Television writers and creatives in Hollywood spend a lot of time focused on the differences between linear television, streaming and online platforms. Is YouTube really TV? Is a movie that’s released on streaming inherently inferior to a theatrical movie release? Is so-called “creator” programming equal to what is being produced by legacy studios?
The truth is those questions are a lot less important than you might think. The lines between all of it have blurred so much that it almost doesn’t matter anymore. What matters now is how you get that content in front of audiences. How you best monetize it and build a relationship with audiences. Whether you are working for Jimmy Kimmel Live! or the Try Guys, the challenges are the same.
Yesterday, I spoke with Chronicle Studio CEO Aaron Sisto and co-founder Scott Greenberg about how that company can connect creators with their audiences on YouTube.
I’ll be posting the full interview on Tuesday, but I wanted to share these comments from Aaron, because I think they’re worth thinking about over the holiday weekend:
It's because there's an algorithm standing between you and the audience now. So, that's the major kind of shift that makes YouTube and social look very different than traditional, than linear.
And it's something that people really have not wrapped their heads around yet. This is the kind of dark art of how do you grow on social? And that's the problem that we're solving.
So, broadly speaking, it's how do you make sure that as a creator, a brand studio, a network, you can get in front of your highest value target audience, and bring them to you? As opposed to just waiting for it to happen, waiting for the algorithm to organically find them, which in most cases does not happen.
And when you look at it from that perspective, what Chronicle does is it basically let you tap into this top of funnel audience that you may not have even known existed, and drive them to your brand, to your creator channel, to your merch store, to a destination that you own and control, so that you can actually engage with them directly.
What that means more practically speaking is, you know, our platform has indexed over 99% of YouTube channels. So we have this bird's eye view of the social landscape, and what that lets us do is that we're able to start simulating how your content plays with niche audience segments across YouTube, which isn't something you can do today. There's no other way for you to be able to know "I'm a food channel, but my content plays really well with people that like watching daytime sports on their phone," right? Or people that wake up in the morning and like to watch podcasts on their TV?
So, we are finally able to give you visibility into this audience map on YouTube, and because we are able to simulate your content with these cohorts, we can tell you which ones actually like your content and want to engage with you. And that's the big unlock, this audience simulation capability, because what we're able to do from there is we can actually target those audiences, drive new viewer traffic to your channel, and then optimize your channel and content for these new audiences to be able to capture and retain them. So, we're essentially growing your fan base and giving you full control over that growth.
I’ll link to the full interview on Tuesday and I have more of these types of interviews on the way. I’ll be at ScreenTV in Denver next month, so if you plan on being there, please reach out, I’d love to connect with you.
Inside Colbert’s Success
There are hundreds of Stephen Colbert pieces coming out this week, but the most fascinating one I’ve read comes from Jonathan Alter, whose wife Emily Lazar worked at both The Colbert Report and The Late Show.
The piece has a lot of great details about the people behind the cameras who helped make both shows a success, including this tidbit:
In The New York Times this week, Bill Carter writes that Chris Licht, best known for being fired as president of CNN, was responsible for stabilizing The Late Show after a rocky start in 2016 by injecting more material lampooning Trump. This ticked me off because I was an eyewitness to what really happened. At the 2016 Democratic Convention in Philadelphia and the Republican Convention in Cleveland, I watched as Emily pleaded in vain with Licht to include more Trump material and political guests at the conventions and beyond. He ignored her before finally adopting her recommendation after Trump won.
I recommend reading the piece and it makes me think that Emily is someone I would be interested in interviewing.
Early Episodes Of ‘Jackass’ Return To Paramount+
The first three seasons of Jackass are returning to Paramount+ today and the reasons behind it are kind of interesting.
The streamer pulled seasons one through three from the service late last year by the request of the show's creators, who wanted to "revisit and restore key creative elements that had been altered over time."
What that apparently means is returning to the episodes to their original versions, after episodes had been repeatedly tweaked and edited over the years to fit expanded ad breaks on broadcast TV.
"In the time since the release of Jackass 26 years ago, the television episodes had been re-edited, re-sequenced, and re-scored to the point they were unrecognizable. I found this out the hard way last year when attempting to watch them. Eeek! But kudos to Paramount for giving us the $$ to restore the shows to how they initially aired in the first place. We can’t wait until you see all the terrible things we did to each other way back then and in the manner we intended!"
As for why this is being done now, it might have something to do with the fact that the new film Jackass: Best And Last hits movie theatres on Friday, June 26th.
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‘The Resident’ Co-Creator Claims New ABC Series From Shonda Rhimes Rips Off Her Idea
Amy Holden Jones, who co-created Fox's medical drama The Resident with Hayley Schore and Roshan Sethi, alleged Wednesday in a post on Threads that the Grey’s Anatomy rural Texas-set spinoff announced Tuesday from Grey's creator Shonda Rhimes and Grey’s showrunner Meg Marinis was stolen from her idea:
If you are wondering what our business is like, listen up. I created The Resident. I sold and developed a pilot at ABC that was a cross between a western and a medical show. Rural medicine was key. They loved it and kept it alive as all other pilots fell. Then they abruptly passed in late March. Now they have announced a deal with this exact premise with Shonda Rhimes. This is not unique, it happens all the time.
It’s not personal, it’s business. The quality of my work vs what they develop will be irrelevant. All that matters is their package and her name. Quality is not required to win.
It’s very unusual for this type of allegation to surface publicly. The last time was when a lawsuit was brought against Warner Brothers TV when The Pitt launched after it had been negotiating with the estate of author Michael Crichton to get rights to do an E.R. spin-off.
Odds & Sods
Season two of Avatar: The Last Airbender premieres Thursday, June 25th on Netflix. Here is a first look at the trailer. This is the official logline: "Avatar: The Last Airbender follows Aang, the young Avatar, as he learns to master the four elements (Water, Earth, Fire, Air) to restore balance to a world threatened by the terrifying Fire Nation. In S2, after a bittersweet victory saving the Northern Water Tribe from the invading Fire Nation, Avatar Aang, Katara and Sokka regroup and set off on a mission to convince the elusive Earth King to aid in their battle against fearsome Fire Lord Ozai."
Mat Ishbia, the US businessman and owner of the Phoenix Suns (NBA) and Phoenix Mercury (WNBA) basketball franchises, has agreed a multi-year extension with local broadcast partner Gray Media, under which a new streaming platform will launch to house the rights of both teams.
Netflix announced Thursday that The Breakfast Club, the iHeartMedia morning show co-hosted by Charlamagne Tha God, DJ Envy and Jess Hilarious, will stream live on Netflix every weekday starting Monday, June 1st. Netflix will be the exclusive video home of the show.
Local Titles Lead South Korea’s Most-Completed Netflix Series
This data is interesting, because it really reinforces how import local content is to global streamers.
New Digital i research into Netflix viewing data from South Korea in 2025 suggests that local storytelling dominates not just in popularity, but in audience engagement.
Among the top 10 most-completed Netflix seasons in the country, taken from a sample of the top 100 seasons ranked by reach, every title was produced locally.
And it’s a mix of genres, which suggests that good storytelling is more powerful than any specific type of program.
Netflix Signs New Deals With Japan's NHK & Nippon TV
Netflix has signed two new deals which will greatly expand its offering of Japanese-produced programming.
A new deal with Japanese broadcaster NHK will add 19 dramas to Netflix's global library, including Strategist KANBE; the morning serial Mampuku; Descending Stories: A Life in Rakugo, The Science Club, Tokyo Salad Bowl, and My Family.
Even more interesting is Netflix's deal with Nippon TV to stream the popular variety show, Monday Late Show (aka Getsuyo kara Yofukashi, meaning 'staying up late even on Monday night').
The show is in its 15th year on the air in Japan and airs every Monday at 10:00 p.m. on Nippon TV. The show will be available for catch-up streaming on Netflix.
The series is co-hosted by Shingo Murakami of the group Super Eight, and Japanese TV personality Matsuko Deluxe.
"Monday Late Show is a truly one-of-a-kind program that captures the humor, spontaneity, and unpredictable charm of the people and stories it encounters across Japan," said Rie Sawaoka, director of content for Netflix in Japan, in a statement announcing the deal.
"Its distinctive perspective and unforgettable personalities have made it a long-standing favorite among audiences in Japan."
What’s Coming Tonight And Tomorrow
THURSDAY, MAY 21ST:
George & Mandy's First Marriage Season Two Finale (CBS)
Ghosts Season Five Finale (CBS)
James (Netflix)
Kyle Larson vs. The Double (Prime Video)
SkyMed Season Premiere (Paramount+)
The Boroughs Series Premiere (Netflix)
FRIDAY, MAY 22ND:
Barrabrava (Prime Video)
Everyone Has Something To Hide (LMN)
Josh Johnson: Symphony (HBO)
Ladies First (Netflix)
Mating Season Series Premiere (Netflix)
System (Prime Video)
The Chi Season Premiere (Paramount+)
The Yogurt Shop Murders Bonus Episode (HBO)