With less than a week until the 2020 election, researchers have expressed concern that the information ecosystem today is ripe for an unprecedented level of exploitation by bad actors, particularly hyper-partisan media and personalities on the right.

Why it matters: The misinformation-powered right-wing media machine that fueled Donald Trump's 2016 victory grew stronger after that win, and it's set to increase its reach as a result of the upcoming election, whether Trump wins or loses.

Michael Pack, the Trump-appointed CEO of the the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), has posted a notice to repeal a firewall protection intended to protect the agencies it governs, including the Voice of America, from political interference.

Why it matters: Critics argue that without the firewall, there's nothing stopping USAGM-governed agencies from devolving into a propaganda arm of the administration — a move that's common in authoritarian regimes.

Jon Stewart, the former host of "The Daily Show," is set to release a yet-t0-be titled "original current affairs series" with Apple TV+ through a multiyear partnership announced Tuesday, per the Hollywood Reporter.

The big picture: Stewart, who set the tone for cable news parodies like "The Colbert Report," has remained out of the public eye since retiring in 2015. But he has championed political causes — including the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.

The Artist Rights Alliance, a non-profit advocating for music creators, has sent a letter to the Justice Department, the Federal Trade Commission and the state Attorneys General of Vermont and California, calling for an investigation into Facebook for refusing to take action on a fraudulent concert on its platform.

Details: The letter, obtained by Axios, asks policymakers to investigate Facebook for "participating in a scheme to defraud cellist Zoe Keating, an unknown number of her fans, and undoubtedly thousands of other working artists."

The pandemic will drive cable and satellite TV providers to lose the most subscribers ever, according to the most recent data from eMarketer.

Driving the news: Entertainment giants are beginning to pivot from linear TV t0 streaming, but with that pivot comes messy math.

SimilarWeb, an Israeli-based internet measurement company, has raised $120 million in its latest fundraising round, bringing its total funding to-date to $240 million.

Our thought bubble: The company was previously reportedly valued at $800 million after its last round in 2017, so presumably it's approaching a valuation that exceeds $1 billion.

Tech platforms are no longer satisfied with debunking falsehoods — now they're starting to invest in efforts that preemptively show users accurate information to help them counter falsehoods later on.

Why it matters: Experts argue that pre-bunking can be a more effective strategy for combating misinformation than fact-checking. It's also a less polarizing way to address misinformation than trying to apply judgements to posts after they've been shared.

Jeff Goodman and Rob Dauster, both long-time college basketball insiders, have joined forces with former players and fellow media members to launch a new college hoops podcast network called The Field of 68.

Coming up: The network will launch with a trio of national podcasts this week:

Locker Room, a social audio app where fans can talk sports and spontaneously join live conversations, launches Tuesday on the App Store.

The state of play: The company behind Locker Room, Betty Labs, has raised $9.3 million in seed funding led by Google Ventures with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Axios has learned.

The Lincoln Project is looking to beef up its media business after the election, sources tell Axios.

Driving the news: The group is in talks with the United Talent Agency (UTA) to help build out Lincoln Media and is weighing offers from different television studios, podcast networks and book publishers.