Chris R. Vaccaro

Chris R. Vaccaro Email and Phone Number

VP, Digital Technology and Communications @ Ark Technology Consultants
Lake Grove, NY, US
Chris R. Vaccaro's Location
New York, New York, United States, United States
Chris R. Vaccaro's Contact Details
About Chris R. Vaccaro

Emmy Award and Murrow Award-winning media executive leading digital outlets, editorial operations, development, and communications efforts.On Digital and Comms: Comms and content leader for national and international brands. Storyteller and team leader. Reimagined the digital future and purpose of News 12 Networks, Cheddar, and i24 News, driving results by transforming staff and content strategy. Worked with Playfly Sports to build a large language model AI direct-to-consumer sports platform. Built the digital team and business at The Topps Company, revolutionizing a physical legacy brand. Work with Manchester City on consumer products. Host of the Renaissance Minds Podcast. On Education: Longtime professor and director of graduate journalism at Hofstra University, my alma mater. Lecture at universities and conferences around the world. In 2023, the U.S. Department of State selected me as a Fulbright Specialist. Wrote a journalism 101 textbook on strategic storytelling that debuted from SAGE Publishers in fall 2024. Director and founder of the SPJ Summer Journalism Institute and Suffolk HOF/PAL Leadership Institute. On Community: Deeply passionate about what shapes me, including my hometown, where I founded the Sachem Alumni Association on Long Island, and my Italian heritage, which allows me to work tirelessly as a board trustee of the Italian American Baseball Foundation, as a columnist for the National Italian American Foundation and as founder of the Italian American Heritage Society of Long Island. I am also the VP/President-Elect of the Society of Professional Journalists, a past president and board trustee of the Press Club of Long Island, and President of the Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame. I have written ten books and produced eight documentaries, including a three-part docuseries about Team Italy’s journey to the 2023 World Baseball Classic.On me: Two Emmy Awards. Nine Murrow Awards. Induction into the Long Island Journalism Hall of Fame, New York State Baseball Hall of Fame, and the Sachem Athletic Hall of Fame. Honored with Long Island Business News 40-under-40, 4x Stony Brook 40-under-40, Hofstra Young Alumnus of the Year, AATI Dante Award, Italian Language Foundation Outstanding Leadership Award, and 2x selections to the Long Island Power List. I threw out the first pitch at a Washington Nationals game (yes, it was a strike!). Just for good measure, September 21 is Chris Vaccaro Day in the Town of Brookhaven on Long Island, too. Proud Italian American 🇮🇹🇺🇸

Chris R. Vaccaro's Current Company Details
Ark Technology Consultants

Ark Technology Consultants

View
VP, Digital Technology and Communications
Lake Grove, NY, US
Website:
arktci.com
Employees:
116
Chris R. Vaccaro Work Experience Details
  • Ark Technology Consultants
    Vp, Digital Technology And Communications
    Ark Technology Consultants
    Lake Grove, Ny, Us
  • Quidd
    Vp / Gm, Sports
    Quidd Dec 2023 - Present
    New York, Ny, Us
    Oversee sports consumer products, digital collectibles, NFTs, and creative services at Quidd, an Animoca company focused on collectibles technology and e-commerce. Work directly with the Manchester City and Newcastle United football clubs and Leaf Trading Cards on digital cards, monetization, and product management. Manage P&L, marketing, communications, and business development. By building a daily GTM release strategy, I grew sports revenue from mere pennies to a 100% increase within six weeks of joining the company.
  • World Baseball Network
    Senior Editorial Advisor
    World Baseball Network Nov 2023 - Present
    White Plains, Ny, Us
    Help multi-platform baseball media company with communication strategy and editorial operations to grow the brand internationally. Growing audience, platform management, and product development for a unique brand serving global baseball fans. By developing a new global daily content strategy, I grew page views, audience, and social engagement metrics by about 4,000% since joining the organization. Our social strategy has grown exponentially, including hiring a TikTok producer who helped generate 1 million views, 50K likes, and 3,000% follower growth in 3 months.Hired a global staff of content producers from various baseball hotbeds, including Japan, Latin America, and Europe. Launched WBN weekly baseball headlines email that shares the world's top stories. Developed the company's internship program, which has hired dozens of journalism and production students from some of the top schools in the United States.
  • Arrow Media Communications
    Founder & Executive Operator
    Arrow Media Communications May 2013 - Present
    Founded and operate a boutique strategic communications and marketing agency working with local municipalities, school districts, non-profits, sports organizations, and small businesses on media relations, crisis communications, issues management, and executive communications. Handle social media management, internal communications, and stakeholder management.
  • Hofstra University
    Director, Graduate Journalism & Adjunct Assistant Professor
    Hofstra University 2010 - Present
    Hempstead, Ny, Us
    Began as an adjunct professor and eventually took over the graduate journalism program. Inherited a program with 10 enrolled students and worked on recruitment and admissions to bring the total number of students to 50, an increase of 400%. Developed new specializations in community and investigative journalism, as well as sports and entertainment journalism.Graduate courses taught: Innovative news platforms and product development, advanced sports journalism, and media relations techniques in sports and entertainment.Undergraduate courses taught: intro and advanced digital journalism, intro and advanced news writing and reporting, copy editing and ethics. Regularly host and moderate panels on campus about sports journalism, sports media and society, investigative journalism, and multiplatform storytelling.Presented at the 2022 AEJMC Midwinter Conference at the University of Oklahoma and 2023 AEJMC Southeast Colloquium at Middle Tennessee State University on "building the next generation of community and investigative journalists."
  • Playfly Sports
    Vp/Gm, Ai & Direct To Consumer Media
    Playfly Sports 2023 - 2024
    Berwyn, Pennsylvania, Us
    Tasked with building a business unit focused on direct-to-consumer media and sports content through autonomous technology and artificial intelligence. Oversaw editorial, product management, thought leadership, and operations.
  • Altice Usa
    Vp, Digital, Social Media & Streaming
    Altice Usa 2018 - 2023
    Queens, New York, Us
    Leader in digital editorial, growth, platforms, partnerships, news optimization, product management, social media, mobile applications, sales, streaming services, production, and operations for News 12 Networks (NY/NJ/CT), Cheddar News (U.S.), and i24 News (Tel Aviv). Saw considerable growth in digital revenue (40%), social engagement (60%), and pageviews and video views (50%). Took revenue from $900,000 to $5.5 million annually. Took page views from 20 million to 30 million monthly. Took video views from 3 million to 5 million monthly. Refined a product management process to service the audience and the technology while investing in backend technology to help the staff produce news more efficiently. Oversaw three content management system builds, a streaming service launch, and significant product development. Also put News 12 and Cheddar on 50-plus news distribution and content aggregation networks.Built an email newsletter product, launched a podcast network, and developed a documentary team that won two Emmys, nine Murrows, and 50-plus other journalism awards. Steward of professional development and staff growth by offering several internal training sessions and seminars on digital production. Re-launched and oversaw the News 12 internship program for both the linear and digital networks. Developed an educational partnership with Montclair State University.Earned a $250,000 Google News grant for an AI tool I developed with partners from our engineering team that curates stories from our vast library and serves a front-end system geared toward a younger demographic. The test was to see if we could build a different audience with the same content on another site if it looked and felt different.
  • The Topps Company
    Director, Digital & Editor-In-Chief
    The Topps Company 2012 - 2018
    New York, Ny, Us
    Managed operations, product, communications, strategy, monetization, programming, and business development for a multi-million-dollar direct-to-consumer collectibles publishing business. Additionally, oversaw licensing, partnerships, and all media partner, vendor, and athlete relations. Scaled Mobile Development & Publishing line of business, resulting in an increase in enterprise value of the company by 20%, or over $150M, at its peak during my tenure.Operated portfolio of 8 mobile apps, launching MVPs, finding product-market fit, and maximizing unit economics to scale the business 20x in under 5 years; business achieved peak revenue of $35M annually, 20% operating margins, and profitability by year 4; the franchise has grossed over $150M in revenue for the company during my tenure.Oversaw innovative GTM strategies, increasing DAU 7.5x in 3 years; uncovered new social and influencer acquisition channels; deployed multimillion-dollar marketing budget on data-driven ads across 10+ mobile ad networks; optimized conversion funnels using A/B testing to boost retention and monetization.Led 40-person operations and creative services team responsible for product, engineering, design, analytics, operations, business development, and marketing, transforming Topps from a maker of cardboard products into a Top 50 iOS Developer by global revenue.Apps included platforms for MLS, Premier League, Champions League, MLB, NHL, NFL, UFC, WWE, Walking Dead, and Star Wars. Other partners included MLBPA, NFLPA, NHLPA, NHLAA, IMG, Lucasfilm, AMC, USA Today, Getty, and Associated Press.Developed strategic vision on daily live operations cadence for timely multimedia content, analyzing data on decisions affecting key KPIs, including audience engagement, revenue growth, and retention. Managed a team of producers, designers, and community managers who produced content around the clock for mobile, social, and web.
  • Aol
    Regional Editor, Patch.Com
    Aol 2009 - 2012
    New York, Ny, Us
    Served as regional sports editor for Patch.com's Long Island editorial operations and editor/founder of Sachem Patch. Chaired the national Patch Sports Strategy Committee and sat on the company's programming committee. Covered two Super Bowls, NFL Draft, MLB Draft, Belmont Stakes, NCAA Tournament for basketball and lacrosse and helped grow Patch's national sports strategy.
  • Smithtown News
    Reporter
    Smithtown News 2008 - 2009
    Worked as reporter and photographer covering local news, government and politics, education, sports and business.
  • New York Daily News
    New Media Producer
    New York Daily News 2008 - 2008
    New York, New York, Us
    Served as online producer managing content for one of most visited news websites in the world. Worked on the national politics, New York City news, and sports desks. Worked with reporters, photographers and editors to place timely and unique multimedia content online. Tracked web highlights through aggressive data and analytics.
  • Southampton Press
    Reporter
    Southampton Press 2007 - 2008
    Worked as reporter and photographer covering pro and amateur sports. Helped with layout, copy editing, story assignments and execution on reporting for weekly newspaper in eastern, Long Island.
  • Long Island'S Ultimate Athlete Magazine
    Regional Editor
    Long Island'S Ultimate Athlete Magazine 2005 - 2007
    Do-it-all editorial role for start-up local sports publication: reporter, editor, photographer, broadcaster for web video and radio series. Helped build and develop web platform for daily high school sports coverage. Coordinated content partnerships and platform experiences for local businesses in the sports industry. Sold advertising and sponsorship packages to local businesses.

Chris R. Vaccaro Skills

Journalism Social Media News Writing Storytelling Facebook New Media Editorial Editing Sports Magazines Proofreading Writing Marketing Publishing Newsletters Blogging Public Relations Social Networking Copy Editing Web Content Sports Writing Publications Multimedia Headline Writing Press Releases Ap Style Publicity Public Speaking Media Relations Content Strategy Photography Online Journalism Creative Direction Content Management Leadership Business Development Content Development Strategic Communications Innovation Social Media Marketing Management Advertising Digital Marketing Licensing Strategy Microsoft Office Microsoft Excel Books Newspaper Interviewing Video Breaking News Research Radio Television Broadcast Copywriting Feature Articles Newspapers Interviewing Skills Creative Writing Interviews

Chris R. Vaccaro Education Details

  • Hofstra University
    Hofstra University
    Journalism
  • Stony Brook University
    Stony Brook University
    Public Policy
  • Sachem High School
    Sachem High School
  • Louisiana State University
    Louisiana State University
    Leadership Studies

Frequently Asked Questions about Chris R. Vaccaro

What company does Chris R. Vaccaro work for?

Chris R. Vaccaro works for Ark Technology Consultants

What is Chris R. Vaccaro's role at the current company?

Chris R. Vaccaro's current role is VP, Digital Technology and Communications.

What is Chris R. Vaccaro's email address?

Chris R. Vaccaro's email address is c.****@****ail.com

What is Chris R. Vaccaro's direct phone number?

Chris R. Vaccaro's direct phone number is +121237*****

What schools did Chris R. Vaccaro attend?

Chris R. Vaccaro attended Hofstra University, Stony Brook University, Sachem High School, Louisiana State University.

What are some of Chris R. Vaccaro's interests?

Chris R. Vaccaro has interest in Thompson, Wiffleball, Jim Morrison, Track Jackets, Howard Stern, Hunter S, Bobbleheads.

What skills is Chris R. Vaccaro known for?

Chris R. Vaccaro has skills like Journalism, Social Media, News Writing, Storytelling, Facebook, New Media, Editorial, Editing, Sports, Magazines, Proofreading, Writing.

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