Comedian James Corden To Leave 'The Late Late Show'

British comedian James Corden said on Thursday he will exit "The Late Late Show" on CBS television in 2023 after eight years as host to explore other opportunities.

Reuter reports Corden announced the news at an episode taping in Los Angeles. He told a studio audience that he saw the show, which he began hosting in 2015, as an "adventure" and not his "final destination" in entertainment.

"I never want this show to overstay its welcome in any way," Corden said in a clip released on YouTube. "I always want to love making it. And I really think in a year from now that will be a good time to move on and see what else might be out there."

Corden was relatively unknown in the United States when he began hosting the "Late Late Show" but generated buzz with his viral "Carpool Karaoke" segments in which he sang along with stars including Adele and Lady Gaga.

The comedian's contract was due to expire in August but he agreed to host the show for one more season that will run through spring of next year.

Corden, 43, also hosted the Tony and Grammy awards and appeared in films including the critically panned movie musical "Cats."

"Seven years ago, James Corden came to the U.S. and took television by storm, with huge creative and comedic swings that resonated in a big way with viewers on-air and online," said George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS.

"We wish he could stay longer, but we are very proud he made CBS his American home and that this partnership will extend one more season on 'The Late Late Show,'" Cheeks added.

NPR Argues Economy Is 'Sturdier Than It Looks' Amid Shrinking Report

NPR is painting a more optimistic perspective of the economic report released early Thursday morning.

The Commerce Department announced that the United States economy shrank by 1.4% in the first quarter of 2022. This clashed with previous expectations that the economy would expand by 1.1% and marked the worst quarter growth in two years since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Although NPR correspondent Scott Horsley acknowledged the dour economic report, he appeared to argue the opposite in a piece titled, "Why this economy may be sturdier than it looks."

"But economists say that's not as worrisome as it might seem. Consumers continue to spend freely, and businesses are still investing, despite the sharp drop in headline GDP growth," Horsley wrote.

Horsley specifically quoted senior U.S. economist with S&P Global Market Intelligence Ben Herzon, who stated that the economy is actually "picking up" steam.

"We should not take that as a signal of the direction of the economy," Herzon said. "If we peel back a couple of layers and just look at underlying domestic demand, the economy looks to be picking up a little bit of steam."

Both Horsley and Herzon also focused on the fading of the coronavirus as a boon to the growing economy.

"While the omicron wave of coronavirus infections discouraged some people from traveling and eating out in the first weeks of the year, that has given way to what Herzon calls a ‘COVID spring,’" Horsley wrote.

Despite this, Horsley recognized inflation as an issue, though mostly as a result of a "hot" economy.

With strong demand and a tight labor market, the U.S. economy is considerably hotter than Thursday's GDP figure might suggest — too hot, in fact, for the Federal Reserve," Horsley wrote.

Biden admin saying they are ‘not concerned’ about a recession | https://t.co/UvyVIwKdKf

— Tom Benson (@Tombenson1) April 29, 2022

'History of R&R' Wins Major Honor At NY Festival

G Networks and Reserve Productions LCC have announced that their two-hour weekly syndicated series, The History of Rock ‘N’ Roll – hosted by the legendary Wink Martindale – has won the Bronze, the highest award in the Best Regularly Scheduled Music Program Category in the New York Festivals competition.

World-class audio entries from 24 different countries around the globe were judged by the 2022 New York Festivals Radio Awards Grand Jury of 200+ producers, directors, writers, and other creative media professionals and judged on the following criteria: production values, creativity, content presentation, direction, writing, achievement of purpose and audience suitability. The winners were announced earlier this week at New York Festivals 2022 Storytellers Gala on April 26.

The History of Rock ‘n’ Roll is a two-hour weekly look back at the songs and the stars who made the music magic. Each themed episode spotlights yet another aspect of rock and pop history – from ‘Leading Ladies of the ’80s’ to ‘The ’60s Greatest Dance Hits,’ from ‘Singer-Songwriters of the ’70s’ to ‘The Best of Folk-Rock,’ from ‘The Magic of Motown’ to ‘The Number One Hits of 1980,’ and from ‘The Beach Boys Story’ to ‘Inside Beatlemania’.

Since 1957, The New York Festivals Radio Awards has celebrated excellence and innovation across all genres and platforms, keeping pace with industry-wide developments and global trends. The mission of the competition is to honor the achievements of the men and women who make up the global audio storytelling community.

G Networks exclusively syndicates The History of Rock ‘n’ Roll throughout North America. For more information visit https://gognetworks.com/entertainment/the-history-of-rock-n-roll/ on the G Networks website.

BFA Honors Industry Leaders During Annual Breakfast

(left to right): Tim McCarthy, Co-President of Broadcasters Foundation and Scott Herman, Chairman of Broadcasters Foundation, pictured with the honorees, Byron Allen, Pierre Bouvard, Christine Travaglini, Dennis Wharton, Ralph Oakley, and Gordon Smith

Closing the NAB in Las Vegas this week, The Broadcasters Foundation of America honored several industry leaders at its annual breakfast, which took place Wednesday morning.

The Leadership Award is presented annually to industry leaders who have made an impact on the broadcast industry and in their local communities.

This year’s honorees are:Byron Allen, Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer, Allen Media Group

• Pierre Bouvard, Chief Insights Officer, Cumulus Media
• Ralph Oakley, Retired, President and Chief Executive Officer, Quincy Media
• Christine Travaglini, President, Katz Radio Group
• Dennis Wharton, Retired, Executive Vice President, Media Relations, National Association of Broadcasters

Gordon Smith, former U.S. Senator and Special Advisor to the NAB, was honored with the Lowry Mays Excellence, which is presented annually to a broadcast luminary who has made an impact on the industry through innovation, entrepreneurship, issue advocacy, community service, and philanthropy.

April 29 Radio History

➦In 1903...singer Frank Parker was born (Died at age 95 – January 10, 1999). Parker debuted on radio as a substitute singer on The Eveready Hour, and he was a regular on radio and television in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s with personalities including Jack Benny, George Burns and Arthur Godfrey.

Frank Parker

An October 30, 1930, newspaper listing shows Parker singing on the Van Heusen Program on WABC in New York City. Also, in the early 1930s, he was a featured singer with Donald Voorhees and his orchestra on the Bond Sunshine Program on WEAF in New York City.

Beginning September 14, 1935, he had his own program, That Atlantic Family on Tour, with Frank Parker, which was heard on 36 CBS stations.

In September and October 1936, Parker and Ramona were featured on a 15-minute weekly program on WEAF in New York City and WMAQ in Chicago. Beginning June 30, 1937, In the early 1940s, he sang with Andre Kostelanetz on broadcasts over WABC in New York City. He was the featured male singer on Your Home Front Reporter, which was broadcast on CBS in 1943.

➦In 1940...The radio show "Young Dr Malone" moved to the CBS Radio Network.

It was an American soap opera which began on the NBC Blue Network on November 20, 1939.

The producer was Betty Corday who later was a co-creator with husband Ted Corday of NBC-TV  Daytime's Days of Our Lives.

The radio program ended on November 25, 1960, known as "the last day of radio soap opera" because CBS cancelled several other series on that day, including Ma Perkins, The Second Mrs. Burton and The Right to Happiness.

➦In 1953...Coke Time with Eddie Fisher began a run on NBC-TV and Mutual Broadcasting System (MBS).

Coke Time with Eddie Fisher aired NBC on Wednesday nights in early prime time from 1953 to 1957. The program was aired from 7:30 to 7:45 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesdays and Fridays, and was not seen during the summer months. A radio edition, recorded from previous TV soundtracks, was also heard on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7:45 P.M. Eastern Time over the Mutual Broadcasting System from 1953 through 1955).

➦In 1963...KRE 1400 AM in Berkeley CA changed call letters to KPAT.

KRE - 1922

The Maxwell Electric Company put KRE on the air on March 11, 1922, with studios and transmitter at the Claremont Resort Hotel. In May of that year, KRE was sold to the Berkeley Daily Gazette. It was bought in January 1927 by the First Congregational Church of Berkeley, which moved the studios and built a new transmitter. In January 1930, the Chapel of the Chimes (an Oakland funeral home) bought KRE. Ownership passed in December 1936 to Central California Broadcasters, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Chapel of the Chimes.

On June 11, 1972, KRE commemorated its fiftieth anniversary with a huge celebration. In an unusual event, the FCC gave permission to KPAT to revert to its previous three-letter call sign.  However, today the call letters are KVTO 1400 AM and is airing a Chinese format. Licensed to Berkeley, California, USA, the station serves the San Francisco Bay Area.

Tommy James is 75

🎂HAPPY BIRTHDAYS:

• Actor Keith Baxter is 89. 
• Singer Bob Miranda of The Happenings is 80. 
• Country singer Duane Allen of The Oak Ridge Boys is 79. 
• Singer Tommy James is 75. 
• Comedian Jerry Seinfeld is 68. 
• Actor Leslie Jordan (“The Help,” ″Will and Grace”) is 67. 
• Actor Kate Mulgrew (“Orange Is the New Black,” ″Star Trek: Voyager”) is 67. 
• Actor Daniel Day-Lewis is 65. 
• Actor Michelle Pfeiffer is 64. 
• Actor Eve Plumb (“The Brady Bunch”) is 64. 
• Country singer Stephanie Bentley is 59. 
• Actor Vincent Ventresca (TV’s “The Invisible Man,” “Boston Common”) is 56. 

• 

  Eve Plume is 64

  Singer Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips is 54. 
• Actor Paul Adelstein (“Private Practice”) is 53. 
• Actor Uma Thurman is 52. Rapper Master P is 52. 
• Actor Darby Stanchfield (“Scandal”) is 51. 
• Country singer James Bonamy is 50. 
• Singer Erica Campbell of Mary Mary is 50. 
• Bassist Mike Hogan of The Cranberries is 49. 
• Actor Tyler Labine (“New Amsterdam”) is 44. 
• Actor Megan Boone (“The Blacklist”) is 39. 
• Actor Zane Carney (“Dave’s World”) is 37. 
• Singer Amy Heidemann of Karmin is 36. 
• Singer Foxes is 33. 
• Actor Grace Kaufman (“Man with a Plan”) is 20.

Philly Radio: WOGL Hits Reset..Rebrands As Big 98.1, Tweaks Playlist

Audacy today announced the immediate launch of BIG 98.1 (WOGL-FM) in Philadelphia. The station, previously known as 98.1 WOGL, will continue to feature a wide collection of classic hits, including favorites from Bon Jovi, The Police, Queen, Prince and more.

“We’re pleased to invigorate this local favorite with the launch of BIG 98.1, while continuing to give listeners a destination for classic hits throughout their day,” said David Yadgaroff, Senior Vice President and Market Manager, Audacy Philadelphia. “Over the years, the station has evolved frequently so it plays classic hits for the largest possible audience. The station remains one of the most listened to in the region and we’re looking forward to making further investments in its growth to continue serving our consumers.”

BIG 98.1 will launch with “The Coop Show” featuring Sean “Coop” Tabler in morning drive.

Audacy Philadelphia Market President David Yadgaroff told The Philly Business Journal the station plans to announce new hosts in the coming weeks to fill the remaining slots.

David Yadgaroff

“We're going to take the other hosts off the station for a short period of time — a couple of weeks to a month or so,” Yadgaroff said. “And the station will be anchored by Coop in the morning. And then as we move through the spring and into the summer, we will add some additional hosts for mid-day, afternoon and evening.”

In a host reshuffling late last yearr, WOGL began airing New York-based midday host Race Taylor and Orlando-based afternoon drive host Domino — who work for Audacy stations in their respective markets but curate programming for different markets. WOGL still does not have a nighttime host, as it airs pre-recorded station identification in between music with no jock working live.

WOGL has long been one of the top Philadelphia radio stations when measured by Cume, the Nielsen definition of total number of unique listeners every week, but Audacy had found that people were not listening for long enough periods of time to translate into the ratings the company thinks WOGL deserves — even though it is always among the five or 10 most listened to stations in the region.

Last year, Audacy hired a consulting firm to conduct a research study, speaking to WOGL listeners and its competitors’ listeners in hopes of figuring out the best strategy moving forward.

“It showed that listeners want to be informed,” Yadgaroff said. “They don't want to feel old. They don't want to feel out of touch. They want to feel the age they are in their hearts, and they want their radio station to reflect that.”

The first part of the study focused on brand awareness and perception as well as an assessment of the competitive marketplace. The second part involved garnering listener feedback about what music WOGL should play — something the station does every few years for its target demographic of adults 25 to 54. Yadgaroff said to continue reaching that audience, a station must change the music it plays.

Coop, Mornings on Big 98.1

WOGL has operated under the “classic hits” format for almost 20 years. The station had been known as Oldies 98 in the 1980s and 1990s but in the 2000s tried to market itself away from that moniker.

The definition of “classic hits” has also changed over time. When the station started the oldies format in 1987, it focused on playing rock and soul music from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. But by the 2010s, classic hits were considered music from the 1980s, so in recent years, WOGL has scrapped Sunday specialty shows such as “Elvis and Friends” and “Brunch with the Beatles” to cater to a different demographic.

A casualty of the most recent change is moving “Bob Pantano’s Saturday Night Dance Party,” which has aired on the station for 45 years, off the regular station and onto its HD radio platform.

“The analogy I like to give is you used to watch 'Happy Days,' then you watched 'The Wonder Years,' then you watched 'That '70s Show,'” Yadgaroff said. “Now you watch 'The Goldbergs.' All those genres evolve so we can stay true to that 25-to-54 focus.”

Yadgaroff said a lot of the core '80s artists will continue to be part of WOGL — Michael Jackson, Prince, Hall & Oates, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Phil Collins, Guns N’ Roses, Tom Petty and Madonna — but as that 25-to-54 demographic ages, the station now needs to incorporate artists from the 1990s like Four Non Blonds, Goo Goo Dolls, Green Day, Alanis Morissette, Matchbox 20 and the Gin Blossoms.

Yadgaroff said listeners who might miss hearing songs from their favorite artists from the '50s, '60s and '70s can now find them on the Audacy app.

“We have about 2,000 different radio stations,” Yadgaroff said. “So if you really love Elvis, there's a place for you on the app to get Elvis. But Elvis doesn't deserve to be on a mass appeal radio station anymore. He's more of a niche, and on that app are a ton of exclusive radio stations.”

Another issue has been competition. Beasley Broadcast Group operates classic rock station 102.9 (WMGK-FM) and pop station 95.7 (WBEN-FM). In 2018, Audacy bought the then-top rated B101 (WBEB-FM) from Jerry Lee Radio. Since that time, ratings for both B101 and WOGL have declined somewhat.

B101’s adult contemporary format, which plays pop hits from the 1990s to today, is similar to the one employed by WOGL, which focuses on pop hits in the '70s, '80s and '90s. So the question would be whether Audacy is cannibalizing ratings of the two stations. Yadgaroff acknowledges there is some overlap but does not think that they are eating into each other’s listenership.

“There's dozens of radio stations in the marketplace here,” Yadgaroff said. “We're all trying to find a lane to find a unique value proposition to attract the most listeners that can listen for the longest time.”

Yadgaroff said part of the issue with ratings for both WOGL and B101 is that they are popular stations for businesses that play music in the office. With fewer people in offices over the past two years because of the pandemic, it has hurt listenership.

“When they were in the office, B101 or WOGL was the safe and mutually agreed upon choice,” Yadgaroff said. “Now a lot of people are working remotely. They're making their own choice with the smart speakers at home. So I think as we continue to return to more of a hybrid office work environment, I expect B101 to pick back up again.”

Facebook User Gains Boost Stock

Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. added more users than expected but posted its slowest revenue growth since going public a decade ago, as the company navigates growing competition and privacy headwinds for its advertising business.

The Wall Street Journal reports the user numbers were a surprise for the tech giant. In the wake of poor earnings results from other digital-ad rivals earlier this week, investors had feared the worst; and on Wednesday they pushed Meta shares up more than 18% after the results were announced.

The company cited the war in Ukraine as a contributor to the revenue slowdown, among other factors.

Meta’s stock price was battered in February when the company posted quarterly results that showed a sharper-than-expected decline in profit, a gloomy revenue outlook and a dip in its daily active users. Before Wednesday, Meta shares had fallen nearly 44% and the company had lost nearly $400 billion in market value.

Meta executives including Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday cited several efforts to reverse those trends. To combat rival TikTok, which Zuckerberg has cited as a rising threat, the company said it would more actively use artificial intelligence to recommend content to users from around the social network, as opposed to populating their feeds mostly with posts from friends and family. That in effect means Facebook will function more like TikTok’s For You feed, which serves users content based on their interests as determined by the company’s algorithm, not the accounts they follow.

Meta had previously expanded the availability of its own short-form video format, known as Reels.

Zuckerberg said the company’s artificial intelligence would serve as a “discovery engine that can show you all of the most interesting content that people have shared across our system.“

One highlight for Meta was its Reality Labs unit, which is central to its long-term plans. Reality Labs develops VR headsets, AR glasses and virtual worlds, known as the metaverse, in which users can live and work.

The unit’s revenue came in at $695 million, ahead of the $683 million analysts were expecting. The unit lost nearly $3 billion, up from $1.8 billion a year prior as the company ramps up its investments in those areas. Analysts had been expecting a loss of $3.6 billion.

Meta’s advertising revenue for the first quarter was $27.9 billion, up 6.6% compared with a year prior. Analysts had predicted Meta’s advertising revenue would rise to $28.3 billion in the first quarter of 2022.

Nielsen Reports 1st Quarter 2022 Results

Today, Nielsen Holdings plc announced its results for the quarter ended March 31, 2022. The company is reiterating its full year 2022 guidance ranges for all key metrics.

David Kenny, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We reported solid first quarter results, which were in line with our expectations. Our results reflect the commitment of our teams in executing on our strategy and delivering innovation in client solutions, as well as the strength of our client relationships. Nielsen remains the industry's currency of choice, providing the most accurate and verifiable measurement data in the market to guarantee this year's upfront commitments. Furthermore, we are leading the industry into the next generation of audience measurement with Nielsen ONE, our transformative cross-media solution that will serve as the metrics underpinning the more than $100 billion video advertising ecosystem. We remain confident that Nielsen is uniquely positioned to provide the global media industry with a currency-grade, cross-platform measurement solution that aligns with clients' evolving needs."

First Quarter 2022 Results

• Revenues of $877 million increased 1.6% on a reported basis, 2.5% on a constant currency basis & 3.4% organic constant currency
• Net income per share of $0.28 (diluted, from continuing operations); Adjusted EPS of $0.45
• Reiterating 2022 financial guidance provided on February 28, 2022
• On track to deliver Nielsen ONE, transformative single cross-media measurement solution, in 2022Unless indicated otherwise, the results referenced in this press release relate to Nielsen's continuing operations. 

SiriusXM Reports Churn Is Down, Revenue Up

SiriusXM today announced first quarter 2022 operating and financial results, including revenue of $2.19 billion, an increase of 6%, compared to the prior year period.  The company recorded net income of $309 million in the first quarter 2022 compared to $219 million in the prior year.  Net income per diluted common share was $0.08 in the first quarter 2022 compared to $0.05 in the prior year period.

"SiriusXM delivered a record first quarter churn rate of just 1.6%, and we drove a 9% increase in average revenue per user to a new all-time high.  Overall, the first quarter marked a great start to the year, even as SiriusXM's near-term subscriber growth remains limited by supply constraints in the automotive industry.  We are making substantial investments to grow our advertising platform through new podcast agreements and to grow SiriusXM digital with enhanced brand and performance marketing.  In the first quarter, we returned $1.3 billion to our stockholders through regular and special dividends and common stock repurchases.  We remain on track to attain our full-year subscriber and financial guidance," said Jennifer Witz, Chief Executive Officer of SiriusXM.

Jennifer Witz

"Content will always power our strong listenership and sustained subscriber loyalty at SiriusXM, and this quarter we continued to expand our offering through new agreements with artists and creators.  We have announced multiple distribution and advertising sales agreements with top podcast brands such as Crooked Media, and several agreements include new content developed specifically for the SiriusXM platform.  We kept our content fresh by launching an array of new pop-up channels and resumed even more live performances with legendary artists," added Witz.

BUSINESS AND CONTENT UPDATE

New vehicle penetration at all-time high.  SiriusXM's hardware was incorporated into approximately 83% of new vehicles sold in the United States in the first quarter of 2022, up from approximately 81% in the first quarter of 2021.  SiriusXM's enabled fleet grew to nearly 146 million vehicles, up 9% from a year prior.

Podcast business continues to grow.  SXM Media, the company's combined advertising sales organization, continues to be a dominant force in podcast ad sales, ranking as the #1 podcast advertising network in weekly U.S. listener reach according to Edison Research.  SXM Media currently represents three of the top 15 podcasts in the country according to Edison Research, including Crime Junkie, Office Ladies, Dateline NBC, and soon a fourth, Pod Save America.

FIRST QUARTER 2022 SEGMENT HIGHLIGHT

➤SIRIUSXM SEGMENT

Self-Pay Subscribers Remain at 32.0Million. SiriusXM self-pay subscribers decreased modestly by 25,000, and paid promotional subscribers decreased by 54,000.  Continuing impacts of new vehicle trial structures with certain automakers contributed to negative paid promotional net additions during the quarter.  Total subscribers were 34.0 million at March 31, 2022.  The total SiriusXM trial funnel stood at approximately 6.9 million at the end of the quarter, up from 6.8 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021.  Self-pay monthly churn remained approximately flat during the quarter but notched a first quarter record at 1.6%.

SiriusXM Revenue Increased 6% to $1.7 Billion.  First quarter 2022 revenue grew 6% to $1.7 billion compared to the first quarter of 2021.  This growth was driven by a 9% increase in SiriusXM's average revenue per user (ARPU) to $15.53 and a 3% increase in SiriusXM self-pay subscribers, partially offset by the effects of a lower base of paid promotional subscribers.

Gross Profit Increased 8% to $1.1 Billion and Gross Margin Remained Stable.  Total cost of services at SiriusXM increased by 4% to $649 million for the quarter compared to the corresponding quarter in 2021.  Gross profit at SiriusXM totaled $1.1 billion, an increase of 8% compared to the 2021 period, producing a gross margin of 62%, a 1 percentage point increase from the prior-year.

➤PANDORA AND OFF-PLATFORM SEGMENT

Advertising Revenue Increased 8% to $336 Million.  First quarter ad revenue in the Pandora and Off-platform segment, including the company's podcasting business, increased by 8% year-over-year to $336 million, a record for first quarter ad revenue.  Ad revenue in the off-platform business climbed 43% year-over-year to nearly $95 million in the first quarter.  Ad revenue also benefited from strong monetization of $89.77 per thousand hours at Pandora, compared to $85.69 from the prior year.

Total Advertising-Supported Listener Hours of 2.68 Billion.  Monthly Active Users (MAUs) at Pandora were 50.6 million in the first quarter of 2022, down from 55.9 million in the prior year period.  Total ad-supported listener hours were 2.68 billion in the first quarter of 2022, down from 2.87 billion in the 2021 period.

Self-Pay Subscribers Increase Modestly.  Self-pay subscribers to the Pandora Plus and Pandora Premium services increased by 4,000 in the first quarter of 2022 to end the period flat at 6.3 million.

Gross Profit Flat.  Subscriber revenue increased by 1%, advertising revenue increased by 8% and total cost of services increased by 8% during the first quarter of 2022. This resulted in gross profit in the Pandora and Off-platform segment of $137 million, flat with the corresponding 2021 period, and produced a gross margin for the year of 29%, down 2 percentage points from prior year period.

Theme Parks, Media Lifts Comcast

Comcast reported first-quarter earnings Thursday that beat analyst estimates on the top and bottom lines, sending shares up more than 2% in premarket trading, according to CNBC.

Here are the key numbers:

• Earnings per share: 86 cents, adjusted vs. 80 cents per share, according to Refinitiv
• Revenue: $31.01 billion vs. $30.5 billion, according to Refinitiv
• High-speed internet customers: 262,000 vs. 229,000 net additions, according to analysts surveyed by FactSet
• The company’s Europe-based Sky division saw its revenue slide 4.5% year over year to $4.8 billion, due to the impact of currency, as well as lower content revenue. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were projecting Sky revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter.
• Comcast’s Universal theme park business continued to recover after extended shutdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic. Revenue in the division soared more than 151% year over year to $1.56 billion, which exceeded analysts’ projected $1.44 billion, according to FactSet.

Brian Roberts

“Our recovery from the pandemic at theme parks has been fantastic and shows no signs of slowing down,” Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said in a statement.

NBCUniversal saw a roughly 46% revenue rise in the first quarter, which included $1.5 billion from the Beijing Olympics and the Super Bowl. 

Advertising revenue jumped 59.2% during the quarter, in large part because of those two events.

Here’s how Comcast’s divisions did for the quarter compared with a year earlier:

• Cable Communications contributed $16.54 billion in revenue, up 4.7%
• Media brought in $6.87 billion in revenue, up 36.3%
• Studios contributed $2.76 billion in revenue, up 15.1%
• Theme Parks brought in $1.56 billion in revenue, up 151.9%
• Sky contributed $4.77 billion in revenue, down 4.5%

Excluding revenue from the Beijing Olympics and the Super Bowl, Comcast said its media division brought in $5.38 billion of revenue during the quarter, an increase of 6.9% year over year.

Comcast did not report sign-ups for Peacock, NBCUniversal’s ad-supported streaming platform, but Roberts said in a statement that the unit had “an exceptional quarter.” In January, the company said Peacock ended 2021 with 24.5 million monthly active accounts.

The company reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of $456 million related to Peacock, compared with an adjusted EBITDA loss of $277 million in the year-ago period.

On Wednesday, Comcast announced a new joint venture with Charter Communications that will see its Xfinity Flex streaming hardware available to broadband subscribers of both companies.

“This partnership demonstrates the benefits of our focus on innovation and enables us to bring entertainment aggregation and streaming products that run off our global technology platform to millions more customers,” Roberts said.

Wake-Up Call: Russia Turns Off Gas to Poland, Bulgaria

Russia yesterday cut off natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria, and warned it could do the same to other Western nations, as European leaders called the tactic "blackmail" and an attempt divide the West over their support for Ukraine. Russia has said it cut off the shipments because the two NATO and European Union nations refused to pay in rubles, which Moscow demanded, and has threatened the same if other countries also don't pay in Russia's currency. However, Poland has also been a major gateway for weapons being sent to Ukraine, and its prime minister said he believes their support for Ukraine was the real reason for Russia's actions. Bulgaria has also supported punitive measures against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. Both countries have taken steps to reduce their dependence on energy supplies from Russia, and other EU nations that could be affected if Moscow ends their energy supplies, including Germany and Italy, have been doing the same.

"Russia is trying to provoke a global price crisis," said President Zelenskyy on Russia's move to cut gas to two European countries. https://t.co/7DndZ5gqRs pic.twitter.com/ORK4ABziKz

— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) April 27, 2022

Meanwhile, fighting continued in eastern Ukraine, with Western officials saying Russia has made slow progress with "minor gains." Russia claimed that it had hit a batch of weapons that the U.S. and European nations had delivered to Ukraine with missiles. The United Nations said it was mobilizing a team to coordinate with the International Committee of the Red Cross on the evacuation of civilians from the sprawling steel plant in the city of Mariupol. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in principle to the U.N. and Red Cross participating in the evacuation during a meeting Tuesday. An estimated 1,000 civilians and 2,000 Ukrainiani troops are holed up in bunkers under the steel plant, the last pocket of resistance in the devasted city of Mariupol. The plant itself has also been almost completely destroyed by Russian attacks.

 

WATCH: Russia trades US ex-Marine Trevor Reed for Russian pilot in prisoner swap in Turkeypic.twitter.com/dn8IsFHuOy

— 📡IFE News Agency🚨 (@IFENewsAgency) April 27, 2022

➤RUSSIA RELEASES U.S. VETERAN IN SURPRISE PRISONER EXCHANGE: Russia released U.S. Marine veteran Trevor Reed yesterday in an unexpected prisoner exchange for a convicted drug trafficker who was serving a long prison sentence in the U.S. The surprise prisoner swap came during a time of high tension between the U.S. and Russia over the war in Ukraine. The 30-year-old Reed had been imprisoned in Russia for nearly three years, after being arrested in 2019 when authorities said he assaulted an officer after a night of heavy drinking. He was sentenced to nine years in prison. Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, who was arrested in Liberia in 2010 and extradited to the U.S., was serving a 20-year federal sentence for conspiring to smuggle cocaine into the U.S. The two prisoners were exchanged in Turkey, according to Reed's father.

"It means the Russians are ready to deal," Frmr. U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Bill Richardson says on the prisoner swap for the release of Trevor Reed.

Richardson says he's "hopeful" for the release of Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner, who are also imprisoned in Russia. pic.twitter.com/SixD80Y9VS

— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 27, 2022

➤BIDEN GOING TO SOUTH KOREA, JAPAN NEXT MONTH: President Biden will be going to South Korea and Japan next month to consult with allies on growing threats from China and North Korea, in his first trip to Asia since taking office, the White House announced yesterday. While in Japan during the May 20th to 24th trip, Biden will also meet with the other members of the so-called "Quad," Australia, Japan and India, as they work on stronger partnerships to contain China in the region.

➤FOUR KILLED IN MISSISSIPPI SHOOTING SPREE, SUSPECT FOUND DEAD AFTER STANDOFF: Four people were killed in a shooting spree in Mississippi yesterday in which the 32-year-old suspect was also found dead by a SWAT team after a standoff. Police say suspect Jeremy Reynolds shot and killed three people at a hotel in Biloxi around 9 a.m. yesterday morning, the owner and two employees, before driving to nearby Gulfport, where he carjacked and fatally shot a man. When officers found him, Reynolds barricaded himself inside a convenience store and there was a standoff with police, who later found him dead of unknown causes when they finally went inside. No shots had been fired by either police or Reynolds. No motive has been identified for the hotel shootings, with Biloxi police saying it's not clear if Reynolds had been staying there or knew the victims.

MSNBC’s Joy Reid has lowest-rated month ever, sheds 51% of debut audience from 2020 https://t.co/yXfCuBTdr6

— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 27, 2022

➤58 PERCENT OPEN TO INDEPENDENRT PREZ CANDIDATE IF BIDEN-TRUMP AGAIN: It's long been believed that it would be extremely difficult under our political system for an independent to win a presidential election. But a new survey finds that might not be the case if 2024 turns into a repeat of the 2020 election with President Biden fighting for reelection against former President Donald Trump. The Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll survey released to The Hill earlier this week found that 58 percent of voters said they'd be open to supporting a moderate, independent candidate if Biden were the Democratic presidential nominee and Trump was the Republican nominee. The survey also found a majority don't want either candidate to run again, with 63 percent saying they don't want Biden to run for a second term and 55 percent not wanting Trump to run again. But despite that, Biden and Trump are the top 2024 picks within their own party bases.

➤SPACEX LAUNCHES FOUR ASTRONAUTS HEADED TO SPACE STATION: SpaceX launched four astronauts early yesterday (April 27th) from the Kennedy Space Center to the International Space Station, less than two days after a flight paid for by three millionaires. The crew that arrived at the station last night after a 16-hour flight was the first NASA crew made up equally of men and woman, and included Jessica Watkins, the first Black woman making a long-term stay. In a week, the three Americans and a German they're replacing will return to Earth in their own SpaceX capsule. There are also three Russian cosmonauts at the space station. Elon Musk's SpaceX has now launched five crews for NASA and two private trips in just under two years.

➤CNN+ SHUTTING DOWN TWO DAYS EARLY: In the wake of last week's news that CNN's streaming service CNN+ would be shut down less than a month after it's launch, news came yesterday  that added just a little bit more insult to injury, when it was disclosed it would end two days earlier than planned. It was originally supposed to shut down on April 30th, but The Verge reported it's actually going away today, on the 28th. That was found out from an email to subscribers that said they'd be refunded the full amount of their subscription, and that after Thursday -- which is today -- CNN+ would no longer available. The streaming service that CNN spent some $300 million to develop launched on March 29th.
➤OVER HALF OF AMERICANS PLAN ON TAKING ‘BLEISURE’ WORK TRIPS POST-PANDEMIC: Many Americans do more than work when they travel for work. A poll of 2,000 US adults, commissioned by Visit Anaheim, asked about how respondents combine business with leisure. Sixty-five percent of respondents said they've taken a “bleisure” tripe before, where they either arrived at their destination early for leisure or extended their stay after finishing work, and 57 percent admitted to specifically looking to take work trips in places they know their loved ones would enjoy traveling to. Leisure on a work trip is so important that 44 percent of “bleisure” travelers say they’ve actually turned down the opportunity to take a work trip because they wouldn’t have had time for leisure activities while at their destination. 

Seventy percent said the best part of traveling for work is seeing different places, while 57 percent said the best part is getting away from the workplace. In addition, of those who expect to take trips post-pandemic (86%), 35 percent say they will be taking more business trips than they did before the pandemic, and 18 percent said they expect to take fewer. Jay Burress, President and CEO of Visit Anaheim says, “Finding a hybrid solution to different challenges has become more common, which is giving rise to trends like ‘bleisure’ travel. Now, more than ever before, the boundaries between work and play are blurred, making it an opportunistic time for travelers to reinvent the traditional business trip.”

➤THE KEY TO A BETTER RELATIONSHIP IS DOING CHORES TOGETHER:  To keep your significant other happy you’ll want to share and swap chores, finds a new study. University of Utah researchers analyzed the results of a bunch of surveys and found that couples who shared the same tasks reported higher levels of relationship satisfaction. Study leader, professor Daniel Carlson says, “The number of equally shared tasks matters a great deal for both men’s and women’s relationship quality. Indeed, among recent cohorts, there is evidence to suggest that it matters as much if not more than each partner’s overall proportion of housework.” This all suggests you should switch off household responsibilities, rather than each partner sticking to their assigned chores, and Carlson adds, “For both men and women, the number of equally shared tasks is associated with a greater likelihood of A) feeling their relationship is fair to both partners, B) feeling satisfied with their own housework arrangement, and C) feeling satisfied with the relationship overall.” Carlson speculates that this is because not all chores are created equally.

🏀NBA PLAYOFF:  Results from first-round games yesterday:

• Milwaukee Bucks 116, Chicago Bulls 100 - Milwaukee wins series 4-1
• Golden State Warriors 102, Denver Nuggets 98 - Golden State wins 4-1

🏀MILWAUKEE, GOLDEN STATE WIN FIRST-ROUND PLAYOFFS: The defending NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks and the Golden State Warriors won their first-round playoff series yesterday. Milwaukee defeated the Chicago Bulls 116-100 to win the series 4 games to 1, and Golden State topped the Denver Nuggets 102-98 to also win 4 games to 1. The Bucks will play the Boston Celtics in the second round, with Game 1 on Sunday, and the Warriors will play the winner of the Memphis Grizzlies-Minnesota Timberwolves series, which Memphis leads 3-2.

🏈NFL DRAFT TONIGHT IN LAS VEGAS: The NFL Draft begins tonight in Las Vegas, with the first round kicking off at 8 p.m. ET and airing on ABC and ESPN, with the following rounds on Friday and Saturday. The Jacksonville Jaguars have the first pick for the second year in a row, followed by the Detroit Lions, Houston Texans, New York Jets and New York Giants in the top five.

 

Giancarlo Stanton is the 7th fastest player in MLB history to reach 350 career home runs 💪

(via @mlb)pic.twitter.com/RKkCMPrMuc

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 27, 2022

⚾YANKEES' STANTON GETS 350TH HOME RUN, SEVENTH-FASTEST TO MILESONE: The New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton hit his 350th career home run in the Yankees' 5-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles last night, becoming the seventh-fastest player to reach the milestone. He hit his 350th homer in his 1,341st game, and the only players who got there faster were Mark McGwire, Juan Gonzalez, Alex Rodriguez, Harmon Killebrew, Albert Pujols, and Babe Ruth.

Cable Ratings: Fox News Channel Most-Watched In April

FOX News Channel (FNC) finished April of 2022 as cable’s most-watched network in primetime and total day viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. 

FNC surpassed CNN and MSNBC combined across the board, outpacing the competition in total day viewers, the key 25-54 demographic and in the A18-49 younger demo. FNC also ranked number one in all of basic cable in total day viewers for the 14th month in a row and notched 66 of the top 100 cable telecasts. 

Notably, FNC was the only cable news network to post gains versus April of 2021 in total viewers, while CNN and MSNBC experienced double digit declines across the board in all categories. In total day, FNC delivered 1.5 million viewers, 248,000 with the A25-54 demographic and 153,000 with A18-49. In primetime, FNC netted 2.4 million viewers, 364,000 in the 25-54 demo, and 222,000 with A18-49. Additionally, FNC’s cable news audience share increased to 55 percent across total day and primetime viewers. The network also delivered the top 12 programs in cable news with viewers and the top 14 programs in the younger 25-54 demo. Additionally, since the start of the war in Ukraine, FNC has remained the go-to destination for breaking news coverage, earning double digit advantages over CNN and widening to triple digits over MSNBC across the board.

Graphic Courtesy of RoadMN 

At 8 PM/ET, Tucker Carlson Tonight continued as the highest-rated program in cable news in the younger 25-54 demo, averaging 3.4 million viewers and 560,000 in the demo, as well as 342,000 in the 18-49 category throughout April. Hannity at 9 PM/ET scored 2.9 million viewers, 450,000 in A25-54 and 267,000 among adults 18-49, topping MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show and CNN combined in both categories. Hannity also notched a historic television milestone this past month, becoming the longest-running cable news host in primetime. At 10 PM/ET, The Ingraham Angle’s Laura Ingraham remained the most-watched female in cable news, garnering 2.3 million viewers, 357,000 in the 25-54 demo and 212,000 in 18-49, while MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show experienced its lowest-rated month in the demo since November 2015.

At 5 PM/ET, FNC’s late afternoon offering The Five continued to make television history, earning the top-rated spot in viewers for the month and finishing the last four out of five months leading cable news. The roundtable program averaged 3.5 million viewers and 510,000 with A25-54, outpacing every show on CNN and MSNBC across the board. Special Report with Bret Baier (weeknights, 6 PM/ET) averaged 2.6 million viewers and 396,000 in A25-54, dominating its timeslot and rounding out the top five spots in both viewers and in the demo for the month of April. At 7 PM/ET, FNC’s newly-launched Jesse Watters Primetime finished April as the third highest-rated cable news program, averaging 2.9 million viewers and 426,000 in A25-54, finishing the month as the fastest-growing program in cable news. On MSNBC during the same hour, The ReidOut notched its lowest-rated month in history across both categories. At 12 AM/ET, FOX News @ Night with Shannon Bream surpassed the competition, delivering over 1 million viewers and 210,000 in A25-54.

FNC’s late night program, Gutfeld!, marked its one year anniversary since launch and continued as the second most-watched late night host in all of broadcast and cable. Airing at 11 PM/ET, the program also topped every show on CNN and MSNBC in total viewers and the younger 25-54 demo. Gutfeld! averaged nearly 2 million viewers 340,000 with A25-54 this month, outpacing ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! and NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in total viewers. Additionally, the program surpassed CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on several occasions in viewers throughout the month. FNC’s late night show also topped Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and TBS’ Full Frontal with Samantha Bee across the board in total viewers and the younger 25-54 demo. Gutfeld! has the highest median income in all of late night television (ABC, CBS and NBC) in the younger 25-54 demo as well as the most upscale audience in total viewers and A25-54.


APRIL 2022 RATINGS FOR THE TOP FIVE PROGRAMS IN CABLE NEWS:

• Total Viewers: The Five (3,494,000), Tucker Carlson Tonight (3,389,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (2,924,000), Hannity (2,886,000), Special Report with Bret Baier (2,598,000)
• Adults 25-54: Tucker Carlson Tonight (560,000), The Five (510,000), Hannity (450,000), Jesse Watters Primetime (426,000), Special Report with Bret Baier (396,000)

Report: Consumers Saturated With Streaming

U.S. households stopped adding to their roster of streaming services, in another sign that the on-demand video market has reached saturation point, reports Bloomberg.

The number of on-demand services accessed per household leveled off at 4.7, according to a quarterly survey from research company Kantar, after almost two years of constant increases alongside new service launches. The last week saw Netflix Inc. stock routed after a shock loss in subscribers. Meanwhile CNN abruptly axed its standalone service CNN+ after just a month following the completion of the completion of the Discover Warner merger.

“Expect to see a greater rate of churn and switching as consumers are more selective about what they watch,” the report said. “It may be more challenging for newer entrants in the market, like CNN+, who will have a hard time justifying their value within the already saturated market.” Analysts have been cutting their share price targets in the big streaming platforms after the warning from Netfli

Report: Twitter Staffers Freaking Out

Leaked internal communications by Twitter employees reveal woke employees are overtaken by despair and anger about Elon Musk’s month-long effort to acquire Twitter, according to The NY Post.

Musk announced he would purchase the company for $44 billion on Monday. The deal concludes a month-long saga that began with Musk first tweeting out polls and his thoughts about the decline of free speech on Twitter.

On the business communication platform Slack, some Twitter employees vented against the new owner, leaked messages reveal.

“Physically cringy watching Elon talk about free speech,” a site reliability engineer who identifies as a nonbinary transgender and plural person wrote.

“We’re all going through the five stages of grief in cycles and everyone’s nerves are frazzled,” wrote a senior staff software engineer who called Musk an “a**hole,” and tried to console his colleagues. “We’re all spinning our wheels, and coming up with worst case scenarios (Trump returns! No more moderation!). The fact is that [Musk] has not talked about what he’s planning on doing in any detail outside of broad sweeping statements that could be easily seen as hyperbolic showboating.”

A senior staff video engineer announced he would be quitting, “Not the place to say it perhaps, but I will not work for this company after the takeover.”

A reliability engineering manager said Elon Musk’s views on free speech “is cover for ‘I want to not be held accountable for saying or amplifying harmful things.’”

Following the back-and-forth among multiple employees angry about the news, some warned that their communications on Slack could be searched. The employees then moved their conversations onto their personal devices using the encrypted chat application Signal.

Twitter’s leadership appeared to predict an internal backlash and possible sabotage when it locked down the ability of its employees to make changes to the platform through Friday.

Leading up to Monday’s deal, Twitter employees had already been venting for weeks on Slack about Musk and defending the platform’s moderation enforcement.

A M*sk-owned Twitter is one of the greatest threats to the 2022 and 2024 elections. We are f*cked if this happens. https://t.co/ozWltJ3IwG

— laura i. gómez (@laura) April 25, 2022

Sports Anchor Sage Steele Sues ESPN

ESPN anchor Sage Steele is suing the network for violating her free-speech rights after she was benched for publicly criticizing her employer's COVID-19 vaccine mandate and former President Barack Obama's decision to call himself black. 

During her appearance on former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler's podcast, Uncut with Jay Cutler, Steele criticized Covid-19 vaccine mandates, questioned why former President Barack Obama identifies as Black when he is, like her, biracial, and said female sports journalists are partly to blame for athletes making inappropriate comments about them if they dress a certain way. ESPN required Steele to apologize for her comments. 

She claims ESPN illegally benched her over commentary she made as a private citizen, reports The Daily Mail. 

Steele alleged ESPN retaliated against Steele by taking away 'prime assignments' and failing to put and end to bullying and harassment from her colleagues. The SportsCenter host also accused ESPN of taking actions against her based on 'inaccurate third-party accounts of Steele's comments, and that the network did not immediately review the actual comments or the context in which they were made.' Steele is seeking unspecified damages. 

The suit follows political and social remarks Steele made last September. She slammed her company's vaccine policy and questioned former President Barack Obama's blackness.