Today's Media Pulse
Publicis resumes recommending The Trade Desk after fee dispute
Publicis has lifted its ban and is again recommending The Trade Desk to advertisers, ending a months‑long clash over alleged hidden ad‑tech fees. The dispute had driven The Trade Desk’s shares down roughly 13% and prompted the exit of its chief marketing officer. Both firms issued a joint statement confirming the reconciliation.
Also developing:
By the numbers: K-LOVE acquires Baltimore station in undisclosed deal
Free TV Networks Strikes Fourth Deal Under Versant, Expands FAST Distribution Push
Free TV Networks (FTV), a Versant division, sealed its fourth free‑ad‑supported streaming (FAST) distribution agreement of 2024, adding its channels 365BLK, Outlaw and Pam Grier’s Soul Flix to Philo’s platform. The partnership expands FTV’s reach to Philo’s millions of viewers and complements recent launches on CBS O&O stations, Sling Freestream and Prime Video. Over the past year the FAST portfolio logged nearly 16 million viewing hours, roughly 43,000 hours each day. The move underscores FTV’s dual strategy of scaling FAST while retaining over‑the‑air (OTA) distribution.
NAB Show 2026: AI, Vertical and BPS Dominate Broadcasters’ Discussions
At the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas, roughly 58,000 attendees—half of them first‑timers—convened to discuss AI, vertical video, and next‑generation broadcast technologies. Major vendors unveiled AI‑driven tools such as AWS Elemental Inference for automatic 9:16 cuts and TVU Networks’...
Trump’s Authoritarian War on Comedy Just Hit a Dangerous New Phase — and He's Getting the FCC Involved
The Federal Communications Commission is reportedly preparing a review of Disney’s broadcast licenses after President Donald Trump publicly demanded that ABC fire late‑night host Jimmy Kimmel for a joke about the first lady. FCC Chair Brendan Carr warned that corporate...
Sometimes the Truth Is Not What You Want It to Be
NewsGuard’s Reality Check newsletter published a commentary by co‑CEO Steven Brill, arguing that truth is increasingly rejected in a polarized media environment. The piece cites a subscriber’s complaint about a report labeling a White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting claim as "baseless,"...
KEET PBS Deploys PMVG TechBundle Services To Modernize Operations
KEET PBS in Eureka, California has adopted two components of the Public Media Venture Group TechBundle—PMM Cloud and Transmission Services Group’s managed transmission and monitoring. The cloud‑based master‑control platform lets the station shift from multiple on‑premises racks to a streamlined,...
Relatable Reels Linked to Lower Mood and Motivation, Says Iraa Paul
Iraa Paul argues that the surge of relatable reels on social platforms is quietly eroding users' mood and drive, as detailed in a April 28, 2026 IndiaTimes piece. The analysis ties algorithmic loops and emotional exaggeration to heightened anxiety, urging...
‘Death by Lightning,’ ‘Big Mistakes,’ Rachel Sennott Lead 2026 Gotham Television Awards Nominations
The Gotham Film & Media Institute announced the 2026 Gotham Television Awards nominations, covering twelve competitive categories. Netflix’s “Big Mistakes” and “Death by Lightning” lead with four nominations each, while HBO/HBO Max tops network totals with 23 nods. Rachel Sennott earned...
Seth MacFarlane Says Ted Season 3 or Film Hinges on Peacock’s Deep Pockets
Seth MacFarlane told a Deadline Contenders panel that a third season of the live‑action‑comedy series Ted—or a new movie—will only move forward if Peacock invests its “vast amounts of big Scrooge McDuck money.” The plea follows Season 2’s record‑breaking streaming minutes, which topped...
Adobe Ramps up Firefly AI Campaign to Win Creators, Eyes Premium Tier
Adobe unveiled a new Firefly AI campaign starring YouTubers Kinigra Deon and Airrack, showcasing the tool’s audio, video and mood‑board capabilities. The push promotes a free tier, a $10‑per‑month plan with 2,000 credits and a $200‑per‑month premium tier offering 50,000...
The 2026 Gotham TV Award (GOTHAM) Nominations
The Gotham Film & Media Institute unveiled its 2026 Television Awards nominations, covering twelve competitive categories and introducing a new Limited or Anthology Series segment. Netflix, HBO Max, Apple TV, and other streaming services dominate the slate, with titles like...
Pinterest Teams with tvScientific to Tap High‑intent CTV Audiences
Pinterest has joined forces with tvScientific to deliver high‑intent, purchase‑ready audiences to connected‑TV (CTV) devices. The partnership extends Pinterest's ad inventory beyond its traditional web and mobile properties, giving advertisers a new channel to reach shoppers as they stream video....
The 10 TV Shows We’re Watching in May 2026
Esquire’s editors highlight ten new series debuting in May 2026 across major streaming platforms, from Netflix’s literary adaptation *Lord of the Flies* to HBO Max’s samurai drama *Song of the Samurai*. The lineup spans genres—classic literature, period crime, sci‑fi, travel,...
Why the Best Creator Marketing AI Is Built on the Best Data
CreatorIQ argues that AI’s value in creator marketing hinges on the quality of its underlying data. Its proprietary Creator Graph ingests 250 million social posts each day and draws on more than a decade of aggregated creator, content, and performance signals....
FCC License Threats Signal Government Retaliation Against Critics
Monday: Trump demands ABC fire Jimmy Kimmel. Tuesday: The FCC orders Disney to file early license renewals, two years ahead of schedule. That’s not a coincidence. That’s retaliation. The First Amendment only works if the government can’t threaten your license for content they...
American Idol: Unexpected Merle Haggard Cover Changes Everything!
Hannah Harper, a 25‑year‑old mother from Missouri, delivered a standout cover of Merle Haggard’s “That’s the Way Love Goes” on American Idol’s Season 24. The rendition earned unanimous praise from judges Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, with Underwood promising to...
False Balance
The post explains false balance, a rhetorical flaw where opposing views are presented as equally credible despite unequal evidence. It illustrates the problem with examples such as journalists giving a layperson’s baseless opinion the same weight as a scientific expert’s...
FTC Says $2.1 Billion Lost to Social‑Media Scams in 2025, Facebook Leads the Way
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission disclosed that Americans lost $2.1 billion to social‑media scams in 2025, an eightfold jump since 2020. Facebook alone was linked to $794 million of those losses, while investment, shopping and romance scams drove the bulk of the...
Cracking Apple TV: The Shows It Wants Now
Apple TV’s acquisition strategy is now laser‑focused on premium, populist content that features recognizable movie or TV stars, a shift driven by the post‑WGA‑deal environment where buyers only green‑light projects with clear production paths. The streamer celebrated a record Emmy...
Dispelling Media Myths: Size, Uniqueness, and Print Still Matter
Myths That Can Hurt Your Business – I need to own a “big” business to get the media’s attention. – I need a unique theory or insight. – Small publications don’t matter. – I don’t need print publicity now that I have profiles on...
FCC Probes Bridge News for Unauthorized License Control Transfer
Isn't it clearer than that @brianstelter? @FCC Media Bureau said it was investigating Bridge News "for possible violations of the @FCC’s prohibition on unauthorized transfers of control of the station licenses." https://t.co/G9yDWJxuX7
Former FCC Staffers Agree: Brendan Carr Needs to Be Stopped
Former FCC commissioners and staffers from both parties have filed a petition urging the D.C. Circuit Court to compel the commission to vote on repealing the News Distortion Policy, a rule dating back to 1949. Chairman Brendan Carr has revived...
Hungarian State Media Pivots to Impartiality Post‑Orbán
Curious to see what happens to the Hungarian media landscape following the end of Orbán’s regime. So far, employees with state media orgs have fired prominent staff; expressed a desire to host guests opposing Orbán; and demanded editorial impartiality. https://t.co/csOfvJb62s...
Newcomer Media Podcast Tackles ICE, DEI, Twitter Chaos
FRESH on the @NewcomerMedia podcast @KatieS Whoop for your poop, speaking out against ICE, DEI in the Trump era, Twitter the cockroach, and much more https://t.co/H1kFzXg00e
‘Running Point’ Is ‘The Office’ Meets the Lakers
Netflix’s comedy "Running Point" returns for a second season, starring Kate Hudson as a fictional team president modeled on Lakers executive Jeanie Buss. Created by Mindy Kaling and others, the series mirrors Buss’s real‑life family power struggle after the Lakers’...
FCC Moves to Challenge ABC Licenses After Kimmel Monologue
FCC plans to challenge ABC’s broadcast licenses after Kimmel monologue, sources tell me & @rogoswami https://t.co/HAi0WLFXfZ
China’s Crackdown Targets Journalists Exposing Overseas Intimidation
Journalists reporting on China should be aware of ways the authorities may respond to their work. Here's what happened to @ICIJorg and its network following a 2025 exposé on Beijing’s tactics to threaten, coerce and intimidate regime critics overseas. https://t.co/kGXs8PegQC
Spotify Posts Record Operating Income, Adds 3 Million Quarterly Subs to 293 Million, Stock Tumbles
Spotify reported a record operating income of €715 million ($837 million) in Q1 2026, adding 3 million paid subscribers to reach 293 million worldwide. Monthly active users rose to 761 million, a 12% year‑over‑year increase. Subscription revenue grew 10% to €4.15 billion ($4.86 billion), while ad‑supported revenue...
Book Review – How To AI: Cut Through The Hype. Master The Basics. Transform Your Work.
Christopher Mims’s 2026 book *How to AI* offers a no‑fluff guide for non‑technical professionals seeking to harness artificial intelligence. Drawing on his Wall Street Journal reporting, Mims demystifies core concepts, introduces the term “simulated intelligence,” and explains why AI hallucinations...
FCC Reviews Disney Licenses Amid First Amendment Concerns
Here's hoping that Mickey has grown a pair and learned a lesson from Carr's last attack on Kimmel and the Constitution. There could be no clearer attack on the First Amendment. Hang tough, Mouse. FCC prepares review of Disney’s TV...
The Office-Style Medical Sitcom that "Brims with Heart" Confirms BBC Release Date for New Season
BBC has set the release date for the second season of the mock‑umentary sitcom *St Denis Medical* on its iPlayer platform for May 1, 2024. The Oregon‑based emergency‑room comedy, which already premiered in the United States, follows nurse Alex (Allison Tolman) as she...
The Live Revenge: Sports Are Taking Back Power in the Age of Infinite Content
Live sports have become the scarcest, highest‑value asset as AI turns scripted content into a commodity. Record‑breaking viewership—Super Bowl LIX’s 127.7 million audience and Netflix’s 65 million NFL stream—show live events command attention like no on‑demand format. In Latin America, 76% of...
‘Everybody Gets It’: Inside the Brand Partnerships Powering ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’
The sequel to *The Devil Wears Prada* is set to open May 1 with a projected $66 million box‑office debut, prompting a wave of brand partnerships. More than 15 major advertisers—including Smartwater, TRESemmé, Zillow, Samsung and Walmart—have signed co‑marketing deals that blend...
The FTC Says Americans Lost at Least $2.1 Billion to Social Media Scams in 2025
The Federal Trade Commission reported that Americans lost at least $2.1 billion to social‑media scams in 2025, an eightfold increase since 2020. Investment‑related fraud accounted for $1.1 billion of that total, while over 40 percent of victims blamed shopping ads that led to...
Laura Dern Reteams with Mike White on The White Lotus Season 4
Oscar‑winner Laura Dern is returning to HBO’s hit anthology series The White Lotus, stepping in for Helena Bonham Carter in the upcoming Season 4. Creator Mike White, who helmed the first three installments, confirmed Dern’s casting as part of a broader reshuffle announced...
America First Shifts to Permit Full Foreign Broadcast Ownership
America First now means changing the rules to sell American broadcast infrastructure to foreign investors.
Troy Carter on Why Suno Changes Everything
Troy Carter, former Spotify executive and early backer of Uber and Dropbox, praised Suno as the most consequential music technology ever, even surpassing radio and the phonograph. He argued that generative AI platforms like Suno equalize the playing field by...
Swedish Edition of “When Everyone Knows” Arrives October
The Swedish translation of When everyone knows that everyone knows will be published by Fri Tanke ("Free thought") this October. https://t.co/doXjKpofar
Streaming Is Starting to Look a Lot Like Broadcast TV
Streaming platforms are abandoning the serialized prestige dramas that defined the Peak TV era and are instead embracing procedural formats that echo 1990s‑2000s broadcast TV. Luminate data shows serialized drama premieres dropped from over 250 in 2022 to fewer than...
Thursday TV Ratings: Going Dutch, Elsbeth, Scrabble, Law & Order, 9-1-1
The latest Thursday TV ratings, compiled using Fast Affiliate Numbers, show viewership performance for new episodes of shows such as Going Dutch, Law & Order, and Scrabble, alongside the NFL Draft Round 1 sports broadcast. Percent changes reflect each program’s audience...
Jeremy Scott Trades ‘ATC’ For ‘Morning Edition’ In Pittsburgh
Jeremy Scott is transitioning from hosting NPR’s All Things Considered to the Morning Edition slot at Pittsburgh’s 90.5 WESA. The move leaves the All Things Considered host chair vacant, prompting a search for a new local anchor. Station executives praised Scott’s...
Ted Lasso’s Fourth Season Starts August 5
Apple TV+ announced that Ted Lasso’s fourth season will debut on August 5, with new episodes airing weekly through October 7. The series returns to Richmond, this time focusing on the club’s women’s team in the second division. Core cast...
Southern Utah’s Redrock Media Makes Mathis Its Next Sales Lead
Redrock Media announced that former Utah Broadcasters Association board member Terry Mathis will serve as its new Director of Sales. Mathis will oversee revenue generation for the company’s five‑station St. George cluster and its digital marketing arm, Redrock Connect, succeeding...
Magazines Received – March
Locus’s March roundup catalogs 27 speculative‑fiction periodicals spanning print, digital and free‑online formats. The list includes established titles such as Asimov’s and Clarkesworld alongside niche newcomers like Reckoning X and Fiyah, a Black speculative‑fiction magazine. Pricing varies widely, from free web‑based...
Kate McKinnon and Sister Emily Lynne Reunite for Sequel to ‘Heads Will Roll’ Fantasy Spoof at Audible
Kate McKinnon and her sister Emily Lynne are returning to Audible with "Heads Will Roll: Heir Apparent," a ten‑episode sequel that premieres on June 25, 2026. The fantasy spoof follows Queen Mortuana’s frantic quest to produce an heir before her...
FreeWheel Launches New Partner Portal
FreeWheel unveiled Partner Portal, a unified hub that lets approved partners create, test and scale applications on its Streaming Hub for premium publishers. The portal streamlines API access, sandbox environments and deployment, cutting the need for bespoke integrations. Early adopters...
A New Satellite-to-IP Transition Tool Arrives
At the 2026 NAB Show, Synamedia unveiled the latest version of its Quortex PowerVu platform, a cloud‑based solution that moves broadcast program delivery from traditional satellite links to IP‑driven workflows. The system adds edge processing, allowing affiliates to pull national...
Publishers Must Build Own Ecosystems, Not Depend on Search
Fascinating note in this from Barry Diller to shareholders, esp for publishers: "We recognized the coming reality of zero search traffic years ago, successfully transitioning out of depending upon search engines for our traffic to create our own ecosystem." https://t.co/cpgaIf2ar7
Emma Stone's "Extraordinary" Drama Hailed as a "Triumph" Is Being Removed From Netflix Very Soon
Netflix’s UK catalogue will drop Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Oscar‑winning drama *Birdman* on 18 May, prompting a last‑minute push for subscribers to stream the film. The 2014 Best Picture winner, starring Michael Keaton, Emma Stone and Edward Norton, remains accessible on Prime...
New Podcast Gains Wild Momentum and High-Impact Guests
The momentum of my new podcast with @MikeLindstrom called @WYSPodcast_com is absolutely wild to me. The caliber of guests, conversations, network effects, impact, social media impressions, downloads...all of it. Check out the show. Big things happening. https://t.co/GXj3d44ARs
Netflix’s Best New Movie Was Snubbed At The Oscars
Netflix’s latest slate includes the off‑beat sci‑fi drama "Bugonia," starring Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons. The film earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best Actress but lost both, with Stone falling to Jessie Buckley and Plemons receiving no acting...