Hot List: Reflections From Possible, AI Robots Paid As Actors, More

“Promotions don’t build demand—they redistribute it. At scale, this is maybe the most expensive stalemate in business.” - Greg Stuart, MMA Global CEO and Possible co-founder, during Possible 2026 opening remarks.

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Data And The Other Walled Gardens Shine At Possible - Jason Damata

Possible Has Us Wishing For Our Robot Overlords, Amazon Allegedly Going Full MAGA - Alan Wolk

Broadcast TV’s Next Act May Be Smaller, Sharper, And More Selective - Tim Hanlon

NEW EPISODE: Local TV’s Next Act: From Frankenstack To Full-Funnel

How AI Ad Performers Now Get Paid …into SAG? - Melissa Hourigan

The Streaming Audience Is Getting Narrower, Not Bigger - Brandon Katz

Tube Trends: Now Creators Are Taking Over The NFL Draft - John Cassillo

ChatGPT Wins Viewers With Story-Driven Ad - Eleanor Semeraro

The Business Of Data: Coming Out Party For Outcomes - Jon Lafayette

FREE SPECIAL REPORT: All Grown Up: FAST Comes Of Age from Alan Wolk

ICYMI

• Roku’s $3 ad-free Howdy SVOD surpasses 1M subscribers: Antenna [StreamTV Insider]

• Paramount Requests FCC Approval for Hefty Middle East Ownership [WSJ]

• IAS touts ‘linear-like’ transparency with CTV ad measurement solutions [Marketing Dive]

• Nielsen Introduces ‘Predictive Sales Lift’ Tool [TV Technology]

• Warner Bros. Approved the Paramount Deal. Here’s What Comes Next. [Bloomberg]

• Meta eyes CTV expansion to fuel its next wave of ad growth [Digiday]

• TelevisaUnivision Replaces Ad-Sales Chief as TV Upfront Nears [Variety]

• CW Sports to Stream Via ESPN in Unique Content Pact [Variety]

• Report: DOJ meets with TV stations in sports-streaming antitrust probe [Sports Business Journal]

• Pinterest debuts audience extension offering on CTV [Digiday]

• Peacock rolls out on Roku Channel, coming soon to YouTube Primetime Channels [TheDesk]

• Telemundo Heads Into Upfront With Some of the 'Largest Investments in Spanish-Language History' for World Cup [Adweek]

Hanlon’s Local Links:

• This ABC Showdown Is Different - Will Gottsegen [The Atlantic]

• Mickey Mouse Versus The Fascists - Karl Bode [The Fine Print*]

• Former FCC Staffers Agree: Brendan Carr Needs To Be Stopped - Lauren Feiner [The Verge]

• The Future Of 9News Is Up In The Air, But Younger Viewers May Have Already Moved On From TV News - John Wenzel [Denver Post]

• Local Stations Face A Different Streaming Challenge, And A Different Set Of Infrastructure Choices - Dak Dillon [NCS|NewscastStudio]

• S&P: Local TV To Earn $4 billion In Political Ad Spending In 2026 - Matthew Keys [TheDesk.net]

• Braves Say New TV Network Is On Pace To Beat Old RSN Revenue - Eric Fisher [Front Office Sports]

• Gray Media To Launch First Women’s Sports-focused RSN In Portland - Manny Soloway [Awful Announcing]

• Audacy’s KNX Will Replace News On 97.1 FM With A Sports Talk Format - Stephen Battaglio [Los Angeles Times]