Opening Monologue: The 2026 OBIE Awards
By Brent Baer, Publisher, OOH Today
(Cue music. Polite applause. Someone in the back is already checking their phone.)
NYC, October 2026: In preparation for the upcoming OBIE Awards for 2026, the one touted as the first as a standalone in October in NYC, I imagine the conversations before, during, and after the awards might center on the following.
Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the OBIE Awards—now officially standalone.
That’s right. The OBIEs have moved out. New apartment. October lease. New York City zip code. Very grown up. Very, “we’re fine, actually.”
Let’s be honest—this has been a long time coming.
For years, the OBIEs were like the coolest person at the party… stuck giving a speech between lunch and a breakout session called “OOH: Still Here!”
Tonight? Tonight we have the whole room.
Which is great.
Because attention is our thing.
Now, I know what some of you are thinking:
“Does a standalone awards show fix OOH’s biggest problems?”
Of course not.
But it does fix the seating.
… stuck giving a speech between lunch and a breakout session called “OOH: Still Here!”
And honestly, in this industry, that counts as progress.
Let’s talk about why we’re here.
We’re here to celebrate creativity.
Because OOH has never lacked great ideas.
We’ve had bold work, beautiful work, brave work—
We just occasionally had trouble convincing procurement that beauty was a KPI.
But tonight isn’t about that.
Tonight is about trophies. Heavy ones. With sharp edges. The kind that say, “Yes, this was expensive—and no, we didn’t test it.”
And now that we’re in New York, let’s address the obvious:
This city doesn’t make things better.
It just makes them louder.
Which is perfect for out of home.
Because if your work can survive New York—
The critics, the creatives, the CMOs who “don’t usually do OOH”—
Then congratulations. Your billboard has officially earned trauma and respect.
Of course, there are skeptics.
Some people say, “Do we really need another industry awards night?”
And to that we say:
No.
But we do need decision-makers in the room.
We do need decision-makers in the room
So if you’re a brand leader here tonight—welcome.
If you’re an agency CMO, thank you for coming on your own.
And if you’re an independent operator who paid full price for this ticket—
We see you. We salute you. Drinks are… unfortunately still not comped.
Let’s also be clear:
Awards don’t grow market share.
They don’t fix measurement.
They don’t magically make OOH the first line in the media plan.
But they do remind the industry—and everyone watching from the outside—that when OOH is done right, it doesn’t interrupt culture.
It is culture.
When OOH is done right, it doesn’t interrupt culture…It is culture.
So tonight, let’s celebrate the work.
Let’s applaud the ideas.
Let’s post the photos. Tag the clients. Thank the teams.
And tomorrow—
Tomorrow we go right back to the real work:
Turning this creative firepower into undeniable demand.
Because if there’s one thing out of home has proven for over 80 years…
It’s when we own the stage that people look up.
Enjoy the show. 👏
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