Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon digest of Puck’s best new reporting.

First up today, Julia Alexander charts the media business’s existential crisis as Google serves ups A.I.-generated answers to search queries and stops sending traffic to publishers—slowly, as Hemingway once wrote, and then all at once. Advertisers are already starting to reallocate their budgets accordingly. And yet, as Julia notes, some companies are better prepared to survive this next media extinction event than others…

Plus, below the fold: Leigh Ann Caldwell explains how the perennially fractured G.O.P. fell in line behind the Big Beautiful Bill. Bill Cohan takes a close look at the creditor-on-creditor violence fueling the Saks Global soap opera. Rachel Strugatz chronicles how Patrick Starrr’s setting spray went from viral TikTok phenomenon to Sephora bestseller. And exclusively for Inner Circle members, Marion Maneker ponders what Tim Blum’s shocking-but-not-surprising decision to step back from his gallery means for the art world writ large. 

Meanwhile, on the pods: Matt Belloni is joined by CNN’s Brian Stelter on The Town to consider the industrywide ripple effects of Paramount’s $16 million Trump settlement. And on The Powers That Be, Julia and John Ourand assess what the settlement portends for CBS Sports and Jeff Shell, its likely steward once the Paramount-Skydance merger is finally, mercifully, consummated.

A.I.

Traffic is collapsing for publishers as the web reorients around A.I. The market is responding, too, with U.S. advertisers expected to spend over $25 billion, or about 14 percent of their search budgets, on A.I.-powered search by 2029. The good news is that people are making and consuming more media than ever—even if the business itself becomes unrecognizable.

Read Now

WASHINGTON

There was sound, there was fury, and then there was the predictable spectacle of Republicans—hawks and populists alike—falling in line behind Trump’s landmark bill.

Read Now

WALL STREET

…But were too afraid to ask. Yes, we’ve reached the creditor-on-creditor violence stage of this financial soap opera.

Read Now

FASHION

YouTube makeup O.G. Patrick Starrr’s setting spray, On ’Til Dawn, has made him a top seller at Sephora. But with subcategory domination comes the inevitable question: What’s next?

Read Now

ART

Tim Blum’s shocking-but-not-surprising decision to call it quits is a signal of bigger changes afoot—not just the apparent anhedonia of the collector class, but the profound effects of financialization on the art market.

Read Now

HOLLYWOOD

Matt is joined by CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter to trade notes on Paramount’s agreement with Donald Trump to settle his lawsuit against 60 Minutes for $16 million. They discuss the curious timing of the settlement given the looming Paramount-Skydance merger, whether the F.C.C. will finally approve said merger, the potential of a follow-up bribery investigation, how this will affect the Paramount and CBS brands, and the long-term political and journalistic implications.

Listen Now

SPORTS

John Ourand joins guest host Julia Alexander to chew over the far-reaching implications of Shari Redstone’s $16 million settlement with Donald Trump—starting with what it means for CBS Sports and its likely new steward, Jeff Shell, a media veteran known for using sports to drive growth. They also examine the rise of skinny bundles, the intensifying sports rights arms race, Amazon Prime Video Channels’ strategic edge, and what it all portends for the future of television.

Listen Now

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