Today's Media Pulse
Paramount‑Skydance seals $110.9B Warner Bros. Discovery takeover
The U.S. Department of Justice approved Paramount Skydance’s all‑cash $110.9 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, pricing the deal at $31 per share and valuing the combined entity at a 7.5× 2026 EBITDA multiple. The clearance removes the long‑standing regulatory discount on legacy studios and reshapes the media‑sector landscape.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Autentic acquires Albatross World Sales (value undisclosed)
How Extremist Groups Are Sharing a Global Media Strategy
Extremist organizations—from ISIS‑K to Hezbollah—have converged on a shared media playbook that mirrors private‑sector competitive learning. Telegram functions as the central hub, feeding content to a two‑tier network of official channels and surrogate platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Groups simultaneously distribute material across 3‑7 outlets and archive it on sites like Archive.org to survive takedowns. They also employ rapid “narrative jacking,” releasing branded videos within hours of events and tailoring parallel local and international messages to amplify grievances and drive radicalization.
Indiana’s Got a Voting Problem. News Outlets Can only Do so Much to Fix It
Indiana consistently ranks among the lowest‑turnout states, with only 59% of registered voters casting ballots in the 2024 presidential election, compared with 70% in Washington. While registration rates exceed 90%, the state lacks a coordinated government voter‑education program, leaving news...
PayPal Goes After Streaming TV Advertisers With New Adtech Deals
PayPal is extending its advertising platform into streaming TV and the open web with a new offering called Curated Ads. The product leverages PayPal’s transaction graph to build purchase‑based audience segments that can be targeted through partnerships with Warner Bros. Discovery, Spectrum...
Caravaggio and Rubens Works Destroyed by Fire in Second World War Are Brought Back to (Digital) Life
The Gemäldegalerie in Berlin has digitised its high‑resolution glass‑negative archive of paintings destroyed in a 1945 fire, including works by Caravaggio, Rubens, Veronese and van Dyck. Around 430 large‑format pieces were lost, leaving a major gap in art‑historical records. The project...
CMG Productions & ‘The Football Ramble’ Firm Stak To Co-Create Sport And Crime Podcasts
CMG Productions and London‑based indie audio firm Stak have announced a joint venture to develop a slate of sport‑and‑crime podcasts. The partnership will initially produce four original projects, drawing stories from the UK, United States, South Africa and Latin America....
Forecast: New TV OS to Take 28% of European Market by 2030
Omdia forecasts that newly‑emerged TV operating systems will command 28% of Europe’s smart‑TV OS market by 2030, up from 21% in 2025. Google TV’s current 32% lead will erode as V (formerly VIDAA), Titan OS and TiVo gain traction. These...
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport Moves to Recognise Creator Businesses After Call From the Digital Creators APPG
The UK Office for National Statistics has updated its Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) framework to explicitly include internet video and vlog production under code 59.112, following a push by the Digital Creators’ All‑Party Parliamentary Group. The change, welcomed by the...
Richard Bacon Returns To Broadcasting Roots With Interview Podcast ‘Why Are You More Successful Than Me?’
British presenter Richard Bacon returns to on‑air interviewing with the video‑podcast “Why Are You More Successful Than Me?” launching today. The series, produced by his Yes Yes Media imprint, features high‑profile guests such as Gary Lineker, Dexter Fletcher and Elizabeth...
SCMP Excels on Economy, Falters on Tech Coverage
I share some of Zichen Wang's concerns here. The SCMP has some of the best reporting in the world on China, and especially on the Chinese economy, but some of its mainland-related science and technology articles seem a little eccentric. https://t.co/BLosTuxvh4
Why DMMG’s “Modern Time Out” Model Is Working in Local Media
Dont Miss Media Group (DMMG) is scaling its hyperlocal Substack newsletters across several South‑East UK towns, including Margate, Ramsgate and Broadstairs. The Margate edition is on track for about £85,000 ($106,000) in annual revenue, with ad inventory sold out ten...
Here Are the Radio Hall of Fame’s 2026 Nominees: Full List
The Museum of Broadcast Communications released the 24 nominees for the 2026 Radio Hall of Fame, selected by a nominating committee with industry and listener input. Voting opens on April 24 and runs through May 8, with the top six...
Retail Media Is Not Just About Retailers Any More
Retail media is expanding beyond traditional retailer‑owned inventory to capture shopper intent before a purchase decision is made. Multi‑retailer apps, digital leaflet aggregators, and deal platforms now generate pre‑purchase intent signals that can be packaged into targetable audience segments. Brands...
Rollercoaster Television, Producer Behind Netflix’s ‘What’s In The Box?’, Becomes Standalone Business As ITV Studios Ends Investment After Five Years
Rollercoaster Television, the UK indie behind Netflix’s quiz show “What’s in the Box?”, is spinning off as a standalone entity after ITV Studios ends its five‑year investment. The company will rebrand to Rollercoaster Studios and has secured a production‑and‑distribution agreement...
Navigate Health Drives +48% Ad Revenue Growth with Opti Digital
Navigate Health partnered with ad‑tech specialist Opti Digital to overhaul its ad stack, deploying the Ad Manager Hub and Insights Hub. The integration accelerated ad call speeds, raising fast calls from 5% to 35% and cutting slow calls dramatically. Unified...
Seedtag Revolutionises Media Planning & Activation with the Launch of NeuroX
Seedtag unveiled NeuroX, a Neuro‑Contextual exchange that embeds its decade‑old AI engine, Liz, into every impression across more than 30,000 premium publishers and broadcasters. The platform translates emotional tone, intent and interest into addressable signals, allowing agencies, publishers and brands...
Sony Bags India Broadcast Rights for Asian Games 2026
Sony Pictures Networks India has secured exclusive television and digital rights to broadcast the 2026 Asian Games across the Indian subcontinent. The multi‑sport event, slated for September‑October 2026 in Aichi and Nagoya, will be shown on Sony Sports Network channels...
A Eutelsat Apoia a Co-Op Cable No Lançamento De Oferta Expandida De DTH No Caribe
Eutelsat has teamed with Co‑op Cable to launch an expanded direct‑to‑home (DTH) television and satellite‑based broadband offering across the Caribbean, using the EUTELSAT 65 West A satellite. The service blends high‑definition TV with geolocation‑enabled internet connectivity, targeting residential homes and hospitality venues in...
Eutelsat Impulsa a Co-Op Cable en El Lanzamiento De Una Oferta Ampliada De TV Satelital Directa Al Hogar Y Conectividad...
Eutelsat announced a partnership with Co‑op Cable to roll out an expanded direct‑to‑home satellite TV and broadband service across the Caribbean using the EUTELSAT 65 West A satellite. The joint offering bundles high‑definition TV with GEO‑based internet, targeting islands and remote communities where...
‘SNL UK’ Storms Past 86M Views On Social Media, But TV Viewing Drops By A Third
Sky’s UK adaptation of Saturday Night Live has amassed more than 86 million views across YouTube, Instagram Reels, X and TikTok in its first month, driven by viral clips such as Tina Fey’s monologue and the “Last Supper” sketch. While online engagement...
Channel Seven’s Spotlight Digging for Dirt on Clean Energy Ignores Fundamental Facts and Basic Journalistic Standards | Temperature Check
Channel Seven’s prime‑time Spotlight program aired a 50‑minute exposé linking Australia’s renewable‑energy and battery‑storage expansion to “blood cobalt” from artisanal mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The report omitted critical context: the U.S. Geological Survey shows only about 10%...
Innovid Announces General Availability of Hypermode, Cutting Social Campaign Setup Time by Up to 80%
Innovid has launched the general availability of Hypermode, a high‑precision execution layer for social advertising that now supports Meta, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat and TikTok. The platform claims to cut campaign‑setup time by up to 80%, delivering up to six‑fold faster...
The 2026 Facebook Reach Checklist for Affiliates
Facebook’s 2026 algorithm overhaul turns the platform into an AI‑driven discovery engine that heavily favors short‑form video, private shares and native affiliate tags while penalising link‑heavy posts. Meta Verified subscribers can retain link reach, but non‑paying creators see their distribution...
Ocean Outdoor UK Redefines the DOOH Attention Model with Ocean® Portal
Ocean Outdoor UK has launched Ocean® Portal, a freestanding half‑cube digital out‑of‑home (DOOH) format at London’s Battersea Power Station. The 4.5 m × 3 m structure houses five high‑definition LED screens, LiDAR‑based motion tracking, mixed‑reality rendering and Unreal/Unity engines to create walk‑in, interactive experiences....
Jeff Probst Making Himself the Center of Attention Has Hurt Survivor 50 / Secret Lives of Mormon Lives to Resume...
The latest season of Survivor, now in its 50th iteration, is drawing criticism for host Jeff Probst’s increasingly self‑centered on‑camera presence, which many viewers say detracts from the contestants’ stories. Ratings have slipped modestly as fans compare the show to...
EDO Strikes Back Against iSpot By Offering TV Intelligence Data For Free
EDO, recently ordered to pay $18.3 million to rival iSpot, is fighting back by offering its basic TV‑ad intelligence for free through an AI chatbot called ChatEDO. The free data spans 375 million linear‑TV airings from 120 national networks and 2.6 million ads...
How EntertainLens Is Covering the New Wave of Chinese IP Going Global
Over the past eighteen months Chinese intellectual property—web‑novel adaptations, micro‑drama formats, and animated franchises—has moved from a niche trade topic to headline‑making acquisitions by Amazon, Netflix and others. EntertainLens, a Los‑Angeles‑based media platform, was created to fill the reporting gap,...
CommsCon Catchup: What Journalists Think of Themselves, AI and Public Relations
At CommsCon, Medianet’s Amrita Sidhu revealed that 73% of Australian journalists detect AI‑generated pitches and label them lazy, eroding trust. Meanwhile, AI tools are now used by 54% of newsrooms, up from 37% a year earlier, yet journalists remain wary...
Trusted Media Brands Gets An AI Assist To Sell Cross-Platform Audiences
Trusted Media Brands (TMB) is deploying generative AI from Jasper.ai to stitch together disparate audience data across print, web, social, streaming and newsletters. The AI parses massive performance datasets, turning them into concise narratives that help sales teams answer RFPs...
Olivia Dean’s ‘Man I Need’ Passes One Billion Streams on Spotify
Olivia Dean’s single “Man I Need” has entered Spotify’s Billions Club after surpassing one billion streams, joining an elite list of tracks. The British pop star, fresh off Grammy, BRIT and MOBO wins, also logged 20 weeks at No. 1 on...
Think You’re Not A Data Broker? California’s Delete Act Might Say Otherwise
California’s Delete Act now forces any business that collects and sells consumer data without a direct relationship to register as a data broker with the CPPA. Starting August 1, 2026, registered brokers must process deletion requests through the new Delete Request and...
Kill Boring Dead Takes Three Webby Nods Home, Proving “Weird” Wins at the Webby Awards
Australian agency Kill Boring Dead (KBD) secured a Webby Award in the Social & Games – Weird category for its Loctite “Museum of Second Chances” campaign, while also earning a nomination in Arts, Culture & Lifestyle against heavyweights like Taylor Swift...
WBD Extends Giro D’Italia Rights
Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has extended its exclusive rights to broadcast the Giro d’Italia, Giro d’Italia Women and a suite of premier Italian road races through at least 2029. The agreement with RCS Sport preserves coverage on Eurosport across 50...
Shared Screens: Co-Viewers in APAC Are More Likely to Act on Ads Than Solo Viewers
PubMatic’s new report reveals that shared‑screen viewing on connected TV (CTV) drives markedly higher ad performance across APAC. Co‑viewers pay 42 % more attention, recall brands 53 % better, and are 70 % more likely to act than solo viewers. The study of...
How The Financial Times Is Betting on Personality-Led Vodcasts as Its Next Subscription Lever
The Financial Times has launched “The Story of Money,” a history‑of‑finance vodcast on YouTube that also streams as a podcast, marking its first stand‑alone, multi‑platform video brand. Sponsored by Nuveen, the series pairs star journalists with a narrow editorial franchise...
How Intentional Is the Social Media Divide?
The article argues that social‑media algorithms have deepened a partisan split, creating parallel digital worlds where users rarely encounter opposing viewpoints. Pew data show only 20% of Americans use X, while platforms like Threads, Blue Sky, Truth Social, Instagram and...
Vibes over Metrics: Why More Creators Are Holding IRL Events to Own Their Audience
Creators are increasingly hosting in‑person (IRL) events to cement audience loyalty and diversify beyond platform algorithms. Programs like Snap School and FiveTwoNine's Creator Fund are funding workshops and travel, helping creators build offline communities. High‑profile examples such as Dude Perfect’s...
Criminal Record Season Two Review – Peter Capaldi Is Just Devastating in This Intense Crime Thriller
Apple TV+’s "Criminal Record" returns for a second season, anchored by Peter Capaldi’s unsettling turn as DCI Daniel Hegarty. The series deepens its exploration of systemic police corruption and the rise of far‑right extremism, set against a perpetually dim London...
Scrolling for Answers: How Reliable Is Mental Health and Neurodivergence-Related Information on Social Media?
A systematic review of 27 studies examined the accuracy of mental‑health and neurodivergence content across major social‑media platforms. The analysis of over 5,000 posts found misinformation rates ranging from 0% on YouTube Kids to 35% on TikTok, with YouTube generally...
Listen to Aman R. Sanger's First Pre
LS was the first podcast cursor ever did listen back to baby @amanrsanger when they were 5 people and pre-PMF https://t.co/0tIvpIwjC4
Why Do People Fall for Propaganda? New Directions in Disinformation Research
Lucid’s latest post spotlights new interdisciplinary approaches to disinformation, featuring a documentary, "How To Build a Truth Engine," and an upcoming Q&A with UC San Diego professor Barbara Walter. The piece argues that propaganda succeeds not through single falsehoods but...
TV Is TV Again
VIDAA CEO Guy Edri argued that television should be treated as a single screen environment, not as separate linear, streaming, FAST or CTV markets. His V Index proposes real‑time, device‑level measurement to replace legacy panel metrics, positioning VIDAA’s operating system...
What Agencies Notice After 50 Guest Posts (And Why They Don’t Go Back)
Agencies that run guest‑post campaigns notice a turning point around the 50th placement. Early posts are treated as experiments focused on cost, turnaround and raw metrics, but after enough volume the conversation shifts toward stability and editorial fit. Publishers that...
Free Pack: 100 Eye‑Catching Thumbnails That Spark Curiosity
Thumbnails that instantly make you question things 🤔 What’s wrong with that paddle? Domino’s isn’t just pizza? And why is that car so tiny? Get our free YT Thumbnails Hack Pack with 100 more top thumbnails: https://t.co/H5zQZBQ0qM https://t.co/MUwf2mZF1I
TVNZ+ Rolls Out Major Overhaul With New Ad Formats
TVNZ+ is rolling out a major platform upgrade built with Quickplay, Amazon Web Services and Evergent, aiming to boost viewer experience and ad capabilities. The redesign adds a refreshed content carousel, a Top 10 belt, simpler login and audio‑description features, while...
The New Tactics of TikTok Journalism
New research by Kaia Tran, a journalism graduate, outlines how newsrooms can succeed on TikTok, a platform now used by over half of its users for news. While 14% of those users follow journalists or news outlets, the white paper...
Tips for Creating Effective Online Ad Campaigns
The article outlines a step‑by‑step framework for small businesses to launch effective online ad campaigns, emphasizing planning, goal setting, platform selection, creative design, budgeting, and ongoing monitoring. It stresses that every dollar should have a specific purpose and that measurable...
Comcast Eyes Mixed Q1 Outlook as Broadband Losses Meet Sports‑Driven Ad Surge
Comcast is set to report first‑quarter 2026 results with consensus estimates of $30.84 billion in revenue and 73 cents per share earnings, down 33% YoY for EPS but up 3% YoY for revenue. Analysts flag broadband subscriber losses and ARPU pressure, while...
‘The Secret Lives Of Mormon Wives’ To Resume Production Following Taylor Frankie Paul Drama
Disney’s streaming platform Hulu announced that production will resume on Season 5 of the reality series “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.” The show was halted earlier this year after domestic assault allegations against star Taylor Frankie Paul, which were later...
Brands and Agencies Map 2026 CTV Investment Strategy
A fresh industry report reveals that brands and agencies are treating Connected TV as a core pillar of 2026 advertising, emphasizing measurable outcomes, first‑party data and AI‑driven personalization. The shift signals a broader integration of CTV into unified MarTech stacks...
Meta’s AI‑Powered Instagram Affiliate Feature Sparks Creator Outcry Over Content Theft
Meta expanded Instagram’s affiliate program with an AI‑powered Shop the Look feature that auto‑suggests products on creator posts. Influencer Julia Berolzheimer and others allege the beta tool inserts unauthorized product overlays, prompting concerns over content ownership and revenue loss.