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DAVE RAMSEY: Will the dream (car) become reality?
This week’s installment of down-to-earth personal finance advice from Dave Ramsey and the Dave Says column.
Prediction For Buccaneers’ Must-Win Game Against Panthers
The Buccaneers must find a way to earn a win over the Panthers this week. Will they get it?
Netflix’s Leadership Shake Up…Explained
(Welcome to the “Most Important Story of the Week”, my bi-weekly strategy column analyzing the most important (but often not buzziest) news story of the last two weeks. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. Please subscribe.) Well, I had a simple article planned for this week. Called “Whoa, I Missed It!”, I’d take a gander at a few important-but-under-the-radar stories I didn’t cover while I wrote about all things “Skydance. (Formerly known as “the saga of Netflix trying to buy Warner Bros., but not Discovery, then Paramount-Skydance bought all of Warner Bros. Discovery”.) Alas, that article will have to wait. Netflix made news. Ironically, my “Whoa, I Missed It!” article would have mostly been about “content” strategy decisions, which is also what today’s article is about. But instead of the entire industry, this article will only cover Netflix’s decision to upend their film and TV content teams. Just that! So that’s the full topic of the day. I’m going to tackle the issue in the opposite direction of the way “stuff” flows: uphill. We’ll start at film, then move onto TV, and then onto the CEOs themselves, and the strategy questions that still remain. But we start with the numbers driving this. Let’s dive in. Subscribe Most Important Story of the Week - Netflix Upends Their Corporate Hierarchy I’ve got a lot of thoughts, but we’ll start with the most common response to yesterday’s article. Let’s Talk Stock Price More than one person, responding to what I published two days ago, pointed out that, well, actually, the thing driving Netflix’s actions is this: In short, stock price! Even if Netflix isn’t obsessed with their own share price—they probably are, but, for the record, my strategic advice to every CEO is to absolutely ignore stock prices, which will, ironically, probably help the stock price long-term—most everyone thinks they are. By the way, I prefer market capitalization to stock prices, because it’s a more apples-to-apples way to compare companies: But there’s an even better way to look at it, and it kinda casts some doubt on the entire push here: price-to-earnings. I have a long list of articles that I wish I had written, and chief among them is an article titled, “Am I Still a Netflix ‘Bear’?” meaning someone who thinks Netflix’s stock is overvalued. As of last summer, Netflix had solved their biggest problem—which for me (circa 2019) was the lack of free cash flow—but their stock was CRAZY overvalued. That’s this chart here: Why did Netflix’s stock price increase to a price-to-earnings ratio of 50 last summer? What financial metric changed so quickly? Nothing. Given that, historically, mature entertainment companies average 10 to 20, with 16 being the average, that increase made little sense. Netflix’s stock swoon these last eight or so months wasn’t irrational; the stock price rise last year was. So if you want a really hot Netflix take, here it is: Netflix’s stock price has been going down because the financial industry recovered its senses, not because of any strategic mistake. Yes, that would imply that cleaning house may have been a mistake. That’s why the charts yesterday are so important, because they show that Netflix did have a strategic problem (a lack of hits) and that’s what they moved to address. (One could also argue the industry drastically overrated Netflix’s growth prospects, but that’s a financial industry problem, not a Netflix strategy problem per se. Some growth estimates are just crazy. *cough* AI *cough*) Now, the last time Netflix’s stock price crashed—circa 2022—it gave them an opening. I’d argue Netflix insiders knew they needed to expand post-COVID-19 crisis, adding advertising, cracking down on password sharing, and dabbling in sports. But if they had done that when their stock price was high, it would give folks a reason to second guess their strategy. (Arguably, last year, when Netflix pursued the Warner Bros. merger, it gave the industry a chance to review their business.) Instead, after the 2022 fall, they had the opening to make strategic changes. We may see Netflix pivot again following this latest slide. For example, the “binge versus weekly” conversation is alive and well again. Same for expanding into theaters even more. And adding both linear channels and streaming bundles. And maybe more either social, user-generated, vertical, or creator content. But the first shift came with who is making the content calls. A Message from Our Sponsor Last winter Pulp Fiction was on Netflix. For those same 90 days, it was also free, with ads, on Pluto TV and the Roku Channel. That is not a glitch, and it is not rare. The title has run on 20 different US streaming services since 2019, across 80 separate windows, and for more than 600 of those days it sat on a paid subscription service and a free ad-supported one at the same time. Almost nobody can see this, because when a title leaves a service, the record that it was ever there tends to leave with it. Reelgood keeps that record, dated to the day rather than the month: 4MM+ movie, show and episode titles across 300+ services globally, with timestamped arrivals, departures and moves across SVOD, AVOD, TVOD and vMVPD. Licensing teams price against every prior window. Rights teams check what a licensee actually delivered, and when. Pick a title you think you know: data.reelgood.com/title-availability Film - Dan Lin Want to know why I don’t opine on individual film or TV executives, especially new hires? Dan Lin. As I always caution, it’s really, really, really tough to predict which executives will succeed in new roles and which won’t. The successful head of co-production/finance partner, Rideback, Lin was considered for the head of DC Studios job before taking the job as the head of Netflix. By all accounts at the time, this was a smart hire. (That’s my read of the news coverage anyways.) But now that Netflix has fired Dan Lin, we got a slew of news stories about how he was doing a terrible job. In sports media, Bryan Curtis, new Substack writer/podcaster from The Ringer, calls this the “now you tell us” story, when you only hear the bad news after a star athlete leaves a sports team. In this case, now they tell us that Dan Lin was bad with talent after he got kicked out the door. So was Dan Lin a flop? It’s actually tough to say. While film moves faster than TV, even two years isn’t really enough time to evaluate a person’s output. The new head hasn’t really taken control. As Emily Horgan noted, it takes much longer than two years to produce animated films, so yeah, it’s definitely too early to judge in that domain. As for live-action films, I just published an article by Brandon Katz called “Netflix’s Summer of Bummer”, but I’d point out Netflix had a bad summer two years ago too. Arguably, their best summer came from KPop Demon Hunters last year and Happy Gilmore 2, the latter of which I saw credited to Lin. Then, the stories came out that Dan Lin clashed with talent, both Ben Affleck and Greta Gerwig, classic “now they tell us” factoids to explain his firing. This may have been true, but also should have been expected given that he was given the mandate to bring budgets back in check, especially after Rebel Moon. So if he made folks upset, well, that’s what he was hired to do! But also, he was described as “well-liked” at his hiring! In that case, I’m a bit sympathetic to Lin, since he may have been undercut by senior leadership, as often happens. Basically, a CEO hires a subordinate to be their “bad cop” and keep budgets in check, but then when talent complains, the CEO ends up undercutting them. That’s how I think you end up with a Narnia movie as expensive as any of the other flops, along with a film executive the town no longer likes. As a result, I think that Netflix is now executing a classic “hire the opposite” move by hiring Peter Rice. This phrase comes from my experience following football and basketball coaching decisions, where teams generally hire the opposite of who they just had. If you have an offense-minded head coach, hire the defensive guy. Or in college football, if you have a strong recruiter, then you pivot to an “X’s and Os” type of guy. Or in pro basketball, if you have a very analytically minded coach, you hire the player-friendly guy. I see that here. After dropping Scott Stuber—arguably a talent-friendly executive with lax budget control—Netflix hired the business guy to keep costs in check. Now Netflix is pivoting back to Peter Rice and presumably a more talent-friendly regime. (Disney, by the way, has done this twice: hiring business guys to succeed talent-friendly Bob Iger. It didn’t work out last time.) When it comes to Peter Rice…we’ll see! Maybe he works out, but maybe he doesn’t. I’d actually say the biggest problem is that Netflix still hasn’t solved its “IP Problem”, in that they don’t own much IP, so they just have a lower hit rate. The new executive won’t solve that. (Though buying Lionsgate would help.) Share “Content” - Bela Bajaria I almost published yesterday’s article after this column, but ended up flipping the order, because it told the story so well. So if you want the data for why Netflix is looking at TV to fix their problems, it’s in that article, this graph in particular: I know I just wrote that it’s often hard to judge executives, but Bajaria ran TV for six years and film for three and a half more. That’s more than enough to judge hit rates, and Netflix needs more hits. That’s the story. Since 2023, Netflix hasn’t had as many hit shows as it used to, and many of its previous power house TV shows have ended their runs (Stranger Things most of all). Also, many shows from 2020 to 2022 probably pre-dated Bajaria’s tenure. (That said, one thing may have been outside of Bajaria’s control, which I explain below.) Let’s lump some content strategy thoughts about Netflix and TV into one place: We’re just getting started with this issue, but the rest is for paid subscribers of the Entertainment Strategy Guy, so if you’d like to find out… Why I partially blame Squid Game for Netflix’s latest troubles… What is “the football trap”... Why it might not be the TV shows or films’ fault at all… What change I don’t think Netflix will make... How Bela Bajaria evolved Netflix’s TV strategy in smart ways… Whose departure likely submarined Bajaria’s final few years… One sneaky explanation for Netflix’s content struggles... And a whole lot more... ...please subscribe! We can only keep doing this great work with your support.
Show-Me-State Politics: School districts oppose Missouri's new grading system; state auditor's race
KY3's Tyler Wayne and Missouri Capitol Bureau Chief Hannah Falcon look at this week in Show-Me-State politics.
Show-Me-State Politics: School districts oppose Missouri's new grading system; state auditor's race
KY3's Tyler Wayne and Missouri Capitol Bureau Chief Hannah Falcon look at this week in Show-Me-State politics.
Show-Me-State Politics: School districts oppose Missouri's new grading system; state auditor's race
KY3's Tyler Wayne and Missouri Capitol Bureau Chief Hannah Falcon look at this week in Show-Me-State politics.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New Orleans Saints: How to watch the NFL international game, start time, where to stream and more
Find out how to watch the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New Orleans Saints NFL Paris game this week.
Authorities investigating whether first Kenya and Nigeria Ebola cases crossed paths
Nigeria this week recorded its first case of Ebola in the current outbreak, which has spread from the epicenter in Congo to several other African countries.
TST Best Bets: October 24, 2026
A full week later, it’s still hard to wrap my head around what we witnessed in college football last week.In unprecedented fashion, five of the top seven nationally ranked teams lost outright, throwing the sport’s balance of power into disarray.A lesser gambler might want to stay away from college football this week until things settle down, but we remain undaunted.For all of your college football betting picks, here are today’s TST Best Bets, brought to you by BetOnline.ag. Click here to join.
Power & Politics: Vote 2026 - One-on-one with Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Justin Murphy
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Justin Murphy joins the show this week.
Lamar Jackson shuts down Ian Rapoport reporting over his health
Lamar Jackson has not played since Week 4 and his status against the Cincinnati Bengals this weekend is up in the air. But when it comes to his health and status, he wants you to listen to him and not Ian Rapoport. The Ravens quarterback was first hurt against the Tennessee Titans when he was…
Lamar Jackson shuts down Ian Rapoport reporting over his health
Lamar Jackson has not played since Week 4 and his status against the Cincinnati Bengals this weekend is up in the air. But when it comes to his health and status, he wants you to listen to him and not Ian Rapoport. The Ravens quarterback was first hurt against the Tennessee Titans when he was…
Big Ten staff picks for Week 8
The staff of Nittany Lions Wire shares its picks for this weekend's Big Ten action.
Physicists Hold A Positron Captive For Months, Odd Correlation Found In Reincarnation Reports, And Much More This Week
All the biggest science news stories of the week.
Indiana football at Michigan: How to watch, odds, predictions, more
Indiana football looks to avoid turning its first loss in years into two, facing Michigan on the road this weekend.
How to watch no. 2 BYU Football at UCF
After a great home stand for BYU Football, they’re on the road in Orlando Saturday afternoon to face the UCF Knights. The BYU Cougars rose from no. 8 to no. 2 in the AP Poll this week after knocking off the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Notre Dame was no. 2 at the time. The final […]
Business Briefs for Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026
This week's digest of area business announcements, milestones and news.
Dalton Smith vs Alberto Puello: Will the Fairytale Continue?
All Eyes are on the Super Lightweight division this weekend as Britain's Dalton Smith defends his WBC title against the Dominican Republic's Alberto Puello
EAST TEXAS POLITICS: State party chairs weigh in as first week of early voting wraps up
Texas Democratic Party Chair Kendall Scudder and Republican Party Chair D’rinda Randall join Blake Holland for this week's show.
EAST TEXAS POLITICS: State party chairs weigh in as first week of early voting wraps up
Texas Democratic Party Chair Kendall Scudder and Texas Republican Party Chair D’rinda Randall join Blake Holland on this week’s edition of East Texas Politics on East Texas Now as the first week of early voting wraps up ahead of the November midterm elections.
Looters hit 3,000 French businesses. Within hours, the haul was trending on Vinted under the riot’s date
“Since this weekend, our teams have taken immediate action to identify and remove listings linked to the looting,” secondhand marketplace Vinted said.
Terre Haute Children’s Museum hosts Frankenstein Science event
The Terre Haute Children’s Museum is inviting families to bring science to life with a Halloween-themed event this weekend.
The Violent Cost of Being a Woman in Politics Spans Continents
Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation in politics, on boards, in sports and entertainment, in judicial offices and in the private sector in the U.S. and around the world ... with a little gardening and goodwill mixed in for refreshment. This week: —There is not (yet) the political will in the U.S. to talk about gender quotas ... but 35 nations in Europe have either been mandated or volunteered to implement them. —Weeks after the brutal rape of Arizona congressional candidate Bernadette Greene-Placentia, Australian independent member of Parliament Helen Haines is in hospital in a critical condition after she was struck by a car outside her office in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said appears to have been "a deliberate act." —"Politicians are no longer treated like we’re human,” says Arizona state legislator Alma Hernandez, who is facing rising harassment and threats. —Federal agents searched the Washington-area home of Rep. Ilhan Omar, a frequent critic of Republican President Donald Trump. —If elected governor of Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms would become the first Black woman governor in U.S. history. ... and more.
Google Health 5.11 rolling out with Fitbit Air Health Guardian, improved sleep tracking, & more
Google Health 5.11 is rolling out this week as a rather big update for Fitbit trackers and the Pixel Watch.
No designation for Matthew Golden
Packers WR Matthew Golden was a limited participant this week but is not on injury report
Patrick Mahomes not on injury report for Week 7
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes fully practices again Friday and is set to play this week
Where's Shane? Spookfest at Science City
Shane joins Science City Educators Emma Loesing and Whitney Klaas with Nature Works Educator Ryan Parker to get a sneak peek of this weekend's Spookfest.
CFB Analyst Likes Oregon to Easily Take Down Illinois
Can the Ducks get a win this weekend?
“Yaga”, “Clayface”, and stop-motion fantasy film “Wildwood ”top this week’s Must List
A “Baby-Sitters Club” podcast and a new stage production of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” round out our picks for the weekend of Oct. 23.
Week 8 Open Thread
With no UW game this weekend, you can stay on this thread for the full weekend. Here are some of the top games to watch in each game window. Friday Evening – There are two ACC games tonight. First, Duke heads to Virginia in a fairly even matchup between teams trying to get a step […]
Duke Predicted to Drop Another Game This Week vs Virginia
The last two weeks have been tough on the Duke Blue Devils.
Panthers Rookie Could Play Major Role vs Buccaneers This Week
The Carolina Panthers may be relying on an unexpected player this week.
This week in health care policy: October 16–23, 2026
Medical innovation FDA approves several innovative treatments. Last week, the FDA granted accelerated approval to GSK’s Jemperli for certain untreated cancers with a specific DNA defect. The treatment will eliminate the need for costly alternative treatments such as surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy, which are known to cause lasting health problems. The FDA also approved GSK’s […]
USMNT weekend viewing guide: Fall colors
Follow along with all the action this weekend.
'This has no place for partisan politics' say Camp Lejeune contamination victim advocates
At a Greenville rally this week, President Donald Trump said he will order swift settlement of remaining claims only if Republicans hold Congress.
Pope hope, that’s entertainment, and getting ahead in the CIA
Happy Friday friends, I want to start by just breathing for all of us a big long collective sigh of relief at the news this week that the pope’s doctors have basically blown the all clear for Leo’s health. Going from knowing nothing to him declaring to the world he needed surgery, to a cancer diagnosis, to bouncing out of the hospital in barely even days, to ringing the bell in less than two weeks is whiplash inducing. But in the best possible way. We are living in a world in which the Roman pontiff, by dint of history, biography and circumstance, is once more at the epicenter of global affairs. Not just conversations about religion, or Christian and post-Christian values, but the bleeding edge of the most pressing issues of human affairs. Think I am exaggerating a touch? Consider the images of the crowds who greeted Leo in Paris just weeks ago, and juxtapose them with the absolute photo negative scenes unfolding there recently. Ask yourself how many world leaders are talking about AI right now and directly citing the pope as they do so. Try to name a country who has had as many top-ranked diplomats in and out of both Russia and Ukraine in the last three years as the Vatican has in the last three months. It has been fascinating to watch Leo XIV emerge as not just a kind of pop culture reference point or totem to be cited (Francis was often name-checked this way) but as a kinetic force in global conversation. Given the state of things, we need global figures of gravitas and values, even better if they have real wisdom behind what they are saying. So news of Leo’s illness was, it seemed to me, a tremor with potentially Richter Scale implications. That not only has the worst not come to pass but instead we’ve had the best of outcomes announced is something to really be grateful for. Humanity, it seems to me, is entering one of its irregular but cyclical phases where the pace of change — technological, social, and geopolitical — outstrips the ability of previously settled norms and received wisdom to cope. Such periods – and I think the first decades of the last century were a similar such time – throw into question the viability of all kinds of institutions. And many of ours have been straining to breaking point for a few years now. The papacy has the power and the potential to be a steadying pole in all of this. That’s my hope, anyway. It’s a lot to freight the office with, though it is arguably its ultimate purpose from its founding, to be a steadying rock on which all that matters can be anchored. It’s also, of course, an intolerable weight of responsibility to place on a single man. But I am encouraged to have hope in – and for – Leo. The apostle whom he succeeds, after all, was famously unequal to some moments, failed some tests of faith, and resiled from taking the road which led ultimately to the circus on Vatican hill. Human frailty and limitations, of health, of character, of temper, can open us to Christ, whose strength is greatest in our weakness, so St. Paul learned. That gives me hope, and I am sure it consoles Leo, too. And so I will continue to pray for him. Because we need apostles of rock right now. Here’s the news. Subscribe The News The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued yesterday a new document “Venite ad me: Considerations on the Transmission of the Faith in an Epochal Change.” It’s not a short document, and it is at pains to stress this isn’t a doctrinal note from the dicastery, either. Rather, it brings together reflections on an important issue from the Church around the world. Some of it I actually found really rather powerful. It is, however, 25,000, which is a lot for a busy reader to get through on a weekday. So, you can read our busy reader’s summary right here. — News broke yesterday of an Oct. 22 meeting of U.S. bishops with President Donald Trump. The meeting was organized by an official at the Heritage Foundation, according to several sources close to the meeting. Video of several U.S. bishops praying in the Oval Office over President Trump was posted on social media Thursday afternoon, first by White House Communications Advisor Margo Martin, and then by the official twitter.com account of the Archdiocese of Denver. The meeting has drawn sharp criticism because of its proximity to the upcoming midterm Congressional elections, in which Democrats are widely expected to win control of the House of Representatives, while control of the Senate remains closely contested. Sources close to the bishops’ conference told The Pillar that some USCCB senior officials were surprised by the existence of the meeting when video of it first emerged online. And a source close to conference president Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City told The Pillar that the archbishop was “deeply frustrated” by the occasion of the meeting. An official conference spokesperson told The Pillar that the meeting was “not organized with or by the USCCB” and was “not affiliated with the conference.” You can read the whole story here. — The next National Eucharistic Congress will be held in Indianapolis in 2029, a return to the city that hosted the last gathering in 2024. You read it here first. By here, I don’t mean this newsletter, I mean at The Pillar. We broke the story this week. It’s a big deal, in as much as the last congress was a roaring success and the next installment has the potential to be a real focal point for evangelizing efforts in the coming years. Read all about it here. — As Pope Leo prepares for the longest trip of his pontificate, Church leaders in Uruguay say the pontiff will encounter a highly secularized culture, in a country with a very different Catholic history than many of its South American neighbors. The nation has not had a papal visit since 1988, and leaders who spoke with The Pillar say it has a dire need for evangelization, even amid the prospect of a small revival in faith. This is real reporting on the Church in the country, and frankly a story you simply are not going to be able to read anywhere else. Read the whole thing. — The Archdiocese of Detroit announced this week a plan that would see the vast majority of its parish priests reassigned next summer, amid a restructuring process expected to dramatically shrink the number of parishes in the archdiocese. Archbishop Edward Weisenburger said this week that the plan “asks much of our priests,” but is a “sacrifice they are making as brothers of one, unified presbyterate.” The thing is, as JD pointed out in an analysis yesterday, pastors of parishes have a legal right to stability in office, so the only way this kind of wholesale reassignment goes ahead is if all of the archdiocesan clergy agree to resign. That creates its own kind of legal issues, though, and re-raises longstanding questions about the effectiveness of canonical due process protections for priests when dealing with coercive exercises in authority. Read the whole thing here. — More than three months after the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued its decree declaring the excommunication of the leadership of the Society of St. Pius X, questions remain about the full effects of the society’s schism. Specifically, the DDF’s July claim that marriages witnessed and confessions heard by SSPX priests are now invalid remains contested — and it emerged this week it appears that the Vatican’s own legal experts don’t agree. You can read my whole analysis of the situation and what it means here. All I would add is that the DDF’s undeveloped, some would say unsubstantiated, claim about the invalidity of some SSPX sacraments came in their July Explanatory Note on the schismatic consecrations by the society that month. It touches directly on both papal acts of governance — indeed it purports to nullify them — and the most intimate pastoral encounters possible in a parish setting. If there is one aspect of the Francis-era style of governance I would like the curia to finally cut out, root and branch, it would be these attempts to try to effect extraordinarily sensitive legislative acts via a note. — At least a dozen French bishops have spoken out following an eruption of violence on the country’s streets Oct. 17. Not surprisingly, they unanimously condemned the violence, but the length and content of their interventions varied significantly. Several sought to distinguish between the actions of rioters and what they suggested were the legitimate concerns of peaceful young protesters. Many also evoked Pope Leo XIV’s Sept. 25-28 visit to France, suggesting it offered a powerful counter-image to the scenes of looting and destruction. A number of bishops also stressed their solidarity with law enforcement officials who struggled to contain the disorder, as well as the owners of the roughly 3,000 damaged or looted businesses. What’s the background to the nationwide unrest that the French media calls “les violences du 17 octobre”? And what exactly are the bishops saying? Read all about it here. — A Polish bishop called for the firm defense of unborn children as well as compassion for their mothers this week, as the lower house of Poland’s parliament passed two bills seeking to liberalize the country’s abortion laws. The bill on decriminalizing assistance in an abortion passed by 217 votes to 213, while the abortion in cases of fetal abnormality bill passed by 233 to 203, thanks to the government’s majority in the lower house. Both bills will now move to the Polish Senate, the upper house of parliament, where the ruling coalition has a larger majority. The fetal abnormality bill is symbolically significant because if it became law, it would effectively overturn a 2020 ruling by Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal that a 1993 law permitting abortion for a severe and irreversible disability or a life-threatening incurable disease was unconstitutional. Read the whole story here. Subscribe **[The St. Paul Center App | Bible Study On-The-Go Read and understand the Bible with St. Paul Center’s new app! With today’s leading Catholic Scripture scholars as your guides, the St. Paul Center app empowers you to read the Bible](https://stpaulcenter.com/app?utm_source=pillar&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=applaunch)** from the heart of the Church. Download the app for free at either the Apple or the Google app stores. https://stpaulcenter.com/app That’s entertainment I have written before about my deep and sincere reservations about the celebrity exorcist subculture which has taken root in American Catholicism. And, because I am very ill at ease with the entire thing, I try to keep a weather eye on the phenomenon without being drawn into the kind of online back-and-forth which these figures sometimes generate. Earlier this week, JD noted that one such celebrity exorcist type, Fr. Chad Ripperger, has undertaken, on the request of his bishop, a year’s fast from interviews and public speaking. I’m sure that will be salutary for him, if for no other reason than that receiving with docility requests from one’s rightful ecclesiastical superiors always comes with graces. Then a second thing happened this week which caught my eye. Apparently, another fixture in the celebrity exorcist world, Fr. Carlos Martins, has initiated a lawsuit against two lay men — apparently associates of Rippenger, though I am unclear in what way, exactly — for allegedly defaming him and his ministry on a podcast. It seems the suit was initiated nearly a year ago and is now pending. At issue, I read, is that the two men described Martins on a podcast as “not who he says he is” with regard to his exorcism ministry and that he “doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” These statements Martins considers to be false and defamatory and, his suit claims, “directly affected the sale and reception of [his] The Exorcist Files book that was newly released at the time these episodes aired.” I don’t want to get too into the weeds of the details here, but a couple of things struck me about all this.
There’s a Reason That Netflix’s Ad Business Has Underwhelmed
Somewhat lost in the company’s slew of firings and engagement warnings over the past few weeks was the fact that Netflix is scaling back its ad forecast for 2026 from $3 billion to $2.7 billion. That’s despite the fact that: CTV is growing by 14-15% this year This year saw a monster upfront Netflix is the biggest streamer out there this side of YouTube, and was the platform that for years brands were supposedly dying to be a part of In other words, that’s an alarming pull-back from Netflix. A Wall Street analyst I spoke with last week was blunt, calling Netflix’s ad business “disappointing.” To me, a red flag on the ad front is that Netflix has never revealed how many ad-supported subscribers it has. Because if I know anything about how big companies work, if they have a positive number that makes them look really good - they tend to share it. (How many subs does go90 have right now? We’re not saying just yet. How are ads going on ChatGPT? Oh, a billion run rate - I see). Yes, to date Netflix has shared some fuzzy ad numbers, such as the idea that the company’s ad tier ‘reaches’ 250 million users globally.’ Here’s why that figure gives me pause: a)they lead with global, and b) they don’t explain how they are calculated. (Are they based on average people in each room? Surveys of some kind?). Regardless, some insiders say that Netflix’s ad tier is scaling nicely - others not so much. Either way, one of Netflix’s biggest challenge on the ad front appears to have been its starting point. Remember, when Netflix launched ads in 2022, it had 73 million subs in the US and Canada. That’s 73 million people who were used to Netflix with zero ads. And when the ad product rolled out, the company clearly was going after new users - a limited pool of potential subscribers by default. That focus seems to have changed over time, as Netflix has tried to convert longtime subscribers to the ad tier. Historically Netflix subscribers are very sticky. But is the company’s low churn a problem? Not necessarily, according to Antenna data. Rather, Netflix’s consumer loyalty is a bit of a double-edged sword. “Netflix is the one streamer which actually has seen substantial “trade downs” but has much lower ‘win backs,’ said Antenna founder Jonathan Carson (win-backs being people who were on the ad-free plan, cancelled, then rejoined on the ad plan). “Netflix has lower churn and so has less opportunity to win back old subs with a lower cost plan option.” This all might explain why Netflix has been so slow to roll out all of these table stakes targeting options until just this week. It likely didn’t have enough users to carve up into various targets. etc. However, what really hit Netflix’s ad business was Amazon’s move a few years ago to turn on advertising for Prime Video by default. Suddenly the market was awash in premium inventory, and Netflix was playing catch-up on multiple fronts. Thus, the streaming giant appears to still be figuring out if if wants lead in ‘programmatic TV,’ or premium ‘upfront’ TV sales. “The CTV market now sorts into three businesses, and Netflix is not the leader of any of them,” wrote analyst Jack Myers. Ouch. So how does Netflix ratchet up its ads business? Get the next NFL package You’re gonna have to wait until 2030 unless one of the bigger media companies like Skydance opts out, but the easiest (not cheapest) way for Netflix to become a huge TV ads contender is to get one of the regular NFL packages, ideally Sunday afternoons. That way it can sell ads to its whole U.S. subs base overnight. Go FAST This one is risky, because to program a compelling FAST channel, you’d likely have to take some older Netflix exclusive shows and make them available for free to non-subscribers. But FASTs, for better or worse, are ad-inventory machines. Go full UGC I’m not sure I see this happening. There is something already off about Netflix carrying podcasts and shows for creators. The experience sticks out in what is such a produced, and generally non-communal environment. But Netflix could open up its platform by allowing creators to upload videos without having to be approved by the service. But that opens a whole other can of worms (policing brand safety, copyright infringement, overall quality). Make a huge RMN Deal I was going to suggest something crazy, such as ‘instead of buying Warner Brothers, Netflix should buy Target. But the company doesn’t want to be in the brick and mortar business. Yet for Netflix’s ad business to compete in an Amazon world, it needs to be able to connect ad exposures to shopping. What if, instead of letting Amazon target Netflix viewers with its DSP, Netflix inked a deal with Target, or even took control of Roundel, and created its version of the Amazon full-funnel for brands? Price us out. I hope they don’t do this, but Netflix’s price increases - while significant - haven’t been enough to push long-term customers out of the ad-free tier. But if they made those prices so prohibitive, it could push large swaths of consumers to trade down. Then again, that could also dent engagement - as binging becomes much less appealing once you bring ads into the equation. Or, they could just launch a bunch of hit shows and maybe everyone will quickly forget all this angst. More from Amazon unBoxed A few weeks ago, I recorded two podcasts live at Amazon’s unBoxed event in San Francisco. I was able to go really deep with several brand partners about how Amazon’s various data and ad products work - particularly the under appreciated Amazon Marketing Cloud. First, I talked with Laura Abadias Velilla, of the Amazon specialty agency Amerge, along with Amazon’s own Charlotte Maines, Vice President, Devices Content & Advertising, about how the two partners helped a very specific printer company Epson launch into a brand new category - high end projectors. It’s a great example of how brands connect audience data across platforms to make budget deployment decisions. Next, I chatted with Monks VP Head of Digital Investment for North America Tom Burchill about how the agency actually brought in data from Linkedin to help target B2B customers across various Amazon properties for the brand Quicken. Check it out: Check these out, or just listen:
Authorities investigating whether first Kenyan and Nigerian Ebola cases crossed paths
Nigeria this week recorded its first case of Ebola in the current outbreak, which has spread from the epicenter in Congo to several other African countries.
National Maternal Mental Health Accelerator Hosts Inaugural Member Convening - Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health
This week marked a watershed moment for maternal mental health as the National Maternal Mental Health (MMH) Accelerator held its inaugural member convening. Led by Founder Joy Burkhard, CEO of the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health, the Accelerator has united over 140 organizations to drive systemic change and expanded access to appropriate care by 2030.
Picking Week 8 of college football in the Big Ten
Who can we expect to see win in the Big Ten this week?
Whole Hog Politics: 5 House races that will tell the story of 2026
[Watch Whole Hog Politics Live: Hill Insider members can join us live today at 9 a.m. ET as Chris Stirewalt and host Bill Sammon go deep on this week’s political news. Members can join the discussi…
Staff Predictions: Michigan Football vs Indiana
In this week’s Roundtable, we discuss the QB change, takeaways from last week’s win, bold predictions for the Indiana game, and much more:
The El Clásico quiz, how much do you know?
El Clásico is this weekend, and you can feel the excitement. To get you in the mood and warmed up, here’s the El Clásico Quiz so you can show how much you know about this rivalry. Who do you thi...
Giants' Cutthroat Najee Harris Move is Surprisingly Refreshing
The New York Giants' decision to cut Najee Harris this week was surprisingly refreshing.
The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics
Every week political cartoonists throughout the country and across the political spectrum apply their ink-stained skills to capture the foibles, memes, hypocrisies and other head-slapping events in the world of politics. The fruits of these labors are hundreds of cartoons that entertain and enrage readers of all political stripes. Here's an offering of the best of this week's crop, picked fresh off the Toonosphere. Edited by Matt Wuerker.
Michigan vs. Indiana: All-Time Series, Last Meeting And More
Michigan will host Indiana this weekend in a game with a lot of interesting story lines.
New attention on Bankhead claim she was offered job to leave Senate race, DNC denies allegation
Montana’s U.S. Senate race was at the center of political controversy again this week, over an allegation from the Democratic nominee that she had been offered a job if she would drop out of the race.
Minnesota Golden Gophers: Homecoming Weekend Athletic Preview
All of the Gopher action happening home and away this weekend and how to catch it all!
Commentary: DeWine and Vance: A case study of Ohio political reaction to the now-infamous Ramaswamy Acton ad
Ohio's 2026 campaign for governor made history this week with what's quickly becoming one of the most notorious political advertisements of all time. Republican Vice President JD Vance and Republican Gov. Mike DeWine offer a fascinating case study in political reaction.
HOMETOWN ENTERTAINMENT: Halloween events fill the region this weekend
Busy weekend of Halloween-themed events, including ZOO Boo at Mill Mountain Zoo
Minnesota-Iowa score predictions from Bring Me The Sports staff
The Gophers face one of their toughest tests of the season this week against Iowa.
Hot Ticket: Beer, boos and ABBA take over Galveston this weekend
Oompah, Galveston!: Break out the lederhosen, grab a stein and get ready for a weekend of German food, music and dancing as the 44th Annual Island Oktoberfest returns to historic
San Antonio-area Week 9 high school football schedule
Championship races are heating up, and several games this weekend will likely be the deciders in those district titles. Here is the Week 9 San Antonio high school football schedule.
11 things to do around the Seattle area this weekend
From cheap meal deals to one last ride at Wild Waves, here are the latest local things to do around the Seattle area.
Gemini app expands Google Maps Personal Intelligence, replacing Deep Think
Besides coming to Android Auto this week, Personal Intelligence in the Gemini app is also expanding its Google Maps integration.
Placer County, UC Davis Explore Tahoe City Science Hub
The University of California, Davis could soon bring hands-on community education and world-class scientific research to Tahoe City.This week, the
Best of Santa Cruz County entertainment, arts & food events this weekend, Oct. 22-25
With the weekend nearly here, check out things to do around Santa Cruz County, with a recommendation from Lily Belli and a specially curated list from Lookout's BOLO events calendar.
Report: Arizona men’s basketball roster spending trails top programs
Arizona men’s basketball’s budget for building a Final Four-caliber team is significant, but the UA is far from one of the top spenders in the sport, according to a new report on roster spending. Arizona will spend approximately $15-17.5 million on its men’s basketball roster, CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander and Isaac Trotter reported this week. […]
Mikel Arteta Drops Bukayo Saka Injury Update Ahead of Everton
Everton face Arsenal this weekend, and the Gunners could be without one of their star players in Bukayo Saka.
Tulane Standard and Season Face Massive Test Against UTSA Roadrunners
This weekend could put a lot in perspective for the Tulane Green Wave and what this season can truly look like.
Sponsored: Celebrating Nuclear Science Week
Nuclear energy plays an important role in powering our communities. This week, Entergy is celebrating the science, innovation and skilled professionals who help deliver reliable energy to Louisiana and beyond.
USA TODAY Sports Top IX flag football players of Week 9
These nine flag football players made their mark across the country this week, earning a spot among USA TODAY Sports Top IX.
Free Play Days – Dying Light 2, Riders Republic, Monster Hunter Stories, Let's Build a Zoo, and More
Clear your weekend – Free Play Days is calling! Dying Light 2: Stay Human – Reloaded Edition, Let’s Build a Zoo, and Tropico 6 are available this weekend for XBOX Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and Essential members to play from Thursday, October 22 until Sunday, October 25. Both Monster Hunter Stories and Monster Hunter Stories […]
Entertainment this week: Tahoe City Zombie Crawl, Steely Dead and more
Friday, October 23 2026 Business Walks – Incline Village. Description Tahoe Property Center October 19-23, the Tahoe Prosperity Center and partners from across the region will visit businesses around the Lake for the 2026 Tahoe...
PCA's 14th annual Senior Strut promotes healthy aging and community among older adults
Philadelphia Corporation for Aging hosts activities throughout the year to promote healthy aging and create community. In this week's Art of Aging, we catch up with some participants who got to walk and talk down Kelly Drive at what might be considered PCA's favorite outdoor event.
Everett's Music Barn to host fall fundraiser this weekend
If you enjoy bluegrass music, Suwanee is the place to be this weekend.
New England Patriots vs. Chicago Bears: How to watch Thursday Night Football tonight
How to watch this week's Thursday Night Football game between the Bears and the Patriots.
This Week in Sports Trivia: Oct. 22, 2026
How closely were you following the sports news this week? Find out and test your knowledge by taking The Athletic's weekly quiz.
How to watch Navarrete vs Foster and Smith vs Puello: Combat sports on DAZN this weekend
Find out how to watch Navarrete vs Foster, Dalton Smith vs Alberto Puello, RWS Muay Thai and Hitman Fight League on DAZN this weekend with fight dates, cards and viewing details.
National bus tour brings healthcare affordability fight to Michigan
A new poll from the health policy research organization KFF found more than six in 10 Americans are worried about affording healthcare. The issue took center stage in Kalamazoo this week as the advocacy group Protect Our Care brought its national "Sick of It! Fix Health Care Now" bus tour to the city.
Things to do: Oct. 22-28
HUNTINGTON — There’s an abundance of activities this week as people can participate in book clubs, see live performances or make and browse crafts at different venues. Here are events
What's new to streaming this week? (Oct. 23, 2026)
What’s new on Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, and more? We've got you covered.
Previews for movies of Oct. 22-25: “Clayface”
Catch a new film in the Denver area this weekend, here is a new release, including "Wicker"
What Does Tulane Need From Trace Johnson This Weekend?
The Green Wave signal-caller had a solid showing in his first career start, but there's always room for improvement.
Florida GOP pulls lawsuit over TV ad tying Uthmeier to Hope Florida scandal
The GOP claimed its lawsuit achieved its aim because Democrats pulled the ad, but the ad ran its scheduled run, and Democrats this week launched a new online ad on the same topic.
Palmetto Sports Daily: What connection does James Franklin have to Clemson?
PSD returns to dive into the connection Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin has with Clemson before the Tigers and Hokies kick off this weekend.
Elizabeth Holmes Mania, Netflix Turmoil and a Glee reboot? This week in entertainment with Variety
Bend columnist: Art, laughter can light up the darkness
Those of us who work on GO! magazine labored a bit over this week’s issue and what it should look like. GO! is, to me, the fun part of the […]
Bryan Baker Reacts as Former Orioles Head to World Series
A group of familiar faces from Baltimore will be playing for a title this week.
How to become the best sports TV show of the 21st century: MoneyCall
This week's free sports business newsletter from The Athletic, including the new NBA season, a must-see story on NFL headsets and more.
With ‘Wildwood,’ Laika’s stop-motion magic returns to the PNW
The animation studio's latest film, the Pacific Northwest-set "Wildwood," opens in theaters this week. Here's how the magic happened.
Googlebook deserves a little patience: why early launch quirks don’t define its future
If you have been following our Googlebook coverage of late, you know I have been wrestling with two competing realities around the fledgling, current state of Googlebook. Earlier this week, I aired...
13 artists, 2 days and 1 Louisiana-born headliner: Boots on the Bayou hits Gonzales this weekend
It's boot-dusting time!
Steelers vs Saints: 4 big causes for concern this week
The Steelers and Saints square off in Paris this week and there are some serious concerns for this week's game.
HOMETOWN HEALTH: New kidney care national plan launched by HHS this week
Kidney disease is one of the nation’s most common chronic diseases.
Jordyn Tyson a couple weeks away
New Orleans Saints WR Jordyn Tyson (hamstring) is improving but won't practice this week, general manager Mickey Loomis said.
Week 7 fantasy football Top 150 Flex rankings
Four more NFL teams go on bye this week, so fantasy teams' depth will be tested. Check our Week 7 Flex rankings to help make the tough lineup calls.
Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer is Suddenly in Danger Yet Again
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer desperately needs a win this week.
Boo at the Zoo, 'Clue Live on Stage!' and Bourbon Fest: 3 things to do this weekend
Our top 3 picks for your weekend
HOMETOWN ENTERTAINMENT: Smith Mountain Lake Center to stage Zombie Prom at Westlake Cinema
Zombie Prom takes the stage at Westlake Cinema starting this week.
FEST 24, Boo at the Zoo lead Gainesville events this week
FEST 24 and Boo at the Zoo headline a busy week of entertainment in Gainesville/Alachua County, with plenty more events and activities on the calendar.
Trump's crackdown on immigrant voting in California is a ploy to influence election
President Donald Trump wants California to segregate 20,000 ballots, claiming they may come from noncitizens. Federal officers charged 28 suspects with voter fraud this week.
Who went home on 'DWTS' Week 6 from Dedication Night
Tuesday night was an emotional one on Dancing with the Stars as the reality show hosted Dedication Night. The 10 remaining couples all honored special people -- or places -- in their lives, often bringing the crowd, viewers and judges to tears. Former DWTS pro and two-time Mirrorball champ, Kym Johnson, joined the panel as a fourth judge this week.