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CVS Health (CVS) Stock Could Be Cheap On Earnings Alone
CVS Health has delivered a solid share price gain over the past few years, yet the stock has recently pulled back and is now heading into a major breakup of the business. This puts fresh focus on whether the current price makes sense relative to its earnings power. With the shares closing at US$83.85, investors are asking if the recent news and the longer term performance leave the earnings story fully reflected in the valuation or not. Over the past 3 years, CVS Health has returned 38.7%,...
8th annual Empowering Black Women Conference held at Living Arts and Science Center
Panels centered on different topics, including church first ladies, the balancing act of health and wellness in Black women, and leading in every space, which focused on Black women in the workplace.
Honolulu summit focuses on building AI-ready workforce for Hawaiʻi
Organizers of the fifth annual Hawaiʻi AI and Cloud Innovation Summit said the event drew hundreds of business, government, nonprofit, education and technology leaders to the Hilton Waikiki Beach Resort to discuss how artificial intelligence could affect Hawaiʻi’s economy and jobs. TRUE Initiative convened the summit with the state Department of Business, Economic Development and […]
Kate Middleton Dresses Down for Appearance at Mental Health-Focused Charity
At an outdoors event, a casually dressed Kate Middleton discussed how nature helps her mental health.
3 Healthcare Stocks for Expanded Medicaid and ACA Coverage
Washington is suddenly friendlier to public health programs, and that shift could ripple straight through hospital billing departments and into share prices. Expanded Medicaid and ACA support would not just tweak policy; it could reshape who pays the medical tab and how reliably that cash shows up. This piece walks through 3 U.S. hospital and ancillary healthcare stocks exposed to that story and why their fortunes might move with it. The three stocks in focus below are a starting sample. The...
House Democrats will focus on healthcare and Iran war
Democrats will control both houses of Congress, but President Trump retains veto power.
Scientists identify secret barrier protecting fruit flies from heat
As climate change brings hotter, drier conditions, scientists have revealed how fruit flies defend themselves against dehydration.
House Democrats will start their majority focused on boosting healthcare and ending the Iran war
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democratic leaders are placing an early emphasis on healthcare as they discuss their immediate priorities upon the swearing-in of the new Congress on Jan. 3.
House Democrats will start their majority focused on boosting healthcare and ending the Iran war
House Democratic leaders are placing an early emphasis on healthcare as they discuss their immediate priorities upon the swearing in of a new Congress on Jan. 3.
Democrats' election rout is poised to dramatically reorder federal health policy
Democrats may seek to reverse cuts to the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid and focus on lower insurance premiums.
Springfield women’s mental health seminar encourages open conversations and support
State Rep. Bud Williams hosted the seventh installment of his health and wellness series Friday evening, bringing Springfield residents together for a seminar focused on women’s mental health…
Six Flags Entertainment Corp (FUN) (Q3 2026) Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Cash Flow and ...
Six Flags Entertainment Corp (FUN) posted 11% year-to-date adjusted EBITDA growth and a $300 million free cash flow improvement, but flagged a 9% October attendance decline and softer Q4 outlook.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. Finds Home With Reds Or Nats
Jazz Chisholm Jr. may leave New York. Fox Sports breaks down the best fits for his power and speed, focusing on the Reds and Nationals.
Former Knicks star Kristaps Porzingis steps away from the NBA to focus on undisclosed health issue
Kristaps Porzingis announced he is stepping away from basketball to prioritize his health due to an undisclosed matter in a social media post on Friday.
Kotek says data center rules, universal preschool among priorities for next 4 years
Gov. Tina Kotek says her second term will focus on universal preschool, stronger oversight of data centers, education reforms and streamlining state government.
WSAW’s Senior Living Show focuses on health, finances and active lifestyles
Senior Living Show focuses on health, finances and active lifestyles
Warriors Center Kristaps Porzingis Steps Away From the NBA to Focus on Undisclosed Health Issue
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Golden State Warriors center Kristaps Porzingis announced he is stepping away from basketball to prioritize his health due to an undisclosed matter in a social media post on Friday. Porzingis did not reveal the nature of the issue in a message posted on his X account, and the ...
Iran is reviewing proposals focusing on Tehran’s nuclear program, officials say
Iran is reviewing proposals from Qatar to address differences with the U.S. over Tehran’s nuclear program. That's according to two Middle East officials who are not authorized to comment publicly
Campbell hosts Harnett business leaders for economic update
Photo by Campbell University Harnett County has grown more than 27% over the last 15 years and is on the cusp of significant growth in the business sector as well. Campbell University recently hosted the 2026 Harnett County Economic Development Update; this was the university's third year in a row hosting the event. The annual event invites elected officials, business leaders and stakeholders from Harnett and its neighboring counties to share updates on new projects, economic trends and announcements from the previous year. Campbell’s continued involvement is part of its five-year Strategic Plan, launched earlier this year, which lists “community impact” as one of its four main objectives. “Every place I have ever worked, the university has been viewed by its surrounding community and region as an asset to economic development, as an inducement to business and industry and as a driver of innovation. It has been seen as the indispensable partner for growth,” Campbell President Dr. William M. Downs told the group of about 200 in attendance. “We ask that you save us a seat at your table when you are dreaming big about the future of this county and beyond. Campbell University is open for business, and we’d like to do business with you.”In addition to Campbell, Harnett is home to Harnett County Schools and its Career & Technical Education programs and a satellite campus of Central Carolina Community College, home of the Eugene Moore Manufacturing & Biotech Solutions Center (the largest training facility in the state). Stephen Barrington, Harnett County Economic Development director, shared the county’s latest initiatives, focus areas and opportunities in economic development. He lauded Campbell and the county’s strong educational and training infrastructure for training the area’s current and future workforce.“Workforce is at the top of the list when we talk about economic development,” Barrington said in a press release. “Work and skill-ready talent remains at the top of the list [of assets in Harnett County]. We’re extremely grateful for the education and training of our students for the next generation.”One big project landed in September when Harnett County was awarded a $500,000 Build Ready Sites grant from the North Carolina Railroad Company to advance a rail-served industrial site. The investment will help prepare the property for future development and strengthen Harnett County’s ability to compete for rail-served projects. The funding will support Byrd Industrial Site B, an 83-acre site with 58 developable acres within the Byrd Industrial Sites in Lillington.Harnett County is also actively working with Samet Corp. is actively working with Samet Corp. on the development of a 175,500-square-foot speculative industrial building to stimulate economic development.Featured speaker was Ted Abernathy, founding and managing partner of Economic Leadership, a small group of data, strategy and best-practice policy experts that work with companies, foundations and business organizations to analyze competitiveness, develop strategy, support leadership, tune communications and reimagine the future.Abernathy lauded Harnett County’s proximity to one of the fastest-growing and most business-friendly regions in the country — the Research Triangle and Raleigh-Durham metropolitan area — and said Harnett needs to attract more businesses that offer higher-paying jobs to compete. “The quality of the jobs you attract is one of the challenges for you as you go forward,” Abernathy said in a press release. “You need more high-paying jobs. A big chunk of the population here is making $25 to $50 an hour, which is good. But where you’re really weak is this high end. If you looked at Raleigh or Durham or Mecklenburg, that number would be a third of their jobs.”Learn more about Harnett County Economic Development and current projects happening at harnettedc.org.
Akron announces second annual Sports and Wellness grant recipients
The $100,000 in grants is divided between 50 local organizations focused on after-school programming, mentorship and violence prevention.
Schumer says Democrats will stop Trump from placing 'right-winger' on the Supreme Court
Schumer says the party’s agenda will center around lowering prices, along with five issues that they have focused on in the minority — healthcare, housing, Trump’s tariffs, childcare and lowering energy bills.
Whoa, I Missed It! Disney Starts Licensing the Household Silver, When IP Backfires, and More Big Content Moves
(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.) Over these last few months, the entertainment business story landscape revolved around Skydance (and their merger) and Netflix (and their leadership shakeup). I don’t even want to scan my archives to see how many times I wrote about just those two companies over the last six months or so, let alone how many times they demanded their own article. Oh, how I long for June, when I could avoid them and write about other mergers and acquisitions (Comcast and NBCUniversal; Fox buying Roku). Well, not really, but you know what I mean. That focus on just two companies meant I ignored a lot of fun and, more importantly, important stories. So, it’s also time for another “Whoa, I Missed It” article. These are stories I wish I had written about, but aren’t exactly current events anymore. And there are a lot of them! Fifteen stories in all, including a very important merger that I didn’t write about, my word of warning about the IP deluge, how “genre” TV is making a big comeback, Netflix’s latest smart acquisition (and a licensing divorce), Disney and HBO’s recent TV show buys (and what they say about reboots on TV), a big cable merger, Amazon’s new bundle, social media censorship, and a lot more. Subscribe Most Important Story of the Week - Buy, Sell or Hold the Latest Content Development and Licensing in 2026!!! Content is king. I’ve written that before, and I believe in it now more than ever. If I had to quantify it, and I have, I put it at about 50% of the fate of any given media company, be they streamer, network, bundler, studio or social platform. This is a hits-driven business, and, as I like to do about every so often, it’s time to check in on the latest content moves. These content shifts on their own aren’t usually enough to be the “most important story” of a week, but if you add them up, you can see the content landscape shifting. The stories also fell into two natural buckets: licensing deals and IP moves. Plus, I’ll offer my “buy, sell or hold” rating for whether I think the deal is smart for a given side. Let’s dive right in. Disney Starts Licensing the Household Silver Disney is starting to license their core brands to Netflix. Quietly, over the last couple of years, Disney had rented some 20th Century [Fox] shows and films to Netflix, but until now, the core brands had escaped that fate. Now? At least some Pixar films will make it to Disney (including Elio) and some Disney+ Originals (like Percy Jackson and the Olympians). Here’s my rating for each company: Disney: Sell. One is tempted to say Disney has started licensing the “crown jewels”, but I don’t think we see that yet. I’d call this the “family silver” instead, which isn’t quite as valuable. That said, Disney’s new CEO clearly is focused on shoring up the company’s profitability, and that means licensing deals, even at the expense of Disney+ exclusivity. This could also help bring eyeballs to Percy Jackson for the upcoming season, a similar benefit to “dual casting” this show, which I also think Disney should do. Still, in the long run, I’d protect the core brands more. Netflix: Buy. This is a smart move, assuming the price is right, and I’d bet it is. (Netflix’s content licensing teams are some of the best in the industry.) Of course, this is another data point that Netflix is moving away from making their own films and relying on licensing instead. That has downsides—they’ll always end up renting—but if you’re buying Disney content, that’s a good move. Prime Video Buys More Live Events Amazon’s Prime Video/MGM Studios keeps purchasing live events, including the Emmys (which I wrote about here) and some regional sporting rights. These bolster their NFL, NBA and Academy of Country Music Awards licensing deals. My theory here is that Prime Video knows that they can sell the advertising for more on live events than on their massive acquired/original inventory of shows and films. (As I’ve been showing with Reelgood’s data, they have a LOT more shows and films than other streamers.) Advertisers want live, engaged viewers, since they’re a lot more likely to be real. Prime Video: Hold. I like Amazon’s focus on live events, but it remains tough to evaluate this company, er, business unit, since we don’t know anything about their financials. Yes, Amazon’s CEO recently released a very carefully worded statement about Prime Video, claiming profitability, but we don’t know by how much by when. (It’s also not audited by third parties, so we have to take it with another grain of salt.) Plus, given that Amazon increased the price of the Emmys by about a third, they also likely overpaid. (Maybe that’s why they’re barely profitable, allegedly.) But also, I think they know they need to dominate live TV, and that’s a smart strategy! So I’m torn, but lean towards calling this a smart move. The Emmys: Definitely sell! I mentioned this in my “Streaming Bonus Content” article, but I really, really, really, really do NOT like this move for the Emmys. Chasing short term dollars over long term awareness is not a smart move. To reach the widest audience, the “dual-cast” format—meaning broadcast and streaming—just reaches more people. Skydance Takes Its Animation Back This is the story that made me want to write a “let’s catch up on content” column in the first place. Specifically, Skydance and Netflix have ended their animated film output deal. It’s not huge, since really, what film has Skydance Animation made that’s broken out? But strategically, it shows you how Skydance is positioning their company. Skydance Animation: Hold. Again, I still need to see Skydance Animation put out a hit or two before I can judge this as a smart move. The other worry for Skydance is they have a lot of overlapping animation houses now, and that’s going to end at some point. Still, if John Lasseter can regain his animation mojo—and his track record has been mixed at Skydance, ignoring his other issues—this could be a powerful point for Paramount. Netflix: Hold (put your films in theaters). Right now, with the Dan Lin upheaval and Peter Rice coming in, we don’t really know what Netflix’s plans for theaters versus straight-to-streaming films are. So I need to see what new films (if any) they buy/rent/produce to replace the Skydance flicks, but it will probably be a smarter investment of capital, since the straight-to-streaming films have just failed to break out, outside of one major example. Theaters: Buy! They do look like they’re gonna end up with more inventory based on the Skydance move, and now Netflix putting four to five films in theaters per year. For example, Netflix confirmed that KPop Demon Hunters 2 will come to theaters, and that’s going to be a smash. Disney+’s Reboot Future So those were the major licensing news stories, and now we get to the IP-related updates. Obviously, I’m generally pro-IP in content development. But that’s not some iron law; not all IP hits equally. Get ready for Entertainment Nuance Guy. And let’s start with a big worry. Scanning the news stories, Disney has three reboots on their lineup between ABC, Hulu and Disney+: Coach (on ABC), The X-Files and Glee. So are reboots as immune to failure as IP? 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 about… Why I’m skeptical about some upcoming genre and IP plays… How Skydance’s merger closing unlocked Paramount and HBO… The focus on “genre” across the streamers and studios… Some big creators leave Netflix… Netflix’s horror TV show licensing play (and what they should have done instead)… A huge merger that I didn’t write about... Whether or not we’ll see a major film tax credit… Amazon’s new megabundle of streamers… And (somehow) more… ...please subscribe! We can only keep doing this great work with your support.
Sportico Transactions: Moves and Mergers Roundup for Nov. 6
Welcome to Sportico’s transactions wire, a weekly rundown of personnel, partnerships, products and purchases across the sports business industry. PERSONNEL The Familie Signs Michael Phelps Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian in history, has joined The Familie for representation as he enters the next chapter of his career focused on expanding his business portfolio, strategic …
Sportico Transactions: Moves and Mergers Roundup for Nov. 6
Welcome to Sportico’s transactions wire, a weekly rundown of personnel, partnerships, products and purchases across the sports business industry. PERSONNEL The Familie Signs Michael Phelps Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian in history, has joined The Familie for representation as he enters the next chapter of his career focused on expanding his business portfolio, strategic …
Acres partners with ‘The Builder’s Daily’
Fayetteville-based land data platform Acres.com recently reached a data integration partnership with a news and information platform of HousingWire. The platform, “The Builder’s Daily,” is focused on the residential construction,...
Seminar Focuses on Helping Health Professions Students Create Positive Patient Experiences
Nearly 300 students from across the UAMS College of Health Professions recently gathered for a Patient Experience Seminar designed to strengthen their communication, empathy, and interpersonal skills with patients. Dean Susan Long, Ed.D., welcomed the participants, and UAMS Chancellor C. Lowry Barnes, M.D., encouraged students to embrace UAMS CARES and…
Padres need 'serious makeover' for this part of their roster
San Diego should focus on this during the offseason.
WTA Promotes Player Personalities At ‘Crown Jewel’ Finals
A revamped portrait day ahead of the on-court tennis at the WTA Finals focused on allowing player personalities to shine
I’m an athletic trainer – here’s how to know when kids sports are too intense
It can be tempting to ratchet up training intensity for kids in youth sports, but focusing on fun and letting them lead the way may ultimately be more rewarding.
New Tacoma tutoring center focuses on ‘the science of learning’
Local teacher Breanne Willard believes things like full-spectrum lightbulbs and a de-emphasis on screens can help students learn better.
Ohio State’s Movember campaign promotes men’s health through campus events
Ohio State is taking conversations about men’s mental and physical health beyond its campus offices through its annual Movember campaign, featuring a monthlong series of events across campus focused on wellness and student support. The campaign began Nov. 2 at the Ohio Union West Plaza and will continue with events Nov. 16, from 6-8 p.m. […]
Another developer pitches a Chicago home for the Bears
Related Midwest proposes a new Chicago Bears stadium at the former U.S. Steel South Works site, but the team remains focused on Arlington Heights and Indiana.
Fitzgerald ready to advance DMARC’s mission in new development position
Brianne Fitzgerald’s whole career has been about connections. Whether she was selling advertising at the Des Moines Register, helping people find the right outfit in retail or working at a bank, Fitzgerald has focused on building relationships and learning others’ stories. This desire to build community led her to philanthropy. “It’s about putting yourself out…
Inspired Entertainment Inc (INSE) (Q3 2026) Earnings Call Highlights: Margin Expansion and ...
Inspired Entertainment Inc (INSE) posted a 46% EBITDA margin and 2.8x leverage in Q3 2026, while flagging a Brazil shutdown and UK duty hike as it prioritizes share repurchases.
Fast beam pinching via a plasma lens yields extremely brilliant gamma-rays
The fast electron beam pinching in nonuniform plasmas, where a density upramp acts as a plasma lens to violently self-focus the beam, offers a promising pathway toward ultra-bright gamma-ray sources with photon energies reaching up to the GeV scale.
Free Madison conference to focus on mental health among youth of color
The BIPOC Mental Health Coalition of Dane County is hosting its first Youth BIPOC Mental Health Conference on Nov. 7 at the Center for Black Excellence and Culture.
Sphere Entertainment Co (SPHR) (Q3 2026) Earnings Call Highlights: Sphere Segment Revenue Jumps ...
Sphere Entertainment Co (SPHR) posted strong Sphere segment growth and expanding Exosphere advertising momentum, even as MSG Networks subscriber declines and a goodwill impairment weighed on results.
Trump lawyer urges appeals court to toss hush-money case
NEW YORK — Judges hearing an appeal of Donald Trump’s criminal conviction for concealing a hush-money payment to a porn star focused on whether prosecutors properly applied campaign-finance law to
“Looking for certainty”: Evansville business leaders reflect on midterm elections
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — Economic growth is called to question at the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership’s 2026 Policy Focus. E-REP brought in Rob Engstrom, the president of the Washin…
PENN Entertainment Inc (PENN) Q3 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Retail Revenue, Raised ...
PENN Entertainment Inc (PENN) posts a record third-quarter with retail revenue of $1.5 billion, lifts full-year 2026 guidance, and signals that interactive losses are largely in the rearview mirror.
Lucky Strike Entertainment Corp (LUCK) (Q1 2027) Earnings Call Highlights: Revenue Growth and ...
Lucky Strike Entertainment Corp (LUCK) posted 3.5% revenue growth and reaffirmed EBITDA guidance while suspending its dividend to target roughly $100 million in debt reduction.
Opinion | Politics Shakes Up the Markets
A tech correction could force Washington to focus on the economy.
This Fintech Company Will Give Your Small Business a $10,000 Grant. Here's How to Apply
Forward Financing launched a Back the Builders Grant Program. It will hand out three $10,000 awards, one of which focuses on AI adoption.
Community health workers help bridge the gap in service access
With so much emphasis on healthcare access, a small but growing group of people known as community health workers (CHWs) is making a difference for those living on the fringes,...
Community health workers help bridge the gap in service access
With so much emphasis on healthcare access, a small but growing group of people known as community health workers (CHWs) is making a difference for those living on the fringes,...
Creator Summit explores using social media to unlock health and wellness for all | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
An annual summit focused on how creators can expand the context of their posts to address broader conditions shaping health.
DTE Energy selling Vantage business for $3 billion to focus on electric, gas utility growth
The Detroit-based company announced it reached an agreement to sell nearly all of DTE Vantage, except EES Coke, to institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s Global Infrastructure group.
Rep. DelBene says Democrats will focus on costs, health care after retaking House
US Rep. Suzan DelBene says Democrats plan to make affordability and health care priorities when they take control of the House in January, after voters gave the
Democratic leaders say affordability and accountability will be focus of new Congress
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and Sen. Chuck Schumer promised to reduce costs and end corruption.
Democratic leaders say affordability and accountability will be focus of new Congress
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and Sen. Chuck Schumer promised to reduce costs and end corruption.
Democratic leaders say affordability and accountability will be focus of new Congress
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and Sen. Chuck Schumer promised to reduce costs and end corruption.
Xbox overhauls its PC, web, and cloud apps with a faster design
The new design focuses on speed and usability.
Arizona Science Center unveils new fall exhibits focused on caves and creativity
Arizona Science Center is expanding its lineup of interactive experiences this fall with two new attractions designed to engage guests through hands-on exploration, creativity and scientific discovery.
The election brought a wave of historic firsts. Here are some groundbreaking winners
While some of these candidates have avoided focusing on the inherent historic value of their race, gender, religion or sexual orientation, some voters' rights advocates are celebrating how the electorate has expanded.
Medicus Pharma proposes $135M SkinJect spinout through SPAC business combination
Medicus Pharma CEO Dr Raza Bokhari joined Steve Darling from Proactive to discuss a proposed transaction involving the company's wholly owned subsidiary, SkinJect, which has entered into a non-binding letter of intent with an undisclosed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) for a potential business combination. The proposed transaction contemplates a US$135 million pre-money enterprise valuation for SkinJect, alongside a concurrent equity financing intended to support the company's SKNJCT-005 clinical study in patients with Gorlin syndrome and preparations for a potential New Drug Application (NDA). Bokhari told Proactive that the proposed deal is designed to establish SkinJect as a separately listed company focused on advancing its dermatology and rare-disease development program. Under the proposed structure, the SPAC would acquire 100% of SkinJect in exchange for newly issued common shares in the combined company. Medicus Pharma intends to retain majority economic and voting ownership, allowing existing Medicus shareholders to maintain significant participation in SkinJect's potential future value. The separation would also provide SkinJect with a dedicated financing platform to fund its clinical development activities, particularly the SKNJCT-005 study targeting Gorlin syndrome, a rare genetic condition associated with the development of multiple basal cell carcinomas. The concurrent financing is expected to support the clinical program and the work required to prepare and potentially submit a New Drug Application, subject to successful development and regulatory progress. Final ownership percentages have not yet been determined. These will depend on negotiations surrounding the definitive transaction agreement and the combined company's capitalization, including retained SPAC cash, public and sponsor shares, warrants and other potentially dilutive securities. Medicus said the proposed transaction remains subject to the completion of definitive documentation and other customary conditions. The planned spinout represents a strategic step in Medicus Pharma's efforts to give SkinJect a dedicated corporate and financial structure, while allowing the parent company to retain majority participation as the dermatology program advances towards its next clinical and regulatory milestones. #proactiveinvestors #nasdaq #mdcx #tsxv #mdcx #pharma #SkinJect #Biotechnology #Healthcare #RareDisease #GorlinSyndrome #Dermatology #SPAC #ClinicalTrials #DrugDevelopment #NDA #Biopharmaceuticals
Astrion drew more interest than AstraGin at NuLiv Science's Bangkok booth
At Vitafoods Asia 2026 in Bangkok, NuLiv Science's collagen booster Astrion outdrew AstraGin as regional buyers focused on beauty and anti-aging.
Greenville takes a strategic look at downtown retail
The Greenville City Economic Development Corp. has focused on strategically recruiting new retail stores to downtown Greenville.
Lucky Strike Entertainment (NYSE:LUCK) Q1 FY2027 Results: Inline Revenue, Wider Loss, and Debt-Reduction Focus
Lucky Strike Q1 FY2027 revenue inline, loss wider than expected; guidance reaffirmed as it targets debt reduction and same-store sales recovery.
Clemson Rural Health graduates first cohort of Protein Rx participants
Clemson Rural Health (CRH) launched Protein Rx, a first-of-its-kind program focused on addressing malnutrition in adults through protein prescriptions and
Las Vegas tattoo artist builds business by prioritizing art over price
The longtime Las Vegas tattoo artist says customer service, collaboration and a focus on artistic quality help his downtown shop compete with bargain-priced rivals.
Sotera Health (SHC) Could Be 28% Below Fair Value As Earnings Beat Lands
Sotera Health (SHC) is back in focus after reporting third quarter 2026 results that topped Wall Street forecasts, reaffirming its full year revenue and earnings outlook, and securing a Moody's credit rating upgrade. Recent trading tells a mixed story, with Sotera Health’s share price up 2.25% on the day of the earnings beat yet down about 12% over the past week and 11% over the last month. At the same time, the 1 year total shareholder return of 3.67% and 3 year total shareholder return of...
The Bulletin welcomes 2026 editorial fellows
The Bulletin proudly welcomes its largest editorial fellow class yet. Fellows work closely with Bulletin editors to produce cutting-edge journalism focused on nuclear risk, climate change, disruptive technologies, or biosecurity. As part of a Bulletin initiative focused on uplifting the next generation of experts, our Editorial Fellows Program is possible because of readers and supporters alike.
Broncos focused on taking care of business against Panthers
The Denver Broncos have a shot to be 7-2 before their bye week if they can topple the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Health Care: Don’t Just Fix What They Broke
The new Congress must not only repair what Trump has wrought but focus on immediate relief for the already insured.
Houlihan Lokey Expands European Business Services Capabilities with Senior Hire
Houlihan Lokey, a global investment bank, added Adnan Choudhury as a managing director in its business services group. Based in London, Choudhury will focus
Imaging Science Thesis Defense: A Step Towards Developing Digital Twins of Forest Environments with Terrestrial Laser Scanning | Events
Imaging Science MS Thesis Defense A Step Towards Developing Digital Twins of Forest Environments with Terrestrial Laser Scanning Zoom Link here Aisha Co Imaging Science MS Candidate Rochester Institute of Technology Abstract: Digital twins have become an increasingly relevant topic as we pursue accurate representations of the real world for planning, research, and even design purposes. This study focuses on the steps for creating digital twins of forest environments using sparse points from terrestrial light detection and ranging (LiDAR). Specifically, we developed geometric models of structural digital twins (SDTs) from leaf-off terrestrial laser scanning of real-world forests. Three algorithms were used to develop an approach to handle individual tree reconstructions for sparse point clouds, and they were tested and validated with a two-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic against an existing inventory of the RIT Nature Trail to evaluate the reconstruction’s fidelity. The key evaluation metrics included diameter at breast height (DBH) and height. The limited nature of available ground truth necessitated the use of an additional validation method using a PANGAEA open dataset, based on comparing DBH, height, and crown diameter against the dataset’s calculated measurements. Reconstructions were compared against per-tree reference values at two-point spacings for sixteen trees from the open BR07 dataset (PANGAEA); these specifications matched the collected RIT Nature Trail data and the scanner’s nominal spacing. On BR07, the proposed method had the lowest median DBH error among the methods that modeled every tree (1.28cm, 4.1%), and this error was nearly unchanged at the coarser spacing, while TreeQSM’s rose from 4.2% to 6.5% and AdTree overestimated DBH by 30% to 40%. Results show the proposed method understates the tree heights by 0.2m to 1.4m but contains the least error when estimating DBH. The proposed method was able to produce all 69 trees, while SimpleTree produced 49 and none at the 4.35 cm BR07 spacing. We concluded that the developed geometric model (digital) twins have significant potential to serve as both simulation and prediction tools. We recommend that future efforts focus on collecting per-tree ground truth measurements within the scanned plot and incorporating leaf-on scans. Leaf-on scans include representative foliage, which would add realism to the model and ecological function of the trees. Intended Audience: Beginners, undergraduates, graduates. Those with interest in the topic. To request an interpreter, please visit myaccess.rit.edu
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp (MSGE) (Q1 2027) Earnings Call Highlights: Record ...
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp (MSGE) posted Q1 fiscal 2027 revenues of $217.1 million, up 37% year-over-year, driven by record concert attendance and strong consumer spending.
Making history, breaking barriers: growth of women’s sports at Texas
For years, collegiate sports have focused on male student athletes. Within the last few years, however, women’s college sports have begun to emerge into a pool of record-breaking and head-turning statistical headlines. With the exposure of the WNBA and the rivalries between collegiate regions, women’s sports have seen one of the most drastic expansions in...
Health Care in the 2026 Midterm Election
This dashboard focuses on KFF’s analysis of the role health care costs and other health policy issues played in voters’ decisions in the 2026 midterm elections, including in key Senate races. It examines the role of rising health costs on voters’ decisions, views on the Trump administration’s health care policies, and opinions on the government’s role in health care amid discussions of Medicare for All.
Florida Governor-elect says GOP must focus on lowering costs
While Republicans saw losses in the midterms, Florida Governor-elect Byron Donalds told CNN’s Dana Bash that if the party focuses on affordability and prices, the “elections will take care of themselves.”
Flutter Entertainment PLC (FLUT) (Q3 2026) Earnings Call Highlights: Brazil Impairment, ...
Flutter Entertainment PLC (FLUT) posted 2% revenue growth but swung to a net loss on an $873 million Brazil write-down, trimmed full-year 2026 guidance, and paused buybacks to prioritize deleveraging.
Trans sports bans get voter approval in 4 states
Voters in four states — Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska and Washington — are on track to pass or have passed measures to restrict transgender athletes’ participation in sports, a key policy focus of the Trump administration.
East Ridge council winners to focus on stormwater, business and border region development
"I vote for who I like," said East Ridge resident Pamela Snelling. Snelling voted Nov. 3 at East Ridge United Methodist Church on Prater Road.
Next year’s iPhone Pro redesign gets new update from leaker
Apple reportedly has a big redesign coming to next year’s iPhone Pro models, and the latest leak focuses on plans for a Dynamic Island cutout.
NYC Mayor Mamdani says Americans want 'change they can feel in their wallets
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AFGHS co-signatory countries ask health care users to help fill the financing gap
Hundreds of thousands of Ugandans living with HIV on antiretrovirals could be targeted for user fees or community health insurance schemes requiring modest premium payments, according to the April 2026 version of the country’s America First Global Health Strategy implementation narrative.1 As part of the “sustainable financing for the private not for profit sector” strategy, 491 facilities will be targeted for a phased introduction of user fees and scale up of community health insurance programs.2 In the Ugandan context, PNFP facilities include faith-based hospitals and other health facilities, US missionary organizations and centers of excellence—services that are often co-located at government facilities but run with additional financial and technical resources. 402,000 people—or about 28 percent of the total Ugandan adult PLHIV population on treatment—get ART from the private not for profit sector. The selected facilities provide the majority of ART and prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) services. The plan doesn’t give the total number of clients served by the 491 facilities, so it is not possible to give a precise number. But the majority of 402,000 is a figure in the hundreds of thousands—hence the estimate I’m using.3 The April draft of the Ugandan implementation plan narrative is the only one I’ve been able to review. But the government of Uganda is not alone in turning to health care users to help fill the financing gaps caused by the abrupt withdrawal of US funds. In July 2025, the Government of Liberia introduced user fees for previously free services including “registration, accommodation, patient feeding, hospitalization, and a wide range of surgical and diagnostic procedures.”4 Earlier that year, Liberia rolled out a revolving drug fund designed to stabilize drug supplies by “allowing patients to pay a small fee for standardized, quality medications,” according to a Ministry of Health press release.5 (Both of these approaches had been proposed in the National Health Policy 2022-2031; media coverage explicitly connects the launch with the US foreign aid cuts.) The health financing strategies proposed by Uganda and established in Liberia are qualitatively different from user fees officially adopted by specific health facilities to cover funding shortfalls caused by the new US approach.6 The latter is a stopgap, adhoc change. The former is a national governmental adoption of policies that pass costs on to health care users, despite evidence that such approaches can exacerbate inequities and leave deficits unfilled. Two countries does not make a pattern, but they do point to urgent questions: Have other countries, including Liberia, included user fees or community health insurance schemes in their implementation plans? If so, do any of these narratives have what Uganda’s lacks: a fall-back plan in place in case these strategies for sustainable health systems fail to deliver—as they have before? I wonder if you think about it Subscribe Predictable pitfalls Both community-based health insurance and user fees are as old as the hills. And after decades of people climbing up these hills, duking it out, climbing back down—neither strategy has shown the results the Ugandan implementation plan is counting on. This is, in fact, a hill some folks are willing to die on. (You knew I’d get there, right?) In November 2025, an African-led team of health system experts published a paper directed at low- and middle income country governments trying to figure out how to create self-sustaining health systems. The money wasn’t coming back. It had been more than nine months since the season of freezing, waivering and wood-chippering; two months since AFGHS tumbled into the world touting co-financing requirements and reductions in future US government health aid. Governments were looking for strategies for sustainable, self-financed health systems, the authors wrote. For countries considering user fees and community health insurance to fill the financing gaps, they had a simple message: Don’t. On user fees, the paper states: “Reliance on user fees is ultimately a regressive and inequitable approach. It places a disproportionate burden on the poor and undermines health system goals of equity and financial protection. […] There is overwhelming evidence that user fees mobilise very limited resources for the public health sector, making it an inefficient mechanism for revenue mobilisation.” On community health insurance: “Attempting to shift the burden of funding previously donor-funded services, such as HIV care and management, and TB treatment, onto contributory schemes would exacerbate their fragility and fail to protect the population.”7 The WHO says that community-based health insurance “cannot be expected to provide a major source of funding or coverage,” and noted that most schemes offer only moderate benefit to individuals paying into them, and exclude the poorest segment of the population.8 And yet, the US-Ugandan implementation plan says that community health insurance is “the central pillar of this [PNFP] sustainability strategy” and that this approach that will generate “pre-paid pooled funding at facility and community level [that] improves financial risk protection for households, reduces catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditure, and generates structured, transparent revenue streams that can progressively absorb recurrent costs including health worker salaries.” Unfortunately, Uganda’s own history suggests the pillar might not be able to bear this weight. Ugandans Have Been to this Rodeo Before—and Some Want Their Money Back Uganda introduced its first community health insurance scheme in 1996 with support from international donors.9 Thirty years later, somewhere between 0.2 and 0.3 percent of the population is covered by CHI; just over 1 percent has any kind of health insurance.10 User fees were universally introduced in 1993 as a condition of a World Bank loan.11 They were abandoned in 2001, and in 2004—the year I moved to Uganda to watch the free HIV program get underway—a definitive study found that the fees did not improve health systems and outcomes.12 In 2004, most clinics and hospitals had ‘free’ and ‘fee for service’ options for getting care.13 The fee for service, or “cash and carry” programs had often been established in the years prior to PEPFAR and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. People who could afford to paid for the drugs, often at facilities in the private-not-for-profit (PNFP) sector. When free drugs arrived, some people who’d been paying kept on doing so, perhaps because of shorter wait times, greater confidentiality, convenience or other factors. But in the year that I spent visiting the same clinics around the country week after week—including a “center of excellence” that maintained separate days for cash and carry clients and those accessing free ARVs—lots of people who had been paying tried to switch to the free option. They’d paid because they had no other choice. They’d sold pieces of family land, begged family members for loans, bought pills by the week, and sometimes by the day. Or they were just cash-strapped, like most of us, and wanted the funds for other things. 14 Twenty-two years later, this hasn’t changed. Ugandans pay out of pocket for 30-40 percent of their health care costs, leading one paper to declare that “falling ill is more than a health crisis. It is a financial emergency.”15 One recent study found that up to 48.5 percent of households dealing with tuberculosis sold something, took out a loan or dug into savings to defray the costs of TB care—which is supposed to be universally free.16 The Ugandan implementation plan does anticipate challenges. It proposes a phased approach, with 187 facilities introducing user contribution systems in Year 1, 152 in Year 2, and 153 in Year 3. Willingness to pay and feasibility studies will precede roll out; fees will be tiered by region, and a waiver system is proposed to ensure that no one has to pay who is unable to. Moreover, the plan provides for quarterly reviews of epidemiological data to “ensure that user contributions do not compromise epidemic control gains, ART continuity for the client cohort, TB case management, or PMTCT services.” Alt text: A screenshot of a table included in the implementation plan narrative that is the subject of this stack. It’s got a fetching pink bar at the top. It uses the abbreviation “CHI” which is Community Health Insurance, and FBO which is Faith Based Organizations, and it details the number of facilities that will implement user fees with waivers and community health insurance schemes over the five years of the agreement. As I said in the footnote, this is a super interesting document with a lot of other rich material. Tell me what you see—and what you would have focused on. And if you’ve seen something like this, or anything else that strikes you, in another implementation plan, tell me that too. You can use the Substack message platform or try me on Signal at @endaplague_again.25 (because @mercoonfan was, weirdly, taken). But the plan doesn’t fully explain what will happen if this approach doesn’t work out. Yes, progress will be monitored, and corrective action triggered. However, there is no specified funding replacement if premium and fee revenue prove inadequate. Instead, the authors write, “Currently, COEs serve a total client cohort of over 180,000 across 28 facilities. In the initial years, the U.S. Government (USG) will provide financial support for clients; over time, user fees generated by COEs will become the primary source of funding for sustaining their services.” Failure does not really seem to be an option. Health insurance schemes are more acceptable to the Ugandan population than user fees. Members of Parliament and civil society traveled to Ethiopia to see how that country’s scheme worked. In a follow up report, a veteran civil society group recommended allowing the “health insurance ecosystem to grow organically and [to] keep reviewing the law and regulations as this growth takes root.”17 One study found that more than three-quarters of Ugandans were willing to join a health insurance program.18 However, coverage of community-based health insurance is minimal, as is coverage of any kind of insurance—including private plans.19 A national health insurance scheme bill has been stalled for several years and presently sits with President Yoweri Museveni.20 Community-based health insurance scheme that do exist are expanding in number, but losing enrollees. Between 2022 and 2026, the number of community-based health financing schemes across the country increased by 42 percent, while the number of people enrolled decreased by nearly 11 percent.21 None of this means that community-based health insurance should not happen in Uganda—or that people do not want insurance. It doesn’t even mean that user fees and waivers won’t ever work. But there is highly relevant evidence from Uganda and the surrounding region that it is quite optimistic to describe community health insurance and user fees as central supports for sustainable financing in any sector of the health system. And now for the best-case scenario In the best-case scenario22, the Ugandan approach does exactly what it sets out to do, and so does the Liberian fee structure and revolving pharmacy fund—though I’ve not confirmed that these are in the MoU. In one best-case scenario, Uganda is an outlier, and user fees and community health insurance are not recurrent pillars of self-sustaining financing in other countries’ implementation plans. In another best-case scenario, all countries that include these strategies enjoy success beyond anyone’s evidence-informed wildest dreams: reliable funding generated by health care users fees, great health care outcomes for everyone, no exacerbation of inequities, no crippling household debt. No sold land, repurposed school tuition or high-interest loans. In the best-case scenario, not one of the hundreds of thousands of Ugandans living with HIV receiving antiretrovirals from 491 PNFP facilities misses a refill or leaves care because of user fees or community health insurance premiums. This is the best-case scenario for these people for their own health, and for their families. It is also the best-case scenario if Uganda wants to stay on the path to eliminating HIV as a public health threat. According to the country’s most recent data, 96.5 percent of people living with HIV on antiretrovirals are virologically suppressed. Epidemic control depends ensuring that 95% of people living with HIV know their status, 95 percent of those individuals are on ART, and 95% of those individuals are virologically suppressed. Uganda is still struggling with the first “95"—a frankly abysmal 85.3 percent. If HIV epidemic control and the attendant prevention of new infections, avoidable suffering and premature death matter, the country cannot afford to lose any clients who are currently in care.23 As I write this a couple hours before the polls close for the US elections in the city I live in, I say with soul-deep sincerity: I am rooting for the best-case scenario. I think it’s safe to say that we all are.24 I think it’s also safe to say that if the US and co-signatory governments have inked plans that lead to successful expansion of community health insurance and strategic use of user fees, we all would like to know, now, so that we don’t miss the opportunity to celebrate when success happens. The implementation plan narratives have to enter the public domain. They are the fullest expression of a strategy co-created by two governments. There are assumptions and details that people living in the US and co-signatory countries need to understand that are not available in the MoUs or, to date, in the Congressional Notifications. Some of these details can help other countries that are, as I write this, still working on implementation plans. Others, like a solid count of how many other countries have plans for expanding user fees or health insurance, are important for regional and global health architecture reform initiatives. No matter how this election night turns out, there will be a slew of new Congressional member orientations, briefings and talking points papers in the next few months. Release of implementation narratives should be a bullet point in every context that AFGHS is discussed. These documents can be redacted so that procurement sensitive information isn’t disclosed. There is much more historical precedent for sharing such documents than there is for relying on user fees to fill health financing gaps. Let’s look at the information together so we can hope for the best and prepare for, you know, the other thing. Alt text: A substack first: a bicep selfie! It’s my arm - peachy-white skin, black shirt (flannel, notch neck, too hot for this appallingly balmy November weather, if you’re wondering) and a sticker that says I VOTED 2026. Beige letters on red for I voted. Beige on blue for 2026. You bet I did.25 In your wildest dreams. Subscribe 1 This is a really, really rich 95 page document. There are fascinating ideas and detailed plans in it. It is all worth reading AND I have, in this post, highlighted an instance of content that could pose challenges and certainly posits success of strategies that haven’t worked before. I would love to hear what readers’ see that’s interesting and should be lifted up as something to check for in other implementation plans. I will also shortly be adding a static page to the substack site where implementation plan documents will live. I will put the url into this footnote and it will also be there on emilybass.substack.com by the end of the week. Uganda Implementation Narrative Section 4 April 22 2026 Draft 1.51MB ∙ PDF file Download Download 2 User fees are costs charged for visits, labs, medicines or other health services, usually at the time they are provided. Community health insurance, or community-based health insurance, is what the World Health Organization calls “micro insurance,” which is health insurance targeted at low-income people. 3 As usual (by which I mean always), please prove me wrong. 4 https://smartnewsliberia.com/liberias-ministry-of-health-announces-2025-hospital-service-fees-for-public-facilities/?utm 5 https://moh.gov.lr/news/2025/grand-cape-mount-leaders-residents-embrace-new-community-pharmacy-program/?utm 6 https://www.christianitytoday.com/2026/09/hiv-usaid-pepfar-africa-foreign-aid-cuts-mission-hospitals/?utm 7 https://gh.bmj.com/content/10/11/e021270 8 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/community-based-health-insurance-CBHI 9 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2827475/ 10 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10861328/#b3-jpmph-23-110 11 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC527704/ 12 Same citation as the footnote 2 - the article is called “Learning from failed health care reform in Uganda.” To which I say: If only. If. Only. 13 There is a whole taxonomy of user fees to be aware of, if not commit to memory. Out of pocket costs are everything that someone pays for themselves. In this Stack, user fees are planned and policy-supported out of pocket costs. There are also out of pocket costs that people pay to buy drugs or receive tests or health care assessments that would be free if the drugs were on the shelves, or the machines or kits were available, or the staff were on site. A user fee is usually designed to be modest, pegged to willingness to pay, and may be waiveable at the point of care for anyone who is unable to do so. The costs for things that would otherwise be free are whatever the market will bear and people either have to pay them or go without. Out of pocket costs for services and stuff that aren’t available in public facilities are different again from bribes or unofficial fees that some health workers may impose, even though most are indefatigable, tireless and tired, and devoted to their clients. 14 For the record—which really is these footnotes—I would give a whole stack of fridge magnets for a systematic analysis of the economic and social impact of the Mass Unemployment Event in AFGHS countries among the very people who used to be able to afford and cover user fees, both for themselves and vast family networks. Locally employed USAID technical staff, house cleaners, caregivers, drivers and technicians were financial anchors for cousins, friends, friends’ children, friends’ childrens’ cousins, teachers, pastors, neighbors and so many other kinds of kin. Aid recipients lost direct funding; many other people who had not been aid recipients, but parts of the elaborate care webs that function as safety nets for so many people, lost crucial support too. And that’s even before we get to the people who worked at the hotels and restaurants and bars where people employed by the US and its implementing partners used to spend disposable income. Those businesses have lost revenue; those folks have lost jobs. It will be some time coming—and someone will have to fund this work—but I do hope it happens. And I hope, as usual, to be proven wrong. 15 https://eprcug.org/blog/how-out-of-pocket-healthcare-costs-keep-driving-ugandans-into-poverty/ 16 Another straight-to-the-point journal article title. Households experiencing catastrophic costs due to tuberculosis in Uganda: magnitude and cost drivers. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32938411 17 https://www.cehurd.org/download/technical-policy-brief-on-community-health-insurance-scheme/?wpdmdl=13661&refresh=6ae9122f5d4ed1793659439 18 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10125197/ 19 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10861328/#b3-jpmph-23-110 20 https://ugandapost.news/uganda-to-make-health-insurance-mandatory-by-2026/ 21 https://shu.org.ug/download/235 22 With a nod, tip of the stack hat, and wag of the Mercoon tail to a deeply valued reader who told me that I have a tendency to speculate about the worst-case scenarios a little too much of the time. 23 https://news.mak.ac.ug/2026/10/uphia-2025-shows-ugandas-hiv-status-awareness-gap-despite-strong-treatment-outcomes/ As you’ll see in the next footnote, I’ve already written a subSubstack on another topic, so I will be brief with regard to the study referenced in this article. The Uganda Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment, or UPHIA, will never happen in this way again. For more than a decade, PHIAs have been supported by the US government as a way to generate accurate estimates of country progress on key HIV indicators. They are a holdover from the PEPFAR program that was laser focused on ensuring US taxpayer dollars subsidized progress in pandemic control. There may be other population-level surveys and the data may even be publicly released, as the entire set of FY2026 MER data have not. But PHIAs will never happen again. If you’re wondering whether the estimates of HIV progress at country level might get less reliable….you’re not alone. 24 Ooh baby, I hate “we” in almost all forms. But sometimes I go there, when I am looking for company, which I am. Because this Stack moves into the somewhat-uncharted territory of assessing what the implementation plan narratives may suggest about co-signatory countries’ roles and responsibilities to the people living within their borders. The MoUs, specimen and data sharing agreements were templates. Countries’ answers fit into pre-specified questions that did not include, “how are you going to fill financing gaps and stabilize your health system as this plan unfolds?” In contrast, the implementation narratives are open form—the product of co-creation between the two governments. Co-creation can mean lots of things, but nothing leads me to believe that implementation plans are ghost-written by the US government, or that contents were imposed by the US counterparts. Instead, I think the parts of the plans that read like country government initiatives are endorsed, if not initiated by, those governments. For instance, the Ugandan implementation plan narrative describes plans for revenue-generation through fees charged for equipment calibration, repair and maintenance provided through Uganda’s National Equipment Calibration Laboratory, and laboratory accreditation through the Uganda National Accreditation Service (UGANAS), targeting private sector, PNFP, research and academic clients. That’s super specific and also quite ambitious. It doesn’t read like an American idea. There’s also a provision for solar panels, and other stuff that feels country owned and driven. This is where it gets interesting. If co-creation is the case, then both the US and co-signatory governments are accountable for the contents and the outcomes. Most discourse about AFGHS to date has focused on the decisions that America has made, or demanded that other countries make. The AFGHS architects have monopolized the hot seat. As they should, in so many ways. America absolutely created the conditions under which countries needed to come up with health financing strategies to fill unanticipated, catastrophic funding gaps. And with not-too-long a lens, we can look back and see that America is also on the hook for its role in the Bretton Woods institutions that made user fees and health system fiscal austerity conditions of loans during the era of structural adjustment. But in the here and now, it is not at all clear to me that the US is requiring Uganda or any other country to implement specific approaches to sustainable financing. Instead, it is as the authors of that paper up in footnote 6 suggest: African governments have agency. As implementation plans roll out—whether or not the narratives are shared—it will be important to understand what this agency looks like and what it means for people, including the poorest of the poor. And it will be important to figure out how to talk about it safely, respectfully and critically in places other than the literal and metaphorical footnotes. 25 This week’s song is “Once upon a time” by the Moody Blues. (I know, this is gonna be a weird, largely banger-free end of 2026 playlist. HMU with requests.) AND please do watch the video and appreciate the truly amazing opening sequence—a drum kit wasteland, a coupla plastic bags, a bit of sand. Sort of like the hill where fiscal austerity policies that put costs on health care users might go to perish. But then there’s a lady with amazing hair. It’s worth it.
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The Last Disney+ Original?
(Welcome to my weekly streaming ratings report, the single best guide to what’s popular in streaming TV and what isn’t. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. If you were forwarded this email, please subscribe to get these insights each week.) Before we get going, I wanted to remind readers about how I plan to keep your trust while I add advertising to this newsletter. As you’ve no doubt noticed, I’m running ads now, but the danger is that it could impact my analysis and writing. I have a list of sponsors on my About Page, so if you think I’m biased, you can check out who’s sponsored this newsletter! This is something that I’m not sure anyone else in digital media does (if you’re a writer or media outlet and you do this, let me know and I’ll shout you out!) but it’s something I’d love to see embraced by the entire industry. Sunlight, i.e. transparency, is often the best disinfectant. Okay, on to this week’s issue. We (finally) have another major Disney+ TV show to talk about, so that’s my main focus for today. Plus, we had a lot of new shows come out, including the fourth seasons of The Diplomat and Tulsa King! And Love is Blind! The Lowdown! Also, four (four!) straight-to-streaming films came out this week, featuring a lot of big names and celebrities, so I’m going to look at those. All that, mixed news for the WNBA, Reacher ends its run on the charts, Skydance does well in September viewership, NYU’s Sundance dominance, all the flops, bombs and misses, and a whole lot more. Let’s dive right in! (Reminder: The streaming ratings report focuses on the U.S. market and compiles data from Nielsen’s weekly top ten viewership ranks, Luminate’s Top Ten Data, JustWatch and Reelgood interest data, Samba TV household viewership, company datecdotes, Netflix hours viewed data, Google Trends, and IMDb to determine the most popular content. While most data points are current, Nielsen’s data covers the weeks of October 12th to October 18th, 2026. You can find a link to my terminology here.) Subscribe Television - Disney+’s Porridge Problem Listen, per my headline, VisionQuest isn’t the last Disney+ Original. At least, I’m pretty sure it’s not. They have other MCU shows in development. Well, maybe one: But it sure feels like the end of an era. I’d call it their “porridge too hot” era, to quote myself from The Ringer. I told Ben Lindbergh that Disney+ seemingly couldn’t figure out the right amount of content. In the heights of the Streaming Bubble Era (circa 2019 to 2022), they started releasing an insane amount of TV shows. After their growth slowed, they’re down to two or three shows a year, and that might be down to 1 by 2027. Here’s my TV shows by year chart: Even at the time, I thought Disney was making too many shows (that cost too much). Today? They’re definitely making too few shows (though the budgets are more in check, at least according to the reporting). Porridge too hot, porridge too cold; too many shows, now not enough. Which makes evaluating VisionQuest so interesting. This show didn’t have a great lead-in, whether it be a Marvel Cinematic Universe film (the last non-Sony-produced-Spider-Man flick came out The Fantastic Four from July of 2025) or Marvel Cinematic Universe TV show (the two this year were Wonder Man back in January and _Daredevil: Born Again_in May, both of which underwhelmed). And so far, VisionQuest hasn’t quite recaptured the MCU Originals glory, but it has some signs of sparks. First, it made Samba TV, though at a lowly ninth place. At least it made it, a feat some other Marvel shows didn’t accomplish. (Ironheart landed on the Samba TV charts one week at tenth place, but Wonder Man and Daredevil: Born Again both missed.) VisionQuest also made Luminate, though with only 3.0 and 7.6 million hours. But it missed Nielsen in its first week. The best news might be its 7.8 on IMDb, on 12K reviews so far, great numbers, even for a superhero show. Looking at those numbers, this show will really need to pick up in future weeks—and it may since it’s coming out weekly—or Disney will have another disappointment on its hands. Disney+ binge-released their last few shows to try to boost numbers, but that meant shows like Iron Heart and Wonder Man didn’t last long on the charts. _Daredevil: Born Again’s_last season missed entirely (though it came out weekly). Here’s the Disney+ Originals by totals: And for a fun new look, here are those same shows, rearranged by the years they came out: That really shows that, in addition to Disney+ releasing fewer shows, those shows just don’t hit like they once did. If I had to offer one main explanation, it’s that Marvel Studios moved away from characters who starred in the Avengersmovies (The Scarlett Witch, Vision, Hawkeye, Loki, Falcon, Winter Soldier) to characters who didn’t (Moon Knight, She-Hulk, Iron Heart, Wonder Man, Daredevil). It sounds trite, but more popular IP tends to do better than less popular IP. In Marvel’s case, beloved, decades-old characters trump newer ones. And yes, I think this is a problem for Disney. The failure of Marvel TV shows to linger for weeks on the charts, unlike in 2021 and 2022, explains why Disney’s share of the charts has plummeted: That’s a strategic issue. Yes, these shows are really expensive, but without them, Disney+ will struggle, especially if Disney+ keeps raising prices AND licenses out its shows non-exclusively. My recommendation? Return to the core value proposition, which is Disney+ as “genre HBO”. The goal is six shows a year, coming out weekly, spaced out throughout the year. When a show hits, keep it coming back. Make three to four of those shows Marvel or Star Wars, and fill out the rest with IP swings like Percy Jackson, Goosebumps or something like National Treasure. And make YA-skewing shows like Coven Academy to fill out the schedule. Disney, you can get this porridge just right, er, make the right number of shows. Quick Notes on TV Netflix’s sophomore, er, junior, er, senior season slump abated very, very slightly this week. I speak of The Diplomat, which returned for its fourth season on 15-Oct. Credit where credit is due, this show debuted in April of 2023, and has put out new seasons every year since. Has that helped the viewership? Not really. This season opened to 16.4 million hours, which is down significantly from the first season (21.7 million hours) and down somewhat from the second season (18.0 million hours), but it is up from last year’s 14.2 million hours opening. On Samba TV, it opened to third place; that’s also very good. On Luminate, it opened to 25.0 million hours, which is good, but over thirty million hours is a hit on that platform. Netflix wisely renewed it, since it’s steady and, frankly, Netflix needs hits.1 Paramount+ put out Tulsa King’s fourth season on a Friday. After putting out most of their big, usually-Taylor Sheridan-scripted shows out on Sundays last year, they’ve clearly moved to Fridays going forward. Was this a thought-out strategic change, Netflix mimicry, or a data-inspired move? Tough to say. Fridays are crowded with new movies, but so are Sundays with new shows. Anyways, this one is coming out weekly, and we haven’t seen it hit the Nielsen or Luminate charts yet. But it did make Samba TV at fifth place, which is a good opening. Still, if this doesn’t make Luminate or Nielsen next week, I’d call it a disappointment. Netflix had two unscripted shows hit the charts this week, one a docu-series and one a reality competition show. Tyson is a four-episode docu-series about one of boxing’s most popular fighters, and it made both the Samba TV and Luminate charts, but not Nielsen. That’s a solid run for only four episodes (assuming it didn’t cost an arm and a leg to produce). Netflix’s latest season of Love Is Blind also returned for its eleventh season, which opened to 10.0 million hours, down from previous seasons. It also had 11.0 million hours according to Luminate, roughly in line with the Nielsen numbers. Last issue, I analyzed the triple successes of Below, Carrie and Crystal Lake, noting that all three have done well. I mostly used Nielsen, but all three shows also made Samba TV (see above). Crystal Lake in particular did very well on Luminate, getting 35.0 million hours, top for Peacock among first seasons: The top “show” of the week would have been Thursday Night Football again, at 41.7 million hours. This is still above last year’s game, but it continues the season’s overall downward trend, which happens every year. (Though a big week is coming, based on the news stories I’ve seen.) As I said before, I’ll do a deeper dive on all the October games later this month, with comparisons to previous years. One company is quietly on a roll, when you consider the shows it makes and streams. I speak of Skydance—a point Variety made—noting that it produces Neagley and Reacher for Amazon, along with Paramount+’s Lioness, which means it produced three of the top four shows of September according to Nielsen. By the way, Neagley fell off the Nielsen charts after four weeks, which is a pinch short for how well it started, but it’s still a huge success. (Interestingly, it finished just 7.3 million hours ahead of the cancelled Ride or Die.) The point, though, which I’ve made before, is that Prime Video still has a problem with how many co-productions it buys, most notably _The Boys_from Sony and Reacher/Jack Ryan from Skydance. It’s not a critical flaw—everyone licenses shows—but Amazon still struggles to make its own hits. Reacher finally fell off the Nielsen charts, so here’s its final rank for season four: 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… ...An example of the algorithm NOT picking a film… …whether or not Netflix buys shows simply for the movie poster… ...if East of Eden is above the Obliterated Line... ...what four star-studded straight-to-streaming films didn’t chart... ...and a whole lot more... ...please subscribe! We can only keep doing this great work with your support. If you want an idea of just how much content you’d get in a full issue, check out this older issue.
Banks moving to provide AI toolkits to small-business clients
Huntington plans to roll out an AI operating system aimed at time-strapped owner-operators. Goldman Sachs is focusing on education and research.