The Democratic National Convention (DNC) drew roughly 20 million viewers Monday night, per Nielsen. Like the Republican National Convention (RNC) last month, night 1 ratings for the DNC were up slightly from 2020, but were down significantly (22%) from 2016.
Why it matters: Monday marked President Biden's final convention as a Democratic Party leader, but his speech began late on the East Coast, which may have impacted viewership.
Lowe's just slashed its sales forecast for the year — a move that provides a glimpse into what's happening in a big chunk of the U.S. economy.
Why it matters: The pandemic spurred a boom in home spending as rock-bottom interest rates encouraged people to borrow to pay for DIY projects — but that era is over.
Hawaiian Airlines investors breathed a sigh of relief today after the DOJ signaled it won't try to block the company's sale to Alaska Airlines.
Driving the news: The Biden administration's window to investigate the deal expired, Hawaiian Airlines announced today.
"This is a significant milestone in the process to join our airlines," the company said in a statement.
The big picture: U.S. airline carriers have steadily consolidated over the years amid cutthroat competition and price wars, rivalries that only intensified in the post-pandemic travel boom, Axios Pro's Michael Flaherty reported when the deal was announced in December.
💭 Nathan's thought bubble: It probably didn't hurt that Hawai'i Gov. Josh Green, a Democrat, endorsed the deal.
The histories of members of Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign team bode ill for blockchains.
Why it matters: Crypto industry leaders have hoped that next year will see a Congress and a president ready to work out a deal with token slingers, one in which politicians and entrepreneurs can live with each other.
UAW president Shawn Fain said Tuesday that he didn't have a problem with the Teamsters President Sean O'Brien addressing the Republican National Convention last month — but said he wouldn't have done it.
Why it matters: O'Brien, Fain's fellow labor leader, became the first Teamsters head in the union's 121-year history to speak the RNC in July. At an Axios House event a day after his own address to the Democratic Convention on Monday, Fain questioned the wisdom of that move.
OpenAI has struck a multiyear licensing deal with Condé Nast, the companies announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: Condé Nast is home to some of the world's biggest tech, lifestyle and culture brands, including Vogue, The New Yorker, Bon Appétit, Vanity Fair and Wired.
A new media company focused on social impact projects intends to open a first-of-its-kind movie studio in Baja, Mexico.
Why it matters: The Latino-founded venture, Phenomena Global, plans to tap Hollywood executives, Washington political players and advocacy groups to fund projects that are entertaining but also tackle issues such as climate change, mental health, and human rights.
Fox News has been the undisputed leader in cable news ratings for years, but ahead of the 2024 election, viewers should expect the network to appeal to a broader audience of Democrats and independents, in addition to its conservative base.
Why it matters: "I think if you build it, they will come. And independents, Democrats are coming to our shows more and more," anchor Bret Baier told Axios in an interview from the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
The Washington Post on Sunday published its first-ever story built on the work of a new AI tool called Haystacker that allows journalists to sift through large data sets — video, photo or text — to find newsworthy trends or patterns.
Why it matters: In an interview, the Post's chief technology officer Vineet Khosla said the company is committed to building many AI tools in-house because they can address the specific needs of trained journalists.
Check on your communication friends and colleagues, because half of them have considered quitting their job due to burnout, according to a new report from media insights platform, Muck Rack.
Why it matters: The demands of the job — like the project workload, "always on" mentality and tight deadlines — have caused 44% of PR professionals to quit this year.
Edgar Bronfman has raised a total of $5.5 billion for a bid for Paramount Global's parent, National Amusements Inc. (NAI), a source familiar with the process tells Axios.
The big picture: Bronfman submitted an initial $4.3 billion bid Monday night to meet a deadline that would put his offer in for consideration. He plans to submit a higher bid in the coming days.
One of Kamala Harris' most controversial policy proposals is a ban on grocery price gouging — critics are conflating the idea with Soviet-style price controls, and calling the plan "Kamunism."
Why it matters: If banning price gouging is communist, then the U.S. went Marxist long ago. Most of us live in states that already have bans in place.
Carl Icahn just settled with the SEC for failing to disclose personal loans secured by his shares in Icahn Enterprises — but the borrowing gambit cost him much more than that.
Why it matters: While the $2 million in fines announced Monday is barely noticeable to a man of Icahn's wealth, the drop in his eponymous company's share price, after short-seller Hindenburg Research got wind of the loans, was much more damaging.
Media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. has teamed up with "Baby Geniuses" producer Steven Paul on a $4.3 billion offer for Paramount Global's parent, Axios has confirmed.
Why it matters: The last minute bid could scuttle Paramount's $8 billion agreement with Skydance Media and adds another twist to an already chaotic sale process.
Startups are shutting down at a rapid rate, as raising money from venture capitalists becomes more difficult.
Why it matters: Venture capitalists — under pressure from their own investors, due to a lack of IPOs and mergers — are becoming more selective about which companies they invest and reinvest in. Well, unless it claims to do generative AI.
Each Meta employee, on average, accounted for more than $1 million in revenue in the first half of 2024, a company record.
Why it matters: Meta made steep cuts in late 2022 and early 2023, but they haven't impacted its business growth — thanks in large part to AI-driven improvements to the social media giant's recommendation system and ads platform.
Former President Trump may tap Tesla CEO Elon Musk for a role in his administration if he's re-elected in November, he told Reuters in an interview Monday.
The big picture: The pair have forged an alliance andthe former president has for months reportedly been weighing a possible role for Musk — one of the richest people on the planet who controls one of the world's biggest social media platforms and has endorsed him in the presidential race.
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