The Powers That Be: Daily

Guggenheim analyst Mike Morris joins John to discuss how a combined Paramount-WBD could impact future NFL media rights deals. Then they break down the true value of the league’s media contracts and how streamers like Netflix, Amazon and YouTube might eventually take even bigger pieces of the pie. Twenty nations and territories will compete in the World Baseball Classic with rosters featuring 78 ML...

Ian Kreitzberg joins Peter to discuss the Pentagon’s evolving relationship with artificial intelligence, from the use of A.I. tools for combat, intelligence gathering, and surveillance, to the fallout with Anthropic, which the government blacklisted after a dispute over the technology’s guardrails. Now, with Anthropic pushed to the side, is OpenAI using the rift to cozy up with the Defense Departm...

Julia Ioffe joins Peter to break down the most pressing questions, developments, and lines of inquiry surrounding the war in Iran: Why Donald Trump decided to attack, the mixed messages coming from the White House and the Pentagon, whether Israel is calling the shots, and what, exactly, the endgame might look like. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.auda...

Bill Cohan joins Peter to break down how the war in Iran might ripple through the global economy and impact energy prices. Then they discuss whether the Ellisons’ acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery is actually a done deal—or if the agreement will collapse under regulatory scrutiny in the U.S. and Europe. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.co...

Abby Livingston joins Peter Hamby to rap about the chaotic primary elections in Texas. The duo discuss the knock-down-drag-out fight for the Republican Senate nomination between Attorney General Ken Paxton and party-backed Senator John Cornyn. They also get into the unpredictable race for the Democratic nom, where 1.3 million votes have already been cast and James Talarico and Jasmine Crockett rem...

Besties Jon Kelly and Peter Hamby reunite to work through the second and third order effects of Paramount Skydance’s stunning WBD victory. Then they duo read the tea leaves on the changes at Politico, including some hypotheses about the next shoes to drop. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. V...

Jason Zengerle joins Dylan for a deep dive into his new book, ‘Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind.’ Zengerle traces Carlson’s evolution from print journalist to cable news star—and eventually to media mogul—examining his strategic use of outrage, his close alignment with Trump, and how both have fueled his influence. They also explore the broa...

Puck’s new retail correspondent Malique Morris joins Peter to assess the turbulence facing Ssense, the once-buzzy luxury platform that built its name on discounted designer and cult indie labels—only to stumble in the post-pandemic reset. Malique breaks down the company’s path through bankruptcy and its uphill bid to profitability in a harsher retail climate. To learn more about listener data and...

Ian Krietzberg joins Peter to break down the standoff between Anthropic and Pete Hegseth’s Department of Defense, which is pressuring the company to loosen safeguards around Claude—the only A.I. model currently deployed on classified systems. As Ian explains, Anthropic has built its brand on being the industry’s most responsible actor, but with the Pentagon threatening to walk, the company now fac...

Julia Ioffe joins Peter to break down the escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran, as protests flare across the country and American envoys travel to Geneva to hear Tehran’s latest nuclear proposal—an attempt to find an off-ramp to Trump’s military buildup in the Middle East. They also mark the four-year anniversary of Russia’s war in Ukraine and consider what, if anything, could finally mak...

Leigh Ann Caldwell joins Peter to discuss the political crosscurrents heading into Trump’s State of the Union, with Democrats split over whether to protest the speech entirely and Republicans managing internal tensions. She also shares an inside look at the combustible National Governors Association meeting from this past weekend, where Republican governors expressed concerns about the Trump admin...

Besties Jon Kelly and Peter Hamby reunite to chew over Ted Sarandos' media crusade to win the WBD deal. Then the duo contemplate the latest twist in the NFL's manifest destiny (and why the MLBPA is screwing the pooch). To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoi...

NBC Sports president Rick Cordella joins Dylan to discuss a pivotal month for the network, from the Super Bowl to the Winter Olympics and the NBA All-Star Game. Cordella explains how live sports fuel subscriber growth for Peacock, often driving audiences to other programming, and reflects on the enduring value of broadcast television, the challenges of media fragmentation, the strategic importance...

Lauren Sherman joins Peter to break down Les Wexner’s testimony for the House Oversight Committee, in which the former Victoria’s Secret mogul confronted his long, shadowy ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Then they discuss the biggest trends emerging from New York Fashion Week and what it all signals about the immediate future in luxury. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: h...

Dylan Byers joins Peter to break down what really happened at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, where an interview with Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was shunted to YouTube amid accusations that F.C.C. chair Brendan Carr pressured CBS to block the appearance. Then they discuss Anderson Cooper’s decision to leave 60 Minutes after two decades—and whether Bari Weiss is playing with fir...

Leigh Ann Caldwell joins Peter to explain why Democrats are content to let the partial government shutdown drag on, convinced they’ve got the public on their side in the fight over ICE. Then they discuss the rise of Senator Katie Britt—and how her bright future in the G.O.P. could be endangered by Trump. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/p...

Julia Ioffe joins Peter for an inside look at the Munich Security Conference and the anxiety over the future of the transatlantic alliance after Trump set off a crisis over Greenland. Julia reflects on Marco Rubio’s superficially reassuring speech promising a shared future with Europe—and the lingering unease that Washington has abandoned the liberal world order. To learn more about listener data...

Jon Kelly joins Julia Alexander, who is moonlighting for an under-the-weather Peter, to plot out the endgame of the NFL’s forthcoming media partner negotiations. Will one of the networks get left out this time around? And will that throw them into an existential crisis, like when WBD lost the NBA? Or is there somehow enough expensive football for everyone to share? To learn more about listener dat...

Lauren’s guest is Kyle Smith, fashion editor of the NFL and stylist to many of the league’s biggest stars, including Joe Burrow. They discuss the deepening relationship between American football and fashion, the GQ Bowl, Thom Browne, the halftime show, and Oscar de la Renta’s game night party with Puck, as well as Pieter Mulier’s appointment at Alaïa, the Margot Robbie Wuthering Heights press tour...

John Ourand joins Peter to take the temperature of the NBA as All-Star Weekend descends on Los Angeles and league insiders toast to a season they consider a success so far. Then they dig into the NHL’s—and other leagues’—strategic scramble to renegotiate their TV rights with ESPN and TNT before the NFL blows up the market by opting out of its own rights deals later this year. To learn more about l...

Julia Alexander joins Peter to slice through the final, official Super Bowl ratings across the various platforms the game aired on—and consider whether Turning Point USA’s halftime counter-programming on YouTube could inspire copycats in future tentpole events. Then they weigh into the NFL’s growing international ambitions and spotlight the one country primed to become the league’s next major grow...

Dylan Byers joins Peter to help make sense of the latest chapter of dysfunction at the Washington Post, where owner Jeff Bezos just forced out the embattled and aloof C.E.O. Will Lewis following massive layoffs and months of internal unrest. Then they turn to the bigger questions: can the Post finally crack the code on growth—and what kind of leadership will it take to make the paper relevant and...

Abby Livingston joins Peter to assess whether Washington is barreling toward another partial government shutdown, as Democrats and Republicans remain locked in a standoff over ICE and Department of Homeland Security funding. They also discuss Michigan’s pivotal Senate race and how the three-way primary could potentially jeopardize the party’s chances come November. To learn more about listener dat...

Besties Jon Kelly and Peter Hamby reunite to chop up the Will Lewis tragedy at the Post—what went wrong, what went wronger, and whether it’s too late to fix this nightmare. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this special episode, Leigh Ann Caldwell sits down with Republican Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio to discuss the stalled market structure bill governing stablecoins and the broader crypto industry. Moreno argues for a clearer, pro-innovation regulatory framework while pushing back on resistance from banks and what he sees as misconceptions about digital assets. He also weighs in on the ethics of...