Rupert vs. Roger
The current battle between Fox patriarch Rupert Murdoch and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has huge implications for the entire television business.
The NFL, recognizing that it controls the most popular programming on TV, wants the broadcast networks to pay billions more for the rights to its games.
Fox is doing everything in its power to stave off those fee increases — including lobbying President Trump and other Republican officeholders for support.
The Wall Street Journal, which is Murdoch-owned but has a long history of covering its owner independently, just published the definitive piece about “Murdoch’s high-stakes blitz against the NFL.”
The blitz is also against deep-pocketed streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon that are increasingly competing with Fox for sports rights.
The WSJ story reveals that Murdoch pleaded his case at a White House dinner with Trump in February. “Murdoch warned Trump that if streamers gained rights to more games, it would kill broadcast networks, a person familiar with the evening’s events said. Trump listened to the concerns and asked questions about the business.”
Two weeks after the dinner, Brendan Carr’s FCC opened a public inquiry into the streaming splintering of sports rights.
Then, Sen. Mike Lee publicly urged the Justice Department to probe the NFL’s allegedly anticompetitive tactics. And last month, sources said that the DOJ was doing just that.
While the probe “is unlikely to result in a DOJ lawsuit against any of the leagues,” per the WSJ’s reporting, the added scrutiny “could embolden broadcasters to hold their ground when the NFL comes knocking.”
>> Thought bubble: Trump and Murdoch’s legal tussle over the WSJ story about Jeffrey Epstein’s birthday book cloaks (and perhaps distracts observers from) a relationship that continues to be mutually beneficial.
In 2021, the NFL signed rights deals with CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox and Amazon that run through 2033, with an opt-out clause coming up in a few years. But “thanks to David Ellison’s Paramount purchase, Goodell has used a change-of-control provision in the contract to kick-start talks to renegotiate their deal and then set the market for the other partners,” as Lachlan Cartwright explains in this excellent new Vanity Fair story describing the commissioner as the “ultimate media kingpin.” Goodell, of course, has encouraged interest from the likes of Netflix. “The media landscape is changing quickly, and it’s not because we’re changing it, it’s because that’s where the consumers are going,” Goodell told Cartwright. “People think we’re leading it. We’re actually going where the consumers are.” Goodell notably praised Murdoch — “a true visionary” — and attended Murdoch’s 95th birthday party one day after the VF interview. But Cartwright also noted that Murdoch’s media outlets “have steadily aired accusations of anticompetitive, anti-consumer tactics” by the NFL in recent months, and “the accusations have irked the NFL, and Goodell.” |
How the NFL plans to beat the blitz |
With untold billions on the line, “the league has launched a political blitz of its own,” the WSJ’s team reports. In a call with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles last month, Goodell “expressed concerns” over the DOJ investigation “and said the league was happy to show that its media model is the fairest among major sports leagues.” Notably, there is no indication that Goodell has spoken directly with Trump. But the WSJ says Trump has spoken with Patriots owner Robert Kraft “in recent weeks.” Kraft is the longtime chair of the league’s media committee. Ordinary football fans (🙋♂️) can peek inside the lobbying effort thanks to this slideshow (PDF link) that the NFL submitted in response to the FCC’s inquiry. The NFL described its distribution model as “the most fan- and broadcaster-friendly in the entire sports and entertainment industry,” noting that all home market games — and most other games — remain on networks that Americans can access with an antenna. Business Insider’s Peter Kafka wrote the other day that the below chart from the slideshow “shows just how important the NFL is for TV”: |
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Those two lines show why, in Cartwright’s words, “losing NFL rights would be an existential threat to Fox as much as any of the rights holders.” “In the swamp that is entertainment, the only solid ground is sports,” former Fox Sports Chairman David Hill told the WSJ. So the NFL generally gets what it wants one way or another. Right now it wants to stay in business with the broadcasters — if it feels properly “valued.” But, as Awful Announcing’s Drew Lerner wrote this morning, “the stakes have certainly been raised by Rupert Murdoch leveraging his relationship with the President of the United States.” >> Here’s a gift link to the WSJ story, which was authored by the quadruple threat of Dana Mattioli, Josh Dawsey, Andrew Beaton and Joe Flint. |
Netflix to stream NFL’s first game in Australia |
The Athletic’s Dan Shanoff and Andrew Marchand happened to share this scoop yesterday: “Netflix will air the NFL’s first-ever regular-season game from Australia during this year’s opening week,” per “sources briefed on the move.” The Week 1 game between the 49ers and the Rams will kick off at 8:35 p.m. ET on Thursday, Sept. 10 from Melbourne Cricket Ground, “the largest stadium in Australia.” |
Top takeaways from a big week of media earnings |
>> The New York Times isn’t doing a “pivot to video,” but it is definitely prioritizing video: “What we’re really aiming for here is to establish the Times as a preferred brand for watching news,” CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said. >> News Corp. said it is “negotiating other AI-related deals with companies that ‘recognize the preciousness of our provenance’ after the success its seen with its content licensing deals with Meta and OpenAI,” TheWrap’s Corbin Bolies wrote. >> Earlier this week Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro relayed his tech-centric plans to “make Disney+ a digital hub for all the company’s businesses” and explore “commercial opportunities with OpenAI and others,” WSJ’s Ben Fritz reported. >> Variety’s Cynthia Littleton highlighted how Disney is reframing its linear TV channels as “brands with studios” that make money across multiple platforms. |
Ted Turner the trailblazer |
CNN alums are sharing beautiful and sometimes mind-blowing stories about Ted Turner in the wake of his death at age 87. “One morning at 4am, he waltzed into the newsroom in the company of a dazzling woman, also wearing a white bathrobe,” Eason Jordan wrote in this Medium essay. The woman was actress Raquel Welch. Jordan called Turner a trailblazer, do-gooder, bridge-builder, rabble-rouser and so much more. Sara Ganim, who more recently joined the ranks of CNN alums, wrote for Playboy that CNN reflected its founder in so many ways: “CNN, in its DNA, was always slightly unhinged. It was built by a man who thought the rules didn’t apply to him, in a city that wasn’t New York or Washington, staffed by journalists who didn’t get jobs at the networks…” And in this essay for The Guardian, Lisa Napoli considers both the positive and negative impacts of the 24/7 news revolution. “Over time, we learned not just to turn on the news at any hour of the day but to expect it delivered to us, on the toilet or on the airplane, instantaneously,” she writes. “And with each drip, we became further entertained — and paralyzed.” |
>> One more about Turner: Joe Klein highlights the mogul’s “chronic optimism,” saying “the world began anew for Ted every day. Anything was possible.” (The FP) >> Erik Wemple profiles his former Washington Post colleague Hannah Natanson, whose devices seized by the FBI “contained wedding plans she had made with her fiancé” as well as her journalistic work. (NYT) >> Drew Harwell looks at Musk ex Ashley St. Clair’s “turn against the right-wing machine” she once helped fuel. (WaPo) >> Neel Dhanesha says “the World Cup is becoming a testbed for journalism experiments.” (NiemanLab) >> Charles Pulliam-Moore expresses skepticism about D’Amaro’s aforementioned plans to turn Disney+ into an “everything app.” (The Verge) >> Diane Sylvester breaks down how the Media Resilience Network is looking “to build culturally competent mental health support systems for journalists” dealing with burnout and trauma. (E&P) |
Trump calls reporter’s question ‘stupid’ |
Noting this lest we get numb to it: Trump lashed out at ABC News senior political correspondent Rachel Scott yesterday when she asked about his East Wing ballroom and National Mall renovations: “Why focus on all these projects as gas prices are soaring?” “You know why? Because I want to keep our country beautiful and safe,” he replied, later adding, “Such a stupid question that you asked.” He also said, “This is one of the worst reporters. She’s with ABC fake news and she’s a horror show… A question like that is a disgrace to our country.” Trump has a long history of attacking Scott when she asks tough-but-fair questions. In December, when she asked about releasing video of a US “double-tap” strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat, Trump told her, “You are the most obnoxious reporter in the whole place.” And last May, when Scott questioned him about the Qatari jet “gift,” he told her she should be “embarrassed.” She wasn’t, and isn’t… |
About that EEOC lawsuit against The New York Times… |
Chai Feldblum, a former EEOC commissioner appointed by Barack Obama, reviewed the lawsuit and told The Intercept’s Bryce Covert that “there is no actual evidence” that the NYT employee on whose behalf the agency sued the Times was “more qualified” than his colleague who was ultimately promoted. Feldblum also said the agency “is putting out their best facts in this complaint, and the facts are pathetic.” Reason’s Robby Soave has a more sympathetic read on the lawsuit here… |
>> Lawyers representing Freedom of the Press Foundation and Reporters Without Borders have sent a demand letter to Paramount “in accordance with a Delaware law that allows shareholders to review documents when there is a credible basis to suspect wrongdoing,” Oliver Darcy reports. (Status) >> Democrats continue to push California Attorney General Rob Bonta to scrutinize Paramount-WBD, something Bonta’s office is already doing. (Variety) >> Nexstar CEO Perry Sook updated investors on the legal battle over its Tegna takeover yesterday, with all the usual words about being confident “we will prevail on the merits of this case.” (Variety) >> “Elliott Management has selected banks to lead a combined IPO of book retailers Barnes & Noble and Waterstones Booksellers.” (Bloomberg) |
New study: TikTok ‘skewed’ toward GOP content |
“A study published Wednesday in the journal Nature finds that TikTok’s algorithm systematically prioritized pro-Republican content in three states leading up to the 2024 US elections,” The Guardian’s Sanya Mansoor reports. “Our finding isn’t just about reinforcement; Democratic accounts were shown significantly more anti-Democratic content than Republican accounts were shown anti-Republican content,” Prof. Talal Rahwan, one of the study’s authors, said. “The algorithm wasn’t just giving people what they want; it was giving one side more of what the other side says about them.” >> In a statement, TikTok said, “This artificial experiment with fake accounts does not reflect how people actually use TikTok.” Read the full study here… |
>> “Meta has launched a legal challenge over the UK’s new online safety rules, arguing that the communications regulator has unlawfully armed itself with powers to impose ‘unprecedented’ penalties.” (FT) >> On the front page of today’s Journal: “French prosecutors are summoning Elon Musk to the French capital again—this time to face preliminary criminal charges in a sprawling investigation into his social-media platform, X.” (WSJ) |
Marc Hamill apologizes for ‘If Only’ post about Trump |
Actor Mark Hamill deleted and apologized for a post featuring an AI-generated photo of Trump with his eyes closed in an open grave, bearing the words “If Only.” “Actually, I was wishing him the opposite of dead, but apologize if you found the image inappropriate,” Hamill wrote in a Bluesky post. Hamill’s apology came hours after the White House’s Rapid Response X account called him “one sick individual” in response to the post. “These Radical Left lunatics just can’t help themselves,” the account tweeted. “This kind of rhetoric is exactly what has inspired three assassination attempts in two years against our President.” |
A few more Hollywood headlines |
>> As Sunday night’s BAFTA TV Awards approach, BBC insiders tell Max Goldbart and Jake Kanter that “there is a feeling of nervousness but resolve when it comes to Sunday night’s three-hour ceremony,” which comes “less than three months after the debacle at its sister event.” (Deadline) >> Updated rules for the Golden Globes state that generative AI usage “does not automatically disqualify a work from consideration, provided that human creative direction, artistic judgment, and authorship remain primary throughout the production process.” (TheWrap) >> “Warner Music Group has entered into a first-look deal with Paramount… representing another push for WMG into film content after it had announced a deal with Netflix for documentaries back in March.” (THR) >> “Shakira remains the Queen of World Cup Music as she’s been tapped once again for the official 2026 FIFA World Cup song called ‘Dai Dai.’” (Billboard) |
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST… |
🎂 Happy birthday, David Attenborough! |
”David Attenborough has now lived on Earth for a century,” writes CNN’s Amarachi Orie. “In that stretch of time, he’s journeyed through forests and oceans, bonded with a family of gorillas, collected fossils, visited hidden tribes, overseen the first color TV broadcasts in Europe, narrated inspiring documentaries to hundreds of millions of viewers, collected numerous accolades, had dozens of species named after him and sounded the alarm on climate change.” Read Orie’s story on Attenborough’s “extraordinary life” here. CNN also has a fun video with some lesser-known facts about Attenborough, the longest-serving TV presenter in history, including how his first boss nearly blocked him from ever going on air — because of his “large teeth.” Watch that here… |