A video link-up with Martin Sorrell will be a highlight of this year's Future Forum in Sydney.
The 70-year-old English knight - who built shopping basket business WPP into the world's biggest advertising and media agency group - is an outspoken supporter and critic of the news media industry.
In Cannes recently, he both described traditional media such as the BBC, the New York Times and the Guardian as "stuffy" and asserted that newspapers were more engaging for readers. "It maybe that old-style felling trees and distributing newspapers and magazines is more effective than we think," he told the Australian in an interview.
Sorrell, who joined Wire and Plastic Products in 1986 as chief executive - the position he still holds - after starting to invest in it, now heads a business with more than 188,000 people in 111 countries. It is best known through member companies which include MEC, Group M, J Walter Thompson, Ogilvy & Mather, Y&R and Mindshare, which contributed to 2014 billings of £46.2 billion and revenue of £11.5 billion.
Raju Narisetti, News Corp's senior vice president for strategy, has also been confirmed as a speaker at this year's forum.
The event at the Sydney Hilton on September 10-11, continues the 'influencing' theme of organisers The Newspaper Works as 'Influencing a connected world'. Sir Martin and Narisetti speak at the plenary on the second day, ahead of the Newspaper of the Year awards dinner. More than ore than 600 delegates attended last year's events.
At News Corp - parent of the News Corp Australia operation - Narisetti (right) has been primarily involved with new ventures and acquisitions that drive digital growth. He was previously managing editor of Washington Post Co and was founder/editor of India's Mint financial newspaper, which published by HT Media under a content agreement with News' Wall Street Journal - and was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2007.
Newspaper Works chief executive Mark Hollands says the Future Forum will present a world class speaker line-up, "testament to the influential role news media continues to play in the advertising and communications industry and society in general".
Further regional and international speakers will be announced soon and Hollands says they will include leaders from iconic media brands discussing strategy, design, mobile, sales operations and much more. Three workshops will include master classes for editorial, advertising and marketing, and print and production.
Sponsored by Norske Skog, the event is free for members of The Newspaper Works. To register visit thenewspaperworks.com.au/events. Non-members wishing to attend should contact kyliehannah@thenewspaperworks.com.au.