Media industry journalist who runs a newsletter and podcast. You can reach me at simonowens@gmail.comhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkb46do7fk2hShould all podcasters be creating shortform clips of their shows to live on platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts? It can be incredibly easy to generate a bunch of shortform views by chopping up a long episode into clips, but there seems to be little correlation between a https://www.patreon.com/posts/15609873224 Apr 2026 18:00 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkb46do7fk2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkau4sdgik2aYep. The reason this site is failing to take off is because its leaders and core power users are obsessed with recreating Twitter circa 2014. It's sad! I want Bluesky to thrive. [contains quote post or other embedded content]24 Apr 2026 15:35 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkau4sdgik2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkattnr7oc2uI’ve seen some argue Zaslav was a good CEO simply because he oversaw a huge return on investment for shareholders, which is the main metric CEOs are judged by, at least for public companies. But here’s the thing: Zaslav didn’t sell WBD for such a high price because of brilliant maneuvering. He sold https://variety.com/2026/film/features/david-zaslav-warner-bros-exit-paramount-sale-1236726226/24 Apr 2026 15:30 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkattnr7oc2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkas5duja22fI should start by acknowledging how impressive it is that FOS grew to what it is after starting out essentially as a college undergraduate class assignment. Founder Adam White is an incredibly smart media operator. That being said, this one’s a bit of a head scratcher. I know FOS has grown beyo https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/front-office-sports-tonight-tv-show-launch-1236727136/24 Apr 2026 15:00 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkas5duja22fhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkaq5g5yh224I probably shouldn’t bet against a guy who had a $1 billion exit for a media outlet he co-founded, but I think it’s worth mentioning that DC’s media environment is vastly different compared to when Politico launched in 2007. Back then, news moved at a glacial pace, with most news organizations holdi https://www.wsj.com/business/media/the-billionaire-trying-to-build-the-next-great-washington-newsroom-2e647ef624 Apr 2026 14:24 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkaq5g5yh224https://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkao2okzrc2zWith announcements like this, I’m always looking for ways in which Beehiiv is differentiating itself from Substack. The latter has some unfair advantages, namely that it’s completely free to use — at least until you flip on paid subscriptions — and that it now has some fairly substantial network eff https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/23/beehiiv-rolls-out-new-creator-tools-including-webinars-and-customizable-paywalls/24 Apr 2026 13:47 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkao2okzrc2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mkaiys5op22vThis is hilarious. I can't say it's 100% accurate, but they must have unearthed a bunch of facts about me from various interviews I've done over the years. yespress.io/simon-owens https://yespress.io/simon-owens24 Apr 2026 12:16 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkaiys5op22vhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk4etw5gjc2jI think Couric actually deserves a lot of credit for being prescient about how a personal brand built through legacy media could translate into independent success. Today, it’s increasingly common to see traditional broadcast journalists strike out on their own — from Chris Cillizza and Joy Reid to https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/katie-couric-network-news-trump-social-media-1236727454/22 Apr 2026 20:51 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk4etw5gjc2jhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk3u2fsacs2cGiven everything we know about streaming, I sincerely doubt Apple TV will ever be a profitable business. It spends too much on each show while simultaneously not having a large enough content library to achieve much scale. It also has so far refused to monetize with advertising. https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-tv-future-new-ceo-john-ternus-services-streaming-hollywood-2026-422 Apr 2026 15:51 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3u2fsacs2chttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk3o4fqgrk25After OpenAI’s nine-figure acquisition of podcast TBPN, some folks predicted that we'd soon see the launch of a bunch of TBPN clones. Looks like that prediction was correct! Talking Biz News republished a memo from Fortune about its impending launch of such a clone. Is there a huge audience out t https://talkingbiznews.com/media-news/fortune-hires-showrunner-names-host-for-fortune-daily/22 Apr 2026 14:05 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3o4fqgrk25https://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk3m5yyyi22vThe VC firm a16z announced a new live show that will be streamed 24/7 on X. The announcement included this cringey line: "The CNN model has to wait for something to happen IRL. But something is always happening on X. And of course, X is — and has always been, the real world. Or at the very least, i https://www.a16z.news/p/monitoring-the-situation22 Apr 2026 13:30 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3m5yyyi22vhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk3kfftbyk2vSubstack announced European creators are now generating $90 million annually and that it’s launching some new translation features to make it easier to publish and consume non-English content. One interesting thing to note is that it’s been over a year since Substack announced it had reached 5 mil https://on.substack.com/p/the-global-ideas-exchange22 Apr 2026 12:58 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3kfftbyk2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mk3fl67bw22iI'm looking for more media entrepreneurs to feature in my newsletter and podcast. Who would you like to see featured?22 Apr 2026 11:32 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3fl67bw22ihttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjzrsnazr22nHow a niche YouTube channel became a multi-platform travel business https://youtu.be/71xvT0Gm1fw?si=zQ1cYyPj8x2nFkeq21 Apr 2026 20:05 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjzrsnazr22nhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjz73jblfs2vIt's just so incredibly strange that the markets have basically just shrugged off the fact that 20% of our oil supply is cut off for the foreseeable future.21 Apr 2026 14:30 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjz73jblfs2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjyvy636es2uWe’ve now “won” the Iran war at least 10 times, which technically means Trump has won more wars than any president in history. Sorry, I don’t make the rules.21 Apr 2026 11:47 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjyvy636es2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjxuqs6wmk2xWow, is this what he looks like now? [contains quote post or other embedded content]21 Apr 2026 01:53 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjxuqs6wmk2xhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjxbpfwypk2rMuch of the anti-AI panic in Hollywood is rooted in the belief that lower production costs will inevitably lead to fewer jobs. The logic is straightforward: if a company like The Walt Disney Company no longer needs to employ an army of VFX artists to produce a Marvel film, it will simply scale back https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/16/runway-ceo-says-ai-could-help-hollywood-make-50-films-instead-of-one-100m-blockbuster/20 Apr 2026 20:12 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjxbpfwypk2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjwrhc6vlk2mI see these people walking around all the time, and they're doing absolutely nothing. Huge waste of taxpayer money and also a daily symbol of the city's lack of representation and sovereignty. [contains quote post or other embedded content]20 Apr 2026 15:21 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjwrhc6vlk2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjwobhhpyk27The Verge dives deep into the international success of Netflix’s Korean content. While Squidgame is obviously the most famous Korean show on the platform, it’s not the only one to break out. It’s probably not a coincidence that the Korean film Parasite was the first non-English best picture winner https://www.theverge.com/column/913101/netflix-korean-movies-tv-shows20 Apr 2026 14:24 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjwobhhpyk27https://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjwilezfrc2oIt’s incredible that Elon Musk has been announcing self-driving vaporware for at least a decade and people are still falling for it. https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/car-owners-are-revolting-over-teslas-self-driving-promises-b76edcdd20 Apr 2026 12:42 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjwilezfrc2ohttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjpjtg6fnk2bThe Acquired podcast only publishes eight episodes per year — four in the spring and four in the fall — and only sells two sponsorship slots per episode, one presenting and the other midroll. What’s more, it requires a brand to sponsor an entire season, which means there are only two sponsorship sl https://www.netinfluencer.com/how-8-episodes-a-year-built-one-of-podcastings-most-expensive-advertising-inventories/17 Apr 2026 18:16 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjpjtg6fnk2bhttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjpbau3imk2gI understand why most of the podcast industry has expanded into video and have been a pretty big advocate for it. But any good podcast host will be constantly alert as to what their audience-only audience can’t see. Whenever I’m conducting an interview for my own podcast and the guest makes a refere https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/podcasts-video-armchair-expert-killer-stories-kristen-bell-0e07d0be17 Apr 2026 15:42 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjpbau3imk2ghttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjp2mq77nk25People like to deride Taboola as a “chumbox” platform — making fun of the clickbaity posts that sometimes appear in its article recommendation widget — but I actually think it’s an incredibly innovative company that solved the chief problem facing web publishers: display ads suck and nobody clicks https://pressgazette.co.uk/marketing/ai-answer-engine-drive-more-effective-advertisng-at-reach-and-independent/17 Apr 2026 13:44 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjp2mq77nk25https://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjmzmyzu5c2aThis company is rewiring the economics of TV advertising https://youtu.be/PmnT1RXIXso?si=FBTrzrfHd5Qyy5fZ16 Apr 2026 18:21 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjmzmyzu5c2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/simonowens.bsky.social/post/3mjmwnlghks2cPSA: If you're being interviewed on a podcast at least once a year, you should probably just spend the $50 on a decent podcast mic. You'll vastly increase your chances of listeners making it all the way to the end of your interview.16 Apr 2026 17:27 +0000at://did:plc:pakdcox5jwdtoq4kvut3flql/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjmwnlghks2c