I would like to ask you to do me a favor and it has nothing to do with money.
One of my biggest challenges with this newsletter is getting it in front of new readers. Once people start reading it, they are hooked. But I don’t have a big PR or marketing budget and I don’t have some platform on legacy media that I can use to promote myself.
So if you enjoy what I’m doing, I’d like to ask you to share it a couple of friends or coworkers that you think might find it interesting. If you don’t mind doing that, it’ll be to me to keep them around.
What Are People Actually Watching On YouTube?
The “Is YouTube TV? argument has been going on so long that it’s tiresome and pointless. A lot of people are watching YouTube on their televisions, to say nothing of the mobile viewing. It’s becoming the most-watched video platform and Netflix executives often cite YouTube as its biggest competition moving forward.
But what are people actually watching on YouTube? Because if the answer is 80% cat videos and Minecraft walk-throughs, then it’s ability to compete with traditional media for higher-end ad dollars is going to be limited.
The truth is that we don’t know how much of that viewing is of licensed Hollywood films presented with ads and how much is things such as….well, audiobooks:
Illegally copied audiobooks have also turned up on other platforms, where pirates sometimes disguise them as podcasts by breaking them into chapters. But publishers say YouTube presents the biggest challenge, both because the platform is so massive and because YouTube has little incentive to fix the problem — unlike platforms like Apple Books and Spotify, which have financial arrangements with publishers to license or sell their content.
YouTube draws some 2 billion viewers every day. A 2025 survey of audiobook consumers commissioned by the Audio Publishers Association found that 35 percent of them had listened to an audiobook on the platform.
From what I can tell, there isn’t any accurate data available on what people are watching on YouTube. I have talked to various analytic firms who could tell me how much viewing specific genres might get, but that doesn’t provide me any context of how that viewing fits into the overall YouTube viewing universe.
What people are watching is the big question. And given the lack of transparency in the streaming business, I’m not surprised that no one has the answer.
DirecTV Raises Prices On MyEntertainment Bundle
In recent months, I have recommended the DirecTV My Entertainment Bundle to people looking for some live entertainment channels, as well as all the major cable news networks. It costs $34.99 a month, and it includes the Disney+/Hulu bundle with ads as well as HBO Max with ads for free. So that makes it a good deal, especially with the addition of a free, unlimited DVR.
At least, it was a good deal until today, when this email arrived:
Beginning on or after June 25th, 2026, the monthly price of your package will increase and be reflected in your next bill. You can review the full details on this pricing information page. This update is due to ongoing increases in programming and operational costs across the television industry, including expenses related to live sports rights, local broadcast stations, and network content.
So the price is $8 a month, which is a hefty increase nearly 23% a month. And I can’t figure out why the price is jumping so substantially. The MyEntertainment bundle doesn’t include local stations or any live sports networks. So maybe the bundled streaming services are costing more? The other possibility is that the price increase is the result of an agreement between the major media companies and DirecTV, after they threatened to sue the company for splitting their programming into mini-bundles.
I am not sure if the prices are being increased on the other packages, since the prices on the DirecTV web site haven’t been updated yet and the company hasn’t responded to my request for more information.
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Odds & Sods
“The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”
Matt Mitovich’s Matt’s Inside Line newsletter has a good rundown of the various broadcast TV season finales.
The fifth and final season of All The Queen’s Men will premiere Wednesday, June 10th on Paramount+.
Season two of Jay & Pamela premieres Tuesday, June 30th on TLC. Here is the official logline for the season: “Now settled into their own apartment with their beloved dog, Cheddar, Jay and Pamela are thriving as they navigate newfound independence, evolving family dynamics, and all the joyful, messy, and meaningful moments that come with adulthood and long-term partnership. As they dream bigger than ever before, the couple also begins exploring one of the most emotional questions of their journey yet: could a baby be in their future?”
Season six of Ruthless premieres Tuesday, January 30th on Paramount+.
Rob Gronkowski and Jameis Winston are co-hosting The Other Football, a new eight-part weekly talk show which premieres Wednesday, May 27th on Tubi. Here is the official logline: "The Other Football follows hosts Gronk and Jameis as they take on a new crash course during this weekly talk show series airing throughout the 2026 World Cup. Each episode will be packed with special guests, pop culture highlights, and lots of comedy. Come along as Gronk and Jameis turn themselves (and America) into diehard soccer fans before the tournament is over."
Fawesome TV sent out a press release touting their collection of more than 75 John Wayne movies available for streaming in conjunction with Wayne’s 119th birthday today. It says John Wayne's catalog accounts for 41% of total Western viewership on Fawesome. There are a couple of bigger Wayne titles on Fawesome, but to me the most interesting titles are the weird, obscure TV specials that include an appearance by Wayne. And if you’ve never seen a John Wayne film, track down The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, which is a masterpiece.
TV Worth Watching: ‘Frontline: The War Cabinet’
If you are looking for another reason to appreciate PBS’s Frontline, tonight’s The War Cabinet is well worth watching.
When Donald Trump was running for a second Presidential term, one of his primary political talking points was that he wasn’t going to start any new wars. "My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and a unifier," Trump said at his January 2025 inauguration.
And yet since he has become President, he has gotten America into a string of military missions, fights and wars.
That change in philosophy is at the core of The War Cabinet, a 90-minute documentary from Michael Kirk and Mike Wiser (The Rise of RFK Jr.; Trump’s Power & the Rule of Law; Lies, Politics & Democracy).
The doc has extensive interviews with current allies of the President, officials from his first administration, critics, diplomats and journalists.
It illustrates how the President's cabinet - including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, longtime aide Stephen Miller, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Vice President JD Vance - helped form the war stance that has defined Trump's second administration.
This is the type of non-partisan, deeply reported journalism that you won't find on the cable TV networks or other streaming services. It's an example of what makes PBS special and I guarantee you'll feel smarter after you've seen it.
Frontline: The War Cabinet will premiere Tuesday, May 26th 10/9c at pbs.org/frontline, in the PBS App, on PBS stations (check local listings) and on Frontline's YouTube channel. It will also be available on PBS Documentaries on Prime Video.
What’s Coming Tonight And Tomorrow
TUESDAY, MAY 26TH, 2026:
Castle Impossible Season Premiere (HGTV)
Frontline: The War Cabinet (PBS)
Jae-seok's B&B Rules! Series Premiere (Netflix)
The Many Lives Of Benjamin Kyle (Investigation Discovery)
Wingman (Apple TV)
WEDNESDAY, MAY 27TH, 2026:
A Good Girl's Guide To Murder Season Two (Netflix)
Brilliant Minds Season Premiere (NBC)
Kylie: Tension Tour Live (Netflix)
Mystery At Blind Frog Ranch Season Premiere (Discovery)
My Two Cents Series Premiere (Netflix)
Secrets Of The Dead: China's Bronze Kingdom (PBS)
Spider-Noir Series Premiere (Prime Video)
The Rise And Fall Of The Roman Empire (History)
The Testaments Season One Finale (Hulu)