Breathless "exclusive" on BSE Global's upcoming media project, sharing "zeitgeist of Brooklyn," cites influence of youth culture brand Complex.

A breathless "exclusive" Business Insider article published Dec. 11, The billionaire owners of the Nets and Liberty plan to launch a media brand around the 'zeitgeist of Brooklyn' in 2025, relies on five (!) unnamed sources all buffing the same vague but ambitious project.

BSE Global's new media brand will focus on "capturing and sharing the zeitgeist of Brooklyn," spokesperson Sheerin Salimi told Business Insider. They're calling it "Brand X" and even considered "Boom," but it's no longer on the table.

Much of this isn't new--it started with the purchase (and transformation) of once-indie Brooklyn Magazine (whose editor is gone) and has been amplified in other coverage, including plans for retail and events.

Screenshot from Complex

The Complex complex

What's new is the influence of the youth culture brand Complex, which mixes content, including video, and direct marketing. 

They've hired five former Complex staffers and are using the former CEO as advisor.

From the article:

Complex was started in 2002 by streetwear designer Marc Ecko and became a rare digital media success story, helped by its influence on youth culture and its long-form video series on YouTube. It spawned a festival called ComplexCon, product lines, and other ventures.

Can it work? Business Insider's Lucia Moses noted that digital media isn't an easy game, but "BSE's roots in sports could be an important asset at a time when athletes and teams are becoming even more central to media and pop culture."

Anonymous puffery

The article ends with this hard-hitting kicker:

"I think BSE realizes they have a really strong brand they can build stuff around right now," said a fourth person with direct knowledge of the company's media plans.

What's unclear is how much they're planning to spend, and on what. Clearly the purchase of the retail condo space at the Williamsburgh Bank building is a hefty brick-and-mortar investment to reach new customers via markets and events.

And BSE Global, thanks to the 15% investment by the Julia Koch family, at an astounding valuation, has some extra cash.