AI in Political Attack Ads – Watch State Laws on Deep Fakes and Synthetic Media in Political Content
The article highlights a recent AI‑generated political attack ad that used a deep‑fake voice and image of Democratic Senate candidate James Tallarico, underscoring the rise of synthetic media in elections. Since the author’s last review, more than 20 additional states have enacted statutes, bringing the total to over 30 states with varying disclosure or prohibition rules for AI‑based political ads. Liability can fall on both creators and distributors, though many states carve out exemptions for broadcasters under the FCC’s no‑censorship mandate. Media companies must now navigate a fragmented regulatory environment while managing heightened defamation risk.
Uefa ‘to Launch’ Champions League Streaming Service as Early as 2027
UEFA is planning a direct‑to‑consumer Champions League streaming platform for Asia, targeting a launch as early as the 2027‑2031 media rights cycle. The initiative, developed with partner Relevent, could debut in markets such as Indonesia or India, either supplementing or...
Hollywood Studios Back GOP Effort to Dismantle Canada’s Online Streaming Act
Hollywood studios have thrown their weight behind a Republican‑sponsored bill aimed at overturning Canada’s Online Streaming Act, which obligates U.S. platforms to financially support Canadian film, TV and music production. The Protecting American Streaming and Innovation Act, introduced by Rep....
Leave Comments, Play Quizzes, Earn Badges: Join the GamesRadar+ Community
GamesRadar+ has launched a free, unified membership platform that consolidates commenting, quizzes, badge rewards, newsletter preferences, and magazine subscriptions under a single sign‑up. The new system replaces the former Disqus comment tool with Viafoura and adds interactive games powered by...
SeriesMakers Reveals All Ten Projects of the Fourth Edition
SeriesMakers, the Series Mania Institute’s talent incubator partnered with Beta Group, has unveiled the ten projects selected for its fourth edition. The slate includes dramas, comedies, thrillers, fantasy and political series from Brazil, Canada, Spain, France, Ireland, the Czech Republic,...
AdExchanger and The Women in Programmatic Network Renew Partnership for 2026 Events to Elevate Women’s Voices in Ad Tech
AdExchanger has renewed its partnership with the U.S. chapter of The Women in Programmatic Network (TWIPN) for its 2026 flagship events, including Programmatic AI, Programmatic I/O, and the AdExchanger Awards. The collaboration will feature TWIPN‑led education sessions, networking meet‑ups, and...
RADIOPUSHERS Launches the TWITCH Livestream Music Discovery Platform Powered by Indie Artists
RADIOPUSHERS launched a Twitch‑based Music Discovery Mix that lets independent artists co‑host live sessions, showcase visuals, and receive real‑time critique from panels and audiences. The stream is simultaneously rebroadcast on LOOKHU TV, reaching connected‑TV devices such as Amazon Fire, Roku, Samsung...
“The Meidas Touch” Tops Podtrac’s February Multi-Channel Podcast Ranking
Podtrac’s February 2026 multi‑channel podcast ranking places The Meidas Touch at the top, followed by The Joe Rogan Experience and The Rest is History. The ranking aggregates audio, video, and clip consumption across the U.S., highlighting Meidas Touch’s dominance in video formats....
Radio Night Live Celebrates Five Years of Promoting NYC
Radio Night Live, the Friday night program on WNYM‑AM 970 The Answer, celebrated its five‑year anniversary after launching in March 2021 amid the pandemic. The show, co‑hosted by Kevin McCullough and Cristyne Nicholas, highlights New York City’s tourism, entertainment, hospitality...
Week of March 9 Evening News Ratings: Networks Have Week-to-Week Declines
All three major network evening newscasts posted week‑to‑week declines for the week of March 9, 2026. ABC World News Tonight remained the top‑rated program with 8.48 million total viewers, though down 5% from the prior week. NBC Nightly News held second place...
New Syndicated Radio Programming Initiative Launches
Maryland Media One has launched Seaboard Networks, a new radio programming and syndication venture delivering 24/7 turnkey formats to stations across the United States. The company will distribute both music‑driven and spoken‑word content, beginning with the Outdoor Radio Network, a...
Refuge Shares ‘One Piece’ Season 2 VFX Breakdown Reel
Refuge, a visual‑effects studio, delivered 240 shots for Netflix’s One Piece Season 2, with more than half appearing in the finale. The work centered on extending practical weapons—Zoro’s new swords, Wapol’s spinning saw‑blade, and Vivi’s Peacock Slashers—and on a surprise transformation sequence that...
Ratings Roundup: 2026 World Baseball Classic Is Most Watched WBC Telecast EVER with Over 10 Million Viewers
The 2026 World Baseball Classic final between Venezuela and the United States set a new viewership record, attracting 10.78 million viewers on FOX and FOX Deportes. The telecast peaked at 12.15 million during the closing minutes and posted a 128% increase over...
Open Sauce Returns to San Francisco in July 2026 With Creator Lineup and Industry Day Summit
Open Sauce, the creator‑focused technology festival, will return to the San Francisco Bay Area from July 17‑19, 2026. The three‑day event showcases more than 100 creators—including Mark Rober, Hank Green, and Michael Reeves—alongside a 500‑project expo and a dedicated Game Expo. A Creator...
Sports Media Company Snapback Sports Signs With Excel Sports Management to Drive Sponsorship Growth, Event Access
Snapback Sports, a digital sports media firm, has signed with Excel Sports Management to accelerate sponsorship revenue and gain event access. The company posted $2.2 million in 2025 revenue and aims for $3 million in 2026. Excel will handle sponsorship sales across...
Radio Tops Other Media In Trust, Report Shows
A new Katz Radio Group study released by Radio Ink finds radio is the most trusted medium in the United States, with 85% of respondents rating it trustworthy or very trustworthy. Newspapers follow at 77%, television at 73%, while podcasts...
Hopeless Records Boss: Streaming ‘Fails the Middle Class of Musicians’
Louis Posen, president of Hopeless Records, argues that streaming’s pro‑rata payout model disadvantages mid‑tier musicians by treating all listeners equally and favoring passive, mass‑appeal content. He proposes a tiered artist layer similar to Spotify’s podcast subscriptions, offering fans direct‑access perks...
LinkedIn Deploys LLM-Based Feed Ranking System to Surface Content Beyond Members’ Networks
LinkedIn has replaced its fragmented feed ranking pipeline with a single, LLM‑driven retrieval system that generates embeddings for every post. The new architecture uses GPU‑accelerated transformers and a generative recommender that treats a member’s history as a sequential narrative. By...
AnyMind Group Launches AI-Powered Tool to Help Advertisers Scale UGC Campaigns
AnyMind Group unveiled AnyDigital Max, an AI‑driven platform that helps advertisers analyze, optimize, and scale user‑generated content (UGC) campaigns across social media. The company’s internal data shows UGC ads deliver 2.4 times higher click‑through rates, 3.7 times higher view rates, and roughly...
Amaze to Launch Live Shopping Tools Enabling In-Stream Purchasing for Creators, Brands
Amaze, the creator‑powered commerce platform, announced new live‑shopping capabilities that let creators and brands sell products directly within live streams. The tools include instant in‑stream purchasing, real‑time audience interaction such as comments, polls, dynamic product highlights, and time‑limited promo codes....
Creator Economy Veterans Behind TalentX, YMU Form Independent Talent Firm Glossary Artists
Former TalentX and YMU executives launched Glossary Artists, an independent talent management firm focused on creator‑owned IP and long‑term brand development. Based in Los Angeles and Miami, the women‑led agency gives managers freedom to innovate across beauty, fashion, gaming, food...
How Breathe. Doubled Their Monthly Listeners on Spotify
Australian electronic duo Breathe., together with agency Group Speed, overhauled their Spotify presence by reactivating five‑year‑old catalog tracks and launching a data‑driven artist playlist. The playlist paired Breathe. with slightly larger, stylistically similar acts and was promoted through Spotify’s ad...
‘Ukraine’s Voice in the World’: How the Kyiv Independent Keeps Ongoing War in the Headlines
The Kyiv Independent, Ukraine’s premier English‑language newsroom, has expanded from 19 staff in 2021 to 85 employees in 2026 while operating under full‑scale war. It sustains itself financially through a reader‑driven model—70% of revenue comes from a 28,000‑strong global subscriber...
Social Media Competitor Analysis: 3 Easy Steps to Improve Your Performance
Social media competitor analysis is essential for shaping a data‑driven digital strategy in 2025. The guide breaks the process into three steps: identifying direct and indirect rivals, analyzing their platforms, content, and engagement, and applying insights to improve your own...
Explained: What the Premier League Really Wants From OTT
The Premier League announced it will launch its own OTT platform, Premier League Plus, in Singapore starting the 2026‑27 season. The service was built into a six‑season bid with StarHub in 2022, providing a low‑pressure test market ahead of the league’s...
Hispanic Consumers and Mobile In-Game Ads: Here’s What the Numbers Say
Portal Latino’s December 2025 survey of 1,691 Hispanic consumers reveals that 81% play mobile games weekly, with 61% gaming at least five days a week. Hispanic gamers show a strong appetite for culturally resonant titles, with 77% preferring games that reflect...
March Madness Blue Bloods Are the Antidote to Withering Cable Model
In 2010 CBS and Turner struck a $10.8 billion agreement to share NCAA men’s tournament rights, propelling TBS and TNT ad sales to $1.62 billion in year one and $2.26 billion by 2016. Despite record sports revenue, cable penetration fell 10 % over six...
EBU Warns Lithuania’s LRT Reforms Threaten Broadcaster Independence
The European Broadcasting Union and nearly thirty media organisations have warned that Lithuania’s proposed public service media law reforms could jeopardise LRT’s independence and financial sustainability. The draft includes a three‑year funding freeze, reduced tax‑based allocations, tighter revenue caps, and...
Big East Commissioner Admits Fragmentation Challenges with US$80m Broadcast Deals
Big East commissioner Val Ackerman confirmed that the conference’s new $80 million six‑year media agreement with Fox, NBC and TNT Sports has boosted revenue but fragmented game distribution. The deal replaces a $46 million 12‑year pact and moves 30 men’s games and...
Hire Misfire
Noah Shachtman, former Rolling Stone editor, announced his new role as a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times, sparking criticism over his handling of a 2022 Rolling Stone story about FBI raid on ABC producer James Gordon Meek....
Report: Sports Rights Holders Need to Diversify Beyond Live Content
Altman Solon’s second‑part Global Sports Survey reveals a widening monetisation gap for sports rights owners as audiences increasingly consume non‑live formats. The study of 6,000 fans and 250 executives shows 42% of viewers are very willing to pay for live events...
Braves Home Opener Heading To Gray-Owned Stations
The Atlanta Braves confirmed that their 2026 home opener on March 27 against the Kansas City Royals will be simulcast on the team’s own BravesVision platform and Gray Media’s network of local television stations across the six‑state Braves Country. The...
Media Barons Are Cutting Back, but The Walrus Can’t Afford To
The Washington Post announced a sweeping newsroom reduction, cutting more than 300 jobs—about one‑third of its staff—and eliminating entire beats such as sports, books, and several foreign bureaus. Owner Jeff Bezos framed the move as a "strategic reset" aimed at...
Channel 4 Unveils New Sponsor of The Great British Bake Off
Channel 4 announced that Autotrader will become the new sponsor of The Great British Bake Off, taking over from Waitrose after a two‑year partnership. The deal kicks off with the 2026 broadcast season, aligning the automotive marketplace with the show’s...
Publishers Hit Back at Report Claiming It Is ‘Open Season’ on Muslims in Press
The Centre for Media Monitoring released an AI‑driven analysis of 41,000 UK online articles from 2025, concluding that 70 percent of coverage on Islam and Muslims is negative. The Spectator topped the list with 26 percent of its pieces classified as “very...
Netflix’s Live-Action Assassin’s Creed Series Has Started Filming as Cast Is Officially Announced
Netflix has begun filming its live‑action Assassin’s Creed series, confirmed by Ubisoft. The show will be set in Ancient Rome during 64 AD and features a diverse cast led by Toby Wallace and Lola Petticrew. Produced by Emmy‑nominated creators Roberto Patino...
Finfluencers Drive Inclusion but Expose Consumers to Risks
At the FSCA Conference 2026 regulators warned that South Africa’s booming finfluencer market is a double‑edged sword. While creators are making finance more accessible and boosting financial literacy, many operate without licences and provide weak or hidden disclosures. The FSCA...
Shaping Supply: Is Curation the Antidote to Ad Wastage?
Connected TV (CTV) ad spend in the U.S. is set to near $38 bn this year, cementing its role as a core media channel. However, the rapid expansion of premium SVOD, FAST channels, and OEM interfaces has fragmented the supply, making...
A TikTok-Famous Model of New York City Heads to Museum Mile
Delivery driver Joe Macken spent two decades crafting a detailed balsa‑wood replica of New York City, comprising hundreds of thousands of miniature structures. The model went viral on TikTok, garnering over 10 million views and drawing widespread attention. In March 2026, the...
Report: World Cup’s Contribution to Ad Growth Weakening
World Cup 2026 will be the largest ever, but its contribution to global ad growth is weakening. WARC Media forecasts a $10.5 billion uplift, just a 1.1 % increase versus the 2022 tournament, indicating fragmented impact. Advertisers must now reach fans across...
The Stack: Ads, Accountability, and AI
Meta is under fire in the UK after the FCA uncovered 1,052 illegal high‑risk financial ads in a single week, many from previously flagged accounts. Whistleblowers allege Meta and TikTok deliberately amplified harmful, outrage‑driven content to boost engagement. Trust issues...
LaLiga’s Anti-Piracy Campaign Secures 2,000+ Hospitality Convictions
LaLiga’s anti‑piracy drive has secured more than 2,000 convictions against hotels, restaurants and cafés since its launch in March 2019, averaging nearly one case per day. The league still has 317 investigations and 488 cases awaiting trial, underscoring the scale of...
Ads of the Week: 10 Campaigns That Caught Our Eye, From Burger King to Uber
This week’s ad roundup highlights a wave of self‑aware campaigns, from Burger King’s decision to retire its iconic King mascot and crown the consumer, to Uber’s meta “Irish exit” spot featuring reality‑TV star Maura Higgins. Brands such as Ugg, JCPenney,...
Everyone Hates Ads on Social Media. Or Do They?
Researchers leveraged Meta's 14.5 million‑user no‑ads holdout to test whether Facebook users care about advertising. In a 2022 survey of 53,166 participants from 13 countries, the median amount users would accept to quit the platform was $31.04 for ad‑exposed users and...
Why Comments Are the Real Secret Behind Every Viral Instagram Post
Instagram’s algorithm now prioritizes comment velocity over likes, saves or views when deciding which posts to amplify. Early‑hour comments act as a quality signal, prompting the platform to test the content with larger audiences. Creators can deliberately trigger this loop...
America’s Test Kitchen Puts Direct And Programmatic Access On Its Menu
America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) has launched direct and programmatic buying for its free ad‑supported FAST channels, allowing advertisers to purchase inventory as a standalone product rather than through genre bundles. The move follows a 30% year‑over‑year rise in streaming audiences...
Horror Novel ‘Shy Girl’ Canceled Over Suspected A.I. Use
Hachette Book Group withdrew the upcoming horror novel “Shy Girl” after The New York Times alleged the manuscript was largely AI‑generated. The Orbit imprint halted the U.S. spring release and removed the title from its UK catalog, where only 1,800 print copies...
Nord Anglia Education Unifies Regional Media Operations in Asia
Nord Anglia Education has named Omnicom Media Vietnam as its agency of record for media across 19 schools in Asia, shifting from school‑level to a centralized hub. The partnership covers integrated strategy, planning and buying for markets including Thailand, India,...
TV Ratings (19/3/2026): Swans & Hawks Fly Seven To The Top Of The Ratings
Seven Network’s AFL broadcast of the Sydney Swans versus Hawthorn Hawks captured the top spot in the March 19 overnight ratings, drawing more than two million viewers and a national average audience of 727,000. The Hawks secured a 17‑point victory, playing...
Australia Post Poised To Deliver Media Account To Accenture Song
Accenture Song Media is expected to secure Australia Post's media account after a competitive pitch that also featured Wavemaker and Atomic212. The prospective contract expands beyond standard media planning, incorporating a business‑transformation component that aligns with Accenture Song's consultancy strengths....