Dylan welcomes Puck superfriends Matt Belloni and Bill Cohan to discuss every angle of the Paramount-WBD leveraged buyout: the Ellisons’ exorbitant $79 billion debt, Zaslav’s true legacy, and whether Netflix dodged a bullet. Then they dig into the industry reactions to the deal and its dire implications for Hollywood.

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Julia and Dylan dive into the new partnership between Polymarket and Substack, and debate whether live markets actually make journalism better. Then they turn to the latest turbulence at The Washington Post after its recent town hall, and address the existential question: Is there anything Jeff Bezos can realistically do to steady the ship?

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Reed Duchscher, C.E.O. of Night Media, joins Dylan and Julia to discuss his management firm’s recent $70 million raise—and what it signals about the next phase of his company and the creator economy writ large. A former manager of MrBeast, Duchscher explains why we’re unlikely to see another YouTube star of that scale, weighs the tension between volume and scarcity, and weighs into the rise of platforms like TikTok and Roblox, the future of independent political commentary, and more.

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Julia and Dylan assess the state of CBS—and the media industry writ large—in the Trump II era, from the fallout over Stephen Colbert’s interview with James Talarico to Anderson Cooper’s stunning exit from 60 Minutes. They also assess the early numbers from Peacock’s “Legendary February,” the steep implications of Paramount’s renewed pursuit of WBD, what a WBD-PSKY merger could mean for CNN, and much, much more.

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John Ourand and Julia Alexander dive into the biggest sports media storylines of the moment, from the forthcoming NFL rights negotiations and their sweeping implications to NBCUniversal’s “Legendary February” and Peacock’s ongoing subscriber challenges. They also discuss the NFL’s growing international ambitions, the competitive drag of NBA tanking, the Olympics, and much more.

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Julia and Dylan to take stock of the week in media: Spotify’s rosy earnings report, NBC’s “Legendary February,” Peacock’s subscriber headaches, the enduring A.I.-media reckoning, and more. Plus, Dylan weighs in on what the future holds for the embattled Washington Post after a turbulent few weeks of layoffs and leadership upheaval.

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NBC Sports president Rick Cordella joins Dylan to discuss a pivotal month for the network, from the Super Bowl to the Winter Olympics and the NBA All-Star Game. Cordella explains how live sports fuel subscriber growth for Peacock, often driving audiences to other programming, and reflects on the enduring value of broadcast television, the challenges of media fragmentation, the strategic importance of retaining premium sports rights, and more.

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The Washington Post executive editor Matt Murray joins Dylan for an exclusive, wide-ranging conversation about the sweeping layoffs that reduced the newsroom by 300 journalists and a third of the company overall. Murray defends the restructuring as necessary to meet changing audience behavior and address financial strain, while arguing that recent subscriber gains signal a viable path to growth in the paper’s next chapter.

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Julia and Dylan dig into the week’s most consequential media storylines: the mass layoffs at the Washington Post, Peacock’s pivotal month of sports programming, the ascension of Josh D’Amaro as Disney’s new C.E.O., and the growing question of whether ESPN will ultimately be spun off as Disney signals that its future lies beyond traditional television.

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Jason Zengerle joins Dylan for a deep dive into his new book, ‘Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind.’ Zengerle traces Carlson’s evolution from print journalist to cable news star—and eventually to media mogul—examining his strategic use of outrage, his close alignment with Trump, and how both have fueled his influence. They also explore the broader impact of conservative media on American political discourse and whether Carlson may ultimately pursue elected office.

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