Top News:
Thomas Buckley / Bloomberg:
Sources: Disney's board is aligning on promoting theme park division chairman Josh D'Amaro to CEO; Disney says “the board has not yet selected the next CEO” — The board of Walt Disney Co. is aligning on promoting theme-park division chairman Josh D'Amaro to the role …
Discussion:
Business Insider, New York Post, The Wrap, Variety, Yahoo Finance, CNBC, Sports Business Journal, Cord Cutters News, Dow Jones Newswires, Motley Fool, Benzinga, NewsMax.com and Adweek
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Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Bob Iger has told associates that he plans to step down as Disney CEO before December 31; the board plans to vote on his replacement next week — Disney's board is planning to meet next week, where it is expected to vote on a new CEO — Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger …
Brooks Barnes / New York Times:
A profile of Josh D'Amaro, a front-runner for Disney CEO who oversees Disney parks, cruises, and video games; his unit supplied ~60% of Disney's 2025 profit
Discussion:
Yahoo Finance, Reuters, Florida Politics, Media Play News, Bloomberg, Sports Business Journal, Benzinga, @mediaevan and @scottgustin
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Disney reports Q1 revenue up 5% YoY to $26B, driven by Zootopia 2 and a record $10B revenue from Experiences; streaming operating income rose 72% YoY to $450M — Disney beat Wall Street expectations with a 5% lift in revenue for the December 2025 quarter, and its streaming biz continued …
Discussion:
Advanced Television, TheDesk.net, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, The Streamable, Benzinga, Yahoo Finance, Sports Business Journal, Orlando Sentinel, The Wrap, Business Wire, Los Angeles Times, Cord Cutters News, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Streaming Better, Variety and Media Play News
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Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Disney says ESPN is valued at ~$30B and the NFL's 10% equity stake in ESPN valued at ~$3B; Disney has the right to buy back NFL's stake in 2034, per a filing
Discussion:
Sportico, Awful Announcing and Cord Cutters News
Brooks Barnes / New York Times:
Disney reports Q1 operating profit down 9% YoY to $4.6B, weighed down by high movie production costs and a 15-day YouTube TV carriage dispute that cost $110M
Discussion:
The Wrap, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Cord Cutters News, Front Office Sports and The Streamable
Washington Post:
Independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort have been released from custody after their arrests for coverage of a protest at a Minnesota church — The former CNN host was taken into custody in Los Angeles. — Federal authorities arrested independent journalist Don Lemon in Los Angeles …
Discussion:
Minneapolis Star Tribune, The Guardian, Ben Fertig on LinkedIn, American Prospect, Associated Press, URL Media, Cele|bitchy, @blackvotersmatterfund.org, @bettevcollins.bsky.social, @denisedwheeler.bsky.social, CNN, New York Times, Steady, UNICORN RIOT, Law Dork, @ac360, @attorneygriggs, Committee to Protect …, KARE-TV, @foxnews, The Atlantic, The Hollywood Reporter, TMZ.com, CBS News, @prestonmitchum, @mollyjongfast, @sbg1, Techdirt, @froomkin.bsky.social, Mediaite, The Intercept, CBS News, Los Angeles Times, The TRiiBE, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, Advocate, NBC News, Free Press Action Fund Feed, Just Jared, @donlemonofficial.bsky.social, @andrewlevesque.bsky.social, @blackskynews.blacksky.app, Deadline, Vox, The Present Age, Politico, The Forward, @frankamari.bsky.social, USA Today, TheGrio, @stoneballs.bsky.social, The Wrap, Baller Alert, The 19th, Press Watch, Newser, The Contrarian, Deseret News, People, @dmcharles.bsky.social, Truthout, The Inner Circle …, @ag.state.mn.us, Advocate, Wonkette, Straight Arrow News, UPI, @couts.bsky.social, Hollywood Life, The Guardian, @davejorgenson.bsky.social, Investigative Reporters …, FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, @TomSullivan@mstdn.social, Minnesota Reformer, The Washington Free Beacon, Florida's Voice, The Independent, Bossip, Salon, New York Magazine, @jonflan.bsky.social, Vibe, @mcbridetd.bsky.social, @hrag.bsky.social, Twin Cities, New York Post, New York Daily News, Forbes and Representative Crockett
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Richard Luscombe / The Guardian:
Press freedom groups denounce the arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort, saying the arrests are an “unequivocal attack on the First Amendment”
Discussion:
Democracy Now, NPR, Status, Mirror, Lucid, HuffPost, The Contrarian, America, America, @amandabecker.bsky.social, @penamerica.bsky.social, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, NABJ, Real Patriotism …, Meidas+, Salon, Bossip, CNN, @passantino.bsky.social, @passantino.bsky.social, Le Monde, Awful Announcing, @fiona-webster22.bsky.social, @davidfolkenflik, MS NOW, @mmpadellan, @berniesanders, Lisa Armstrong on LinkedIn, @jeffroushwriting.bsky.social, Poynter, NPR, ACLU, The Independent, Associated Press, TheGrio, Jodie Ginsberg on LinkedIn, Columbia Journalism Review, The Wrap, Capital B News, @theintercept.com, @freepress.bsky.social, Advocate, @notaaroncraig.bsky.social, @scanlon.house.gov, @cdarwin@c.im, @freedom.press, @pdehello@mastodon.social, NextDraft, @freedom.press, Out Magazine, Asian American Journalists …, Thinking about, @inn.org, KSTP-TV, The Independent, Freedom of the Press …, Baller Alert, New York Times, The Hill, Media Nation, Mediaite, NewsMax.com, URL Media, TheGrio, KARE-TV, PinkNews, The Daily Signal and New Republic
Rebecca Rubin / Variety:
Amazon's Melania documentary opens with $7M at the North American box office, above pre-release estimates of $3M to $5M; Amazon spent $75M on the documentary — “Melania,” a documentary that shadows the first lady of the United States in the lead-up to Donald Trump's second presidential inauguration …
Discussion:
The Atlantic, CNN, New Yorker, Washington Examiner, Deadline, Gizmodo, The Hollywood Reporter, Poynter, NBC News, @lucas_shaw, @ellenenders.bsky.social, @ichotiner, Screen, Dow Jones Newswires, Dexerto, @dtgeek@mastodon.social, @benfritz, Vanity Fair, TMZ.com, TechCrunch, The Wrap, Consequence, Rolling Stone, Comic Book, Bloomberg, CNBC, Mediaite, Fox News, People, Gold Derby and Mashable
Andrew Marchand / The Athletic:
ESPN closes the deal to acquire multiple NFL Media assets after receiving US regulatory approval; NFL will get a 10% stake in ESPN as part of the agreement — Share full article — Government regulators have approved ESPN's billion-dollar blockbuster acquisition of multiple NFL Media assets …
The Wrap:
Source: CBS News may cut ties with new contributor Peter Attia, a wellness expert, after the latest trove of Epstein emails revealed Attia's Epstein links — In newly released emails, the wellness guru made crude jokes in chummy correspondence with the late convicted sex offender
Discussion:
Just Jared, @jeremymbarr, Defector, Variety, @ariehkovler, @peterattiamd, @drcamrx, @dave_longevity, @shannonrwatts, @heerjeet, @anakasparian, New York Post, @drcamrx, @dave_longevity, @marlownyc, @dave_longevity, @rockrol54750183, @doctortro, @shannonrwatts, Hindustan Times and Washington Examiner
Anna Nicolaou / Financial Times:
How the music industry is split over AI; some labels signed licensing deals for AI that mirror revenue splits they use with YouTube for user-generated content — A folk-pop song called “I Know, You're Not Mine” recently topped Spotify's charts in Sweden. The soft vocals …
Discussion:
IAB and @dannygroner.bsky.social
Simon Hunt / City A.M.:
Source: the London Stock Exchange cancels hundreds of FT corporate subscriptions in response to the paper's retreat from London markets coverage in recent years — The operator of the London Stock Exchange has cancelled hundreds of corporate subscriptions to the Financial Times …
Discussion:
Talking Biz News, Adam Taylor on LinkedIn and Telegraph
Kerry Flynn / Axios:
The IAB proposes draft legislation to protect publishers from AI companies using their content to train models and generate summaries without compensation — Interactive Advertising Bureau CEO David Cohen announced proposed draft legislation and plans to push for action to protect publishers …
Discussion:
IAB and TVNewsCheck
Max Tani / Semafor:
A look at the clash between The California Post and Gavin Newsom, helping The Post get more attention for its content while Newsom scores points with his base — Know More — Max's View — The View From Los Angeles — Notable — The California Post is betting its buzzy launch …
Discussion:
@maxwelltani, @maxwelltani, New York Post and Poynter
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
A look at Netflix's bid for WBD and the regulatory hurdles ahead, as Ted Sarandos is set to testify before the US Senate antitrust subcommittee on February 3 — Netflix has long excelled at avoiding regulatory entanglements. That's about to change. — Happy Grammy Sunday and a special shoutout …
Discussion:
Deseret News, Benzinga, NewsMax.com and Truth on the Market
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