Dylan Byers • April 22, 2022

CNN+’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold

Months before the deal closed, Discovery executives made it clear to both AT&T chief John Stankey and WarnerMedia chief Jason Kilar that they had questions and doubts about CNN+'s strategy, its cost, and the product itself.

Dylan Byers • April 15, 2022

The Maddow Iceberg

Maddow’s non-surprise surprise announcement has been foreshadowed for months. So why doesn’t the network have a viable solution? Is 20 percent Maddow at 1.25x or so the price really better than nothing? And at what cost?

Julia Alexander • April 14, 2022

Dear Zaz, Read This Before the “Synergies” Start…

The streaming wars are, simply put, a race to own the best content and have the strongest pipes to distribute it (along with all the financial engineering and tax avoidance befitting a media behemoth, naturally). Here are my four predictions for how David Zaslav can take Warner Bros. Discovery from No. 3 to No. 2—or even higher.

Dylan Byers • April 8, 2022

Norah O’Donnell Makes Her Next Career Move

After plenty of rumors to the contrary, Norah O’Donnell is staying home, and set up to finally become the Peter Jennings of CBS—the star that the news division is built around, which in 2022, naturally, means some streaming stuff, too. So is it all water under the bridge with Neeraj?

Dylan Byers • April 1, 2022

D.C.’s Post-Trump Media Reality-Check Rumbles On

Is there life after the 45th president? Some companies are articulating a new path; others, not so much.

Dylan Byers • March 30, 2022

Notes on Zaz Rule and CNN+’s Debut

David Zaslav’s date with destiny—the endlessly anticipated consummation of Discovery and the WarnerMedia assets—is finally (finally) less than two weeks away. And yet the first major artifact of his tenure—the emergence of CNN+—is already in the market. Herewith, some notes from Hudson Yards.

Dylan Byers • March 25, 2022

The Panic in Zazworld

Discovery and AT&T’s year-long dance will finally be consummated on April 11, replete with a trip to the stock exchange. What happens next is anyone’s guess as tight-lipped C.E.O. David Zaslav has kept his cards close to all those vests of his.

Dylan Byers • March 23, 2022

Politico’s New Administration Is Taking Office

Fifteen years after it broke onto the scene in an unmistakably disruptive manner, re-defining the stodgy news business with its metabolic frisky style and scoop-bazooka, Politico seems intent on entering its own Washington sinecure of sorts—as the pendulum swings, in the words of one founder, towards institutionalism in D.C. Will its new newsroom leader commensurately facilitate the anti-disruption disruption?

Dylan Byers • March 19, 2022

The Times’ Latest Woke Kerfuffle

How an unsigned editorial upended Twitter, presaged a new Times agenda, and revealed the media company's challenges in the post-Trump era.

Eriq Gardner • March 17, 2022

Inside Chris Cuomo’s $125 Million Case Against CNN

Interestingly, some of the precedent for the filing hangs on a previous suit—regarding Michael Jackson, no less—that is already being contested by some of the very same players. Plus, Fox News’ fresh legal headache.

Dylan Byers • March 17, 2022

The Real Jeff Shell-Keith Olbermann Saga

Behind the scenes, Olbermann has been privately jonesing to rejoin MSNBC for years, reaching out directly to Jeff Shell repeatedly. The whole situation simply manifests how bizarre things have gotten at the soon-to-be former House of Maddow.

Eriq Gardner • March 15, 2022

CBS Is Finally Settling Its Les Moonves Litigation

The former television executive, despite losing his $120 million severance, is still costing CBS money following his #MeToo defenestration.

Eriq Gardner • March 14, 2022

The Atlantic’s Most Peculiar Lawsuit

Ruth Shalit Barrett’s lawsuit against the august magazine’s parent company, and its own recently-filed motion to dismiss, address many complex issues about her past as a plagiarist. Naturally, perhaps, it also comes down to narrative framing.

Dylan Byers • March 11, 2022

Zaz’s New Order & BriWi’s Next Move?

The new king of cable media is preparing to restructure his org chart upon the consummation of the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger. Meanwhile, at Chris Licht’s CNN, a new game of thrones begins.

Dylan Byers • March 10, 2022

Is MSNBC on Autopilot?

CNN’s remarkable coverage of Ukraine has evidenced its sizable advantage over its nearest rival, MSNBC, begging the two-fold question: who is in charge over there and what are they doing, exactly?