Know What's Happening in Media
Know What's Happening in Media
Media Pulse
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EMAIL DIGESTS
Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
Chinese box office loses king‑maker status as Hollywood faces tighter limits
The Chinese box office has slipped from its former role as a Hollywood gateway after the 2012 U.S.–China film agreement expired in 2017 and censorship tightened. Beijing now prioritises domestic productions, and in the past five years only ten U.S. movies have earned over $100 million in China.
Also developing:
By the numbers: K-Love seeks FCC approval for acquisition of WFCC
BBC Studios and Turkey‑based CosmoBlue Media have deepened their partnership by launching the COSMO EN linear channel and the BBC Player streaming service in Turkey. COSMO EN is now carried on D‑Smart, Tivibu, beIN and Kablo TV, while BBC Player is accessible through the COSMO GO app, offering more than 1,000 hours of on‑demand British programming. The two companies say the rollout is the first phase of a wider expansion that will bring the full suite of BBC Studios channels, including BBC First, BBC Earth and CBeebies, to the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) market. Executives highlighted the aim to tailor premium UK content to local audience preferences.
Good Vibrations, the 2013 biopic about Belfast punk pioneer Terri Hooley, is now streaming on BBC iPlayer for 28 days. The film stars Line of Duty’s Adrian Dunbar, Doctor Who alum Jodie Whittaker, and Richard Dormer as Hooley, and chronicles the...
Muck Rack’s Generative Pulse report reveals that earned media accounts for roughly 25% of all citations generated by large language models, while non‑paid sources represent about 94% of AI‑cited links. Press‑release citations grew fivefold between July and December 2025, rising...
South Korean septet BTS returned from a four‑year hiatus with the album Arirang, moving 532,000 physical copies and 641,000 equivalent album units in its first week. The lead single “Swim” entered the Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. at No. 1,...
Cuentas’ 51%-owned subsidiary World Mobile Media Group (WMMG) announced the launch of a next‑generation decentralized media platform that combines premium content, live events and creator‑driven programming in a mobile‑first ecosystem. The platform gives creators ownership and a suite of direct‑to‑fan...
Tubi, the free streaming arm of Fox Corporation, announced that it will launch 250 episodes of Sesame Street on April 1, 2026. The catalog covers the series from its 1969 premiere through Season 38, with a quarterly refresh that adds roughly 10 %...
CBS announced the cancellation of the sophomore drama Watson and freshman sitcom DMV, with finales set for May 3 and May 11. The moves come as the network leans heavily on franchise‑driven hits like Marshals and CIA to shore up...
Jay Graber, the former chief executive of Bluesky, has moved into a chief innovation role and released Attie, an agentic app that lets users build personalized social‑media feeds with natural‑language requests. The beta‑stage product, built on Bluesky’s decentralized protocol, signals...
Usha Vance, the U.S. second lady, debuted her podcast “Storytime with the Second Lady” on March 30, releasing three 10‑15‑minute episodes featuring guests like Danica Patrick and Brent Poppen. The series is positioned as a low‑cost effort to counter falling literacy rates among...
The E.W. Scripps Company is pivoting to make women’s sports a core part of its portfolio, broadcasting WNBA, NWSL and PWHL games on its ION network and a new FAST channel. By leveraging its mix of local stations, national cable...
The article argues that war coverage has become a "spectacle," where short‑form video pundits dominate the narrative, diluting genuine political resistance. Drawing on Guy Debord’s theory, it shows how interchangeable images of conflict desensitize the public and turn protests like...
The Daily investigates newly revealed allegations that labor icon Cesar Chavez sexually abused women and girls within his farm‑worker movement, featuring New York Times reporters Manny Fernandez and Sarah Hertz. They recount how a tip in 2021 led them to...
YouTube tops the 2026 Brand Influence Rank, reaching 2.7 billion monthly users and generating over $40 billion in ad spend, making it the world’s most influential media brand. All ten most influential global brands are tech‑led, with AI‑driven ChatGPT entering the list...
The BBC drama "Care," starring Sheridan Smith and Alison Steadman, has been added to Netflix’s streaming library. First aired in 2018, the 90‑minute film follows a single mother caring for her mother after a stroke, exploring dementia and the pressures...
Eloelo, an Indian social‑entertainment platform, posted FY25 revenue of about Rs 69.5 crore (~$8.4 million), driven entirely by in‑app purchases and a modest Rs 6.3 crore (~$0.8 million) non‑operating income. Advertising and promotions were the biggest expense, rising 46% to Rs 59 crore (~$7.1 million), while creator payouts jumped...
Radio commands 64% of ad‑supported audio time among U.S. registered voters 18+, far outpacing streaming services. Podcasts are the next biggest share at 21%, while ad‑free platforms hold the remaining 47% of daily audio. Over half of voters’ audio consumption...
A federal court settlement in Missouri v. Biden disclosed that White House officials pressured Facebook to label accurate vaccine information as misinformation. The dispute stemmed from a BMJ investigation on Pfizer’s COVID‑19 trial that was flagged by a Facebook fact‑checker,...
Radio executive Steve Jones argues that stations achieve legendary status by delivering a rock‑star experience, not just a better product. In his book *Brand Like a Rock Star*, he maps music‑industry branding tactics—memorable identity, authentic storytelling, and fan‑centric engagement—to radio,...
Three major radio companies—Cumulus Media, Beasley Media Group, and Paramount Global—have each taken drastic steps: Cumulus filed a pre‑packaged Chapter 11, Beasley announced a debt refinancing and governance overhaul, and CBS News Radio was shut down after a century of operation....
Rob Phillips, a former Dallas Cowboys media writer, has released his debut crime novel, *Stakeouts and Strollers*. The book mixes dark crime scenarios with a steady thread of comedy, drawing on classic detective influences such as Chandler and Parker. Phillips...
Publishers are grappling with the uncertain impact of AI‑driven search on traffic, fearing potential declines as algorithms prioritize AI‑generated results. WAN‑IFRA has launched a global, anonymous survey to capture executive insights on which content formats are most at risk and...
Samsung Ads has launched TotalView, a unified measurement solution that aggregates linear and streaming ad reach across Samsung’s 70 million European Smart TVs. The platform provides deduplicated audience data for pre‑campaign planning, in‑flight activation, and post‑campaign reporting, eliminating traditional blind spots....
A recent BISG panel highlighted how BookTok and younger readers are reshaping bookstore traffic, prompting chains like Books‑A‑Million to expand titles in romance, fantasy, and LitRPG. Independent stores such as RJ Julia focus on curated selections, using events and physical galleys...
Newsrooms are transitioning from broadcast‑first pipelines to story‑centric, multi‑platform operations to meet the speed and scale demanded by streaming and social channels. By aligning teams around a single story and leveraging AI‑driven automation, organizations can produce distinct versions for digital,...
EE has introduced Smart Search, an AI‑driven feature on its EE TV platform that lets users find shows and movies by describing mood, theme, plot or a simple one‑liner. The tool pulls content from live TV, on‑demand libraries and third‑party...
Broadcasters are rapidly replacing satellite transponders and private fiber circuits with IP‑based and cloud‑native workflows, according to a new Caretta Research report co‑produced with Zixi. The transition is driven by C‑band spectrum reallocation in the United States, rising cost pressures,...
Australian morning‑show host Kylie Gillies inadvertently uttered the C‑word on The Morning Show, joining a notorious list of live‑TV slip‑ups. The profanity was broadcast without delay, prompting immediate social‑media chatter and brand‑safety alarms. Media commentator Dr Mumbo highlighted the incident, noting...
PubMatic and trading desk Amnet have launched France’s first Agentic advertising campaign, built on PubMatic’s AgenticOS and the Claude large‑language model, for client Interbev. The video‑focused effort targets cooking enthusiasts and consumers of responsibly sourced French meat, aiming for high...
A new FT Strategies report, produced with the Knight Foundation, outlines five steps for local news outlets to create sustainable value. The guide stresses deep community connection, direct two‑way audience relationships, a balanced revenue mix, mission‑driven governance, and responsible use...
Instagram is piloting a paid subscription that lets users watch Stories anonymously, extending the feature set with audience lists beyond Close Friends and a 24‑hour story extension. The test is live in Mexico, Japan and the Philippines and costs roughly...
Print magazine publishing faces a perfect storm of rising costs and shrinking demand. Paper prices have jumped roughly 30% and energy tariffs increase printing and distribution expenses, while distributors often retain more than 50% of the cover price. Digital advertising...
Chinese influencer Gulumao amassed 1.3 million followers in just two weeks by posting short, practical videos on how to rent a home. His debut tutorial, "Youth Study: How to Rent a Home," garnered over 4.6 million views and quickly went viral on...
It's so revealing how the loudest voices ranting/raving about the "harms" of social media spend ZERO time engaging w the Fediverse at all. They want u to think that big tech's model of social media is the only one so...
TikTok Shop’s beauty category generated more than $670 million in sales over the past year, driven primarily by hashtag‑centric video content. The #skincare hashtag alone accounted for roughly $142 million, making it the top revenue generator. K‑beauty tags such as #Koreanskincare and...
The Guardian has introduced its first reader‑facing AI product, called Storylines, which surfaces AI‑generated narrative clusters on a handful of tag pages. Rather than a chatbot, the tool analyzes the latest 200 headlines per tag to identify three dominant storylines,...
Time is launching a new GEO product that audits how AI search engines portray brands and sells tailored branded content to correct mismatches. The service leverages tools from TollBit, ScalePost and Mobian to analyze up to 100 prompts across ChatGPT,...
HBO has launched "Neighbors," a docuseries that follows everyday conflicts in American suburbs, mixing observational journalism with heightened drama. The eight‑part series costs roughly $10 million per season and features high‑production values comparable to the network’s prestige titles. Critics are split,...
In this Digiday episode, Chris Moran, Head of Editorial Innovation at The Guardian, explains why the outlet’s first reader‑facing AI tool, called “Storylines,” is not a chatbot but a narrative‑driven related‑content module. He outlines the three guiding principles the Guardian...
Malibu has introduced Malibu Pink, a rum‑based spirit flavored with guava, coconut and pineapple, and is launching it through a "Get Ready With Malibu Pink" campaign. The brand partnered with comedian‑creator Sabrina Brier to produce #GRWM videos and a stop‑motion...
The article argues that advertising has drifted from its core purpose of forging human connections, turning instead into a product‑centric, technology‑driven machine. In contrast, public relations has preserved the relational, credibility‑focused playbook that brands still need. With 68% of agencies...
Why are everyone’s meta and @tiktok accounts getting banned and no one is able to appeal?
CBS’s flagship program “60 Minutes” aired a documentary on Son Doong Cave, the world’s largest underground chamber, giving Quang Tri province unprecedented exposure. Officials say the broadcast will attract high‑value tourists and accelerate the region’s adventure‑tourism agenda for 2026‑27.
The New York State Bar Association’s recent seminar highlighted a steady decline in U.S. movie‑theater attendance since 2002, worsened by COVID‑19 and streaming. Speakers pointed to indie theaters’ community‑event models and a surge of younger, horror‑seeking audiences as possible lifelines.
YouTube now tops global media revenue, eclipsing Disney, but its dominance rests on a tiny fraction of creators. The creator economy follows an extreme power‑law: less than 1% of titles generate roughly 99% of consumption and revenue, far steeper than...
The Catalight Group and a coalition of health, economic and policy leaders premiered a CNBC documentary that frames value‑based care as the linchpin for brain health and a $6.2 trillion boost to global GDP. The film cites staggering productivity losses and...
Legacy media is failing democracy. Rather than complain, I did something about it. Six years ago, I started Democracy Docket from scratch. Now, it has more than 425,000 subscribers. The work has never mattered more. Help it grow by subscribing...
Avatar and Titanic director James Cameron has produced a brand-new NatGeo documentary — and if you're looking for a double bill binge, he's got the perfect recommendation. https://t.co/6IgTbodIK4
Jen Speirs, Chief Creative Officer of Droga5 in Dublin, judged this week’s Bestadsontv.com “Best of the Week” awards. The winners include Maxibon’s "GO FULL COOKIE" for Best TV, Tesco Mobile’s "Your second most important network" for Best Print, Mycar Tyre’s "The...
A lot of people continue to get on here and reveal they have absolutely zero understanding of how online media platforms work or how metrics are calculated online. It’s illuminating
Am I going to wake up extra early to get a front seat so I can ask about an uplifting story MSM refuses to report? YES I WILL
