Avi Rajagopal: Attention is Earned, Not Pitched

Avi Rajagopal: Attention is Earned, Not Pitched

From Play with Matches by UpSpring

April 14, 2026 · 30 min

About this episode

Avi Rajagopal discusses how stories earn attention in the design media landscape.

What makes a story earn attention in today’s design media landscape? In this episode of Play with Matches, host Tiffany Rafii sits down with Avi Rajagopal, Editor-in-Chief of Metropolis, to unpack how products, projects, and brands break through—and why most don’t. From editorial judgment and timing to positioning and cultural relevance, Avi shares what separates the pitches that land from the ones that get ignored. Metropolis | Show Transcript Think you’d make a great guest on Play with Matc...

People in this episode

Host: Tiffany Rafii

Guest: Avi Rajagopal

Topics covered

  • design media
  • storytelling
  • editorial judgment
  • cultural relevance
  • branding

Keywords

  • attention
  • design
  • media
  • branding
  • editorial

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Metropolis

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