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Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Stephen Colbert says CBS lawyers blocked an interview with Democratic US Senate candidate James Talarico, citing the FCC's equal time guidance for TV talk shows — Colbert and ‘The Late Show’ posted the interview with James Talarico on the show's YouTube page to bypass the FCC's oversight.
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Naman Ramachandran / Variety:
By not airing Colbert's interview with Talarico, CBS bowed to FCC pressure preemptively as the agency hasn't formally eliminated talk show equal time exemptions — Stephen Colbert went public Monday night with a striking accusation against his own network: that CBS lawyers had barred …
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Financial Times:
WBD tells Paramount to make its “best and final offer” within seven days, or get out of the way of Netflix's agreed $83B deal; Netflix granted a weeklong waiver — Netflix grants weeklong waiver to rival bidder in high-stakes battle for control
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Awful Announcing, CNN, CinemaBlend, The Post Millennial, Front Office Sports, Daily Mail, CBC News, Telegraph, The Guardian, Advanced Television, Associated Press, Barron's Online, The Independent, @brianstelter, City A.M., @brianstelter, @tvgrimreaper, @sarafischer, The Wrap, @lucas_shaw, New York Times, Reuters, @claytravis, Axios, Los Angeles Times, @sherman4949, The Verge and EasternEye
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Jill Goldsmith / Deadline:
WBD says Paramount informed WBD on February 11 that it would pay $31 per share, up from $30, if the sides engaged, and that $31 was not its best and final offer — Warner says that the Ellison camp had verbally agreed to boost its bid to $31 or higher if two the sides engaged, which WBD today has agreed to do.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Cord Cutters News, Straight Arrow News and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.
Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:
Netflix says Paramount has caused “ongoing distraction” and “mischaracterized the regulatory review process”, and its WBD bid raises national security concerns — The streamer said that its $83 billion deal is “the only certain path to delivering value to WBD's stockholders”
Todd Spangler / Variety:
WBD sets March 20 as the date for a special shareholder meeting to vote on the proposed $83B Netflix deal, which its board “continues to unanimously recommend”
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Lachlan Cartwright / Breaker:
Anderson Cooper is leaving 60 Minutes after almost 20 years; sources say he has decided to pass on a renewal offer with CBS — Legendary Newsman Will Focus on CNN And Family … Welcome to a special edition of Breaker, as we mark our first birthday, we thought what better way to celebrate than to give all of our subscribers a scoop.
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Oliver Darcy / Status:
Sources: Anderson Cooper grew increasingly uneasy with the rightward direction of CBS News under Bari Weiss, a factor in his decision to leave 60 Minutes — On Monday evening, as the media class wrapped up its three-day Presidents' Day weekend, a bombshell development sent shockwaves across the industry.
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Katie Robertson / New York Times:
Condé Nast names Adam Baidawi as GQ's global editorial director; Baidawi previously led British GQ and wants GQ to be a “North Star of masculinity” — Adam Baidawi recalls being enthralled by GQ magazine the first time he pored through an issue as a teenager in suburban Melbourne, Australia.
Discussion:
The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter and Condé Nast
Chris Quinn / Plain Dealer:
The Cleveland Plain Dealer says it has removed “writing” from some reporters' workloads; an “AI rewrite specialist” turns info gathered by reporters into drafts — A college student withdrew from consideration for a reporting role in our newsroom this week because of how we use artificial intelligence.
Discussion:
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Sara Fischer / Axios:
Memo: Hearst CEO Steve Swartz says 2025 revenue grew 3% YoY to $13.5B and the company hit record profit levels, with B2B business accounting for 60% of profits — Hearst, the 138-year-old media giant, saw record revenues and profits last year, CEO Steve Swartz wrote in an annual memo to employees Tuesday, obtained by Axios.
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Talent agency Night Media, which represents social media celebrities and owns a podcast network, raised $70M to expand into gaming, sports, and music — Night Media Inc., the talent management firm that represents social media celebrities such as popular Twitch streamer Kai Cenat …
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter
Matt Hughes / The Guardian:
Sources: the English Premier League extends its South America and Caribbean broadcast contract with ESPN through 2031 in a £450M deal, up 25% from the last deal — - South American and Caribbean partnership runs to 2031 — Substantial rise contrasts with stagnant domestic rights
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