Mediagazer: The New York Times wins three 2025 Polk Awards, including for its Trump coverage; The Boston Globe, ProPublica, AP, and Business Insider also won (Katie Robertson/New York Times)

10:40 AM ET, February 18, 2026

Top News:

Jack Dunn / Variety:

Stephen Colbert says CBS released its statement “without ever talking to me” and talk shows have long been exempt from “equal time” rules — On Tuesday night's broadcast of “The Late Show,” Stephen Colbert slammed his home network, CBS, for releasing a statement denying …

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

Discussion: YouTube, YouTube, New York Times, Mediaite, MS NOW, LaineyGossip, HuffPost, The Wrap, @mcbridetd.bsky.social, The Guardian, Washington Post, Deadline, LateNighter, @jamestalarico, @michaeljstern.bsky.social, Raw Story, TheJournal.ie, NOTUS, @michaeljstern.bsky.social, The Wrap, The Verge, @sgmandanas.bsky.social, ZeroHedge News, @charles.littlegreenfootballs …, Benzinga, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, Variety, @adamscochran, @adamscochran, @kurtbardella, @repdarrensoto, @davidsirota, @kylegriffin1, @schmittnyc, Talking Points Memo, @reckless.bsky.social, @mollyjongfast, @chrismurphyct, @adamwren, @mikenellis, @timodc, UPI, @chriso_wiki, @j_g_allen, @richardhanania, @terrymoran, @therickwilson, @yakhappy.bsky.social, @nathanleamerdc, @mehdirhasan, Deadline, Lawyers, Guns & Money, @ronfilipkowski, Business Insider, CBS News, @meidastouch, Washington Post, @newnarrative.bsky.social, New Republic, @jayrosen.bsky.social, @hissgoescobra, @mdg650hawk.bsky.social, Peter S. Henne on LinkedIn, Mediaite, New York Daily News, @adamscochran, @redsteeze, twitchy.com, @redsteeze, The A.V. Club, @wjcarter, @nick_field90, @farhip, Techdirt, Forbes, Page Six, The Dean's Report, Rolling Stone, @eddiesheehy.bsky.social, NewsMax.com, @sev.yote.social, New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Times, RedState, New Jersey Online, Straight Arrow News, @johnshirley2024.bsky.social, New York Sun, The Hill, Daily Caller News Foundation, The Siren, @cat1957.bsky.social, The Status Kuo, Mother Jones, Washington Examiner, New York Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, Associated Press, Decider, KVIA-TV, Newsbusters, Endless Urgency …, @geneha.com, @drewharwell.com, Forbes, The Nation, Mediaite, OutsideTheBeltway, IJR, The Texas Tribune, MS NOW, USA Today, The Independent, The A.V. Club, Mediaite, @noahshachtman.bsky.social, Plain Dealer, Axios, @texassignal.bsky.social, Bloomberg Law, The Boston Globe, Us Weekly, Scripps News, The Daily Beast, The Wrap, TV Insider, Townhall, @gabrielmalor.bsky.social, Mediaite, Raw Story, TVNewsCheck, Just Jared, Eschaton, Mashable and Variety

Todd Spangler / Variety:
CBS says The Late Show was not prohibited from broadcasting a James Talarico interview and was given “legal guidance” that a broadcast could trigger an FCC rule

Gene Maddaus / Variety:

WBD joins Disney and Paramount in claiming infringement on ByteDance's AI video tool Seedance and demands ByteDance cease training AI on Warner Bros. characters — The studio's legal counsel fired off a letter on Tuesday to John Rogovin, the general counsel of ByteDance who happens …

Discussion: The Wrap, The Decoder, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, PetaPixel and MediaNews4U, more at Techmeme »

Dominic Patten / Deadline:

Netflix sends ByteDance a C&D letter over Seedance 2.0, joining WBD, Paramount, and Disney, saying “forensic evidence” shows “unauthorized derivative works” — With their two-page correspondence and potential legal action to follow, Netflix have linked arms …

Discussion: Comic Book, TechRadar, GamesRadar, primetimer.com, Variety and The Wrap

Cameron Adams / The Daily Beast:

Sources: CNN restricted staff from using its platforms for self-promotion, after Jake Tapper pushing his Joe Biden book turned into a “rolling infomercial” — TURNING A PAGE — The anchor is said to be “very, very unhappy” at the network's new policy on self-promotion.

Discussion: @lmarson05.bsky.social, @wehriskat.bsky.social, @optimisticdoomer.bsky.social and @billkuchman.bsky.social

Katie Robertson / New York Times:

The New York Times wins three 2025 Polk Awards, including for its Trump coverage; The Boston Globe, ProPublica, AP, and Business Insider also won — The Times was honored for its coverage of President Trump, the abuse of housekeepers and nannies in Saudi Arabia and brutality in New York prisons.

Discussion: Business Insider, New Yorker and @jeremymbarr

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:

The Irish Times says it now has ~150,000 print and digital subscribers, and it has reached a milestone where subscriber revenue fully funds its journalism — Revenue generated by subscribers to The Irish Times is now fully funding its journalism for the first time.

Discussion: @metacurity.com

Tim Hardwick / MacRumors:

Apple launches Apple Music Connect, a new resource for music labels and distributors to manage promotional assets, upload press photos, and more — Apple has launched Apple Music Connect, a new resource for labels, distributors, and partners to manage promotional assets, upload press photos …

Discussion: iClarified, iPhone in Canada, AppleInsider, The Mac Observer and MacTech.com

Olivia Empson / Wall Street Journal:

A profile of women-focused conservative magazine Evie, founded in 2019 and named for a modern take on the Bible's original woman, with 192K Substack followers — Named for a modern version of the Bible's original woman, Evie aims to reach a new kind of conservative: the churchgoing, city-dwelling, working young mother

Discussion: Vanity Fair

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:

A US federal judge orders OpenAI to stop using the word “Cameo” for its Sora products and features, in a trademark lawsuit filed by celebrity video app Cameo — A federal district court in Northern California ruled in favor of Cameo, a platform that allows users …

Discussion: Engadget, Los Angeles Times, Tech in Asia, Reuters and Chicago Business Journal

Krystal Hur / Wall Street Journal:

Filing: Berkshire Hathaway reports that it purchased 5.1M shares of The New York Times during the December quarter; NYT rises 3%+ pre-market — In Warren Buffett's last quarter as CEO, his company further trimmed its holdings in iPhone maker — Berkshire Hathaway sold shares in Bank …

Discussion: Proactive, Business Insider, Sherwood News, Telegraph, MacDailyNews, Morningstar, Motley Fool, RTÉ, ZeroHedge News, Associated Press, Reuters, SEC.gov, The Hollywood Reporter, Barron's Online and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Caitlin Huston / The Hollywood Reporter:

Versant's MS Now signs a deal with Crooked Media to air highlights from Crooked podcasts such as Pod Save America and Lovett or Leave It, at 9pm ET on Saturdays — In a notable video podcast pact, highlights from Crooked shows such as ‘Pod Save America’ and ‘Lovett or Leave It’ will air Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET.

Discussion: @jeremymbarr, Richard Hudock on LinkedIn, Brands, The Wrap, Mediaite, Deadline and Barrett Media

Diane Sylvester / Editor and Publisher:

News Literacy Project survey: 84% of US teens describe news media negatively, and 94% think news or media literacy should be part of their education — When the News Literacy Project (NLP) released its national study of teens' views of journalism in November 2025, one figure stood out …

Discussion: Erin Schneider on LinkedIn, Esther Wojcicki on LinkedIn and @dankennedy.net

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 10:40 AM ET, February 18, 2026.

View the current page or another snapshot:

Who's Hiring in Media?

Correspondent - Russia, Berlin — NYT

Editorial Manager - MENA, Dubai — Reuters

Digital Managing Editor, Mumbai — Bloomberg

Breaking News Editor, TX — Dallas Morning News

Money Writer - Underscored, NY — CNN

Multimedia News Reporter, SD — Capital Journal

Copy Editor, IL — Lamwork

Associate News Editor, NY — The City

Transportation/GA Reporter, CA — Sacramento Bee

Reporter, WI — BizTimes Milwaukee

Reporter - Private Equity, NY — PitchBook

Sr. Immigration & Courts Reporter, IL — Borderless

Community News Reporter, FL — TB Times

Senior Editor, Johannesburg — LexisNexis

Content Editor - Consulting, London — WIRED

Foodie Beat Reporter, WA — Tri-City Herald

News Reporter, CA — The Real Deal

Executive Editor, SC — The State

Retail & Consumer Reporter, MA — Boston Globe

Managing Editor, FL — Observer Media

Executive Editor - Forbes Wine, NJ — Forbes

Tech News Writer - Yahoo Tech — Yahoo

Data Journalist - Lifestyle, WA — Redfin News

Deputy Social Media Editor, DC — The Bulwark

Reporter - Beauty & Wellness, NY — Daily Beast

Community Reporter, NC — County Beacon

Night Editor, CA — SF Chronicle

Govt. Affairs Reporter, MA — Cambridge Day

Reporter - Politics, CA/NY/DC — The Information

Tech Reporter - AI — Business Insider

Night & Weekend News Writer, Remote — AlterNet

US Justice Correspondent, DC — FT

Writer - Mobile, NY or Remote — PCMag

Add your company here

See Also:

Mediagazer: site main

Mediagazer River: reverse chronological Mediagazer

Mediagazer Mobile: for phones

Mediagazer Leaderboard: Mediagazer's top sources

Subscribe:

Mediagazer RSS feed

Mediagazer on X

Mediagazer on Mastodon

More News:

Freddie Sayers / The Spectator:
The Spectator has 113K subscribers, a record, print is its fastest-growing type of subscription, and it is offering its subscription service to external clients

Discussion: City A.M., Advanced Television and The Streamable

Cristina Criddle / Financial Times:
Perplexity says it has no plans to further pursue ads, which it introduced in 2024, after phasing them out in late 2025 over fears they would erode user trust

Discussion: The Decoder, Search Engine Land, PYMNTS.com, The Verge, @cszabla, MacRumors, @homemadehooplah, Benzinga, @charlesmok.bsky.social and Business Insider, more at Techmeme »

Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai / TechCrunch:
Amnesty research: a government customer of spyware maker Intellexa hacked the iPhone of journalist Teixeira Cândido in Angola in 2024 via Predator spyware

Discussion: The Record, Reporters Without Borders, Metacurity, Amnesty International …, Amnesty International USA, Reuters, Bloomberg, @lorenzofb.bsky.social and Committee to Protect …

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Automattic adds an AI assistant to WordPress.com, enabling users to perform site-wide layout and style modifications via natural language commands

Discussion: Engadget, eWeek, TechRadar, WordPress.com News, @jameswlepage, @wordpressdotcom, @rafaltomal, @georgebaily@mastodon.social, TechEBlog, Tech in Asia, The Verge and @lauridonahue.bsky.social

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Paramount says it is “prepared to engage” with WBD on takeover talks during a seven-day negotiating window, but doesn't say whether it will raise its bid

John Stang / Columbia Journalism Review:
Three right-wing media figures, who were denied press credentials in WA because of political affiliation, sue to get permanent press passes to the statehouse

Discussion: @agomezfcc, @cjr, KUOW News and Information and @emilybell.bsky.social

Earlier Picks:

Lucia Moses / Business Insider:
NBCU sues Group Black, a firm created to direct ad dollars to Black-owned and Black-led media, alleging $35.8M in unpaid invoices and guaranteed payments

Discussion: @businessinsider.com

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Mediahuis is experimenting with AI agents for commissioning, writing, and more to “automate first line news”, which is reviewed by humans prior to publication

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

Discussion: The Hollywood Reporter, Bloomberg 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

Discussion: Tubefilter, Aisha Counts on LinkedIn and The Hollywood Reporter

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”

Discussion: Feed Me, @nicolegelinas, The Business of Fashion, The Hollywood Reporter, Condé Nast and The Wrap

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Snapchat launches creator subscriptions in alpha, available to some creators in the US starting February 23; creators set custom monthly pricing

From Techmeme:

Todd Haselton / The Verge:
Google unveils the $499 Pixel 10a, with a Tensor G4 and 8GB of RAM, like the Pixel 9a, an 11% brighter screen, and 128GB or 256GB storage, shipping from March 4

Abu Sultan / Reuters:
Microsoft says it is on pace to invest $50B by 2030 to help expand AI across the Global South, after unveiling $17.5B worth of AI investments in India in 2025

Joe Miller / Financial Times:
How US citizens, clergy, and elected officials in conservative communities like Missouri are leading a grassroots rebellion against the Trump-backed AI boom

Sister Sites:

Techmeme
Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web

memeorandum
What US political commentators are discussing online right now

WeSmirch
The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page