The Media Beat

Hosted by Maureen Kerr and Claire Tavernier

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Latest episode

Jun 2026

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About the show

Maureen Kerr leads Arthur D Little's Media practice and Claire Tavernier is a renowned commentator and advisor on all things media. Oliver is none of these.

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60 recent

June 2, 2026Episode 9750 min

The Substack Effect, James Murdoch's Media Bet, and an AI Movie | The Media Beat #97

The ways we consume news and opinion continue to evolve rapidly. In this Deep Dive Double Header, Claire and Maureen take us through how this has happened and what is means for consumer, creator and those hoping to make a buck. News covers the opening of the new Murdoch chequebook, Ofcom spreading its influence in the UK and AI scraps. You will be pleased to see a noticeable uptick in Podmoji apparatus as we go through good news for Neon, UMG and SNL UK.

May 21, 2026Episode 9656 min

World Cup Rights, Creator Upfronts and Cannes Gets Complicated | The Media Beat #96

Everyone knows we are but a few weeks away from the planet's greatest sporting event, but how much do we know about the fascinating and mind-blowing world of sports rights? It's a double header this time as both Maureen and Claire grab hold of the subject and take us through the whole business, how quick the space is changing and what is new for WC2026. 2026 Upfronts and Cannes are in the news as is the Actors Unions vs AI. Claire has to improvise wildly during podmojis but they both still find time to give us the scoop on an Amazon purchase, a big goodbye and what follows Resident Evil.

May 7, 2026Episode 9548 min

An Ode to Soaps, AI Court Dramas and Podslop | The Media Beat #95

A gripping, heart-stopping, fingernail biting Deep Dive this time on.... Soaps!: from their origins, business models, ridiculous plots and superstar launchpads - Claire has it all. We also look at Disney's super app, comings and goings in the music industry and playground scraps featuring Mr Musk! Podmojis look at "podslop", getting fit with Spotify and who bought the drinks at the Met Gala!

April 28, 2026Episode 9447 min

Netflix Pivots to Attention, AI studios and a Golden Pear Affair | The Media Beat #94

We've talked about it many times before but surprisingly these have been mere shallow dives: we put that right today with an appropriately marathon Deep Dive on... Netflix. In the news features layoffs, The Netflix of China and Zaslav's parachute. As ever we close with Podmojis which covers soaps, takeovers and scandal!

April 17, 2026Episode 9351 min

The $64bn Music Gamble & The Death of Sora | The Media Beat #93

This time the theme is "music" - which means a stunning deep dive on the history and business of music publishing and other mentions of this wonderful medium splattered throughout. The news includes shocks, scandals and the leader of the free world and we find out who got free cabbage this week.

April 3, 2026Episode 9251 min

The Messy Mess of Kids' Content, With Guest Emily Horgan | The Media Beat #92

This time we welcome back a very special guest: Emily Horgan, independent kids media consultant, former Disney executive and Dublin-based. She is author of the Netflix Kids Content Performance Report (now in its fifth edition) and the Kids StreamerSphere newsletter. She’s the only analyst doing this systematically on Netflix engagement data, which gives her a distinctive view.

March 17, 2026Episode 9157 min

The Future of Talk Shows, Big Mergers, and Netflix’s Ad Strategy | The Media Beat #91

Everyone loves a talk show don't they? So how about a Deep Dive on them from the beginnings in the US to the innovations in the UK! We have news of mergers, collaborations and legal battles and chat about Auntie Beeb, The Oscars and hardening up the FBI!

March 6, 2026Episode 9050 min

Podcast Economics & The Art of Walking Away from $110bn - The Media Beat #90

You will be thrilled to hear that we have a Deep Dive Double Header this time with Claire taking on podcasts and Maureen all things M&A. Both are gripping and so full of content that we only have time for two podmojis!

February 17, 2026Episode 8959 min

The "High-Stakes" World of AAA Gaming & The Media Economics Shift | The Media Beat #89

We give you our long awaited AAA Gaming Deep Dive this time and it doesn't disappoint: find out all about the origins, the economics and the accuracies of equine thermodynamics! Add to that YouTube "Skinny Bundles", it all going off at Anthropic and new faces at the top of Disney together with two sporting marquee events and a world of auto-romance and you have yourselves a whopper of an Ep.! Enjoy.

January 30, 2026Episode 8853 min

The Post-Peak World: Luminate 2025 and TikTok’s New Reality | The Media Beat #88

There is too much news to fit in a Deep Dive this time what with all the buzz around Luminate, TikTok, Netflix and the BBC partnering with YouTube so we haven't got one. Podmojis feature a "live" prop and we "beam" Maureen in from a swanky hotel in 'Frisco!