Jeff McCann, Silverpush at Cannes Lions 2026: Breaking Brand Safety to Save Lives | Q-Series

Every brand safety tool in advertising is built to avoid content about self-harm, depression, and eating disorders. The Cannes Lions-winning "Defining Help" campaign was built to find it. Live from Cannes Lions 2026, Nikki Stone sits down with Jeff McCann, Regional Vice President, Canada at Silverpush — the contextual AI company that helped Kids Help Phone, McCann Canada, and Epitaph Group deliberately break YouTube's brand safety algorithm. The team ran Silverpush's contextual advertising technology in reverse: instead of finding brand ambassadors or Nike sneakers, it found the "brand unsafe" content young people in crisis were actually watching — and placed hundreds of creative variants exactly there, region by region, issue by issue. The data behind it is staggering: 50+ million anonymized, real-language data points from real conversations with young people — a community Kids Help Phone has connected with more than 22 million times since 2020, where 75% of youth share something they've never told anyone before. The work took home three Cannes Lions this year: two Gold (Use of Data & Analytics; Data Integration) and a Silver (Audience Insights). The real outcome: kids in crisis picking up the phone. Jeff also breaks down what happens when you break your own adtech product on purpose — new contextual targeting products for broadcast-quality YouTube inventory, premium podcasts, and trending content — plus the Lumen attention research proving contextually relevant ads cost less and change minds. And his life advice for the Sixers: be consistent and thoughtful. It's a marathon, not a sprint. 💛 THIS SERIES SUPPORTS NABS CANADA Our Cannes Q-Series raises funds and awareness for NABS — the National Advertising Benevolent Society, the only Canadian charity dedicated to supporting media, marketing and communications professionals through financial assistance and mental wellness support. @NABS_Canada ► Donate + learn more: nabs.org If you or a young person you know needs support: Kids Help Phone — call 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► IN THIS EPISODE ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ • Breaking YouTube's brand safety algorithm — on purpose — for Kids Help Phone's "Defining Help" • Contextual AI in reverse: 50M+ anonymized youth data points → region-by-region creative targeting • Three Cannes Lions 2026: what the wins mean for contextual advertising • Breaking your own product: broadcast-quality YouTube, premium podcasts & trending content • The Lumen attention research: why context lowers ad costs and changes behavior • Jeff's life advice: consistent and thoughtful — it's a marathon, not a sprint ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► CHAPTERS (verified against final cut — exact) ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 00:00 — Live from Cannes: Q-Series + why we support NABS 01:13 — Meet Jeff McCann of Silverpush 01:38 — Defining Help: breaking brand safety to reach kids in crisis 05:18 — Breaking your own product & why context wins 13:00 — Life advice: it's a marathon, not a sprint ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► GUESTS ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Jeff McCann — Regional Vice President, Canada, Silverpush → linkedin.com/in/mrjeffmccann · [IG @handle — confirm] Silverpush — contextual AI advertising (MIRRORS platform) → silverpush.co · LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/silverpush Campaign partners: Kids Help Phone · McCann Canada · Epitaph Group ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► HOSTS ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Nikki Stone — Founder, YQ → thinkyq.com · Clare Ravenstreet — @Clareravenstree The Sixth Suite is brought to you by YQ Advisory → thinkyq.com ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► SUPPORT NABS CANADA ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ NABS Canada is the safety net for Canadian media and advertising professionals — from financial assistance to mental wellness support, when our community needs it most. 🌐 nabs.org · 📸 IG: @nabs_canada · 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/nabs-canada · FB: @nabsCanada 💛 Every view, share, and dollar helps. Donate → nabs.org ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► FOLLOW THE SIXTH SUITE ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 🌐 Website: thesixthsuitepodcast.com ▶️ YouTube:    / @thesixthsuite   🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5oBGB4I... 🍎 Apple Podcasts: search "The Sixth Suite" 📸 Instagram: @thesixthsuite · 🎵 TikTok: @thesixthsuite 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/the-sixth-suite ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ ► IF THIS HIT ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 🔔 SUBSCRIBE — more Cannes drops are landing all week:    / @thesixthsuite   💬 COMMENT: what's the best example you've seen of this industry using its powers for good? 📤 SHARE this with someone who thinks brand safety rules can't be rewritten. 💛 DONATE to NABS Canada → nabs.org #CannesLions #CannesLions2026 #ContextualAI #BrandSafety #KidsHelpPhone #Silverpush #AdTech #ContextualAdvertising #YouTubeAds #MarketingPodcast #TheSixthSuite #QSeries #NABSCanada #NABS #MediaIndustry