Lots of links to get into this week. These are all things I found interesting and learned about over the past few days from random work wanderings/friend emails/group chats/readings/etc. So letâs go.
âBuzzFeed is selling food media company First We Feast for $82.5 million to an acquisition group that includes âan affiliate of Soros Fund Management,â according to Bloomberg. Other backers include podcast producer Crooked Media, Rhett & Linkâs Mythical Entertainment, and Hot Ones host Sean Evans.
Post-acquisition, First We Feast will retain its current leadership, with Founder Chris Schonberger becoming CEO. Evans, who continues to pull in millions of views with each new Hot Ones episode, has been named as First We Feastâs Chief Content Officer.â
âNo matter if youâre a text-only website, it is now in your best interests to hire camera-ready contributors who will make successful video-podcast clips. The problem is journalists and critics arenât generally known for their personal aesthetic appeal.
Parasocial relationships are the name of the game. When people call for a Joe Rogan of the left, it seems like they donât realize that one of the reasons he is so powerful is that he is many of his listenersâ best friend. People spend hours and hours a day with him; his show and its extended universe have become an on-demand loneliness killing service. The power (and value) of that relationship is unmatched. Puck is a parasocial publication, thatâs why you hear the tentpole writersâ voices in solo podcasts.ââ
âA bankruptcy judge ruled that The Onion cannot buy Alex Jones' Infowars. The judge said the auction was flawed and may have "left a lot of money on the table." The Onion said it will continue trying to buy Infowars.â
âWhile Edisonâs research notes that video helps young listeners feel âmore connectedâ to podcasters, weâre still left to wonder how, in a few short years, YouTube became not just a popular place for podcasts but podcastingâs new default. In 2016, Apple was the only podcast gatekeeper that mattered; even just a few years ago, the prospect of its podcast app dropping to third place behind a video platform would have been hard to believe. YouTube has been around nearly as long as podcasting, and Spotify â which this month announced a plan to offer podcasters YouTube-style monetization â has been pushing hard into podcasting since 2016. What changed?
The answer, I think, is slightly counterintuitive. And, like so much about the media landscape recently, it involves TikTok.â
âDirectories are having a moment right now. The thesis is that because there is now so much AI slop out there, Google has been rendered basically useless. So, if you want to find something specific, a curated directory can be a big help.
Thus, we now have directories of landing pages. And NoCode tools. And AI tools. And language tools. AndâŚyou get the point.â
âWarner Bros. Discovery is splitting its linear TV business from streaming and studios. Comcast last month also spun off its cable networks â except Bravo â into a stand-alone company. The moves illustrate a cable business in decline, with both repositioning for M&A opportunities.â
âScoops Ahoyâs âU.S.S. Butterscotchâ flavor chills in a Walmart freezer. Pumaâs website sells Squid Game uniforms. In New York City, Queen Charlotte leads a grand regency ball.
No, you havenât entered the Upside Down: Netflixâs IPs are everywhereâand itâs not a happy coincidence.
The streamer is gearing up to give Disney and Universal a run for their money with Netflix House, a 100,000-square feet themed entertainment complex that will include dining pitstops, gift shops, and immersive experiences tied to hit shows including Stranger Things and Bridgerton.â
Large Language Models explained briefly.
âŚAnd thatâs it for this week. I hope you found a couple of these links helpful and that whatever youâre working on turns out amazing.
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