Spotify Reaches 293M Premium Users, 761M MAU
Earnings: Spotify Hits 293 Million Premium Subscribers in Q1 PRO The music streaming giant reaches a total of 761 million monthly active users @TheWrap
FCC May Accelerate TV License Renewals Despite 2028 Deadline
.@Reuters first reported last month that @FCC could speed up broadcast license renewals (Remember no broadcast TV licenses are up until October 2028) https://t.co/OevSp8KKaZ
Traditional Listening Misses Video; Syncly Reads Every Frame
There's a big problem with most social listening... They don't reallyyy read video. Sure, they'll index AROUND the video, grabbing captions, hashtags, @ mentions, but they often can't notice what's INSIDE the video—like when a creator holds up your product or...
New Media Boom May Be Illusion, Not Reality
It increasingly feels like some of the prevailing assumptions underpinning new media’s growth over the past decade has been a mirage. Take a closer look at the new newsletters, podcasts, videos, Substacks, and livestreams entering the market. You undoubtedly are seeing...
15 Proven App Ad Formats Driving 8‑Figure Growth
These app ad formats are crushing for my clients. Some of these helped my clients scale to 8-figure in revenue. These are the 15 proven formats that you need to run to scale your ad account. Want a copy? Like + Comment "app"...
LinkedIn Newsletters Now Outpacing External Platforms
I have a sneaking suspicion that LinkedIn is becoming a more valuable place to host a newsletter than an external platform, and they're leaning into that. Still keeping my external list, but the organic growth on the version I put on...
AI Carousels Will Flood Feeds With Identical Content
Honestly... I am not actually all that worried about the quality of these AI-generated carousels, I am worried about the quantity. Some AI carousels are going to be genuinely good. The issue is that hundreds of them are going to...
Paramount‑WB's New Media Venture Majority Foreign‑Owned
Our new state media of Paramount-WB--including CNN and CBS--will be half-owned (49.5%) by foreign interests, 38.5% by Middle Eastern funds. https://t.co/zNAPjHjnc0
Apple Debuts iTunes Store with U2’s “Vertigo”
#ThisDayInTechHistory. April 28, 2003. Apple launched the iTunes Music Store. It coincided with a colorful commercial featuring U2 and their new song Vertigo. #Internet #History https://t.co/lKoRiMSQUD
AI's Formulaic Clichés Eclipse Journalism's Classic “Bug, Not Feature”
Nowadays, I am so exposed as a reader to so much of revolting AI writing, where “A is not just/only/merely B, but also/more importantly C,” that I don’t think I will ever go back to using what used to be...
Back‑Button Vignette Ads Risk Google Spam Penalty
So, I've had some people ping me about an interesting 'back button hijacking' situation wondering how Google will treat it. Vignette Ads, which most people hate with a passion, include additional triggers that a site owner can activate. One trigger...
Sensationalism Fuels Profits, Education Gets Sidelined
Media Math… More Negative/Sensationalist = More Viewers = Higher Prices for Advertising = Larger Profits = Happier Shareholders Nowhere in the formula will you find educating, informing and empowering people. https://t.co/rcUyU7l7fT
All New & Returning Summer Scripted Series Preview
TV Talk: Summer streaming/cable scripted series preview highlights all the announced programs that are new and returning, via @TribLIVE - https://t.co/o7D89byKzO https://t.co/mMR28gRg8U
Australia's Media Code Leads; Google Cooperates, Meta Resists
Brilliant x2. Australia’s News Media Bargaining Code was a world-leading approach to intervening on market power imbalance held by Google and Meta. The former played ball while its proxies argued for a tax. The latter, on brand, did everything it...
Buy Invitational Selling—Profits Support Make‑A‑Wish
My friend Dennis Cummins, who is incredible when it comes to sales and communication, has just released his new book, Invitational Selling. For the first 48 hours, 100% of the proceeds from the launch will be donated to Make-A-Wish.Grab a copy today:...
Fin TV's Formulaic Shows Overlook Critical OpenAI Revenue Miss
The problem with "formulaic programming" on Fin TV is that they too often miss the most important news of the morning. They look at the rear view mirror and not the windshield. Case in point: The OpenAI revenue miss (chatgpt) has not been...
Optimize Old Content for New Traffic with Quick SEO Fixes
Optimize Old Content = Get New Traffic Here are 10 quick fixes you can do to improve your SEO Rankings + AI Citations THIS WEEK: 1. Humanize AI Content 2. Improve your site speed 3. Add Schema where necessary 4. Optimize for AI search: no...
AI-Generated Music Threatens Spotify’s Human‑Only Listening Experience
Spotify is facing a new kind of challenge. As AI-generated music increases, distinguishing between human and machine-created tracks is becoming harder, and the platform has yet to offer a clear way to filter them out. It raises a broader question. In a...
I Use AI for Extra Headline Ideas—Then Discard Them
The only reason I still use ChatGPT and Gemini: A 2nd and 3rd opinion on my newsletter subject lines. Which I then ignore.
Altman's AI Optimism Outpaces Influencer Adoption Lag
There will be a very long lag between when Sam Altman pivots from "AI will make you obsolete" to "AI will make you super productive", and when the "AI influencers" on this app execute a similar pivot.
Kimmel Defends “Widow” Joke, Calls on Melania to Confront Trump
Jimmy Kimmel Defends ‘Widow’ Joke as ‘Light Roast,’ Urges Melania to Confront Trump’s ‘Violent Rhetoric’ https://t.co/Y1Vev0KZQJ
Peacock Needs Profitability; Netflix Churn Threatens Valuation
For sure but the real question for Peacock is can it ever make a meaningful margin as at some point streaming has to at the very least replace at some of the declining economics from PayTV. Regarding Netflix, if...
Bari Weiss Pushes CBS Expose of Israeli Cemetery Desecration
I heard Bari Weiss is going to have CBS do a major piece on the Israeli army deliberately desecrating Palestinian cemeteries.
John Oliver's Last Week Tonight Debuts on HBO
📺 April 27, 2014: “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”, the Emmy award-winning late-night talk and news show hosted by the former “Daily Show” correspondent, premiered on HBO. https://t.co/FzugX1YZU7 https://t.co/zpMAtrLe2b
HBO Offers Double Debbie Episodes; Awaiting Hacks S5 Ep4‑5 Release
HBO is giving us double Debbie helpings for the new two weeks. But when do Hacks season 5 episodes 4 and 5 drop on HBO Max? https://t.co/rwqBBxiFri
Mindy Kaling's Never Have I Ever Launches on Netflix
📺 April 27, 2020: “Never Have I Ever” debuted on Netflix. Created by Mindy Kaling (“The Office”, “The Mindy Project”), the comedy starred newcomer Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as a high school student who aimed to make the most out of her...
More Time on Feed Drives Ad Revenue
The apps do whatever maxxes time on site => ad exposure => $$$ The reason the feed / for you exists is because people spend more time on IG with that feature than without it, which makes Meta more $. It's...
Platformer Pivots to Original Reporting Amid AI Overload
We're changing up Platformer's schedule to shift away from aggregation and toward original reporting. Some thoughts on how a newsletter glut and AI pressures got us here: https://www.platformer.news/platformer-schedule-changes-ai-automation/
Bari Weiss Claims CBS News Bias Equals Hamas
Scoop: When she started as editor in chief in October, Bari Weiss believed CBS News journalists were so biased against Israel that she quipped “they might as well be Hamas.”
Methodology Changes Inflate Nielsen Ratings; Full-Year Data Pending
Yeah. And keep in mind, some of those viewing increases are driven by folks who were always watching and have just within the past two years been measured thanks to strategic methodological changes in Nielsen’s viewing currency…And come this fall...
FreightWaves Launches Premier Daily Logistics News Show
FreightWaves Today, our daily show (noon -2pm ET) is launching June 1st and will be the premiere business-news show for the logistics, supply chain, and industrial sector. We are hiring a former Fox Business producer to ensure we have the...
YouTube Trials AI-Powered Conversational Search for US Premium Users
YouTube is testing a conversational search powered by AI. This experiment is available for Premium members in the USA.
Combine Clarity and Uncertainty for Compelling Video Titles
Clarity + uncertainty = great video title Clarity: "I know what's happening" Uncertainty: "I don't know what's going to happen next" AVOID Confusing: "I don't know what's happening"
Define Your Goal: Evergreen vs Viral Video Strategy
Which video are you going to work on next? The one that will get views for months/years to come, or the one that goes viral today? Both have a purpose AND are completely different in how they’re made. It’s important to know the...
Discussing Trump, Media After WH Correspondents' Dinner
Hey friends. I'm joining MSNOW's The Beat at 6.20p to talk about Trump and the media after events at the WH Correspondents' Dinner. Tune in!
Taylor Sheridan's 'The Madison' Eyes 20 Emmy Categories
EXCLUSIVE: Coming off its first season #TheMadison, the Taylor Sheridan-created neo-Western will submit across 20 Emmy categories via 27 total bids. https://t.co/v9R50CDknK via @variety https://t.co/5kSuz9EcFn
Canadian‑Built Gander Social Sparks Digital Sovereignty Debate
Gander Social and the debate over digital sovereignty I recently wrote a feature piece for a new Canadian-owned media outlet called Be Giant about Gander Social, a new Canadian-owned and operated social-media app that is still in beta testing, and the...
Publishing Is Free: Anyone Can Launch a Newsletter
1/2 There is almost no barrier to starting a newsletter or podcast these days. Substack, Spotify, YouTube, you name it. Anyone with a computer and internet access can publish something — the production cost is almost zero, if you don’t...
Is OpenAI’s Ad Model Doomed? Taboola CEO Weighs In
Is OpenAI's advertising model doomed to fail from the start? @AdamSingolda, Founder & CEO of @taboola, joins Dan Nathan on the latest RiskReversal Podcast 🎙️ https://t.co/ToyQL2Wm9e
‘Deli Boys’ Launches 22‑category Emmy Push with Star Actors
‘Deli Boys’ Mounts 22-Category Emmy Campaign, Including Acting Bids for Kumail Nanjiani, Fred Armisen and More (EXCLUSIVE) https://t.co/3MHd2r6PuW via @variety
Paramount Seeks FCC Approval for 49.5% Middle East Stake
New: Paramount has asked the FCC to sign off on the Middle East investment in its Warners mega-deal. The company says in a filing viewed by THR that "indirect foreign ownership of equity interests in Paramount will be approximately 49.5...
Realize Gains PayPal Data, Boosting Ad Targeting
Exciting.... @PayPal and @taboola ... Our performance advertising platform, Realize, is taking another large step forward, thanks to our partnership with PayPal. As we know, unless you have unique data Claude cannot get. And unless you have unique supply Claude...
Women Outpace Men in Recent Horror Book Deals
We sometimes have a perception bias. Someone posted they only see men being signed for horror books. I checked Publishers Weekly for 2026 and 2025 and I'm seeing a slightly larger number of women getting horror deals than men. Some...
S2’s Cynical End Highlights Cyclical Inevitability Over Individual Discovery
#Beef S1 & S2 (a step down IMO) are mirrors of one another, w/ overlapping commentary about systemic inequality driving behavior. But I found S2's ending to be far more pessimistic/cynical than S1's, for better and for worse. Individual discovery...
Most Substack Content Still Human-Written, Study Shows
How Much of Substack Is Actually AI? I used @pangramlabs (AI detection tool) to analyze thousands of posts from the top Substack newsletters across every category to find out. Here's what I discovered 👇🏻 https://t.co/FbOA8uBVFF
Fans Await Half Man Episode 2 Release Date
Last week's debut was already a difficult watch, but when does Half Man episode 2 drop on HBO Max and BBC iPlayer? https://t.co/fe7xjs99sM
Jimmy Kimmel Live to Air Oz Pearlman After Shooting
.@JimmyKimmelLive is set to have Oz Pearlman on the air tonight (Pearlman was at the WHCD dinner when the shooting occurred). I have asked ABC to confirm this is a new and not rebroadcast episode https://t.co/5x9QF4VIbC
Netflix Hits Drop Viewers After First Season
Netflix's biggest hits are losing viewers in subsequent seasons. (Beef is the latest example.) https://t.co/QVKTvoboZM
Half of Meta's $54B APAC Ad Revenue From China
Note that Meta generated $54BN from APAC *advertisers* in 2025, with estimates that Chinese advertisers accounted for roughly half of that. https://t.co/ey2WOGf5WR
League's Limited Top Game Inventory Impacts Partner Distribution
I reckon that the league, which has a finite amount of top game inventory to disburse amongst its half dozen ish network partners, cares