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When the bombshell that Fox News and its star primetime host Tucker Carlson were parting ways hit the wire April 24, Fox Corp.’s share price went into a freefall. In minutes, the stock price fell 5.5 percent, wiping out more than $900 million from the company’s market cap. If Fox News is the financial crown jewel for Fox Corp. (defamation cases notwithstanding), Carlson was arguably its shiniest gem, by far the most watched individual host on the channel, and the one host who went all in on populism even as many of his colleagues toed the party line. In the company’s latest fiscal quarter earnings, Fox drove $4.6 billion in revenue and a net income of $321 million. The cable division (of which Fox News is the largest component by…
Moguls Shell’s Big Fall Behind the ouster of the NBCUniversal chief p. 11 Labor Strike Watch Studio cost-cutting in focus ahead of deadline p. 12 SZA The artist nabs her first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 with “Kill Bill,” which jumped to the top of the list after 19 weeks on the chart. Nate Silver The FiveThirtyEight data wizard is exiting ABC News and leaving his statistics website, another casualty of Disney’s layoffs. Jonathan Lisco Yellowjackets, led by the showrunner, doesn’t disappoint in its season two launch with 5.5 million cross-platform viewers, ahead of a 5 million average for its first season. Cormac and Marianne Wibberley The National Treasure feature writers weren’t able to spin up gold with a Disney+ series as the adaptation was canceled after a single-season run.…
Greg Gutfeld An ascendant personality since joining Fox News in 2007, Gutfeld is a natural choice for primetime. He’s already flanking the block on both sides with evening panel show The Five and Gutfeld! at 11 p.m. Fox devotees clearly love the host. The only thing working against him is that he’s possibly not far right enough for Carlson’s former roost. Then again, people can change. Megyn Kelly Conservative media’s prodigal daughter returned to the soapbox after her failed attempt as a centrist on NBC News. With only a SiriusXM podcast and a rough-and-ready YouTube channel for outlets, she’s certainly in the market for a bigger platform. Kelly would bring viewers, for sure, though she may turn off just as many. The Bombshell inspiration has been critical of Fox News…
In the aftermath of the shock ouster of NBC Universal’s CEO, industry executives present a tale of two Jeff Shells. To some, Shell’s acknowledgment that he was departing because of “an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company” came as a bolt from the blue. To others, not so much. “I’m totally flabbergasted,” says an executive who says he was close to Shell. “Jeff was supposed to be the buttoned-up guy.” Asked if he had suspicions of improper conduct, a former NBCU executive says, “No, not at all. Not even a whiff. Not even an inkling.” Another, though not a fan of Shell, says, “I’ve never seen any of that [kind of behavior]. Never. I’ve never even seen him be flirtatious.” A different portrait emerges from other NBCU sources.…
Don Lemon’s abrupt departure on April 24 from CNN will mean another shuffling of its morning-show lineup — a distressingly familiar scenario at the cable news outlet. His tenure as a co-anchor of CNN This Morning lasted less than six months; there’s no word yet on who, if anyone, will join fellow anchors Kaitlan Collins and Poppy Harlow for the time being. But the returns on the show, which debuted in November 2022 as CNN’s latest attempt to fix its morning offerings, weren’t great. For the first quarter of the year, CNN This Morning averaged just 359,000 viewers, well behind cable rivals Fox and Friends (1.2 million) on Fox News and Morning Joe (846,000) on MSNBC. Its first months on the air weren’t much better, as CNN This Morning (along…
Hollywood has been cornered into a new period of fiscal austerity, with top studios adjusting to the sobering realities of streaming and the larger economic environment — even as entertainment labor unions are applying significant pressure to boost labor costs. This economizing ethos has forced adjustments big and small: Features are filming less in Los Angeles or New York; some crews are working shorter days and longer weeks; mid-budget affairs are becoming tougher to greenlight. Meanwhile, studios and streamers alike are facing down a series of union talks this spring and summer where above-the-line talent are seeking major raises — which is sure to increase entertainment companies’ operating expenses on film and TV projects. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), representing the studios and streamers in labor…
