Daily Wire I.P.O. Fantasies & The NYT–Athletic Scandal

The Mamdani Insurgency, Bitcoin Crash Casualties, Rihanna’s Fenty Endgame

Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon guide to Puck’s best new reporting. Here’s what you need to know… and stick around for more on The Daily Wire’s rescue plan.

In the Room: The Daily Wire is seeking a $100 million-plus investment round at a $750 million valuation—and fantasizing about a possible $2 billion I.P.O. next year. Dylan Byers dissects the head-spinning investor pitch and conservative media star Ben Shapiro’s falling-out with the MAGA crowd. [Inner Circle Exclusive]
Line Sheet: Rihanna’s Fenty has watched its Sephora sales drop roughly 30 percent year-to-date—and Jay-Z’s investment firm is now the leading candidate to buy LVMH’s 50 percent stake. Rachel Strugatz reveals the strategic missteps that turned LVMH’s onetime beauty crown jewel into a turnaround project. [Read More]
Dry Powder: Michael Saylor, one of the world’s most prolific Bitcoin proselytizers, is now sitting on a $17 billion paper loss after the cryptocurrency lost nearly half its value since October. Bill Cohan investigates whether Saylor’s empire is set to collapse. [Read More]

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Wall Power: Anselm Kiefer’s Gagosian show closes this week, and the 81-year-old German artist has rarely been more in demand. Marion Maneker chats with Gagosian’s Kara Vander Weg about the artist’s work and the erudite collectors and institutions who seek him out. [Inner Circle Exclusive]
The Best & The Brightest: Three deep blue New York congressional districts just elected Mamdani-backed democratic socialists as their nominees, and Hakeem Jeffries’ chosen lieutenants went down in defeat. Peter Hamby reports on the ensuing Democratic panic and whether the D.S.A. can find success beyond the five boroughs. [Read More]

Meanwhile, on the pods…

The Powers That Be: Peter and Dylan discuss the rekindled tensions between The New York Times and The Athletic over the Times’s bombshell investigation into Dianna Russini. [Listen Here or Watch Here]

And now, a little more on The Daily Wire’s I.P.O. delusion…

MEDIA

Ben on a Wire

On Tuesday, shortly after the news broke that Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire was raising fresh capital and eyeing a potential I.P.O., a well-placed source texted Dylan to offer a clearer-eyed assessment of the conservative media outlet. They are “wanting [and] needing to grab cash,” the source said. “I’ve never known what it feels like to be drowning, but I guess this is that.”

As revealed by its pitch deck, The Daily Wire is in trouble after a year marked by internal dysfunction, audience erosion, mass layoffs, leadership changes, and Shapiro’s own slow-motion falling-out with the MAGA zeitgeist. But the Wire team is unbowed: Shapiro’s company is reportedly in talks with Highmount Capital to lead an investment round of more than $100 million at a $750 million valuation—and fantasizing about a $2 billion I.P.O. before the end of the year. Is this ambition even more fantastical than The Pendragon Cycle?

Click here for Dylan’s full story.

FASHION

Rachel Strugatz

Fenty & The Beast

The once white-hot, Rihanna-fronted beauty brand has cooled significantly, and co-owner LVMH is shopping its stake. As the rules of celebrity beauty lines keep changing, and the competition mounts, where does Fenty’s future lie?

WALL STREET

William D. Cohan

Tinker Saylor Soldier Spy

Bitcoin has now fallen by more than 50 percent from its all-time high. Does the cryptocurrency’s number one evangelist have an escape hatch?

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Imagine your entire company working in perfect sync. Strategy, operations, tech, and AI – all connected. At PwC, we design the solutions that can help you get there.

ART

Marion Maneker

Condition Report: Kara Vander Weg, Gagosian Gallery

The Gagosian senior director offers a behind-the-scenes look at the gallery’s show of German artist Anselm Kiefer—and the erudite collectors and institutions who seek him out.

WASHINGTON

Peter Hamby

The Suicide Squad

Hill Democrats are panicking over a trio of Mamdani-backed, socialism-brained congressional candidates who make the A.O.C.-era Squad look like moderates. Will they help Republicans hold the House?

MEDIA

Peter Hamby

Dylan Byers

The Powers that Be Daily, Starring Peter Hamby

The Times’s Athletic Problem

Dylan Byers joins Peter to dig into the rekindled tensions between The New York Times and The Athletic over the Times’s investigation into Dianna Russini, whose secret relationship with Patriots coach Mike Vrabel turned into salacious tabloid fodder. Dylan also weighs in on the potential CBS News–CNN merger and what kind of leader it would take to navigate the transition.

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