Join Emmy Award-winning journalist Peter Hamby, along with the team of expert journalists at Puck, as they let you in on the real conversations insiders are having across the four corners of power in America: Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley and Hollywood. Puck's contributors will bring you smart conversation around the inside stories happening in these worlds. Presented in partnership with Audacy, new episodes publish daily, Monday-Friday.
Puck’s legal expert Eriq Gardner, the one and only, joins Peter to comb through the depths of the recent Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity. Then the two delve into Hollywood’s surprising treatment of TikTok’s existential crisis.
Dylan Byers joins Peter to dig into into the Washington media reaction to debate-gate—the self-righteousness, anger, frustration, and general sense that the age issue, once deemed too sensitive, is all that matters
Abby Livingston joins Peter to discuss the compelling and startling chasm between what Democratic officials and electeds are saying publicly about Joe Biden, and what they are really acknowledging in private. They also delve into the factors that could yet force Biden's hand.
Jon Kelly joins Peter to discuss the media fallout from Biden’s debate debacle—the fast-moving information, the private conversation, and the real anxieties. Then they dig into the lastest turn in the Washington Post saga.
In a special post-debate episode, Peter is joined by John Heilemann and Dylan Byers to digest the political fallout from Biden’s halting performance on CNN, the hard conversations taking place among Democrats, the bad vibes inside the spin room, and the odds of an unprecedented pivot.
John Ourand joins Peter Hamby to dig into the delicate contract dance between ESPN and star broadcast talent Stephen A. Smith. Then they scrutinize the launch of the forthcoming Venu streamer—the group project from WBD, Fox, and Disney.
Tara Palmeri joins Peter Hamby to reveal all the pre-debate chatter, and the stakes for each campaign, ahead of the Trump-Biden showdown on CNN this Thursday. Then they discuss the right-wing media moguls and personalities calling up Trump to sway his V.P. pick.
Jon Kelly joins Peter to discuss the self-inflicted wreckage at The Washington Post and how a simple executive shuffle turned into a full blown powder keg. Then the duo debate whether Stephen A. Smith is worth $18 million a year to ESPN.
Julia Ioffe joins Peter Hamby to reveal the diminished state of the Russian disinformation apparatus, and why the bot armies of ’24 don’t hold a candle to ’16. Then they home in on the disinformation efforts we need to worry about this election—and those we can simply laugh at.
Eriq Gardner joins Peter Hamby to mull the major legal controversies poised to reverberate through the ’24 election: the Hunter Biden saga, Trump’s criminal trials, SCOTUS’s abortion rulings, R.F.K.’s ballot access challenges, and more.
Bill Cohan joins Peter Hamby to reveal why the failed Paramount-Skydance dalliance was the wildest M&A saga he’s ever seen. Then they discuss whether Shari will reengage with the Apollo/Sony bid—or if everyone is going to take a summer vacation instead.
Tara Palmeri joins Peter Hamby to debate whether the latest V.P. murmurs emanating from Mar-a-Lago—that North Dakota’s tech gazillionaire governor, Doug Burgum, is a genuine frontrunner—is fact or fantasy. Then they discuss the odds that Trump actually ends up in prison.
Jon Kelly joins Peter to chew over some of the latest machinations inside The Washington Post pressure cooker. The duo then turn their attention to Hollywood’s cold feet over an acclaimed Trump movie.
Julia Ioffe joins Peter Hamby to reveal whether the Kremlin is pulling for Biden or Trump in November. Sure, the answer might seem obvious—but as Julia explains, the reality is far more complicated, and has become the subject of fiery debate in both Moscow and Foggy Bottom.
John Ourand joins Peter to break down all the excitement and controversy surrounding the league’s new economics and the Olympic team roster. Then they chew over the latest updates in the Zaz-NBA media rights drama.
Bill Cohan joins Peter to discuss Shari Redstone’s shocking decision to nuke the Skydance/RedBird deal. Then the duo weigh in on the fate of Elon Musk’s $56 billion balloon.
Abby Livingston joins Peter to discuss the latest spate of member-on-member violence on the House campaign trail. Then they chew over a new poll that finds young voters have either forgotten the chaos of the Trump years or simply don’t care.
Jon Kelly and Peter are reunited just in time to discuss the tragicomic week at The Washington Post—the Will Lewis restructuring, the Buzbee departure, the Folkenflik battle, and so much more.
Tina Nguyen joins Peter Hamby to offer her insider’s view of Donald Trump’s recent intimations about exacting revenge on his political enemies. MAGAworld claims the Dems are weaponizing the criminal court system, and Republicans are vowing to return the favor. But how seriously should we take this dark rhetoric?
Julia Ioffe joins Peter Hamby to dissect Benjamin Netanyahu’s true motivations behind his D.C. tour and his coming address to a joint session of Congress. Then they scrutinize Biden’s optimistic spin on the war in Ukraine.
Bill Cohan joins Dylan Byers to analyze the possible Skydance-Paramount arranged marriage and its ripple effects: Shari’s exit options, the C-suite musical chairs, the Jeff Shell-Jeff Zucker fever dream, and much more.
Eriq Gardner joins Dylan Byers to dig into the latest developments in the potential Skydance-Paramount deal, before unpacking a new $20 billion NFL Sunday ticket antitrust lawsuit.
Matt Belloni joins Dylan Byers for a wide-ranging conversation spanning an overlooked sports rights negotiation (not the NBA!) plaguing David Zaslav, Netflix’s foray into sports, the strange economics of ‘Challengers,’ and much more.
John Ourand joins Dylan Byers to get into the nitty gritty of the multi-layered NBA broadcast rights auction—and, in particular, how it pertains to WBD. Did Zaz screw everything up? Can he match? And what do the economics really look like?
Eriq Gardner joins Dylan Byers to discuss the D.O.J.’s monopoly lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, a high-profile antitrust effort with massive implications for consumers, the entertainment industry, and the broader M&A landscape.
Julia Ioffe joins Dylan Byers to discuss the latest disturbing turns in the Israel-Hamas war, rising antisemitism in America, and the latest exclusive Puck-Echelon poll revealing how voters are digesting these issues ahead of November.
Happy Memorial Day! In this special edition of Media Monday, Jon Kelly joins Peter to discuss Will Lewis’s new revenue model at The Washington Post and analyze the latest CNN ratings dip.
Dylan Byers joins Peter Hamby to dissect his candid chat with Washington Post chief executive Will Lewis and his finally-unveiled plan to restore the paper’s “swagger” following an era of staff morale problems and business retrenchment. Then they examine the precarious relationship between Warner Bros. Discovery and the NBA.
John Heilemann, Puck’s newest partner, joins Peter to discuss the White House’s electoral calculus, the realities of the Trump legal sitch, and the evolving media landscape.
Marion Maneker joins Peter Hamby for his inaugural appearance on the pod, in which the star art market correspondent unpacks the biggest dramas surrounding Gigaweek, the high season for art sales in New York. Then, they dig into Marion’s origins as an art market reporter.
Abby Livingston joins Peter Hamby to inspect the mounting evidence that Democrats are in the drivers’ seat when it comes to taking back the House in November before dissecting the nasty war of words that erupted in a recent Oversight committee hearing. Then they dig into exclusive polling revealing voters’ real sentiments regarding the Trump trial.
Jon Kelly joins Peter to examine the NFL’s latest micro-aggressions, predict the impact Tom Brady will have on Fox, and assess the true value of the CNN presidential debate.
Baratunde Thurston joins Peter Hamby to dissect the heated A.I. arms race between Google, Meta, and Open A.I., and how a new wave of generative search tools, like Perplexity A.I., are making it difficult for tech incumbents to outpace disruptors.
Dylan Byers joins Peter Hamby to break down how CNN and ABC News scored the coveted Biden-Trump debates, what it means for their network rivals, and their predictions for the looming showdowns.
Julia Alexander joins Peter Hamby to dissect the flawed notion that modern streaming services—and the dynamics of bundling, in particular—approximate the linear ecosystem of yore. Then she reveals what advertisers are really thinking during Upfront Week in New York.
Bill Cohan joins Peter to share all the riveting details about his recent visit with Sam Bankman-Fried: the rice-bartering, his new life behind bars, and his belief in how he got there.
Jon Kelly joins Peter to discuss Netflix’s bid to produce two NFL Christmas Day games—the price tag, logistics, and deal quirks. And then the duo chew over the latest CNN murmurs.
Julia Ioffe joins Peter Hamby for a close reading of Putin’s fifth inauguration speech, and what the Russian president’s undisguised embrace of fascism portends for the future of his country, Ukraine, and more. Then they dissect the overly tidy interpretations of the Israel-Hamas war popping up on college campuses.
Dylan Byers joins Peter Hamby for a rollicking conversation surrounding David Zaslav’s NBA rights imbroglio, his eye-popping compensation package, WBD’s stock price, and much more. Then they dig into Kim Godwin’s perhaps inevitable exit from ABC News.
John Ourand joins Peter Hamby to discuss how Netflix’s star-studded roast of Tom Brady came together, and what the live broadcast signals about the streamer's ambitions for sports streaming. Then they discuss John’s fresh reporting on what ESPN and Amazon will pay to broadcast the NBA.
In a very special episode, Tara joins Peter to discuss Ivanka Trump’s quiet maneuvering to steer her family back into the White House. Then they discuss the media’s Chicago ‘68 fetish, and whether this summer’s convention will suffer a similar fate.
Julia Ioffe joins Peter for a candid discussion about the $61 billion Ukraine package and whether it’s simply come too late to make a material difference. They also delve into the Columbia mess, and try to figure out how we got here in the first place.
Eriq Gardner joins Peter Hamby to dissect Hunter Biden’s multifaceted, Bryan Freedman-led legal war against Fox News. Then they foreshadow how A.I. is poised to infiltrate the courtroom.
Abby Livingston joins Peter Hamby to dig into the G.O.P. bravado surrounding the party’s odds of maintaining control of the House next year despite the historic leadership tumult that has plagued the caucus. Then they parse R.F.K.’s true threat to Biden’s reelection odds.
Dylan Byers joins Peter Hamby to parse the WHCD weekend micro-drama surrounding a story published in Politico last week, which shined a klieg light on the simmering tensions between the White House and The New York Times.
In a very special episode, Peter plays the interview that he and Matt Belloni conducted with Aaron Sorkin during Puck’s WHCD party with WME and Snap. Sorkin dishes on his forthcoming Jan 6 project, his departure from CAA, and his thoughts on Biden.
Dylan Byers joins Peter Hamby to divulge all the inside chatter heading into White House Corespondents’ Dinner week in Washington. They rate who’s up and who’s down in the D.C. media scene, the parties (including Puck’s shindig with WME) where everyone is coveting an invite, and much, much more.
