ESPN Bloodletting & Newsom’s Trump Lifeline

Apr 7, 2026

Hollywood’s Hail Mary, TBPN After Altman, Cantino’s Dolce Era

Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon guide to Puck’s best new reporting. Here’s what you need to know…

The Varsity: Alas, layoffs are coming to ESPN as the network navigates a $100 million financial delta following last year’s YouTube TV blackout—an economic hit compounded by soaring Monday Night Football rights fees. John Ourand has the exclusive on the depth of the cuts—and which departments will be affected. [Read More]
The Best & The Brightest: California Dems had been staring down the staggering possibility of losing their first statewide gubernatorial race since the Schwarzenegger era. Abby Livingston reveals how Trump might have accidentally rescued the party—and Gavin Newsom’s ’28 presidential prospects. [Read More]
Line Sheet: After nine months of industry-wide speculation, former Gucci C.E.O. Stefano Cantino has emerged from his noncompete with a new leadership gig at Dolce & Gabbana. Lauren Sherman examines the challenges awaiting an executive who still needs to prove himself. [Read More]
What I’m Hearing: Family-friendly movies have performed extraordinarily well this spring season, punctuated by The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’s $191 million domestic opening. Scott Mendelson dissects the resurgence and whether the boom is sustainable. [Read More]

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

JPMorganChase launched a $1.5 trillion, 10-year plan to facilitate, finance and invest in industries vital to national economic security.

Meanwhile, on the pods…

The Town: Matt Belloni is joined by labor lawyer Jonathan Handel to break down the WGA’s new deal with the AMPTP—and what it portends for the rest of Hollywood’s guilds. [Listen Here]
The Grill Room: Dylan Byers and Julia Alexander scrutinize OpenAI’s head-spinning acquisition of the tech industry’s favorite video podcast, TBPN. [Listen Here]
The Powers That Be: Peter Hamby and Julia Ioffe discuss Trump’s threat to bomb Iranian civilian infrastructure “back to the Stone Age”—and why Tehran seems determined, for now, to ignore the president. [Listen Here]

SPORTS

John Ourand

Cut-Down Day Is Coming at ESPN

Layoffs are coming as the sports network deals with cord-cutting, the YouTube TV blackout, and uncertainty around whether Josh D’Amaro is going to spin it off to Wall Street cheers.

WASHINGTON

Abby Livingston

Did Trump Just Bail Out Newsom?

Democrats were headed for a potential jungle primary disaster in California, with nearly a dozen candidates splitting the gubernatorial vote to anoint Gavin Newsom’s successor. Then Trump waded into the race…

FASHION

Lauren Sherman

Cantino Hardly Wait

After an ill-fated run at Gucci, Stefano Cantino’s new gig at Dolce & Gabbana offers an ideal opportunity for an executive who still needs to prove himself as a C.E.O. The challenges, however, aren’t insignificant.

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

JPMorganChase launched a $1.5 trillion, 10-year plan to facilitate, finance and invest in industries vital to national economic security.

HOLLYWOOD

Scott Mendelson

Is the Family-Friendly Box Office Revival for Real?

From Super Mario Galaxy to Project Hail Mary, this spring break season is showing that when studios give families a reason to visit the multiplex, they actually show up.

HOLLYWOOD

Matthew Belloni

Does the Surprise Writers Guild Deal Mean Labor Peace in Hollywood?

Matt is joined by labor lawyer, journalist, and author Jonathan Handel to break down how the WGA reached a tentative deal with the AMPTP earlier than expected and what was won—including significant healthcare and A.I. protections—as well as the surprising agreement to a four-year deal instead of three. They discuss whether this agreement is ultimately a win for the WGA and whether it will lead to labor peace across other guilds.

MEDIA

Dylan Byers

Julia Alexander

Is the OpenAI–TBPN Deal the Future of Media?

Dylan and Julia reunite to scrutinize OpenAI’s baffling acquisition of TBPN—and the enduring notion that tech companies can fix media simply by owning it. They also weigh in on LinkedIn’s reported interest in Beehiiv, Versant’s grab for Vox Media’s podcast network, and the increasingly muddled media M&A landscape writ large.

WASHINGTON

Peter Hamby

Julia Ioffe

The Powers that Be
Daily, Starring Peter Hamby

Trump’s “Stone Age” Ultimatum

Julia Ioffe joins Peter to break down Trump’s maximalist threat to bomb Iran’s civilian infrastructure “back to the Stone Age” unless it agrees to reopen the Strait of Hormuz—an ultimatum that, for now, Tehran seems content to ignore, betting instead on Trump’s eroding political support. Julia also discusses her exclusive scoop on the administration’s unprecedented effort to label antifa as a foreign terrorist threat.

Need help? Review our FAQ page or contact us for assistance. For brand partnerships, email ads@puck.news.

You received this email because you signed up to receive emails from Puck, or as part of your Puck account associated with {{customer.email}}. To stop receiving this newsletter and/or manage all your email preferences, click here.

Puck is published by Heat Media LLC. 107 Greenwich St., New York, NY 10006