Mediagazer: Stephen Colbert says CBS released its statement “without ever talking to me” and talk shows have long been exempt from “equal time” rules (Jack Dunn/Variety)

9:50 AM ET, February 18, 2026

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Gene Maddaus / Variety:

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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 …

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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 …

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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

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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

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

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

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

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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 …

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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 …

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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

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 — The company didn't indicate that it is willing to increase the price tag for its hostile takeover bid but said it was ready …

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

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 — Leading start-ups have recently embraced sponsors as they search for revenue — AI start-up Perplexity has abandoned advertising …

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

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