National

Stephen Colbert addressed on the CBS "Late Show" Monday night the detention of program staff members in a Capitol Hill office building last week.

Driving the news: "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" host said it's "shameful and grotesque" that some likened the arrests by Capitol Police of the production team that included Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, a puppet voiced by Robert Smigel, to the deadly Capitol insurrection. 

Between the lines: Though Colbert didn't name anyone, Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson made the comparison on his show.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) also described the comedy team's conduct as "insurrection" and "targeted harassment."

What to watch: Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) sent a letter to the chief of the U.S. Capitol Police on Monday requesting further information on how the seven people arrested gained access to the Longworth House Office Building, which resulted in them being charged with unlawful entry.

What he's saying: Colbert said on his show that the team "shot for two days in congressional offices across the street from the Capitol building."

"They went through security clearance, shot all day Wednesday, all day Thursday, invited into the offices of the congresspeople they were interviewing," he said.

Of note: Colbert described the detention, processing and release of the group as "very professional" and "calm," though a "very unpleasant experience for my staff, a lot of paperwork for the Capitol Police."

"Until the next night," Colbert said. "When a couple of the TV people started claiming that my puppet squad had 'committed insurrection' at the U.S. Capitol building.

"First of all, what? Second of all, huh? Third of all, they weren't in the Capitol building,” Colbert continued. 

"Fourth of all — and I’m shocked I have to explain the difference — but an insurrection involves disrupting the lawful actions of Congress and howling for the blood of elected leaders, all to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.

"This was first degree puppetry. This was high jinks with intent to goof. Misappropriation of an old ‘Conan’ bit. It’s really Conan’s fault."

Excerpt from Stephen Colbert's "Late Show" monologue

Representatives for Greene and Fox News did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment. 

Editor's note: This article has been corrected to note that the Colbert staff members were arrested in a Capitol Hill office building, not the Capitol.

Washington D.C.

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Colbert defends staff members arrested in Washington

"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" host said it's "shameful and grotesque” that some had likened the arrests to the Capitol riot.

A screenshot of "Late Show" host Stephen Colbert on his show on Monday night.

A screenshot of "Late Show" host Stephen Colbert on his show on Monday night. Photo: CBS

Stephen Colbert

Media

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

After a record economic expansion, the coronavirus pandemic sent the U.S. economy into a recession as unemployment soared to staggering heights. The country now faces urgent questions about how much stimulus is needed for reeling consumers and businesses, and what a recovery might look like.

Economy & Business

Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov's Nobel Peace Prize was auctioned off for $103.5 million in a fundraiser for Ukrainian child refugees in New York City on Monday night.

Driving the news: The co-founder of the independent Novaya Gazeta newspaper has pledged all proceeds from the record sale of a Nobel medal at auction will go toward UNICEF's response to the crisis.

A screenshot of Novaya Gazeta Europe's tweet on the pledge to donate all proceeds from the Nobel sale to UNICEF.

The big picture: Muratov served as Novaya Gazeta's editor-in-chief until it was shuttered in March during the Kremlin's crackdown on independent media and free speech following Russia's military invasion of Ukraine.

Muratov, who won the medal for his commitment to independent journalism despite threats and the killings of six Novaya Gazeta journalists, has already donated his $500,000 in Nobel prize money to charity, per a statement from auction house Heritage Auctions.

Flashback: The previous record for a Nobel Peace Prize medal sold at auction was the $4.76 million paid in 2014 for the 1962 medal awarded to American molecular biologist James Watson, who helped discover DNA.

Nobel sold for Ukrainian children raises $103.5 million at auction

All proceeds from the sale of Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov's medal will go to help kids displaced by the wr.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov holds up a copy of his Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta fter the conclusion of a charity auction on June 20 in New York City. 

Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov, editor-in-chief of the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, holds up a copy of his paper after the conclusion of a charity auction at The Times Center in New York City on Monday. Photo: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Russia

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Share of American public versus journalists who say news organizations do a good job at &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Data: Pew Research Center; Chart: Nicki Camberg/Axios Visuals

There is a massive gap between how the U.S. public and journalists rate the performance of news organizations, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

Why it matters: While 65% of the 11,889 surveyed journalists said news outlets do a "very" or "somewhat" good job at reporting the news accurately, only 35% of the 9,388 polled adults agreed.

By the numbers: 41% of the public said the media does a "good" job covering the most important stories of the day, compared to 67% of journalists who said the same.

Both the public and journalists were largely critical of news industry's ability to manage or correct misinformation, with only 25% adults and 43% journalists saying it has done a good job.

The public and journalists were also quite critical of the industry's ability to  give a voice to those underrepresented in society.

The big picture: Generally, reporters know that the public does not trust media organizations, according to the results of the surveys.

42% of journalists said they believe the public has "little" or "no" trust in information from news organizations, while 44% said they think the public has "some" trust.

That assessment was fairly close to the levels of trust recorded by Pew's survey of U.S. adults. 44% of them said they have "little" or "no" trust in the media and 27% said they had "some."

However, 85% of surveyed journalists said they think that the media organization they work for is trusted by the public.

The bottom line: The results suggest that the news industry as a whole has a major credibility problem in the eyes of the public, which likely reflects the public's historically low trust in media.

Methodology: Figures in this story comes from two 2022 surveys from the Pew Research Center. One was conducted Feb. 16 to March 17 among 11,889 U.S. journalists and has a margin of error of ±1 percentage points. The other was conducted Feb. 7-13 among 9,388 U.S. adults and has a margin of error of ±1.6 percentage points.

Go deeper: Journalism "under digital siege"

The U.S. public thinks journalists aren't doing a good job

44% of polled adults said they have "little" or "no" trust in the media.

Journalism

All Major League Soccer (MLS) games will be streamed exclusively via the Apple TV app starting in 2023, the league and Apple announced Tuesday.

Why it matters: Live sports are one of traditional TV's last big draws, but deals like this one are making it easier than ever for sports fans to cut the cord.

Having every match on one platform also sidesteps the "where's the game?" issue plaguing other sports. Baseball, for instance, is split between regional sports networks (RSNs), ESPN, Apple, and more.

By the numbers: It's a 10-year, $2.5 billion deal, The Athletic reports.

What they're saying: "It's a dream come true for MLS fans, soccer fans, and anyone who loves sports," Apple Services chief Eddy Cue said in a statement. "No fragmentation, no frustration."

Other leagues, teams, and networks are experimenting with new streaming options, too.

For example: NESN, home of the Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins, is prepping a first-of-its-kind standalone streaming platform available without a cable login — but it'll cost a whopping $30/month.

Other RSNs, like New York's SNY, are stream-able with a cable login.

Yes, but: It's a risky move for MLS, which is growing but still looking to get a proper foothold.

Our thought bubble: Sports broadcast and streaming arrangements are a complex mess, but this is a fan-friendly setup that shows how it should be done. 

Apple's soccer deal is a huge move for sports fans

Illustration of a television with baseballs, hockey pucks, soccer balls and basketballs.

Live streaming

Axios Media Trends

Top 25 global advertisers by revenue

Data: GroupM; Chart: Simran Parwani/Axios

Five of the world's largest tech companies owned more than half (53%) of all global ad revenues last year, up from 46% last year.

Why it matters: Macroeconomic factors like inflation and rising wages are making it harder for new entrants to disrupt the ad market, analysts explain in the latest midyear ad forecast from GroupM.

The world's top 25 advertisers now account for 74% of global advertising spend, up from 68% last year and just 43% in 2016.

While Chinese companies continue to grow their portion of the ad market, they are mostly focused on capturing domestic dollars, with TikTok being the notable exception.

The big picture: Ten years ago, the top five advertisers were mostly U.S. media companies: Google, Viacom and CBS, News Corp and Fox, Comcast and Disney.

At the time, they only took up 20% of the global ad market, per the report.

While digital has made the ad market more accessible to a wider array of companies than ever, it's also grown the pie significantly in favor of very large firms.

What's next: The global ad market is expected to grow by 8.4% this year (excluding U.S. political advertising), a slightly lower forecast than what experts initially predicted for 2022.

Yes, but: Publishers shouldn't panic. It's a "deceleration, not a decline," said Brian Wieser, global president of business intelligence at GroupM.

"Recession shouldn’t be the base case for what to expect here."

5 tech giants own over half the global ad market

Macroeconomic factors like inflation and rising wages are making it harder for new entrants to disrupt the ad market.

Advertising

Big Tech

From the Valley to D.C., Big Tech players like Facebook, Google and Amazon are under more scrutiny than ever as new technology develops and privacy and antitrust concerns grow in lockstep with companies’ ambitions.

Technology

The Washington Post and Imagine Entertainment have struck a multi-year deal to create scripted and non-scripted film and TV content based on the Post's vast archives, current reporting and ongoing investigations.

Why it matters: It's the Post's first major move into premium video.

Details: The first-look deal gives Imagine exclusive rights to develop and produce all projects based on the Washington Post's intellectual property.

Washington Post publisher and CEO Fred Ryan will oversee the deal with Imagine Entertainment executive chairman Brian Grazer chief strategy officer Justin Wilkes, per a statement.

CAA, which brokered the partnership, will help the Post and Imagine develop new content across different filmed formats.

The big picture: The Post's rich history has long been used to produce blockbuster movies about everything from Watergate to the Pentagon Papers. 

Now, the company is strengthening its relationship with Hollywood in a way that allows it to financially benefit from those types of projects.

"Whether it’s holding the powerful to account or shedding light on an exceptionally compelling narrative, we see tremendous untapped potential for extending the reach of our journalism," Ryan said in a statement.

Between the lines: The Post has increased its investments in video over the past few years, producing livestreams for most major political and national events and pouring heavy resources into beefing up its social video presence on apps like TikTok and YouTube.

It's also produced a slew of short-form documentaries, sometimes with the support of outside partners.

This partnership significantly expands the Post's presence on TV and film, as opposed to mostly digital video investments to date.

It also adds to the long list of the Post's recent expansion projects into areas like health and wellness and consumer technology.

The bottom line: The deal comes as the Post's owner, Jeff Bezos, grows increasingly invested in Hollywood. Amazon recently closed its acquisition of MGM.

Washington Post inks major video deal with Imagine Entertainment

It's the Post's first major move into premium video.

Photo by Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Washington Post

N.Y. Times revenue, overall and digital-only

Reproduced from N.Y. Times; Chart: Axios Visuals

The New York Times on Monday said it's planning to reach 15 million subscribers by the end of 2027, a goal that CEO Meredith Kopit Levien told Axios will help the company become even more profitable in the next three to five years. 

Why it matters: While 15 million is a small fraction of the 135 million people globally that the Times believes are willing to pay for a news subscription today, it's a massive number compared to its peers' subscriber rosters.

The big picture: The new goal marks a significant milestone in the Times' long-term business transformation. 

Now that the company has reached a critical mass of over 9 million subscribers, its next phase of growth is expanding the business opportunities around those paid users.

Details: In a three-hour presentation, executives articulated their strategy to make The Times' subscription offerings more engaging and more profitable. 

The company is experimenting with new products to help cross-promote its current standalone subscription offerings across news, cooking, games, consumer reviews and sports to push subscribers to purchase bundles.

For example, it's testing a new Games tab called “Play” in its News app to get more news subscribers to engage with, and later subscribe to, games. 

"Multiproduct subscribers pay the most and retain best," chief product officer Alex Hardiman noted during the presentation. Bundle subscribers churn at rates approximately 40% lower than news-only subscribers, she explained. 

Executives also offered new details about how the Times plans to expand the business of the Athletic, the digital sports publisher it acquired in January for $550 million.

The Times plans to add the Athletic to its subscription bundle at no extra charge, while also allowing nonsubscribers to sample some free content before they decide to pay. 

The Athletic's publisher, David Perpich, said the company estimates there are roughly 24 million people in the U.S. alone who are willing to pay for sports journalism. 

The Times' ambitious subscription growth goal "includes an assumption about scaling The Athletic" as a standalone business, Kopit Levien said. 

Be smart: A focus on profit will help maintain investor optimism as markets continue to falter.

The Times' stock has fallen 40% year-to-date, erasing all of its pandemic-era gains. 

Investors have grown especially wary of consumer subscription businesses in the streaming space that quickly scaled users at the expense of growing profits. 

Between the lines: The Times continues to invest heavily in the subscription model because it has "very attractive unit economics," Kopit Levien told Axios. 

The cost of serving a new subscription is so low that even when people pay very little for it, profit margins are high, she said.

Because the company has invested so much in cross-promoting its subscription products to the 100 million+ monthly users who visit the Times for free, it doesn't need to spend heavily on user acquisition. 

As a result, the company expects its marketing to decline in the midterm future, which will improve profits. The Times said it plans to improve its adjusted operating profit margin growth rate by 9–12% in the next three to five years. 

The Times hasn't disclosed what its current average revenue per subscriber is, but executives said product improvements will increase how much money it can make per subscriber over time. 

What's next: Asked if the Times was eyeing other subscription offerings, Kopit Levien said sports was "a clear missing piece" in its bundle offering, but "we don't feel like there's a gaping hole in the portfolio at this point."

"I would say right now, we're incredibly focused on the connectivity of the products we have," she said. 

The company is still experimenting with a subscription offering for kids. Kopit Levien declined to offer further details on that product's status. 

The bottom line: Asked about further acquisitions, Kopit Levien said, "I would never rule anything out, but what I will say is our plate is pretty full right now in terms of the value we have to offer."

NYT CEO outlines plans to reach 15 million subscribers by 2027

The publisher aims to keep growing its online subscription base — and the profits that flow from it.

The New York Times

The Washington Post is looking to double down on its investment in its tech publishing arm, Arc XP, despite outside sales interest valuing the company in the low nine figures, sources told Axios.

Why it matters: The company sees more long-term value in trying to grow the business than sell it now, executives told Axios. 

"I personally think that in the long run — and by long run, I mean, three, four years, not 15 years — Arc XP will be the biggest source of revenue for the Post, and certainly the most profitable source of revenue for the Post," said Shailesh Prakash, chief information officer at The Post. 

By the numbers: Arc XP brings in roughly $40-$50 million in annual recurring (subscription-based) revenue (ARR), sources told Axios. 

Software as a service (SaaS) companies typically are valued between 10 to 20 times the amount of ARR. At the time when offers were presented to The Post last year, the markets were valuing SaaS companies higher than they are today. 

For now, Arc XP isn't profitable, because the company is focusing on investing in its growth. "We are not a capital-constrained company," Prakash said. "It's never a question of funding, it's always a question of, is it the right thing to do?"

Catch up quick: The Washington Post launched Arc XP in 2015, then called Arc, with the backing of owner Jeff Bezos. 

Bezos remains heavily invested in the business, and much of Arc XP's business relies on Amazon Web Services technology. 

Driving the news: In addition to ARR, Arc XP has long made money charging people for professional services, or consultative fees associated with helping people set up their accounts and customize them. 

Now, it's cutting back on its professional services business in favor of pushing more aggressively into selling software licensing deals, which are more lucrative and less capital intensive. 

That pivot, which is common for young SaaS businesses, could be more profitable in the long term but has eaten at growth in the short term. 

Arc XP executives have been saying for years that they expect the business to bring in $100 million in revenue "in the next 3-5 years," but it still has yet to meet that goal, in part due to this transition out of professional services. 

Details: Looking ahead, the company is making significant changes to begin growing revenue and profits faster than it has done to date. 

It's developing a much more robust sales and customer services infrastructure, as opposed to investing the vast majority of its hiring resources in engineering.

"It really is about creating more of a velocity in revenue growth," saidArcXP president Miki King — the Post's former chief marketing officer — who was hired last year to oversee Arc XP's business pivot.

The goal, King said, is to triple the number of customers it signs per month, which is typically around one to three new companies. 

Currently, Arc XP's technology is licensed to over 2,000 companies, up from about 1,500 a year ago. A much larger portion of those clients is outside of media and entertainment, although that remains the service's largest client base. 

Be smart: King's hire was seen internally and externally as a signal that The Post wasn't interested in spinning off the business, at least not yet. 

In the months since King was hired, the company restructured its team and hired new senior leaders in revenue. Scot Gillespie, Arc XP's longtime engineering lead, exited the company amid those changes earlier this year. 

It also put into effect a new bonus structure this spring to incentivize engineers to work at The Post in an increasingly competitive talent market. 

The big picture: Under King's leadership, Arc XP has also started to pivot from providing software for media publishers to selling to enterprise clients — specifically, those looking for tools to build commerce businesses. 

It recently signed AvalonBay Communities, a real estate investment trust. The Golden State Warriors, a longtime customer, has recently expanded its partnership with Arc XP to begin licensing its CMS SuiteExchange platform to other sports teams.

Media publishers don't always provide similarly lucrative commerce opportunities, but they continue to aid the company's global expansion. Arc XP recently brought on The Irish Times and Mexico's El Financiero as customers.

"We are completely bullish on our opportunities outside of broad media and publishing," King said. "And it will be with those brands that have the greatest opportunity for really optimizing the intersection of content and commerce."

Yes, but: These transitions haven't come without pain points. 

As Arc XP grew, smaller media publishers felt that its software was becoming too advanced for their needs, forcing Arc XP to simplify parts of its publishing product.

Internally, The Post's engineers worried Arc XP was becoming too simplified to meet The Post's own publishing needs. 

Eventually, The Post engineers created their own version of a content management system (CMS) based on Arc XP's code that they call Spectrum to power parts of The Post's website.

Bottom line: Arc XP "is clearly the third leg" of the revenue stool that supports The Post, in addition to advertising and subscriptions, Prakash said.

WaPo to keep software business, despite sale talks

The software arm isn't growing as fast as once predicted.

Illustration of a column pedestal with a cursor under glass.  

Sunday's Tony Awards marked Broadway's most racially diverse season — with  Michael R. Jackson's "A Strange Loop," about a gay, Black theater artist, winning the best new musical crown, per AP.

The big picture: Jennifer Hudson co-produced the show, meaning she's now the 17th person to achieve EGOT status, adding a Tony to the collection of Emmy, Grammy and Oscar awards that the singer and actress already won.  

Toby Marlow and Lucy Mo at the 75th Annual Tony Awards in the Radio City Music Hall in New York City, on Sunday. 

Toby Marlow and Lucy Mo at the 75thaAnnual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, on Sunday. Photo: Mary Kouw/CBS via Getty Images

The event, now in its 75th year, saw "MJ," a bio-musical about Michael Jackson, win four awards — including Myles Frost's for Best Lead Actor.

Frost paid tribute to his mother in his acceptance speech, saying she "taught me and showed me what a strong Black woman is and what it means to raise a strong Black man."

Of note: British composer Toby Marlow became the Tony Awards' first openly nonbinary winner, taking home Best Original Score alongside writer Lucy Moss for "Six: The Musical," the Press Association reports.

Marianne Elliott achieved the feat of being the only woman to have won three Tonys for directing, after winning for "Company" on Sunday, according to AP.

Meanwhile, L Morgan Lee was the first openly transgender artist to be nominated in the theater awards, now in their 75th year, in the actress category, for "A Strange Loop,"  Variety notes. The award went to Patti LuPone for "Company." 

For the record: Other big wins went to "The Lehman Trilogy" for best play, "Company" for best musical revival and "Take Me Out" for best revival of a play. 

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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Tony Awards' historic night

The event, now in its 75th year, saw several firsts achieved.

Michael R. Jackson and Jennifer Hudson are seen at the 75th Annual Tony Awards press room at 3 West Club on June 12, 2022 in New York City. 

Michael R. Jackson and Jennifer Hudson at the 75th annual Tony Awards in New York City on Sunday. Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions

Broadway

The Wall Street Journal on Monday will unveil a brand new commerce website called "Buy Side from WSJ," featuring hundreds of reviews for various consumer goods and personal finance products.

Why it matters: Unlike The Journal's news site, Buy Side will remain free, helping The Journal attract new audiences, while also bringing in new types of revenue. 

"We see this as a logical step for us to take," said chief revenue officer Josh Stinchcomb, who will oversee the new venture. 

"It's an extension and expansion of our mission, which is to provide the most trusted source of journalism, data and analysis to help people make decisions."

Details: Buy Side will launch as a separate section within The Journal's website. Keeping the section free will help the company tap into more search ad revenue coming from Google, Stinchcomb said.

Buy Side will have its own product and marketing teams. It will be staffed by a small team of its own writers, editors and subject-matter experts, as well as a group of freelance contributors to provide expertise on topics. 

Freelancers are given criteria to reference when making recommendations to ensure they align with The Journal's editorial mission and standards, said Leslie Yazel, the editor and head of content at WSJ Commerce. 

Exclusive: WSJ debuts new commerce site "Buy Side"

Buy Side will remain free, helping The Journal attract new audiences, while also bringing in new types of revenue.

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