Today's Media Pulse
Online video subscriptions top 2.2 bn, revenue eclipses pay‑TV
Omdia reports global online video subscriptions reached 2.24 billion at the end of 2025, a 17.6% year‑on‑year rise. Revenue grew 13.5% to $176 billion, overtaking pay‑TV's $170 billion for the first time. Growth is expected to slow to single‑digit in 2026 as operators shift focus from acquiring new users to monetising existing ones.
‘Saturday Night Live UK’: Creative Consultants Including ‘Barbie’ Actor Add Dose Of Star Power
Saturday Night Live UK has added two high‑profile UK creatives as consultants: Jamie Demetriou, known for his role in "Barbie" and the BAFTA‑winning series "Stath Lets Flats," and James Graham, the acclaimed writer behind "Sherwood" and "Dear England." Both will work across the full series alongside U.S. consultants Keri Powers and Javier Winnik. Their involvement follows a modest ratings dip in the second episode but comes as the show receives strong critical praise. The move underscores the producers' push to blend transatlantic talent and elevate the UK version’s profile.
NCIS: Origins' Adam Campbell Teases Ducky's Return: 'It's A Treat For The Fans' — Watch Exclusive Sneak Peek
Adam Campbell, the young actor portraying Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard in NCIS: Origins, announced the character’s return in the upcoming Tuesday episode. The plot centers on Ducky assisting the team to prove Dr. Tango’s innocence after a human‑remains theft charge....
‘The White Lotus’ Adds Heather Graham, Rosie Perez, Ben Schnetzer, Tobias Santelmann, Frida Gustavsson & Laura Smet For Season 4
HBO Max’s award‑winning series *The White Lotus* is gearing up for a fourth season set in France, adding a high‑profile ensemble that includes Heather Graham, Rosie Perez, Ben Schnetzer, Tobias Santelmann, Frida Gustavsson and Laura Smet. Production will begin next month at the Château de La Messardière...
JustWatch: Prime Video’s ‘Mercy,’ Hulu’s ‘Paradise’ Top Weekly Streaming Through March 29
Prime Video’s sci‑fi drama Mercy surged to the No. 1 spot on JustWatch’s weekly U.S. movie streaming chart for March 23‑29, outpacing Netflix’s Anaconda. Hulu’s original series Paradise claimed the top position on the TV streaming chart, while Netflix’s new series Something...
Week of March 16 Cable News Ratings: MS NOW Grows in Primetime and Total Day
In the Nielsen week of March 16, 2026, MS NOW was the only basic cable news network to increase total viewership in both primetime and total‑day, posting a 3% rise in each segment. Fox News remained the leader in absolute primetime viewers but...
“Friday Night Live” Celebrates Five Years
Kevin McCullough and Cristyne Nicholas marked the fifth anniversary of their “Radio Night Live” program on Salem Media’s WNYM‑AM (970 The Answer) on March 27. Since its March 2021 debut, the show has produced roughly 260 episodes and hosted more...
Nanocosmos Targets Rising Stream Misuse with New Security Solution
German video‑delivery specialist nanocosmos launched nanoStream Control, a security and monitoring layer for its ultra‑low latency streaming platform. The solution lets operators revoke access tokens, block unauthorized joins, and enforce referrer allow‑lists in real time. Continuous anomaly detection, forensic watermarking...
Mars Gum Brands Mix Memes, ‘Borrowed Nostalgia’ in Global Campaign
Mars Snacking’s OEFY gum portfolio launched the global “Total Overthink of The Head” campaign, remixing Bonnie Tyler’s 1983 hit and weaving in viral memes to speak to Gen Z’s overthinking moments. The initiative, developed with BBDO Chicago and Omnicom, forms...
High Stakes on the Small Screen: The Resurgence of the Gaming Narrative in Modern TV
Television networks and streaming platforms are reviving casino‑themed thrillers, turning high‑stakes gambling into the centerpiece of premium series. The trend reflects audiences’ appetite for complex, risk‑driven storytelling that mimics the psychological tension of real‑world betting. Simultaneously, the surge in online...
Tieline Will Debut ViA Duo Codec
Tieline will unveil its new ViA Duo codec at the NAB Show, positioning it as an ultra‑portable broadcast platform that unifies IP workflows for remote, commentary and off‑tube productions. The device packs HDMI video output, multiple AoIP protocol support and...
OpenAI’s ChatGPT Ads Trial Surpasses $100m in Six Weeks
OpenAI has opened a pilot that lets advertisers place ads directly inside ChatGPT conversations. Within six weeks the program generated over $100 million in ad spend, showing strong advertiser appetite. The format offers brand‑safe, native placements and reports higher engagement than...
How Do You Make a Good Prediction?
Prof. Scott Galloway’s prediction framework proved prescient when Meta shut down Horizon Worlds and OpenAI discontinued Sora. The model emphasizes constant data consumption, pattern recognition, and a skeptical view of hype. Sora’s downloads fell 30% month‑over‑month, then another 45%, while...
The Morning Show: Season Five; Sean Hayes Joins Cast of Apple TV Series
Apple TV+ announced that Sean Hayes will join the cast of “The Morning Show” for its fifth season. Hayes is set to portray Wyatt, the quick‑witted older brother and manager of Boyd Holbrook’s character. The series was renewed early for...
In a More Anxious World, European Media Outlets Turn to Positive News
Amid war‑driven headlines, European publishers are countering news fatigue by spotlighting positive stories. France’s Libération introduced a “Ça va mieux en le lisant” label and daily push notifications, while Spain’s The Objective launched a dedicated Positive vertical and podcast. Both...
ICYMI: March’s Biggest Headlines + Bonus Insights
March’s ICYMI edition highlights eight platform updates reshaping social media, with Instagram and YouTube accelerating creator‑commerce tools while TikTok pivots toward micro‑drama formats. The newsletter also spotlights a new AI‑antidote creative style and the growing importance of recap content for...
Building a Better Supply Chain: PubMatic on the Future of Programmatic Performance with Amazon Ads
PubMatic has integrated Amazon Ads’ Dynamic Traffic Engine (DTE) across its global supply‑side platform, adding demand‑side signal intelligence to its existing traffic‑shaping tools. The partnership aims to prioritize high‑value bid requests, delivering up to a 10% lift in eCPM and...
CBS News Bolsters Investigative Team With Washington Post, Free Press Reporters
CBS News is expanding its investigative unit by hiring former Washington Post reporter Daniel Gilbert and Free Press reporter Gabe Kaminsky, while moving producers Laura Geller, Jake Rosenwasser and Callie Teitelbaum onto the team. The hires support Bari Weiss’s mandate...
Glystn Just Landed Stagwell, Influential, Weber Shandwick – CEO Ethan Fassett Says the Agency Intelligence Race Is On
Glystn, the San‑Francisco AI social‑intelligence platform, has inked enterprise partnerships with three of the five largest public agency holding companies—Stagwell Marketing Cloud, Influential and Weber Shandwick. The integrations embed Glystn’s app and its Model Context Protocol directly into agency workflows, turning...
AI Publisher Response Live: With Shay Brog, CEO of Burt Intelligence
Beeler.tech launched the AI Publisher Response Live series, a bi‑weekly forum that brings together publishers, technology partners, and AI specialists to discuss rapid industry changes. The latest episode previewed the upcoming AI Publisher Response conference on May 6 and featured guest...
TikTok Canada Reaches Agreement With Federal Government, Securing Local Operations, Creator Programs
TikTok Canada avoided a forced shutdown after reaching a settlement with the federal government, allowing its local operations to continue. The agreement introduces legally binding undertakings, including upgraded data‑security measures and an independent monitor to audit Canadian user data access....
Goafest 2026 Registrations Now Open at Early Bird Rates
Goafest 2026, South Asia’s premier advertising festival, has opened delegate registrations with early‑bird pricing until April 30, and will run May 20‑22 at the Taj Cidade de Goa Horizon, featuring keynotes, panels, workshops and networking. The event, co‑hosted by the Advertising Agencies...
AI Publisher Response Live: Automation Vs. AI
AI Publisher Response Live, a bi‑weekly virtual forum hosted by Rob Beeler, is gearing up for its May 6 AI Publisher Response conference. The series invites publishers, partners, and stakeholders to dissect current AI trends, especially the tension between automation and...
TikTok Spotlights Savannah Space Founder Cherie Kihato in African All-Stars Series
TikTok featured Cherie Kihato, founder of Kenya’s Savannah Space, in its African All-Stars Series. Kihato detailed a disciplined content schedule, allocating an hour each morning to create TikTok videos while running her furniture and home‑decor brand. She measures success through...
What’s New This Week on Netflix for the Week of March 30, 2026
Netflix’s April 1‑5 slate introduces over 20 titles, mixing new seasons, original films and series, and legacy movies. Highlights include the second season of anime Dorohedoro, fresh episodes of popular series like XO, Kitty Season 3, and several 2026 Netflix Originals such as Eat Pray Bark and It Takes a Village. The lineup...
Cut the Friction, Keep the Value: What Publishers Need to Fix Now
The Pub Report webinar, co‑hosted by Prebid.org and Beeler.Tech, highlighted four urgent priorities for publishers: cutting operational drag, packaging value in buyer‑friendly terms, pricing content for an AI‑driven market, and simplifying ad‑tech stacks. Speakers warned that programmatic deals will dominate...
Stop Chasing Shiny Objects: Rob Beeler’s RevenueScape Is the Publisher Map You’ve Been Missing
Rob Beeler unveiled RevenueScape, a draft framework that catalogs 22 concrete revenue moves for publishers, organized by effort, risk, and time to payoff. The document replaces generic vendor pitches with plain‑language, actionable options ranging from SSP optimization to push‑notification monetization....
Snowfall: FX Casts Nine in As-Yet-Untitled Spin-Off Series
FX announced that nine actors have joined the untitled Snowfall spin‑off, slated for Hulu. The series will center on characters Wanda (Gail Bean) and Leon (Isaiah John) as they push West Coast rap into the mainstream during 1990s Los Angeles....
Tom Bower's Royal Biography 'Betrayal' Nets Six‑Figure Deal with Blink Publishing
Investigative author Tom Bower has signed a six‑figure agreement with Blink Publishing for his upcoming biography 'Betrayal', which examines the clash between Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the British royal family. The deal underscores the lucrative demand for insider royal...
Vanessa Trump Breaks Silence on X, Updates Kai Trump After Tiger Woods DUI Arrest
Vanessa Trump posted on X for the first time since Tiger Woods' March 27 DUI arrest, sharing a brief update about her son Kai. The post, which came amid Woods' legal fallout and a reported ultimatum from Vanessa, has reignited...
Colorado Public Media Broadcasters Discuss Merger
Two Colorado public‑media stations, Community Radio for Northern Colorado and Rocky Mountain Public Media, are in talks to merge, with plans to centralize operations in Denver while assuring staff no layoffs. The discussion, ongoing since last year, reflects broader financial...
Indonesia Bans Under‑16s From Social Media, Impacting 70 Million Kids
Indonesia has begun enforcing a new regulation that bars anyone under 16 from creating accounts on major social media platforms, affecting roughly 70 million children. The law targets sites such as YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox,...
Politico Co-Founder Invests in European Defense Tech Media in Kyiv
Politico co‑founder Robert Allbritton has taken a minority stake in The Arsenal, the B2B defense‑tech news and consulting brand that operates under Tim Mak’s The Counteroffensive out of Kyiv. The Arsenal, launched in 2024, currently has about 3,300 free subscribers...
Publishers Warn Reduced FOI Cost Limit Would Put Public-Interest Information ‘Beyond Scrutiny’
UK news publishers, led by the News Media Association, have warned the government that proposals to lower the Freedom of Information (FOI) cost ceiling could push vital public‑interest data beyond scrutiny. The current limit of £600 (about $762) for central...
MediaCo Takes Hot 97 From Radio to Broadcast TV in New York
MediaCo is launching Hot 97 TV on New York’s WASA‑TV broadcast platform on March 31, marking the first over‑the‑air television extension of the iconic Hip‑Hop radio station. The new channel will air the station’s on‑air talent—including Kid Mero, Funkmaster Flex and Nessa—alongside music videos,...
Crime House Accelerates Video Strategy This Spring
Crime House, the true‑crime division of PAVE Studios, announced a spring video expansion, adding a new video‑first series, *America’s Most Infamous Crimes*, and weekly video episodes to its existing *Murder True Crime Stories* and *Conspiracy Theories, Cults & Crimes* franchises....
Sean Murphy Retires From the Globe, Ending a Family Connection of More than 60 Years
Sean P. Murphy, a Boston Globe reporter since 1987, announced his retirement, concluding more than six decades of family service at the newspaper—his father Jeremiah V. Murphy began reporting there in 1961. Murphy’s most visible role was as the consumer‑advocate...
Podcast Canon Looks Back on 30 Years of This American Life
Podcast Canon commemorates the 30th anniversary of *This American Life*’s 1996 rebranding from *Your Radio Playhouse*. The show’s hour‑long, theme‑driven storytelling has become a benchmark for narrative audio, influencing a generation of podcasters. Its alumni launched landmark series such as...
CBS Announces Season Finale Airdates for 2025-2026
CBS announced the full slate of season‑finale air dates for its 2025‑2026 broadcast season, covering primetime comedies, dramas and unscripted series. The schedule runs from April 23 through May 27, 2026, featuring high‑profile finales such as NCIS (23rd season), 60...
LinkedIn Page Reach Falls to 3.5% – Use Best Practices
Organic reach for LinkedIn Pages is currently estimated to be 3.5%, down from 5% in 2021. To ensure your nonprofit is reaching your followers, utilize these 10 best practices: https://www.nptechforgood.com/101-best-practices/10-linkedin-best-practices-for-nonprofits/ ✅
3 R-Rated Marvel Movies Are Coming To Peacock Soon
Peacock will add the entire Blade trilogy—Blade, Blade II, and Blade: Trinity—to its streaming catalog on April 1, 2026. The three R‑rated Marvel films follow half‑vampire hunter Blade, portrayed by Wesley Snipes, as he battles supernatural foes. The franchise, which earned more than $418 million...
NBC Sports Delivers Largest MLB Opening Day Audience on Record for Multi-Game Presentation
NBC Sports and Peacock delivered the largest MLB Opening Day audience for a multi‑game broadcast, averaging 2.7 million viewers across both networks. The primetime Diamondbacks‑Dodgers matchup attracted 3.2 million viewers, the most‑watched Opening Day primetime game since 2017, while the Pirates‑Mets afternoon...
Bob Dylan Launches a Patreon: What's on It?
Legendary singer‑songwriter Bob Dylan has entered the subscription‑based creator economy by launching a Patreon account priced at $5 per month. The platform currently hosts six pieces of content, including a historic Mahalia Jackson performance video, a fictional Mark Twain letter,...
Digital Writing: The Undervalued Skill Behind 343K Followers
I've grown my online audience to over 343,000 followers. And it's because of ONE undervalued skill: Digital Writing. But school doesn't teach you how to write & build a massive audience on this platform. So, if you want to grow your own audience, staple...
Upcoming Power Lunch: SpaceX and Tesla Future Talk
Look forward to discussing SpaceX and the future of Tesla on @PowerLunch at 2:30 pm with @SullyCNBC and @KellyCNBC @CNBC 📺🏆🎯🔥🐂
The Drama Your Honor Gets First Latin American Adaptation in Brazil
Israeli legal thriller *Your Honor* (originally *Kvodo*) is set for its first Latin American version in Brazil, produced by Teleimage. The adaptation makes Brazil the 14th territory to localise the format, which K7’s Tracking the Scripted Giants Report names the...
NAB Show: BCNEXXT To Focus On Turning Industry Pressure Into Opportunity
BCNEXXT will use the NAB Show in Las Vegas to showcase its cloud‑native playout platform, Vipe, positioning it as a solution for broadcasters facing operational pressures and evolving market demands. The company highlights Vipe’s elastic scaling, IP‑based distribution capabilities, and...
YouTube TV Subscribers Are Being Targeted By Scammers
Cybercriminals are sending phishing emails that falsely claim YouTube TV subscriptions have been cancelled due to payment problems. The messages contain counterfeit links that mimic the official YouTube TV portal, prompting victims to enter credit‑card numbers and personal data. Google’s...
The Myth of the Unwanted Internet
The article argues that today’s internet is the result of market‑driven trust solutions, not a failed, government‑mandated design. It chronicles how entrepreneurs introduced SSL, eBay’s rating system, PayPal, CAPTCHA and Cloudflare tools to fill gaps in online security and reputation....
The Markup Wins SABEW Award for Best in Business Journalism
The Markup’s 18‑month investigation into Tinder, Hinge and parent Match Group earned the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing’s 2025 Best in Business award in the technology category. By analyzing internal documents, court filings and survivor interviews, the series...
Roku Launches Dedicated Channel for The Hunger Games Franchise on Roku TVs & Roku Players
Roku has launched a dedicated, free streaming channel (Channel 230) that aggregates the entire Hunger Games film series for Roku TV and player users. The channel is part of The Roku Channel’s ad‑supported offering, requiring no subscription fee. By consolidating the four...