Channels with Peter Kafka

Sports are back! Kinda. With the return — for now — of baseball and basketball in the U.S., Recode’s Peter Kafka sits down with some of the best sports journalists for an update on the state of the games. First, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst explains how the NBA plans to run the rest of the season, and how they’re thinking about next year. Then, Yankees reporter Lindsey Adler of The Athletic details her...

Substack is a service that helps writers created paid newsletter businesses. It’s also finding lots of writers — like Andrew Sullivan — who want to go to work for themselves. CEO Chris Best sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to talk about his rapidly growing startup, and what it means for the media industry. Later, The Verge’s Julia Alexander calls in to give her thoughts on the recent launch of...

Hank Green and, his brother John Green, have been on the internet for a long time. Initially gaining fame from their YouTube series The Vlog Brothers. They later created Youtube shows like Crash Course and Sci Show, one of the biggest online video conventions VidCon, and written young adult novels such as A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor. Hank Green sits down Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss life as...

Running a newspaper in 2020 is hard. Running a newspaper in Hong Kong will be really challenging: Gary Liu, CEO of The South China Morning Post, talks to Recode's Peter Kafka about what it’s been like to operate his publication in an uncertain environment that just became more fraught. Liu, who came to the paper after stints at Google, Spotify and Digg, says his publication can provide a crucial w...

Tubi CEO Farhad Massoudi just sold his streaming video company to Fox for more than $450 million. Now he sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to talk about how he built Tubi; how his free, ad-supported service fits in an era dominated by Netflix’s ad-free service; and what it’s like to sell your startup in the middle of a pandemic. Featuring: Farhad Massoudi (@Tubi), CEO and founder of Tubi Host: P...

Recode’s Peter Kafka and Rani Molla give you a sneak peak of Vox’s latest season of Land of the Giants, — a seven part series on the rise of Netflix. They give some background on what it was like developing the show during the pandemic, and look ahead to Netflix’s future. After the break: A look at Netflix’s biggest blunder, and how it shaped the company. You can listen to Land of the Giants: The...

Comedian and host of CNN’s United Shades of America, W. Kamau Bell, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to talk about the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. Bell shares his thoughts on how how major news networks and social media companies are meeting the moment, how white Americans can educate themselves about racism — and why he doesn’t mind doing that work. He also discusses Dave Chapelle’s rec...

Wondery CEO Hernan Lopez, whose company specializes in long-form, narrative podcasts like “Dirty John”, talks with Recode’s Peter Kafka about the state of the podcast industry and how his business has weathered the pandemic. He also discusses the impact of recent federal wire fraud and money laundering charges related to his last job, as a Fox TV executive. Later, The Ringer’s Alyssa Bereznak, swi...

Paddy Cosgrave is the co-founder of one of the most popular tech conferences in the world, Web Summit. With its Toronto iteration “Collision” approaching quickly, this year, as a result of the global pandemic, the event must be held online. He sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to detail how his team is pulling that off. Later, Rafat Ali, CEO and Founder of Skift, gives some insight on how his bu...

Writer at large for New York Times Opinion, Charlie Warzel, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss his thoughts on how social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, are handling how their users are utilizing their platforms in response to the most recent protests following the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor. Featuring: Charlie Warzel (@cwarzel), writer...

Chairman of WarnerMedia and head of HBO Max, Bob Greenblatt, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss this weeks big launch and what differentiates HBO Max from the field. Featuring: Bob Greenblatt, Chairman of WarnerMedia Host: Peter Kafka (@pkafka), Senior Editor at Recode More to explore: Subscribe for free to Recode Media, Peter Kafka, one of the media industry's most acclaimed reporters...

Have you seen Extraction? More than 90 million Netflix viewers have, making the violent thriller the service’s most popular original movie to date. Stuntman-turned-director Sam Hargrave, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss his action movie starring Chris Hemsworth. Hargrave talks about learning how to make action movies on the set of Marvel’s Avengers series, working with the Russo brot...

Recode’s Peter Kafka and Vox Media Podcast Network senior producer Zach Mack, discuss the recent deal to bring The Joe Rogan Experience exclusively to Spotify and what it means for the podcast industry. Featuring: Zach Mack (@zachthemack), Senior Podcast Producer at Vox Media Podcast Network Host: Peter Kafka (@pkafka), Senior Editor at Recode More to explore: Subscribe for free to Recode Media, P...

Ben “Dr.” Lupo always works from home: He’s a professional video game player. And he’s a star, with 4 million Twitch subscribers. This week Dr. Lupo sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to break down a day in the life of being a full-time Twitch Streamer, how he and his fellow colleagues are handling creating content during the pandemic, and what he plans on doing in the upcoming future of his car...

Vox.com’s Laura McGann and Recode’s Peter Kafka discuss Tara Reade, her allegations of sexual misconduct against Joe Biden, and the way the media has treated her. McGann, Vox’s politics editor, discusses her attempt to verify Reade’s allegations in 2019, and why the story has resurfaced now; the discussion also includes Reade’s decision to tell her story to former TV personality Megyn Kelly, on Ke...

Michael Jordan and the 1998 Chicago Bulls are profiled in ESPN's 10-part documentary series The Last Dance. Director Jason Hehir chats with Recode's Peter Kafka about the complex process of telling this story in 10 parts, interviewing Michael Jordan and the '98 Bulls and wondering how MJ would handle the digital era. Featuring: Jason Hehir (@jasonmhehir), director of ESPN's The Last Dance Host: P...

Writer Greg Daniels and Recode’s Peter Kafka discuss discuss 'Upload' and 'Space Force,' his upcoming series for Prime Video and Netflix and what its been like launching two TV shows in this moment. Later, Vulture’s Craig Jenkins talks about how the pandemic has changed the way we see live music and how recording artists are taking advantage of Instagram live to conduct friendly battles and engage...

Analyst Matthew Ball sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss how the coronavirus is changing the landscape on how SVOD’s are currently conducting business, why Hollywood is choosing to delay some big feature releases, and how the video game industry is thriving. Featuring: Matthew Ball (@ballmatthew), Analyst Host: Peter Kafka (@pkafka), Senior Editor at Recode More to explore: Subscribe f...

The Atlantic’s editor in chief, Jefferey Goldberg, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss how his publication became a must-read during the Coronavirus pandemic, how he is converting new readers into new subscribers, and what it’s like to run a media outlet owned by billionaire Laurene Powell Jobs. Featuring: Jeffery Goldberg (@JeffreyGoldberg), Editor-In-Chief of The Atlantic Host: Peter...

Quibi is here. Founder Jeffrey Katzenberg chats with Recode’s Peter Kafka about launching a new product during a pandemic, how he thinks his service differs from other bigger streaming platforms, and his vision for Quibi’s future. Later, The Verge’s Julia Alexander reviews some of Quibi’s new and original shows. Featuring: Jeffery Katzenberg (@Quibi), Founder of Quibi Julia Alexander (@loudmouthj...

Taylor Lorenz, who covers the internet for the New York Times; Campbell Brown, who heads up Facebook news partnerships; and Sarah Larson, who writes about podcasts for the New Yorker, chat with Recode’s Peter Kafka about the way the pandemic is affecting their industries. Lorenz discusses the way social networks like TikTok have responded — and why Zoom is a new social network; Brown discusses Fac...

Two chats with people who make you laugh for a living: Pod Save America co-host Jon Lovett talks about making his shows — including one that’s supposed to happen with a live audience - from home during the pandemic, what’s happening to his podcast business during the economic disruption, and how to help people get through a very rough time. Then, in an interview taped as the pandemic was beginning...

Stratechery’s Ben Thompson, Lightshed’s Rich Greenfield, and Crisis Text Line’s Bob Filbin join Recode’s Peter Kafka to talk about the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. Thompson talks about the pros and cons of social media in a crisis - and what it’s like to live in Taiwan, where he’s based; Greenfield discusses Hollywood’s move to let us watch new movies at home instead of theaters; and Libin...

In a conversation taped hours before the NBA suspended its season, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Recode’s Peter Kafka discuss how the Coronavirus could affect the NBA, and why the league could cancel games — including its playoffs this spring - entirely. Windhorst also discusses the NBA’s TV problems, its dust-up with China last fall, and how LeBron James kickstarted his career. Featuring: Brian Win...

Vulture Senior Editor and host of the Good One podcast, Jesse David Fox, sits down with Recode’s Peter Kafka to discuss how social media and streaming has had an effect on the comedy industry and specifically how Netflix has revitalized the hour long standup comedy special. Featuring: Jesse David Fox (@JesseDavidFox), Senior Vulture Editor Host: Peter Kafka (@pkafka), Senior Editor at Recode More...