Mixed Signals from Semafor Media

This week, we get an inside look at the independent creator model of media with a two-part conversation: First, Ben and Max interview Substack co-founder and chief writing officer, Hamish McKenzie, about the platform’s appeal for the resistance on the left, their move into video, and why they turned down Elon Musk’s offer to buy them a few years ago. Then, former Mixed Signals co-host and newly independent creator, Nayeema Raza, joins to talk about her foray into the new media landscape, what she’s learned about the space, and why her show, Smart Girl Dumb Questions, isn’t on Substack.

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Today, we have a special bonus episode: Ben and Max break down the most interesting moments from the Innovating to Restore Trust in News summit held last week in Washington, D.C. They discuss Gallup’s findings on the worsening trust in news media, New York Times executive editor Joe Kahn’s acknowledgment that Donald Trump is good for business, and FCC chair Brendan Carr’s plans to go after liberal media. Plus, Ben responds to Megyn Kelly’s take on what she called a “tense interview.” Is this the start of a heated podcast feud? Maybe, if it helps our ratings.

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The 97th Academy Awards are this weekend, giving us a glimpse into the past and future of Hollywood and the entertainment industry. For an insider’s take on the state of the business and how the Academy works, Ben and Max bring on Matt Belloni, founding partner of Puck and host of The Town podcast. They talk about Netflix’s Oscars strategy with Emilia Pérez, the disconnect between the Academy’s interests and what happens on stage, and why the Oscars still matter in 2025. They also discuss if Hollywood will take a rightward turn with the culture, Matt’s own career from behind the scenes at the Hollywood Reporter to now being recognized for his voice, and his predictions for this weekend’s awards.

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This week, a big story of media consolidation – and one that devoted Mixed Signals listeners would have seen coming: Fox announced that it has acquired Red Seat Ventures, the digital media company that produces and markets the podcasts of several big names in conservative media, including Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, and Bill O’Reilly. Ben and Max bring on Red Seat’s co-founder, Chris Balfe, to talk about the acquisition, how Piers Morgan brokered the deal, how Fox Corp. will deal with empowered creators, and what it all means for the future of media.

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The Super Bowl, the biggest single media event in the US, is upon us. And the Chiefs and the Eagles aren’t the only ones with a lot on the line: advertisers have staked their reputations – and for Instacart’s Laura Jones, her job – on 30 seconds of airtime this Sunday. This week, Ben and Max bring on the Instacart CMO to talk about what it takes to make a Super Bowl ad, the thinking behind their Marvel-style approach, and her high stakes bet in one of the only remaining mass audience moments in media. They also talk about how she got 9 other brands to participate in the ad, why she avoided celebrities, and the vibe shift from “purpose” to escapism in advertising.

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Kara Swisher has been a reporter, an editor, a founder, and is now one of the most successful podcasters in the world. This week, Ben and Max bring on the host of On with Kara Swisher and co-host of the popular tech podcast Pivot to talk about the business of media in 2025. She talks unabashedly about her own income, and whether other journalists can and should break out of big media companies to build brands like hers. She’s also got unexpectedly kind words for how Rupert Murdoch – “Uncle Satan” as she calls him – is handling the current media moment, and an update on her bid to buy The Washington Post.

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This week, we look at digital fragmentation through the eyes of a transformed marketing industry – because to really see where media is headed, you have to follow the money. Ben and Max bring on CMO of Verizon and former Twitter CMO, Leslie Berland, to talk about how creators have changed marketing and what she thinks is coming next. They also talk about how Twitter and social media changed the brains of the people who worked there and how advertisers avoid cringe when chasing memes.

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As the second inauguration of Donald Trump approaches and global leaders head to Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, we at Mixed Signals want to know: what will media’s role be in an increasingly unstable era? And will it bring more order or disorder for global politics? To discuss this, Ben and Max bring on political risk advisor Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group. They talk about how global leaders are engaging with new media and if digital media is shaping global politics, or vice versa. They also talk about Ian’s run-in with Elon Musk in 2022, and how Donald Trump’s second term will influence media leaders like Zuckerberg and Bezos.

Be sure to follow Nayeema’s new show, Smart Girl Dumb Questions, on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your content!

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This year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) showcased an array of new gadgets, screens, and robots – but will any of them impact how and what we consume? Or will the real changes come from Washington, where the big tech companies from Meta to Amazon seem to be targeting their attention? To discuss all the ways that tech and tech leaders will impact the media industry this year and beyond, Ben and Max talk to Jessica Lessin, founder and CEO of The Information. And Max hits the ground running with his first episode as co-host, as Taniacs rejoice.

Nayeema Nation: Be sure to follow Nayeema’s new show, Smart Girl Dumb Questions, on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your content!

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We’re kicking off 2025 with a foray into dating apps — and an announcement of Nayeema’s next venture (not a dating app but a new show called Smart Girl Dumb Questions). But first: Today’s episode of Mixed Signals merges Ben and Nayeema’s interests in CMO podcasts and dating apps, respectively. Tinder CMO Melissa Hobley joins us to talk about digital exhaustion, the reality of rebranding and the political license that comes with a GenZ audience. Max Tani joins to debrief, and next week, he’ll take the baton as co-host for the next era of Mixed Signals!

Be sure to hit follow on Nayeema’s new show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your content!

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On Monday, Carlos Watson, the founder of Ozy Media, was sentenced to nearly 10 years – 116 months – in prison for fraud. Today, in Ben’s first extensive conversation about it since Watson’s arrest, he and Nayeema discuss Ozy, the scandal, and what it reveals about the broader digital media and advertising business. They bring on Madison and Wall analyst and former GroupM Global President for Business Intelligence, Brian Wieser, to talk about why marketers and investors were duped by Watson, what changed in the aftermath, and what the next digital media scam might be. After the conversation, Max Tani joins them to debrief.

If you want more on the Ozy story, check out the three-part series, “The Unraveling of Ozy Media” from CJR’s The Kicker. And for more from Brian Wieser, check out Madison and Wall’s podcast and newsletter.

NOTE: We’ll be off next week – but stay tuned for our next episode (and some exciting news) on January 3rd, 2025.

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YouTube and podcasts have come fully of age as dominant forms of media, and legacy media companies are frantic to buy their way in. Ben and Nayeema tackle this with Colin and Samir, two veteran YouTubers and media thinkers who have spent years helping their peers figure out digital media. They talk about this latest rise of YouTube, the reality of revenue-backed creative, and what legacy media gets wrong about digital creators. It’s a conversation so compelling that… Nayeema reveals she might try to jump ship into that world herself…?! After the conversation, Max Tani joins to debrief and offer his fact-check for the lacrosse scene in LA.

Oh, and Colin and Samir also share their many GoDaddy accounts for their endless business ideas. For more from Colin and Samir check out their podcast, The Colin and Samir Show, and their newsletter, The Publish Press.

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Mixed Signals is back for Season 2, and this season we’re following the money in the changing media business. What happens now, after the clear win by podcasts and YouTubers in the election? Is it the end of legacy media, for real this time? And can advertisers keep up with audiences’ evolving media diet? To kick off this conversation, Ben and Nayeema bring on author, New Yorker writer, and media savant, Ken Auletta, who’s been examining the industry since the 90s. They talk about if and how this moment feels different from previous disruptions, how Elon Musk is reshaping media, and Ken shares his, uh, colorful recollections of flying with Ted Turner, his girlfriend, and the couple’s bed.

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The 2024 election cycle is finally over – so, what’s coming to your screens next? Today, Ben and Nayeema dissect what the media learned from 2024 and where we go from here. They first chat to Max Tani about the news media, and then sit down with Ankler Media’s Janice Min – who has been reporting on (and embedded in) Hollywood culture for decades. The conversation tackles whether politics and art stay linked or divorce, if Donald Trump will wake up “wokeism” again or if Americans will turn to escapism … and why TV is chasing the “gourmet cheeseburger.”

Importantly: This is our last episode of season 1 and we want your feedback! Please email us with what you’ve liked, not liked and want more of for season 2. We’re at [email protected] and [email protected].

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In a noisy election cycle it’s hard to find signals — even of the mixed variety. Today, Ben and Nayeema sit down with reporters David Weigel and Max Tani to parse what you’re not seeing, from the “insane” tv ads at a Pittsburgh Steelers game and the print ads in an Arizona nail salon, to an unpublished Washington Post endorsement that was quashed by Jeff Bezos. One of these things may decide the election, and another could shape the blamegame that follows.

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With recent appearances from Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, JD Vance and Tim Walz, it looks like Fox is dominating this election. Ben and Nayeema investigate the channel’s durability despite massive lawsuits, MeToo scandals, and star exits from Tucker Carlson, Bill O’Reilly and Megyn Kelly. To go inside the machine, they talk to former “O’Reilly Factor” and “The Five” producer Nate Fredman (who spent nearly 20 years at the network) about what makes Fox tick — and stick.

Stick around for Ben and Nayeema’s debrief with Max Tani, who wrote about Fox this week. Fox News insiders, send your tips to Max! 

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Ben and Nayeema take on the critique of bias in the media with The Economist's James Bennet —a conversation that always seems timely, but especially so right now, weeks away from a US election and with an expanding conflict in the Middle East. To help make sense of what we see as media bias and the moral questions that journalists grapple with every day, James shares his experience as the Jerusalem Bureau Chief at The New York Times. He continued to be at the fulcrum of this discourse when he was forced to resign as the Times Editorial Page editor during a heated moment at the publication in 2020. Bennet is now a senior editor at The Economist where he writes the Lexington column.

Read James' piece "Letter From the Middle East; Children Fill Ledger of Death, No Matter How, or How Many."

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Ben and Nayeema tackle the emerging AI battle between machines and humans, a topic that was glaringly absent from this week’s Veep debates but is at the center of everything from the dockworkers’ strike to Hollywood’s grand plans. To figure out how long they and the creative and media elite have job security, they speak with Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and playwright Ayad Akhtar whose latest play, McNEAL, wrestles with AI and ethics.

And for Blindspots, Max spills on what film you need to see … before, um, the machines replace the filmmakers. 

NOTE: This episode discusses the dockworkers’ strike, and was taped before the strike was suspended on Thursday night.

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Ben and Nayeema discuss a reporter’s digital dalliance with RFK. Jr, and what it says — and doesn’t — about journalism. Then they bring on Tim Miller, host of The Bulwark Podcast, and a star of the anti-MAGA movement. They ask: Is the hot new space in the media, and on YouTube, in the political center? Finally, Max joins in for Blindspots to get quick takes on VP Harris’ decision to guest on the All The Smoke podcast.

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On the heels of Mark Zuckerberg’s live interview with the Acquired podcast, hosted at a packed Chase Center in San Francisco, Ben and Nayeema explore the icy relationship between traditional media and big tech. 

Why are Silicon Valley’s CEOs more likely to be found gabbing on a podcast about their fashion choices than quoted in the New York Times? When did the media and tech breakup, who is to blame, and who wins and loses when hard questions are optional?

To answer these questions, they talk to a podcast host, creator, and investor who has been on the winning side of this dynamic: Jason Calacanis host of This Week in Startups and co-host of All-In. On All-In, Jason has interviewed tech titans and political figures including Marc Benioff, Elon Musk, JD Vance, and Donald Trump. Ben and Nayeema ask whether anything is lost when “CEO safe spaces” replace hardball interviews. 

To wrap things up and bring the temperature down, Max Tani brings on an ESPN blindspot. 

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