Ben Mullin
@benmullin.bsky.social
Media reporter at The New York Times. 530-951-3223
Happy new year! If there's something going on at your media company you think the public needs to know about, drop me a line on Signal: benmullin.13
January 1, 2026 at 5:42 PM
Happy new year! If there's something going on at your media company you think the public needs to know about, drop me a line on Signal: benmullin.13
scoop: During a heated conference call this spring, the head of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting told Katherine Maher, the C.E.O. of NPR, that she should resign.
My profile of Katherine Maher, which goes behind-the-scenes of the most consequential fight in NPR’s history.
My profile of Katherine Maher, which goes behind-the-scenes of the most consequential fight in NPR’s history.
December 30, 2025 at 12:24 PM
scoop: During a heated conference call this spring, the head of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting told Katherine Maher, the C.E.O. of NPR, that she should resign.
My profile of Katherine Maher, which goes behind-the-scenes of the most consequential fight in NPR’s history.
My profile of Katherine Maher, which goes behind-the-scenes of the most consequential fight in NPR’s history.
NEW: Bari Weiss addresses her decision to hold last night's CECOT story on the CBS News morning editorial call: "Our viewers come first, not a listing schedule or anything else..."
December 22, 2025 at 2:15 PM
NEW: Bari Weiss addresses her decision to hold last night's CECOT story on the CBS News morning editorial call: "Our viewers come first, not a listing schedule or anything else..."
scoop: Shelly Banjo to be named deputy editor in chief at
@semafor.com, reporting to @semaforben.bsky.social
@semafor.com, reporting to @semaforben.bsky.social
December 11, 2025 at 8:02 PM
scoop: Shelly Banjo to be named deputy editor in chief at
@semafor.com, reporting to @semaforben.bsky.social
@semafor.com, reporting to @semaforben.bsky.social
Barry Diller's advice to Paramount and Netflix? "Be prepared for a long siege." David Ellison's war with Netflix is a re-run of Diller's quest for Paramount three decades ago.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/b...
Who Will Win: Netflix or Paramount? We’ve Seen This Show Before.
www.nytimes.com
December 9, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Barry Diller's advice to Paramount and Netflix? "Be prepared for a long siege." David Ellison's war with Netflix is a re-run of Diller's quest for Paramount three decades ago.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/b...
news: USA Today Editor in Chief Caren Bohan is exiting the company, per sources familiar. She will be replaced in the interim by Michael McCarter.
December 9, 2025 at 8:10 PM
news: USA Today Editor in Chief Caren Bohan is exiting the company, per sources familiar. She will be replaced in the interim by Michael McCarter.
The Washington Post's RIPPLE™️ is here!!
www.washingtonpost.com/ripple/
www.washingtonpost.com/ripple/
December 9, 2025 at 3:33 PM
The Washington Post's RIPPLE™️ is here!!
www.washingtonpost.com/ripple/
www.washingtonpost.com/ripple/
Interesting: Journalists at Politico and E&E News say they won an arbitration case over the use of A.I. tools in their newsrooms. "This case marks one of the nation’s first major labor-arbitration rulings addressing the impact of AI on journalists’ work."
wbng.org/2025/12/01/p...
wbng.org/2025/12/01/p...
PEN Guild wins landmark arbitration on AI protections - Washington-Baltimore News Guild
This decision marks one of the first major labor-arbitration rulings on the impact of AI on journalists' work.
wbng.org
December 1, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Interesting: Journalists at Politico and E&E News say they won an arbitration case over the use of A.I. tools in their newsrooms. "This case marks one of the nation’s first major labor-arbitration rulings addressing the impact of AI on journalists’ work."
wbng.org/2025/12/01/p...
wbng.org/2025/12/01/p...
scoop w/ @laurenhirsch.bsky.social and @nsperling.bsky.social: Warner Bros. boss David Zaslav held a dinner party at Woodland, his French Regency-style home on Wednesday, where he talked up a bid from Netflix. The latest on the race for Hollywood's big prize:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/b...
Netflix, Comcast and Paramount Submit Warner Bros. Discovery Bids
www.nytimes.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:06 PM
scoop w/ @laurenhirsch.bsky.social and @nsperling.bsky.social: Warner Bros. boss David Zaslav held a dinner party at Woodland, his French Regency-style home on Wednesday, where he talked up a bid from Netflix. The latest on the race for Hollywood's big prize:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/b...
tidbit: Hannah Poferl, The Times' head of audience, is leaving for a new opportunity, per email from Joe Kahn and Meredith Kopit Levien. She reported jointly to Meredith and Joe and will be replaced in the interim by executives who report separately to both.
November 13, 2025 at 7:08 PM
tidbit: Hannah Poferl, The Times' head of audience, is leaving for a new opportunity, per email from Joe Kahn and Meredith Kopit Levien. She reported jointly to Meredith and Joe and will be replaced in the interim by executives who report separately to both.
News: The Bulwark has hired Renita Jablonski, The Washington Post’s head of audio. Quote from Jablonski:
November 11, 2025 at 5:07 PM
News: The Bulwark has hired Renita Jablonski, The Washington Post’s head of audio. Quote from Jablonski:
the debate over A.I.'s use in newsrooms is also taking place at @npr.org, where last week a producer raised questions about a proposal to use A.I. to create digital versions of some radio stories:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
November 7, 2025 at 5:00 PM
the debate over A.I.'s use in newsrooms is also taking place at @npr.org, where last week a producer raised questions about a proposal to use A.I. to create digital versions of some radio stories:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
scoop: this year, an engineer at The Washington Post quit, citing unethical use of A.I. in an un-launched product.
The Post ended up rolling out a different A.I. aggregator that it now uses.
All that, and lots more, in this story with
@katierobertson.bsky.social:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
The Post ended up rolling out a different A.I. aggregator that it now uses.
All that, and lots more, in this story with
@katierobertson.bsky.social:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
Who Wrote That Headline? Maybe a Robot.
www.nytimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:41 PM
scoop: this year, an engineer at The Washington Post quit, citing unethical use of A.I. in an un-launched product.
The Post ended up rolling out a different A.I. aggregator that it now uses.
All that, and lots more, in this story with
@katierobertson.bsky.social:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
The Post ended up rolling out a different A.I. aggregator that it now uses.
All that, and lots more, in this story with
@katierobertson.bsky.social:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/b...
Axios co-founder Jim VandeHei announces cuts affecting 19 individuals on the product, tech and design teams, per note. “This is a difficult, but necessary, move to meet our evolving tech strategy.”
November 5, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Axios co-founder Jim VandeHei announces cuts affecting 19 individuals on the product, tech and design teams, per note. “This is a difficult, but necessary, move to meet our evolving tech strategy.”
news: Laurie Orlando, SVP of strategy and talent, is leaving CBS News, per memo
November 3, 2025 at 8:11 PM
news: Laurie Orlando, SVP of strategy and talent, is leaving CBS News, per memo
Puck's acquisition of Air Mail means that some of the powerful people it covers now hold stakes in the company.
Below are disclosures from Dylan Byers and Jon Kelly about RedBird, which has a stake in Paramount, and David Zaslav, who runs Warner Bros. Discovery.
Below are disclosures from Dylan Byers and Jon Kelly about RedBird, which has a stake in Paramount, and David Zaslav, who runs Warner Bros. Discovery.
November 1, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Puck's acquisition of Air Mail means that some of the powerful people it covers now hold stakes in the company.
Below are disclosures from Dylan Byers and Jon Kelly about RedBird, which has a stake in Paramount, and David Zaslav, who runs Warner Bros. Discovery.
Below are disclosures from Dylan Byers and Jon Kelly about RedBird, which has a stake in Paramount, and David Zaslav, who runs Warner Bros. Discovery.
Quick question: Does anyone know if there have been any great books written about efforts to create The State of Jefferson™️
October 31, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Quick question: Does anyone know if there have been any great books written about efforts to create The State of Jefferson™️
scoop w/Jessica Testa: Puck paid $16 million (mostly in stock) for Graydon Carter's Air Mail.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/b...
Puck Acquires Air Mail, a Newsletter Merger for the Well-Heeled Inbox
www.nytimes.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:53 PM
scoop w/Jessica Testa: Puck paid $16 million (mostly in stock) for Graydon Carter's Air Mail.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/b...
News: Long-expected layoffs are beginning to hit Paramount today. Overall, roughly 2,000 employees are expected to be cut, or about 10% of the combined company.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/b...
Paramount to Lay Off 2,000 Employees
www.nytimes.com
October 29, 2025 at 11:19 AM
News: Long-expected layoffs are beginning to hit Paramount today. Overall, roughly 2,000 employees are expected to be cut, or about 10% of the combined company.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/b...
new: Bari Weiss, the new editor in chief of CBS News, surprised senior staff at “60 Minutes” last week when she asked a provocative question —
Why does the country think you’re biased?
Inside Bari’s first two weeks, with Michael Grynbaum:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/19/b...
Why does the country think you’re biased?
Inside Bari’s first two weeks, with Michael Grynbaum:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/19/b...
Booking Big Guests and Irked by Leaks: Bari Weiss’s First Days at CBS
www.nytimes.com
October 19, 2025 at 12:45 PM
new: Bari Weiss, the new editor in chief of CBS News, surprised senior staff at “60 Minutes” last week when she asked a provocative question —
Why does the country think you’re biased?
Inside Bari’s first two weeks, with Michael Grynbaum:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/19/b...
Why does the country think you’re biased?
Inside Bari’s first two weeks, with Michael Grynbaum:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/19/b...
new: The Washington Post is rolling out a beta version of Ripple, its A.I.-enabled opinion product. "The intention is to provide a range of recent perspectives from other publishers across America."
October 16, 2025 at 5:12 PM
new: The Washington Post is rolling out a beta version of Ripple, its A.I.-enabled opinion product. "The intention is to provide a range of recent perspectives from other publishers across America."
Reposted by Ben Mullin
It's taken me a couple of days to process the death of Rick Edmonds, who I was lucky enough to work with at Poynter. Rick was a tremendous human and a superb colleague. Kristen Hare gets at what made him so special in this obituary.
Rick Edmonds chronicled the media business with savvy, care and wit - Poynter
The veteran journalist died at 78 on Sunday
www.poynter.org
October 10, 2025 at 1:45 PM
It's taken me a couple of days to process the death of Rick Edmonds, who I was lucky enough to work with at Poynter. Rick was a tremendous human and a superb colleague. Kristen Hare gets at what made him so special in this obituary.
It's official: Paramount is buying The Free Press for $150 million and making Bari Weiss the editor in chief of CBS News
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
Paramount Buys The Free Press, Ushering in New Era at CBS News
www.nytimes.com
October 6, 2025 at 12:36 PM
It's official: Paramount is buying The Free Press for $150 million and making Bari Weiss the editor in chief of CBS News
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
scoop: Adam O’Neal, the new Opinion Editor at The Washington Post, is laying off staffers as part of a plan to shake up the section. A source says six employees are affected. I’ve also been told some contractors are being terminated. Here’s one email provided by a source:
October 2, 2025 at 7:10 PM
scoop: Adam O’Neal, the new Opinion Editor at The Washington Post, is laying off staffers as part of a plan to shake up the section. A source says six employees are affected. I’ve also been told some contractors are being terminated. Here’s one email provided by a source:
It's official: WSJ Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker announces that deputy editor in chief Charles Forelle is leaving
October 1, 2025 at 7:10 PM
It's official: WSJ Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker announces that deputy editor in chief Charles Forelle is leaving