AP Threatens Legal Action as Lee Seeks Contract Exit
Scoop: AP threatens Lee Enterprises over potential contract breach — Lee said last month it wants to terminate its contract w AP. Has suggested it's because of its focus on local coverage — AP says its legally bound to their deal, which expires 12/31 https://t.co/ofUy8qZmfV
Meta to Open‑source some AI Models, Not All.
Scoop: Meta will still open-source AI models — just not all of them via @inafried https://t.co/fBELUAG0tj
AP Trims Staff as Big‑tech Revenue Soars, Newspaper Sales Plunge
NEW: AP plans staff cuts, restructuring amid broader business shift - Revenue from newspaper groups has fallen 25% in last 4 years, while revenue from Big Tech has increased 200% - Cuts will impact fewer 5% global staff https://t.co/D60ndpxjPX
OpenAI Buys TBPN, Ends Its Advertising Arm
🚨 OpenAI acquires TBPN "TBPN under OpenAI will wind down its advertising business, which saw co-founders and hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays read commercials aloud radio-host-style and don racing jackets emblazoned with sponsors’ logos." https://t.co/vXnrhPGD9j
Delta SkyMiles Members Get 24‑hour NYT Access
NEW: @nytimes & @Delta have stuck a unique multi-year distribution deal that gives SkyMiles members access to all of NYT's journalism and products via its via seat-back screens and their personal devices for 24 hours More on @axios: https://t.co/2zH9MnA9Th
Video Spending Stalls; Bundling Needed but Unlikely
NEW: Consumer spending on video has plateaued since the pandemic, and advertising isn't enough to save the industry from stalling out — The market could start to grow again if streamers teamed up and started to bundle services — Analysts don't...
Fox's Red Seat Launches Ultra‑wealthy Live‑event Membership
Scoop: Fox Corp's Red Seat Ventures is building a premium membership for the ultra-wealthy centered around live events — Eyeing concierge services, VIP access, the works — Could be synergies with Fox Sports More in @axios https://t.co/0GyAdBFPsM
Search Decline Hits Small Publishers Hardest
New data suggests small publishers (10k daily pageviews or less) are hit hardest by search traffic declines —Chatbots only drive 1% of all traffic referrals, so they can't make up the gap —News sites get most page views from AI platforms, but...
Food Critic Tom Sietsema Joins Beehiiv, Offers Exclusive Content
🍔 NEW: The legendary food critic @tomsietsema is joining Beehiiv and is cooking up something special for subscribers https://t.co/m6ACgUY6lj #axiosmediatrends
Trump Administration Tightens Grip on Iran War Coverage
Trump Administration ramps up press pressure over Iran war coverage —Broadcaster license threats —Disparaging rhetoric —Tightening grip over Stars and Stripes —Denying photogs Pentagon press briefing access —Using VOA to urge Iranians to rebel @axios https://t.co/kRuCYUk6Uc
Gracenote Sues OpenAI over Stolen Metadata Structure
Scoop: Nielsen's Gracenote sues OpenAI for copyright infringement —Lawsuit is unique because it alleges not just that OpenAI stole its metadata, but that it also stole the proprietary sequence/structure that organizes that data & makes it useful @axios https://t.co/eeupqVybEE
State AGs Turn Into Media Antitrust Enforcers
New @axios: State AGs becoming bigger media antitrust cops: 🎸EVENTS: 27 states +DC still suing to break up Live Nation/Ticketmaster 📺LOCAL TV: State AGs considering lawsuit to block Nexstar-Tegna 📽️HOLLYWOOD: Cali state AG is vocal about concerns re: WBD/Paramount https://t.co/rXMsHy4JxJ
Trump’s Media Lawsuits Stumble: Courts Dismiss All Cases
President Trump's legal pressure on media companies has faced ample pushback in court —USAGM, Mar 2026 (Lake's tenure voided) —TMTG, Nov 2025 (Suit dismissed) —CNN, 2023 (Dismissed) —NYT, 2023 (Dismissed) Still watching: AP legal fight & BBC lawsuit https://t.co/Gxt9QOkooS
Republicans Prioritize Trump, Democrats
We mapped all midterm ad airings between Jan 1 2025 and Feb 18 2026 using @adimpact data. Key takeaways: -For Republicans, Trump has proven a more formidable message than the economy -Health care big issue for Dems, but not like 2018 -Ads barely...
Paramount/WBD Deal Likely Survives, Lawsuit Threat Looms
Antitrust experts don't see Paramount/WBD deal getting blocked by DOJ or abroad, but any lengthy probes abroad could buy state AGs time to assemble a lawsuit — Will they have a legit enough antitrust case to win in court? Uphill battle. @axios https://t.co/czZPajmweE
