Kiwi journalist/author Karl du Fresne launched his new book at the Writers Festival in Auckland on Saturday, A Road Tour of American Song Titles, from Mendocino to Memphis – a homage to American placenames in song.

NZ missed out on the heavy metal at the New York Festivals Advertising Awards on Friday – but still took home a hefty haul of eight Silvers & seven Bronzes.

DDB has retained the creative account for BMW/Mini, following a competitive pitch process, according to a report in Tangible site Stop Press. The final stages of the pitch were contested between True, Colenso BBDO and DDB.

“At least it’s a judge-alone trial. A jury of 12 innocent men and women have been spared.” Herald writer Steve Braunias leaves his best line till the end of his Friday report on the excruciating Colin Craig vs Cameron Slater defamation trial.

Today, M+AD steps outside its comfort zone by publishing a jobseekers ad (scroll down) for a new Whangarei business – one which the Herald last week described as “an ethical brothel”.

Fanshawe St-based PR agency Sherson Willis, Grey Lynn-based brand experience agency Spur, Australasian agency Designworks, and Colenso BBDO supplied the muscle and ideas power behind the creation and installation of the giant pin outside Spark Arena – now rebranded from Vector Arena.

APN Outdoor is today releasing a national package of eight large-format digital billboards, known as Elite Screens, available for daily or multi-day buys.

Wellington-based design-led full-service creative agency Creature played a key role in a new global viral campaign aimed at raising awareness of pivotal climate-change technology, out of Melbourne-based Global CCS Institute, a world authority on carbon capture and storage (CCS).

Ooh Media and APN Outdoor have walked away from their blockbuster A$1.6b merger just two weeks after the competition watchdog said it would likely stand in the way of the deal.