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Monday, November 10, 2025 |
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Happy Monday! Here's the latest about David Ellison, David Zaslav, YouTube TV, Sydney Sweeney, and the creators of "South Park." But first... |
Fighting over the BBC's future |
The BBC is mired in a massive political fight over its future right now, with conservatives capitalizing on an editing screw-up and denouncing the British broadcaster while liberals argue that the institution is flawed but worth defending.
This is, in other words, about a whole lot more than a misleading edit in a one-year-old documentary about President Trump.
No one seemed to call out the error at the time of the broadcast. However, on November 3, The Telegraph, a longtime source of anti-BBC commentary, wrote about an "internal report" revealing the bad edit, and the story has snowballed ever since. The right-wing press was "feasting like vultures," as one BBC source said to me, and the broadcaster's response was feeble at best. (Per BBC culture and media reporter Katie Razzall, there is a dispute about that.)
Yesterday, BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC News boss Deborah Turness both tendered their resignations. And one word in Davie's statement explains not just his resignation, but the political reality for media leaders in 2025: "Febrile," a more formal way of saying feverish — a perfect description of the brutally competitive UK media environment.
"The BBC is facing a coordinated, politically motivated attack," BBC veteran John Simpson wrote on X last night. He praised Davie and Turness and said, "We've now got a real fight on our hands to defend public service broadcasting, because that's under threat too."
Simpson, like other BBC staffers I know, co-signed Nick Robinson's framing: "It's clear that there is a genuine concern about editorial standards and mistakes. There is also a political campaign by people who want to destroy the organization… Both things are happening at the same time."
And both things are happening as the BBC tries to build new revenue streams and transform itself for the digital age. This is ultimately all about trust: Who trusts the BBC, who doesn't, and why.
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A sigh of relief was almost audible in Davie's resignation memo. And it's easy to understand why. After five years in the top job, he's ready for someone else to be appointed punching bag. Arguments over the BBC are never-ending, owing to the broadcaster's immense power and unique position in British public life. As a result, the job of BBC director general — though certainly prestigious — is also relentless and thankless.
As I wrote in this analysis piece for CNN.com, the BBC is positioned as an apolitical brand, yet operates in a politically poisonous atmosphere. There are near-daily disputes over coverage of Israel’s war in Gaza; the equally frequent attacks from the BBC's media rivals; and the government's looming review of the BBC's Royal Charter, including its all-important license fee.
Davie indicated that the board still had his back, but he wanted to start the transition now so that someone else could handle those Royal Charter plans.
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Views from left and right |
The BBC resignations are an all-consuming story in British media. (And as always, the Beeb is doing an excellent job reporting on itself.) Here's a bit of what the political debate sounds like:
>> From the right: Former UK prime minister Liz Truss writes, "I'm glad the US President and the rest of the world are seeing the BBC for what it is. Its failure to tell the truth on everything from transgender ideology to economics to Gaza has done huge damage to politics and government in this country. This should be the end of nationalised broadcasting."
>> From the left: Prospect editor Alan Rusbridger writes, "The BBC is in a fight for its survival — it's time Keir Starmer started paying attention." The editing error was "serious," but the BBC's enemies want to see it "wither or die," which "would leave us all far worse off."
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Trump threatens legal action |
Here's the thing about the documentary in question: All it needed was a split-second adjustment. Just a little tweak to disclose the edit.
In TV, we call it a "white flash," an editing effect that shows one snippet of video is ending and another is beginning.
However, instead, the pre-election film spliced together different parts of Trump's infamous January 6 speech at the Ellipse to make it sound like Trump told the crowd he would walk with them to the Capitol and "fight like hell."
Earlier today, BBC Chair Samir Shah issued a belated apology for the "error of judgment." There is no indication that the bad edit was politically motivated. Nor is there any reason to believe that Davie and Turness knew about it ahead of time.
Nevertheless, BBC News reported just a few minutes ago that Trump "has sent a letter to the BBC threatening legal action." A BBC spokesperson says "we will review the letter and respond directly in due course." These legal threats often don't amount to anything, but let's see what happens in this case...
>> For Trump and his allies, the BBC row is also part of a years-long bid to rewrite the reality about January 6 and proclaim Trump's innocence. See also the overnight pardons...
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The truth about that film... |
It sounds like it was a compelling hour of television. This review in The Guardian credits the producers with treating Trump voters with respect. The project "interviews Trump fans — and takes more time than most films to show why his popularity runs so deep," Lucy Mangan wrote.
When I read that, I thought the president's team might have actually liked this film if they'd gone and watched it. I tried to do that on Sunday, but alas, I can't find it streaming anywhere. The outside production company that worked on the project has not responded to requests for comment.
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Andrew Kirell writes: As the Senate neared a Sunday night deal, paving the way for the government shutdown to end, Trump attended the Washington Commanders home game and read the oath during a halftime military swearing-in ceremony. He was met with prolonged, sustained boos, as captured live on Fox News — of all places.
Moments later, during the third quarter, Trump joined Kenny Albert and Jonathan Vilma in the Fox broadcast booth for nearly nine minutes, talking mostly football but occasionally veering into Trumpian political boasting.
It definitely seemed odd, but it wasn’t entirely unprecedented: George W. Bush joined the ESPN “Sunday Night Baseball” telecast once in 2008, and Barack Obama chatted in the Fox booth for a few minutes during the 2009 MLB All-Star Game. What was unusual, however, was the length of Trump’s appearance and, at times, the political tone. The president at one point referred to military recruitment under Biden as a “disaster,” asserted his administration “inherited a mess,” and repeated his misleading claim that “prices are coming down.”
>> In the background: ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Adam Schefter reported over the weekend that Trump wants the Commanders’ new D.C. stadium to be named after him. Trump told the Fox broadcast that he is “involved” in making sure the new stadium gets approved.
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By now, you've heard about Trump's deceptive comments about Thanksgiving, specifically his boast that Walmart's meal is "25% lower" than last year — ignoring the fact that the basket contains fewer and different items this year. But here are a couple of follow-ups you may not have heard.
First, another example of the White House press pool being co-opted by pro-Trump boosters: Last Thursday, Brian Glenn of Real America's Voice randomly brought up the Walmart deal during a press Q&A in the Oval Office, along with a Trumpian lie about "gas prices being down in the $2 region." It wasn't even a question; it was just a bogus statement. Even Trump seemed taken aback by how overtly promotional Glenn was being.
Contrast that with Friday's Q&A, when NBC's Monica Alba pointed out that the Walmart basket "contains less" this year. "I haven't heard that," Trump claimed. Then he asked for the name of Alba's news outlet and lambasted NBC as "fake." Hey, at least someone tried to tell him the truth!
Speaking of, I was intrigued by Fox's way of reality-checking the "25% lower" talking point: Rather than reporting the facts in Fox's own voice, the network's reporters have cited the X community note that describes the differences between this year's basket and last year's...
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👂🏻 on David Ellison's earnings call |
The newly merged Paramount reports earnings after the bell today, and David Ellison "is set to deliver his first earnings call as CEO," NBC's Rebecca Keegan writes.
In this new piece, Keegan describes how "executives at the studio have been making a bullish pitch to many Hollywood players and spending big for high profile projects." Sources "describe Paramount executives leading with a confidence that is lacking at many of their less resourced competitors right now."
As for tonight's earnings call, my educated guess is that Ellison will allude to his growth ambitions without getting into specifics about his bids to buy (CNN's parent) Warner Bros. Discovery. (BTW, speaking of Ellison, the NYT just announced that he'll be at the DealBook Summit on December 3.)
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👀 on David Zaslav's meetings |
Semafor's Rohan Goswami scoops that WBD CEO David Zaslav met with Comcast CEO Brian Roberts last week "as the bidding war for WBD heats up." Charlie Gasparino of the NY Post reports that But Zaslav "is boasting of the interest he's getting for WBD" and "believes he can sell it for as much as $70 billion, or around $30 a share." As is always the case with these stories, the corporate PR reps are not commenting...
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Tonight: The Eagles play the Packers on "Monday Night Football" as ABC and ESPN remain blacked out on YouTube TV...
Thursday: Disney reports earnings before the bell...
Thursday: The Texas Tribune Festival, packed with media speakers, gets underway in Austin. I'll be interviewing WaPo editor Matt Murray on stage...
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>> The Federalist CEO Sean Davis delivered a "stunning condemnation of Trump" in an X post yesterday. Davis said Trump "looks weak and rudderless," adding, "Be mad all you want, but it’s the truth." (Mediaite)
>> "60 Minutes" closed last night's program with a viewer mailbag minute, conveying both right- and left-wing criticism of last week's Trump interview. (X)
>> Speaking of "60," Jon Wertheim profiled Margaret Atwood, who brought up dictators' penchant for "trying to get control of the media," and said there are "some warning lights flashing" in the US right now "for sure." (CBS)
>> Shares of Rumble are way up this morning on the news that "it is acquiring German AI cloud company Northern Data." (Reuters)
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ICYMI: 5 key reads from the weekend |
>> Diana Pearl says "the end of Teen Vogue completes fashion media's retreat from politics." (Business of Fashion)
>> Speaking of Teen Vogue, Ryan Zickgraf catches up with Lauren Duca, who defined the publication's political identity during Trump 1.0, and has now "found Jesus" and "logged off." (UnHerd)
>> Natalie Korach reports that the recent Condé Nast layoffs stretched beyond Teen Vogue, leaving staffers questioning "whether leadership understands the creative engines behind its storied publications." (Status)
>> Blake Dodge takes you inside "inside the Sydney Sweeney GQ interview from Hell." (Pirate Wires)
>> Casey Michael Henry wonders: "Why Does So Much New Technology Feel Inspired by Dystopian Sci-Fi Movies?" (NYT Mag)
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YouTube TV offers $20 credit |
"In a bid to appease disgruntled customers," YouTube is offering eligible YouTube TV customers $20 credits due to the ongoing dispute with Disney, Variety's Todd Spangler writes. If you're a customer, you can get your credit here.
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ESPN's 'sketchy solitaire app' problem |
First came this headline from Awful Announcing's Drew Lerner: "Top ESPN personalities are selling out for Stephen A. Smith's sketchy solitaire app." The Solitaire Cash app is not really Smith's — he is just an ambassador — but it's apparently sketchy enough that some of those personalities wish they hadn't endorsed it. Mina Kimes said Saturday, "I'm deeply embarrassed I didn't vet it. A colossal fuck-up on my part." Lerner has a follow-up story here...
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'South Park,' the 'voice of the resistance' |
The NYT's John Koblin caught up with "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker for this story about the show's turn "into a surprising voice of the resistance." There are some outstanding quotes, including Parker's observation that "our show will be a lot longer than theirs," meaning "South Park" will outlast Trump 2.0.
Stone said they found a "vein of comedy" in July by putting Trump in bed with Satan, and decided to keep at it. Parker said, "Any extremists of any kind we make fun of. We did it for years with the woke thing. That was hilarious to us. And this is hilarious to us."
As for Paramount's new owners, Stone said, "I know with the Colbert thing and all the Trump stuff, people think certain things, but they're letting us do whatever we want, to their credit." Read on...
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"Disney/20th Century’s 'Predator: Badlands' is giving theaters a bigger boost after a sluggish October than expected, earning an estimated $40 million opening weekend from 3,725 theaters and an additional $40 million overseas for an $80 million global launch," TheWrap's Jeremy Fuster reports.
But it was "quite the opposite” for "Christy," the Sydney Sweeney-led boxing flick, which "grossed only $1.3 million for a per-theater average of just $649," placing it "among the top 10 worst openings for a new release on more than 2,000 screens."
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