Babaeko Makes New York Ad Festival Grand Jury for Third Time

The New York Ad Festival has chosen three of Nigeria’s creative egg-heads led by Steve Babaeko, CEO, X3M Ideas and Vice President,  Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Sola Kosoko-King, Creative Director, X3M Ideas and Chris Ogunlowo, Creative Director, SO&U as members of the grand jury for the 2019 New York International Advertising Awards.

Steve is making his third appearance as a Grand Jury member having featured earlier in 2016 and 2018 editions while Ogunlowo, and Kosoko-King are making their debut on the respected jury panel.

The trio will join other international creatives to select the world’s best advertising. “The NYF’s powerhouse 400+ Grand Jury represents the most diverse brain trust of global creative minds in the advertising industry from 65 countries”.

Commenting on the selection, Babaeko said: It is actually humbling. NYAF is one of the oldest advertising awards in the world. They take special pride in selecting the best practitioners from across the globe to judge. Getting a 3rd invitation is quite special. I am not alone though, I have with me this year the Creative Directors of X3M Ideas and SO&U. So it’s a good one for Nigeria

“Clearly it shows that Nigeria is beginning to get the recognition it deserves. As the Vice President of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria, it’s part of our agenda to keep placing Nigeria’s advertising on the global stage. This is one step in the right direction”, Babaeko further reinforced.

Speaking on the mode of the Jury assignment, Babaeko explained, “the first part is to vote remotely. We shortlist the entries that deserve to be considered for the award. At this point, it’s simple in or out based on a few parameters. After this, the Executive Jury does an on-site judging and the last part is the gala in NewYork”.

According to the organisers of the event, the peer-nominated panel provides a comprehensive view of the advertising world today. This year’s Grand Jury, recruited from top global agencies and the hottest new boutique shops, is comprised of prominent award-winning Chief Creative Officers, Executive Creative Directors, Creative Directors, Art Directors, Copywriters, Executive Producers, and Marketing/PR pro’s all playing a pivotal role in selecting the World’s Best Advertising winners.

Susan Glass Ruse, Executive Director of New York Festivals International Advertising Awards said, “We’ve assembled a truly international jury with high-level talent that spans the globe.”

 “NYF has always been about recognizing the work and the individuals who create it. Our juries and our competition categories are designed to reflect the diversity of great work and the people that produce it”, said Ruse.

The 2019’s trophy-winning entries will be determined by the 9th annual Executive Jury, an elite panel of 22+ CCO’s from around the globe. The Executive Jury will gather this April for 5 days in New York City for four rounds of judging across all mediums to select 2019’s winners for First Prize, Second Prize, Third.

“We’re honored to have such an exceptional and eclectic jury judging this year’s work,” said Heather Abrams, Associate Executive Director of New York Festivals Advertising Awards. “Not only are we excited to provide our entrants with highly-regarded creatives to honor their work, but we’re delighted for our jury to see some of the fresh and bold ideas that come through in our new categories.”

Using New York Festivals online judging platform, the Grand Jury will review global entries through two rounds of meticulous judging and select the creative work that merits Shortlist and Finalist Status. The Finalist entries will then move on to the medal rounds. NYF’s Grand Jury is also the first line of defense, scrutinizing ads to provide security against possible scam ads.