M for Murdoch, Fashion’s Menswear Debate, Putin’s Brain Drain

Happy Friday and welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon bulletin featuring Puck’s best new reporting.

First up today, Matt Belloni presents his candid, Hollywood-centric conversation with NYU professor and voluble podcast host Scott Galloway. They debate the town’s economic blindspots, strike ripple effects, the M&A landscape, the A.I. question, and much more.

Plus, below the fold: John Ourand scoops ESPN’s $18 million bet on Stephen A. Smith. Tara Palmeri reveals the media moguls and right-wing personalities looking to influence Trump’s veepstakes. Lauren Sherman presents her compelling chat with Twitter menswear sensation Derek Guy. On Fashion People, Lauren and Jon Kelly discuss the past, present, and future of the Newhouse publishing dynasty. And on The Powers That Be, Julia Ioffe joins Peter Hamby to unpack her fresh reporting on the diminished Russian disinformation apparatus.

A programming note: On July 10 in D.C., Peter will moderate a panel discussion breaking down Puck’s latest exclusive election polling from Echelon Insights, with a special focus on the outsize impact of female voters over the age of 50. He will be joined onstage by Echelon’s Kristen Soltis Anderson, Margie Omero from GBAO, and Nancy LeaMond from AARP. Puck subscribers can click here to attend—otherwise, sign up for Puck here and email Fritz@puck.news for registration information.

MATTHEW BELLONI

So says Scott Galloway, the business school professor and podcaster as he unloads on Hollywood in decline—why its unions “have their heads up their ass,” the urgent A.I. threat (“Try to shut them down”), and an entertainment industry he sees as “arrogant:” “You’re subject to the same economics as the rest of us, folks,” as he puts it.

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JOHN OURAND

ESPN and Pitaro have put an $18 million-per-year offer in front of their generational star. It’s an insane amount of dough for a TV personality… but it still might not be enough.

TARA PALMERI

Inside the game of telephone surrounding Donald Trump, on the precipice of locking in his vice presidential pick, as everyone from Sean Hannity to Fox émigré Tucker Carlson to Rupert Murdoch, himself, attempts to put their finger on the scale.

LAUREN SHERMAN

Talking to Derek Guy, the oddly private fashion hobbyist with a million followers, about the vacuity of trends, why it’s hard to find good jeans, and the stratification of luxury and fast fashion.