The Global Media Business Weekly

Colin Morrison

Colin Morrison is founder of Flashes & Flames: The Global Media Business Weekly, which began as a blog in 2011 and became a subscription newsletter in 2020. It formed a strategic alliance with PA Media Group (formerly the Press Association) in 2021.

Flashes & Flames is widely read by CEOs, senior executives and entrepreneurs in the media, digital, business information and events industries, principally in the UK/Europe, the US and AsiaPacific.

In 2025, Flashes & Flames was awarded a Warrant by the 600-year-old Worshipful Company of Stationers & Newspaper Makers (the Stationers’ Company, the UK’s historic pioneer of copyright legislation). The Warrant was in recognition of its “excellence” as a media industry commentator.

It is organising the “Monetising B2B” conference in London on 20 May 2025, with the participation of major companies including RELX, The Economist, Financial Times, Informa, Business of Fashion, and Clarion Events.

Flashes & Flames wins award from historic UK organisation

Colin started out with an undemanding and under-paid job in a London newspaper cuttings library for the BBC (yes), while writing freelance on music, broadcasting and entertainment. He subsequently became a newspaper, radio and magazine journalist variously in London, Dublin and New York. He worked for, and contributed to, diverse publications including: Irish Press, New York Times, Broadcast, London Evening Standard, Lloyd’s List, The Times of London, Disc & Music Echo, Oilman, Radio Times, Seatrade, and the Daily Telegraph. He has also broadcast extensively on BBC and LBC radio.

At IPC / Reed Publishing, he was a journalist and successively became editor, publisher and managing director of B2B and specialist consumer magazine and events brands including: Amateur Photographer, Flight International, Classic Cars, Cycling, Airline Business, Commercial Motor, Yachting World, and The Caterer. He subsequently became CEO of media, information, events and broadcast companies in the UK, Continental Europe and the AsiaPacific, including for: Axel Springer, Australian Consolidated Press, Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd, EMAP Plc, Future Plc, Reed Elsevier, and Hearst Corp.

He has established and managed joint ventures and partnerships with: Hearst, Hachette, Microsoft, VNU, Time Warner, Sony, ACP Magazines, Disney, Fairfax, SBTV, PA Media Group and the BBC.

He has been chair and non-executive director of media companies variously under public, private and private equity ownership. He has also been an investor in media, tech and investment companies in the UK, Europe, US and Australia. He has been a keynote speaker at recent conferences in the UK, US, India, Italy, South Africa, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Hungary, Spain and Portugal.

Colin is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and of the UK Industry & Parliament Trust; a member of The Cook Society; and a Freeman of the City of London and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Stationers & Newspaper Makers. He has been chair of Magazine Publishers of Australia, and of British Business Press, and a director of the UK Professional Publishers Association, and of The Media Society.

He has been honoured as an “Influencer” in the Folio:100, in the US, and was awarded an CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth in the UK for services to media, education and charity. For 15 years, he was chair of a national children’s charity, and was an adviser on education to successive UK governments.

What our readers say

Arnaud de Puyfontaine, CEO, Vivendi SA: “Flashes & Flames is the most inspiring media newsletter I ever read. It’s a must-read every week”

Lara Boro, CEO, The Economist Group: “Flashes & Flames is essential weekly reading for anybody in the ever changing world of media”

Sean Griffey, founder, Industry Dive: “Flashes & Flames provides an in-depth look at the business of media simply not found anywhere else.  It’s the first thing I read every Friday morning.”

Tom Bureau, CEO, Burda International: Colin Morrison combines the experience and instincts of a senior operator, with the analysis of a quality commentator. Given the lack of mainstream journalistic investment in the media sector, he has built a thing of real value to its subscribers. It is surprisingly well researched and always has an interesting take on deals and the media organisations he reports on.

Philip Soar, Chair, CloserStill Media: “Flashes & Flames is essential reading for those of us working and investing at the intersection of trade shows, events and private equity. It is the only regular source of useful and accurate information on those increasingly prominent parts of the media world.”

The team

Tech: Kieran Delaney is owner-founder of FlatPlan, an Apple Preferred Provider for content distribution, trusted by New York Times Company, Premier League, FIFA, Sky News, Minute Media and hundreds of leading media and sports businesses. FlatPlan combines market leading ‘no code’ software with the strategic guidance of news platform experts, offering enterprise businesses the opportunity to reach billions of people directly on their devices. https://flatplan.io

Content: Jasper Jackson is Technology Editor of The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, and was previously an editor successively for BriefingMedia, The Guardian, and the New Statesman. He is a trustee of The Media Society.

AI / tech: Paul Hood was formerly a digital development director in the UK for News Corp’s The Sun and, similarly, for Bauer, Reach Plc and Dennis Publishing.

Events: Cobus Heyl is a former journalist and media business executive for Naspers who has become one of Europe’s most experienced organisers of conferences and events. He is producer of Flashes & Flames events, starting with the ‘Monetising B2B’ conference in London in 2025.

Research: Alex De Groote is an experienced TMT analyst for European banks and brokers including: Charterhouse, ING, Credit Agricole, Panmure Gordon, Peel Hunt, Cenkos and Arden Partners.

Circulation: David Greene is a UK-based specialist in subscriptions, consumer marketing, and media readership. He has been an executive director of IPC Media, The Independent, and Telegraph Media Group.

Consultant: Ian Findlay has managed M&A, fund-raising, investment, and strategic development for some of Europe’s largest media groups including: RELX and EMAP.

Flashes & Flames Media Ltd

Flashes & Flames is published by Flashes & Flames Media Ltd., a company registered in the UK. Company no. 12865884. Registered address: 8 Hampstead Gate, 1A Frognal, London NW3 6AL, UK.