Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon compendium of Puck’s best new reporting. First up today, Matt Belloni chronicles the grandiose ambitions and magical thinking that preceded Warner Bros. Discovery’s bifurcation yesterday, three years after C.E.O. David Zaslav waxed poetic about the “unique” power of smashing together prestige (HBO) and populist (Discovery) content. Alas, in retrospect, the belief that the low-budget, lean-back reality fare of the cable era could help turn a TV company into Netflix was probably doomed from the start… Plus, below the fold: John Ourand charts the fate of TNT and WBD’s sports rights following Zaz’s cable spinoff. Lauren Sherman evaluates whether Nike C.E.O. Elliott Hill can recapture mindshare in the women’s market. Abby Livingston foreshadows another House G.O.P. war as the Big Beautiful Bill boomerangs back to the chamber. And Matt drops the 2025 invite list for Sun Valley (no Elon or Shari this year…). Meanwhile, on the pods: Dylan Byers is joined by Axios’s Alex Thompson on The Grill Room for a deep dive into his Biden exposé. On The Town, Matt and Lucas Shaw chew over what the breakup of WBD portends for HBO Max and CNN. And on Fashion People, Lauren and Leandra Medine Cohen gab about the latest round of designer musical chairs, the Kardashians, U.E.S. fashion, and much more.

By splitting Warner Bros. Discovery in two, its C.E.O., as well as chief architect John Malone, finally acknowledged that the math never worked on their declining TV business, and the thesis of combining prestige (HBO) and populism (Discovery) was doomed from the start. Read Now

Amid the seismic news of the WBD divorce, Zaslav’s hodgepodge of post-NBA sports assets will find themselves in an excised cable company run by a severe belt-tightener. There are worse options, right? Right?! Actually, yes. Read Now

“One of the Best Dramas of the Year.”

– The Guardian

[WATCH] In Conversation with the Cast Lead Actress Keri Russell and Supporting Actress Allison Janney discuss nerves, that jaw-dropping finale and the joy of working together on Season 2 of THE DIPLOMAT with Creator Debora Cahn and Casting Director Julie Schubert. _____ For more on THE DIPLOMAT, visit series.netflixawards.com

Nike has a lot riding on its Skims collaboration, which is set to launch this summer. But the company’s issues with female consumers, from loss of market share to the lingering hangover of its old culture, run far deeper than any partnership—even one with Kim K.—can fix. Read Now

The Big Beautiful Bill will likely return to the House with cuts to the SALT deduction that blue-state Republicans can’t stomach—forcing them to decide between aggravating Trump or their constituents, with the fate of the G.O.P. majority on the line. Read Now

No Elon or Shari Redstone, but the annual Allen & Co. gathering of tech and media leaders will include Disney C.E.O. candidates, Apple’s Tim Cook, and three separate Murdochs, in addition to a who’s who of Silicon Valley players. Read Now

Axios’s Alex Thompson joins Dylan for a deep dive into Original Sin, the Biden exposé he co-authored with CNN’s Jake Tapper. They discuss the role and responsibility of journalists in today’s media climate, and particularly, the media’s culpability in allegedly covering up Biden’s cognitive decline while he was in the White House. They also address Karine Jean-Pierre’s pivot to independence, the broader issues within the Democratic Party, and more. Listen Now

“One of the Best Dramas of the Year.”

– The Guardian

[WATCH] In Conversation with the Cast Lead Actress Keri Russell and Supporting Actress Allison Janney discuss nerves, that jaw-dropping finale and the joy of working together on Season 2 of THE DIPLOMAT with Creator Debora Cahn and Casting Director Julie Schubert. _____ For more on THE DIPLOMAT, visit series.netflixawards.com

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss the long-awaited breakup of Warner Bros. Discovery and break down what these two new companies will consist of. They look at why this happened now, what this means for HBO Max and CNN, and who is the most likely buyer for each spun-off company. Listen Now

Lauren is joined by Leandra Medine Cohen, stylist, philosopher, observer, and author of the Cereal Aisle newsletter. They discuss the end of this latest round of designer musical chairs, the Kardashians, designing clothes, editing, shopping in stores when you’re a fashion influencer, what people are wearing on the Upper East Side, and Leandra’s new jewelry line with Aflalo, which is available to preorder this Thursday on Aflalonyc.com. Listen Now

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