• by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer @mp_gavin, November 7, 2011

OMMA Display’s first panel of the day, “Man vs. Machine,” is tackling the display ad  marketplace’s obsession with automation, and it’s uneasy relationship with humans.  

There’s “No question that technology can be a great enabler,” notes Mediapost editor-in-chief Joe Mandese. The real question, however, is how to keep the human element. Bottom line, insists Ben Kartzman, CEO of display ad company Spongecell, is that the industy has “to create [content] that people want.”

Mandese, meanwhile, couldn’t forgo the opportunity to bring a real machine into the conversation. IBM’s Watson apparently had a previous engagement, so Apple Siri had to do:

Mandese: Which is better, man or machine?

Siri: I’m sorry, but I’m not feeling very decisive today.

Mandese: Which is better, art or science?

Siri: I can’t decide?

Mandese: What do you think of HAL 9000?

Siri: I’d rather not talk about HAL, but if you must.