Axios

Netflix's technical stumbles during Friday's Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight have cast a pall over its upcoming NFL Christmas Day games.

Why it matters: Live programming and sports are crucial to the company's new ad-revenue strategy.

President-elect Donald Trump's media company is in talks to buy Bakkt, a cryptocurrency trading venue, the Financial Times reports.

Why it matters: Trump's embrace of the industry grew throughout his campaign and has led to a surge in value across the crypto market.

The demotion of news media's role in American life has brought on a profound shift in how facts make their way to voters.

Why it matters: The scattering and flattening of media has created a labyrinth where information trickles from primary sources to news media to non-journalist media including Youtubers, podcasters, TikTokers and X accounts — and eventually to conversations between family and friends.

News influencers — people with at least 100,000 followers on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X or YouTube who regularly post about current events — are more likely to identify with the political right than the left, a new study from the Pew Knight Initiative found.

Why it matters: 1 in 5 Americans report getting their news from influencers, and 65% of them say these news influencers have helped shape their opinions on political, societal or global news.

Walmart revealed more details about its second "Black Friday Deals" sale Monday that starts online on Nov. 25.

Why it matters: The world's largest retailer's sale is starting four days after Amazon launches its Black Friday sale Thursday, Nov. 21 — a week before Thanksgiving.

The Associated Press on Monday told staff it plans to reduce its staff count through layoffs and voluntary buyouts to invest further in efforts that will help modernize the brand.

Why it matters: AP is a not-for-profit agency, which means its profits must be reinvested further into the organization.

Warner Bros. Discovery has ended its lawsuit against the NBA and agreed to license TNT's "Inside the NBA" to Disney, the companies announced on Monday.

Why it matters: The deal is a major boost to WBD after what was seen as a brutal loss and precarious future without the NBA.

DVx, a startup incubator co-founded by Tesla and Lyft veteran Jon McNeill, tells Axios that it's raised $60 million in new funding, for a total of $100 million.

Why it matters: Most incubators are structured like traditional VC funds, but DVx is an operating company. Kind of an early-stage version of Berkshire Hathaway (albeit minus the decades-long track record).

Restaurant workers in Washington rely heavily on tips, which account for 26% of their total wages — slightly higher than the national average, per data out last week from Square, the payments company.

Why it matters: The rise of tipping culture means that servers and bartenders are getting tipped more frequently for services — like takeout orders — that used to go without gratuities.

Zoom in: The average tip left for workers in Washington was 15%, according to Square's report, which examines payroll data.

LeBron James' production firm the SpringHill Company has agreed to merge with Fulwell 73, the U.K.-based production company behind "The Kardashians," the firms said Monday.

Why it matters: The deal gives both companies scale and global reach at a time when the entertainment industry is under enormous pressure to evolve.

Spirit Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday after the budget airline's merger efforts collapsed and its losses spiraled out of control.

Why it matters: The company's yellow planes became a symbol of ultra-low-cost travel, but it lost hundreds of millions of dollars struggling to make that strategy work.

The White House will beef up the powers of the secretive committee charged with reviewing cross-border deals, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The panel will have more authority to decide the fate of foreign-linked mergers at a time when such combinations — including those involving China — are more politicized than ever.

America witnessed tectonic shifts in politics and society in 2024 that will reshape elections, business, culture and the nation for years to come.

• X displaced Fox News as the most powerful platform for Republicans.
• Elon Musk and tech billionaires emerged as lasting, public forces in U.S. politics.

The union representing workers at the Democratic National Committee blasted the party's leadership Monday morning following large layoffs the past several days.

• "The principles we champion on the national stage have been disregarded in our own workplace," the union said in a statement obtained by Axios.

Why it matters: It's the latest fallout for the Democrats after President-elect Trump beat Vice President Harris in the 2024 election.

Elon Musk has quickly become an influential figure in President-elect Trump's inner circle, but there are signs of tension between Musk and a longtime Trump adviser over Cabinet appointments to the new administration.

Why it matters: The friction between Musk and Boris Epshteyn — a top adviser who's pushed for Cabinet picks that include Matt Gaetz for attorney general — surfaced in public last week. It signaled a rivalry stemming from Musk's growing influence on the president-elect, to the dismay of some Trump loyalists.

Organic bagged carrots sold in the U.S. under multiple brands have been linked to an E. coli outbreak that's killed one person and sickened 39 others in at least 18 states — with 15 hospitalized, the CDC said Sunday.

The big picture: Grimmway Farms in Bakersfield, California, said in a statement Saturday that it has issued a recall of select organic whole carrots and organic baby carrots due to the outbreak affecting brands including Nature's Promise, Wegmans and Trader Joe's.