 IN THE NEWS |
 Charter Communications has agreed to buy Cox Communications in a blockbuster $34.5 billion deal that – pending antitrust approval – will “create an industry leader in mobile and broadband communications services, seamless video entertainment, and high-quality customer service delivering powerful benefits for American employees, customers, communities, and shareholders,” said the companies. The combined company will change its name to Cox Communications within a year, and Charter’s Spectrum, the brand on its cable, broadband, mobile and other services, will become the consumer-facing brand across all customers. Charter CEO Chris Winfrey is set to remain President and CEO, while Alex Taylor, Chairman and CEO of Cox Enterprises, will become chairman of the combined company’s board. The deal is expected to close around the same time as Charter’s buyout of Liberty Broadband, announced last fall.
“Cox and Charter have been innovators in connectivity and entertainment services – with decades of work and hundreds of billions of dollars invested to build, upgrade, and expand our complementary regional networks to provide high-quality internet, video, voice and mobile services,” said Chris Winfrey, President and CEO of Charter. “This combination will augment our ability to innovate and provide high-quality, competitively priced products, delivered with outstanding customer service, to millions of homes and businesses.” |
| Meanwhile, Verizon’s $20 billion deal to acquire Frontier got the go-ahead from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. The thumbs-up came shortly after Carr shared a letter from Verizon pledging to end its DEI policies immediately. “In response to the changing landscape, Verizon has been evaluating its DEI-related programs,” read the letter. “In doing so, Verizon recognizes that some DEI policies and practices could be associated with discrimination. For that reason, Verizon…is modifying its practices and ending its DEI-related policies.”
CNN will exclusively air the penultimate performance of record-shattering Broadway show “Good Night, and Good Luck” live on Saturday, June 7. The play stars George Clooney as veteran journalist Edward R. Murrow during the Red Scare of the 1950s – and its live telecast is a TV first. “I can’t tell you how exciting it is to do something that’s never been done. CNN is the perfect place to bring this story of courage to so many more people than we could have ever hoped. Live TV. No net. Buckle up everyone,” said Clooney.
Three big NFL games could lead to best-ever Thanksgiving audiences this fall. Between the Packers-Lions match-up on Fox, followed by the Chiefs-Cowboys on CBS and then NBC’s Bengals-Ravens game, “Let’s see if we can’t set a record that day,” said Mike North, VP, Broadcast Planning for the NFL, on the Ross Tucker Football Podcast. “The Cowboys game a couple years ago was 42-43 million. I think we’ve got a shot at pushing 48, 49, maybe 50 million. That’s an incredible number in an era when people ‘don’t watch TV anymore’.”
Fox News notched a win in its defense in the defamation lawsuit filed against it by electronic voting systems company Smartmatic. A New York appeals court granted FNC access to information from a federal bribery indictment against several Smartmatic executives, which the network maintains damaged Smartmatic’s reputation more than the false claims of election fraud by Fox News hosts and anchors did. “The factual evidence shows that Smartmatic’s business and reputation were badly suffering long before any claims by President Trump’s lawyers on Fox News,” said the network in a statement. In summary judgement brief filed with the New York Supreme Court, Fox News said audited financial statements show “no profit record to serve as a basis for projecting millions of dollars in future profits.”
Prime Video canceled “The Bondsman” after one season. All eight episodes of the supernatural action drama starring Kevin Bacon dropped April 3. |
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| SPORTS MEDIA AWARDS
LUMINARY SPOTLIGHT: MIKE MCCARLEY, TMRW SPORTS
We’re proud to honor Mike McCarley, CEO & Founder of TMRW Sports, as our 2025 Trailblazer Award winner at the Cynopsis Sports Media Awards.
From launching TGL presented by SoFi with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, to shaping iconic events like Sunday Night Football and the Olympics during his time at NBC Sports, McCarley has redefined how fans experience the game.
Join us June 4 at City Winery NYC to celebrate this visionary leader and the industry’s boldest innovators.
Register Now – Seats are filling fast. |
| INSIGHTS |
| There’s no doubt Upfront season is evolving alongside the shifting media landscape. What were the takeaways from this year’s events? We asked two Havas Media Network thought leaders to share their thoughts. “There’s been a debate about the relevance of the Upfronts as investment decisions and deals continue to demand more flexibility and are increasingly fulfilled through programmatic pipes,” Diana Bernstein, Managing Partner, Partnerships, tells Cynopsis. “Upfronts are undoubtedly changing as they shift from just first looks at content to evolving the Media Experience with new ad formats, IP and business strategies from the streamers. It’s this change, this convergence that is reestablishing the Upfronts’ relevancy and importance. While I never pick winners, this shift reflects Amazon and Netflix’s dominance of press and buzz this year.”
“The Newfronts today are a much tighter event,” adds Holly Dunn, Managing Partner, Investments. “The focus on new ad formats, an increasingly compressed, or entirely deprecated funnel is reflective on ongoing innovations and the buzz around AI. Through the power of Converged at Havas, we’re able to quickly integrate and adapt driving performance for our clients with real business impact. Expect to see social platforms for more to leverage their creators to drive growth and great Media Experience through ad format innovation as continued focus.” |
| PRODUCTION |
| An animated series based on the newspaper comic strip Macanudo is in development. The Canada / France co-production between Mercury Filmworks (Canada) and Sun Creature (France), has King Features managing sales and rights.
Shameik Moore (“Dope”) has joined the cast of Starz drama “Power Book III: Raising Kanan.” Introduced in Friday’s season four finale as Branford ‘Breeze’ Frady, Moore will join the cast as a series regular in the prequel series’ upcoming fifth and final season. |
| COMING UP |
| Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Mickey 17” will make its global streaming debut on Max on Friday, May 23, followed but its linear launch May 24 at 7:40p. The film follows an unlikely hero (Robert Pattinson) who has found himself working for an employer who demands the ultimate commitment to the job: to die for a living. |
Today’ Premiere
Fox: LEGO Masters at 8p |
SCREENSHIFT
BE WHERE MEDIA’S NEXT MOVES ARE MADE
ScreenShift isn’t just a conference—it’s a convergence. Formerly the BIG TV Summit, this reimagined flagship event brings together 300+ decision-makers from brands, platforms, agencies, and tech to shape the next chapter of media.
From on-stage visibility and curated conversations to immersive experiences and lead-generating brand moments, sponsorship at ScreenShift means you’re not just in the room… you’re part of the narrative.
Host a wine tasting
Own a branded session or fireside chat
Showcase insights in a workshop or roundtable
Be seen in pre- and post-event video coverage
Or, bring your brand to life with on-site activations
Whatever your message, we’ll help you deliver it to the right audience—with impact.
INQUIRE NOW |
| SPORTS REPORT: WRESTLING EDITION |
 Paramount Global Content Distribution is launching an all-wrestling FAST channel. Wrestling Central, coming soon on The Roku Channel, will feature new weekly matches from WOW – Women Of Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance, along with a library of content including classic episodes, never-before-seen matches, specials and documentaries.
FloSports struck a new multi-year partnership with Nike Wrestling, kicking off this summer with the debut of the FloWrestling High School All-American Team, Presented by Nike. As part of the agreement, Nike Wrestling will sponsor flagship programming including FloWrestling Radio Live and the all-new FloWrestling All-American Program, designed to highlight the top high school talent across the country. |
| RATINGS |
| Newsmax hit a recent record 33.6 million viewers watching the network in the first quarter of 2025, up 50% from the same period last year, according to the 1Q25 report from Nielsen.
The May 11 episode of ABC’s “American Idol” drew 5.27 million Total Viewers and a 0.62 rating in Adults 18-49, growing over the previous week in both Total Viewers (+2%; vs. 5.18 million) and Adults 18-49 (+9%; vs. 0.57 rating).
The trailer for spinoff “NCIS: Tony & Ziva,” drew 93 million views across broadcast, social and digital in the 7 days following its May 5 release, according to Nielsen. |
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This Day in History
1884 – The Ringling brothers opened a circus in Baraboo, Wisconsin.
Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Which was the last Hanna-Barbera animated series to use a laugh track? “Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo,” “The New Fred and Barney Show” and “The Super Globetrotters” are all correct. Kudos to: Kudos to: Barbara Capella Loehr-Equal Opportunity Publications /Lindenhurst, NY; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA
Today’s Trivia Question
On which series was the season one opening theme song, “I Can’t Help Myself”? (Email your answer to trivia@cynopsis.com and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.) |
SR. DIRECTOR OF SALES, KSTU & KUPX >>
THE E.W. SCRIPPS COMPANY/SALT LAKE CITY: Leverage our suite of advertising solutions to unlock growth opportunities for local and national businesses. Play a role in driving the station’s revenue goals as well as serving as the home station for Utah’s new NHL team. Collaborate with our production team to create campaigns that connect our clients with their customers in meaningful ways. Full info HERE
SALES PLANNER, GENERAL RATE >>
GAC MEDIA, LLC/NEW YORK, NY: The Sales Planner, General Rate is responsible for providing support to the Advertising Sales department by working with Account Executives to service clients on a daily basis. The job requires attention to detail, industry knowledge, as well as strong communication skills. Full info HERE
CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER>>
ORIGIN/NY(HYBRID): Overseeing full time sales team of 2 remote sellers, an account director, a sales operations manager and sales strategist. Accelerating the adoption of award-winning suite of CTV ad formats. Ensuring we exceed our current targets and ultimately making sure we continue growing at the pace we are in an increasingly competitive market. Full Info HERE.
DIGITAL MEDIA BUYER >>
FURMAN ROTH ADVERTISING/NY(HYBRID): Plan, launch, and optimize digital marketing campaigns across various paid media channels (including Display, Google products, Paid Social, CTV, and Programmatic, etc.) while managing budgets effectively. Support the execution of media plans across platforms, overseeing targeting, budget allocation, and performance tracking to drive campaign success. Full info HERE
ACCOUNT DIRECTOR; CTV BRAND PARTNERSHIPS – MID WEST/WEST COAST
FUTURE TODAY
REMOTE
Build, maintain and expand a pipeline of sales targets, contacts, and sales opportunities leveraging your relationships with a heavy focus on new business revenue. Build/nurture relationships with the investment, strategy, precision and digital agencies as well as clients. Also maintain an ongoing knowledge of the streaming media landscape. Full info HERE
DIRECTOR, AD MARKETING & SALES >>
THE SHADE ROOM/REMOTE: Develop and execute a revenue growth strategy to drive direct advertising, branded content, and sponsorship sales as well as lead the development of compelling advertising and branded content offerings tailored for TSR’s audience and cultivate and maintain strong relationships with key advertisers, media agencies, and brand partners. Full info HERE
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE DIRECT RESPONSE >>
OPPORTUNITY MEDIA/NY(REMOTE/HYBRID): Seeking an energetic achiever with excellent written & organizational skills for role to assist in growing revenue for dynamic Direct Response Team: required: BA Degree, Min 2 yrs DR Experience. Wide Orbit Exp a +. Full info HERE
PROFESSIONAL LECTURER OF COMMUNICATION/SPORTS BROADCASTING >>
MARIST UNIVERSITY/ POUGHKEEPSIE, NY: Teach studio and field broadcasting and new media courses in sports media and journalism as well as be able to teach a studio course on producing a newscast and help students live stream a podcast or produce short-form feature content suitable for social media streaming. Also demonstrate through their teaching, professional activity, and service. Full info HERE
SALES LEAD – AGENCY PARTNERSHIPS
UPWAVE
NEW YORK, NY
Build and manage relationships with our agency partners – mostly targeting media buyers and planners – and help them see the value of adding Upwave measurement to The Trade Desk campaigns. You will both leverage your existing network and open new doors to achieve aggressive but achievable sales targets. Full info HERE |
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