he chats with rising and established stars from across entertainment, taking mini deep-dives into their careers and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

He is also a member of the Critics Choice Association.

Maryann has been an integral part of the Myers team for over 30 years. She serves as the hub of MediaVillage, ensuring that members, readers, and staff are best served. On a daily basis she manages internal operations, including human resources and accounting; and she oversees such customer-facing operations as content distribution and web management. In her brief moments of "spare time" she dabbles with the company's research, supporting and working alongside the research team to deliver top-notch insights to the industry.

As the person with the most institutional knowledge (besides Jack, of course), she serves as a key mentor and supporter for all new team members. She thoroughly enjoys working with every member of the team to help them succeed individually, and to help them come together to ensure the success of MediaVillage and its members and readers.