Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
A Paramount shareholder lawsuit claims David and Larry Ellison made an illegal deal with Trump in trade for approval of the WBD merger, promising to revamp CNN — Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison and his tech billionaire dad Larry Ellison have been sued by a Paramount shareholder …
RELATED:
Gene Maddaus / Variety:
Paramount agrees to a request from 12 states, led by CA, to link their federal antitrust case in the WBD merger to an existing Paramount+ subscriber lawsuit — Paramount has agreed to a request from 12 states to link their federal antitrust case to a pre-existing suit brought by Paramount+ subscribers.
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Sources: execs expect a judge to grant a temporary restraining order delaying the Paramount-WBD merger; Paramount still expects to close the merger before Q4 — Executives involved in the pending Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery deal expect that a judge will hit pause on the takeover plan in the coming days.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
The Writers Guild of America sues Paramount and WBD in an effort to stop their merger, claiming the deal would hurt wages and working conditions for writers
Discussion:
US District Court, Northern District of California, Inverse, The Hollywood Reporter, @balancecrafting, The Wrap, Broadband TV News, The Ankler, Wyatt Fore on LinkedIn, Graphic Policy, @balancecrafting, Mercury News, Media Play News, Advanced Television, Writers Guild of America West, Civil Discourse …, Kellie Lerner on LinkedIn, Associated Press, Screen, Wall Street Journal, @cinephiliabeyond.org, @filmbrainbmb.bsky.social, Los Angeles Times, IndieWire, Cord Cutters News, @susanrinkunas.com, Reuters, Deadline, Oh No They Didn't!, Bloomberg, MediaPost, Bloomberg Law and Sports Media Watch
Winston Cho / The Hollywood Reporter:
Letter: Tennessee Deputy Governor Stuart McWhorter urged David Ellison to move Paramount's corporate headquarters from California to Tennessee
Letter: Tennessee Deputy Governor Stuart McWhorter urged David Ellison to move Paramount's corporate headquarters from California to Tennessee
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Trump's recent comment on a “normal path” for CNN raised eyebrows amid the Paramount-WBD merger; Paramount would need CNN revenue to help pay off $80B in debt
Trump's recent comment on a “normal path” for CNN raised eyebrows amid the Paramount-WBD merger; Paramount would need CNN revenue to help pay off $80B in debt
Discussion:
Variety, @danpfeiffer, @danpfeiffer, @danpfeiffer, The Message Box, MS NOW, Reuters, New York Magazine, The Wrap and r/MediaMergers
Ted Johnson / Deadline:
Brendan Carr proposes repealing the national ownership cap, which restricts amassing TV stations that cover more than 39% of households, and sets an Aug. 6 vote — FCC Chairman Brendan Carr is proposing a repeal of the national ownership cap, which restricts broadcasters from amassing stations …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Ars Technica, The Verge, CNN, Matthew Keys on LinkedIn, Poynter, Los Angeles Times, The Hill, Politico, Reuters, Barrett Media, Radio & Television …, FCC, @lucas_shaw, Bloomberg, TV Tech, Variety, @jeremymbarr, The Wrap, Blockonomi, The Hollywood Reporter, TVNewsCheck and Bloomberg Law
Corey G. Johnson / ProPublica:
Ethics disclosures show 7 out of 10 FCC commissioners since 2016 have accepted Kennedy Center tickets worth thousands courtesy of CBS or its parent company — Reporting Highlights — Expensive Gifts: Despite regulating broadcast media, FCC commissioners have accepted pricey tickets …
Discussion:
TheDesk.net, Freedom of the Press …, Staff Stories, The Hollywood Reporter, Mediaite, Washington Examiner, @portiamcgonagal.bsky.social, @billspaced.com, New Republic, @bstnboy.bsky.social, @alanpringle@mstdn.social, @cdarwin@c.im, @coreygjohnson.bsky.social, @lauren@mastodon …, @andrewlevesque.bsky.social, NextDraft, @ProPublica@newsie.social, @nicolefcarr.bsky.social, Gadget Review, @schwanksta.com and The Wrap
GTLN:
The Georgia Trust for Local News purchased The Macon Telegraph and The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer from McClatchy; The Macon Melody will merge with The Telegraph — Deal will revitalize local journalism in Middle, West and South Georgia — Dublin, Ga. - The Georgia Trust for Local News today purchased …
Patrick Coffee / Wall Street Journal:
How TikTok Shop sellers are using AI creators and AI twins to boost sales; eMarketer: US sales on TikTok Shop are expected to hit $23.4B in 2026, up 48% YoY — Brands issue warnings as more creators use avatars and duplicates of themselves to boost affiliate sales
Discussion:
The Independent and PR Daily
Ariel Zilber / New York Post:
Layoffs hit Altice USA's News 12 operations around NYC; source: at least three dozen employees across the Bronx, Brooklyn, Westchester, and Connecticut were cut — An earthquake hit local broadcast journalists across the New York metropolitan area this week as News 12 carried out sweeping layoffs …
Discussion:
@jamesqueallylat, @benbrodydc, @petersterne, @ftmarkets, Financial Times, FTVLive and 06880
Jessica Davies / Digiday:
Ozone: publisher ad supply in Q2 fell by 32% to 37% YoY in the US and 39% to 41% YoY in the UK, driven by AI-era zero-click search and reduced referral traffic — Publisher ad supply fell by up to 40% in Q2 of 2026 as AI era, zero-click search choked the flow of traffic to news and other open-web sites …
Bauer Media:
Bauer Media appoints Frances Hedges as Editor of Grazia; she was previously Deputy Editor of Harper's Bazaar UK — Bauer Media has appointed Frances Hedges as Editor of Grazia. She joins from Harper's Bazaar UK where she was Deputy Editor since 2019. — Frances will lead Grazia's editorial vision …
Discussion:
Lauren Holleyoake on LinkedIn
Ethan Baron / Mercury News:
California and Google will contribute $20M each over two years to the CA Civic Media Program, far below the $250M promised in 2024, with grants of up to $250K — Critic says the funding ‘goes backwards’ for local news — Months after Gov. Gavin Newsom stripped state funding from a much larger plan …
Discussion:
Governor of California
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Apple publishes a policy for upcoming Maps ads, says home services ads are banned, medical services ads will be “evaluated on a case-by-case basis”, and more — Apple has quietly published a rulebook for its new Maps ads, revealing a more curated approach than advertising giant Google.
Discussion:
Apple Ads, iClarified, Mobile Dev Memo, MacRumors, iThinkDifferent, MacTech.com, 9to5Mac and AppleInsider
