Mixed Signals from Semafor Media
Every Friday media reporter Max Tani and Semafor Editor-in-Chief Ben Smith pull back the curtain on the most important stories about media, revealing why you see and hear what you see and hear. Mixed Signals from Semafor Media is supported by Think with Google.
Show episodes
Nick Denton, the founder of Gawker, more or less disappeared from the Internet in 2017, after a public legal battle with Hulk Hogan (backed by Peter Thiel) resulted in the site being shut down… That is until earlier this month, when Denton suddenly reappeared on X, tweeting over 200 times over the course of days. In hi
YouTube is undeniably the dominant media platform of the moment, and it’s increasingly the go-to place for what used to be an audio-only medium: podcasts. Last month, the company announced that podcasts on YouTube rack up 1 billion viewers a month. This week, Ben and Max bring on CEO Neal Mohan to talk about how YouTub
Does Mass Culture Still Matter? And How Snoop Dogg Mastered Commerce, with Frank Cooper
In this moment of media fragmentation and the rise of niche communities, are there still ways to reach mass audiences? This week, Ben and Max bring on legendary marketing executive, Frank Cooper, who’s always been at the center of big cultural shifts from his time at Def Jam in the 90s, AOL in the 2000s, and BuzzFeed i
Inside the Independent Creator World, with Substack’s Hamish McKenzie – and Nayeema Raza
This week, we get an inside look at the independent creator model of media with a two-part conversation: First, Ben and Max interview Substack co-founder and chief writing officer, Hamish McKenzie, about the platform’s appeal for the resistance on the left, their move into video, and why they turned down Elon Musk’s of
New York Times Editor Joe Kahn, Podcaster Megyn Kelly and More on the Collapse of Trust
Today, we have a special bonus episode: Ben and Max break down the most interesting moments from the Innovating to Restore Trust in News summit held last week in Washington, D.C. They discuss Gallup’s findings on the worsening trust in news media, New York Times executive editor Joe Kahn’s acknowledgment that Donald Tr
The 97th Academy Awards are this weekend, giving us a glimpse into the past and future of Hollywood and the entertainment industry. For an insider’s take on the state of the business and how the Academy works, Ben and Max bring on Matt Belloni, founding partner of Puck and host of The Town podcast. They talk about Netf
