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Greetings from Los Angeles, and welcome back to In the Room, my twice-weekly private email on the media. Alas, it appears that former president Trump has been as preoccupied as the rest of you with the R.F.K. Jr.-Olivia Nuzzi scandal, which took yet another sordid and so far unverified turn in Page Six today. Per my partner Tara Palmeri, Trump called Kennedy after the news first broke to inquire about the details. Kennedy apparently denied the whole thing, presumably including the prurient allegations that surfaced today. (Only 38 days left ’til the election, folks…)
On a more important note, Tara also reported that Trump may yet feel compelled to do another debate with Kamala—the October 23 debate on CNN, presumably—if only because he doesn’t want J.D. Vance to get the final word before the election. Speaking of the V.P. debate, John Heilemann, Peter Hamby, and I will once again be convening our Puck superfriends postgame show on both Impolitic (John’s pod) and The Powers That Be (Peter’s joint) immediately after the spin room becomes unbearable. Come join us late on Tuesday—or very early on Wednesday—for John and Peter’s expert analysis on J.D. and Walz, and stay for my unsparing report card on Norah and Margaret.
In tonight’s email, news and notes on Hoda Kotb’s well-choreographed departure from Today, the unpalatable economics behind her exit, and what it really portends for the future of the television news industry. For all but a few, the days of eight-figure talent salaries are coming to an end. In fact, consider yourself lucky if you get anything beyond a 4 percent COLA raise.
But first…
- Mark Thompson’s magic wall: CNN chief Mark Thompson will finally start experimenting with his long-anticipated paywall strategy next month. This won’t surprise you, dear reader, since I’ve written about it on at least three occasions in recent weeks. But now that it’s in the Times, it’s official. It’s not yet clear exactly how...
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| Hoda to a Nightingale |
| Yes, Hoda Kotb deserves to ring in her seventh decade by sleeping in past 4 a.m. But the truth is that the star left her cushy $20 million-plus per year deal only after NBC proposed a pay cut. “This is the age of the great resetting of TV news contracts,” one veteran media executive told me. “Everyone is getting their pay cut or their jobs eliminated.” |
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| On Thursday, Hoda Kotb, the widely beloved and perpetually ebullient Today show co-host, sat on the Studio 1A couch among her teary-eyed colleagues and revealed that she would be leaving the program early next year. In the subgenre of Today farewells, this was about as genuinely harmonious and well-composed an exit as the network suits could have expected—a far cry from the infamously awkward Ann Curry departure, obviously, to say nothing of the Matt Lauer cancellation that presaged Hoda’s own ascension to the chair. Tears and praise and declarations of love flowed unencumbered. Savannah Guthrie called Hoda “our... |
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| FOUR STORIES WE’RE TALKING ABOUT |
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| Netflix Comp Wars |
| Digging into the standoff between Netflix and talent agents. |
| MATTHEW BELLONI |
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| Delphine Streets |
| Illuminating the pressure on the new C.E.O. at Dior., |
| LAUREN SHERMAN |
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