Media heavyweights Gary Newman and Lisa Gersh join Attention Capital

Attention Capital, the new media and technology investment firm, is adding Gary Newman, former CEO and chairman Fox Networks Group, and Lisa Gersh, former CEO of Alexander Wang, as executive partners.

Details: Newman and Gersh will work with founders across the companies that Attention Capital is investing in. They will advise Attention Capital's three founders — former Snapchat head of content Nick Bell, former SVP of Commercial Growth & Business Strategy at Palantir Ashlyn Gentry, and former president of advertising revenue for Fox Networks Group Joe Marchese — on deals and transactions.

• They will also source deal flow for the investment side of the business and consult on business operations for portfolio companies.

The big picture: The goal of Attention Capital is to buy, build, and scale brands and technologies that shape the attention economy.

• The company is looking to raise nearly $500 million to invest in everything from measurement companies to news brands and entertainment upstarts, sources tell Axios.
• This past summer, Attention Capital joined forces with Lupa Systems, the venture company led James Murdoch, to acquire a majority stake in Tribeca Enterprises, the company that produces the Tribeca Film Festival.