| Brian Stelter here at 11:01pm ET on Monday, Sept. 27 with the latest on Barack Obama, TikTok, CAA-ICM, Activision Blizzard, Will Smith, "SNL," and much more...
Media mirage?  The Ozy story isn't over. In fact, it's only just beginning.
The New York Times' expose about Carlos Watson's mirage of a media company has onlookers asking all sorts of questions. Fraud accusations are piling up. Follow-up stories are in the works. And FBI agents may be investigating an Ozy exec's impersonation of a YouTube exec on a call with bankers, according to Ben Smith's reporting.
Beyond Ozy, this story is about digital media spin; business models that don't pass a simple smell test; and unbelievable web metrics that people pretend to believe until forced to face facts. Gawker's Jenny G. Zhang said it best on Monday: "It is generally safe to assume that most once-buzzy digital media upstarts are houses of cards built on shaky valuations and inflated audience numbers that no one should invest in expecting huge returns (not us, though, we're different)."
If you haven't read the original story yet, check it out here. Watson, a very well-connected media personality who was once a political analyst on CNN, called the story a "ridiculous hitjob" and accused Smith of conflicts of interest. Smith DOES have many conflicts and many interests, but his reporting about Ozy was buttoned up. Watson's responses to the assertions about Ozy's inflated audience basically boil down to "trust us, we're really popular." All day long, reporters and other social media commenters said they never see Ozy content while surfing the web, so it's exceedingly hard to believe that the startup has tens of millions of engaged customers. In some ways, the Ozy mirage has been the biggest open secret in digital media. Now it has been subjected to a harsh spotlight, with much more still to come...
Watson's next appearance
Awkward timing: The Ozy CEO is slated to host the Documentary Emmy Awards ceremony this Wednesday. It will take place on a livestream at 8pm ET.
Smith's story noted that a Watson-led show on Oprah Winfrey's network "won an Emmy last year in the category of news discussion and analysis." When I checked in with Emmys organizers on Monday, thinking maybe Watson had backed out, I was told there had been no change in plans. "We've long featured past nominees and winners as presenters and hosts. He won last year, and was invited back this year," a rep said.
Top reactions
-- Watson's rebuttal to the NYT piece was largely trashed by Twitter commenters. As far as I can tell, the only people who replied with positive things to say about Ozy were immediately identified as possible astroturf accounts.
-- Johan Moreno, who said he has been "tracking Ozy's questionable ad claims for YEARS," shared some of his favorites on Monday. He also pointed out that Ozy has 655,000 followers on Instagram but virtually no engagement, a clear red flag.
-- Krystal Ball wrote: "Look at the stats for this YouTube video" on Ozy's channel. "90,000 views but only 12 likes and a single comment in which someone points out what an obvious scam it is."
-- A quick scroll through Twitter, too, shows lots of Ozy content being posted without any discernible engagement. Watson might say he's trying to produce positive, nutritious content, but if it's not being consumed, does it matter?
-- Peter Sterne commented: "For what it's worth, I always assumed that Ozy's aim was to create the appearance of a millennial digital media company in order to score TV development deals."
-- One of the only Ozy defenders I spotted on Monday was a writer for the site, Andy Hirschfeld, who said "I regularly get reader emails for my work there. There is an audience." He added, "Also, the editors I work with there are some of the best I've worked with anywhere in the business." Hirschfeld posted this thread with details...
Legal jeopardy?
The details in Smith's story about Watson's co-founder Samir Rao impersonating a YouTube exec on a call with Goldman Sachs -- in the midst of due diligence during a fundraising round -- led Bloomberg Opinion columnist Matt Levine, a former Goldman banker, to opine, "You're just not going to get an easier securities fraud case than that." With astonishment, Levine noted that "nobody has been charged with anything, and Watson and Rao remain at Ozy and keep raising money." Watson said Rao was suffering a mental health crisis at the time it happened... And Rao hasn't said a word about it... FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE -- With all news-junkie eyes on Capitol Hill right now, I appreciated this Christine Romans story because it was written with the average news consumer in mind. "Your wallet is on the line," she wrote, "and "Washington has to get this week right..." (CNN)
-- The conviction of R. Kelly was the lead story across the network nightly newscasts on Monday. He will be sentenced next May...
-- Gloria Allred "said the verdict was also a message to other celebrities who prey on others," Sonia Moghe reports... (CNN)
-- On Tuesday's WaPo front page, "FBI says killings soared in 2020" is paired with this heart-wrenching personal story: "Two kids, a loaded gun and the man who left a 4-year-old to die..." (WaPo) Britney Vs Spears launches overnight
Erin Lee Carr's Netflix film, "Britney Vs Spears," will start streaming at 3:01am ET on Tuesday. Judging by the attention it's getting on social media, some Spears super-fans will be staying up late or waking up early to watch it. Carr (who, full disclosure, is a longtime friend) has been working on this project for more than two years. She tweeted out on Monday morning, "Britney deserves answers."
Along those same lines, there will be a congressional hearing on the matter of "toxic conservatorships" on Tuesday afternoon. Invoking Spears, and saying that reforms are needed to protect many others in similar situations, Senators Richard Blumenthal and Ted Cruz will hold a hearing at 2:30pm ET. All of this, of course, is leading up to Wednesday's court proceeding in the Spears case... TUESDAY PLANNER Gen. Mark Milley and other military officials testify at a Senate hearing that starts at 9:30am ET...
New nonfiction releases include "Believing" by Anita Hill...
Code Conference will continue in Beverly Hills... Ted Sarandos made lots of news on stage on Monday...
"No Time To Die" will have its world premiere in London... The red carpet scene will stream exclusively on Facebook...
The first night of the News & Doc Emmys will be livestreamed at 8pm ET...
The Reporters Committee will hold its annual Freedom of the Press Awards...  Obama speaks to Roberts
Every interview with Barack Obama these days qualifies as a "rare" interview. This one, with ABC's Robin Roberts, is pegged to Tuesday's groundbreaking for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. A preview of the interview aired on "World News Tonight" ahead of the rollout on "GMA." Obama said the investments proposed by President Biden are "desperately needed." Here's the clip and story... "The View" addresses false positives
Oliver Darcy writes: "The cohosts of 'The View' on Monday addressed the false Covid-19 tests that threw the show — along with plans to interview VP Kamala Harris — into chaos. Producer Brian Teta, who was heard off camera on Friday telling hosts Sunny Hostin and Ana Navarro to exit the set, explained that he was only thinking about keeping the hosts and VP safe. 'That led to some really awkward television that I'd like to have back if I could,' he explained. The segment got more emotional when Hostin recounted how the false alarm affected her family, saying the episode was 'triggering' given she had eulogized her in-laws who died recently from Covid. The Daily Beast's Justin Baragona has more here..." Big winner of the pandemic: TikTok
TikTok "now has has more than 1 billion monthly active users around the world, making it the rare social media application not owned by Facebook or Google to claim an audience of that size," CNN's Clare Duffy wrote Monday. "The short-form video app's popularity surged as people spent more time on their phones during the pandemic. It has also both benefited from and fueled the growth of the creator industry, as more people look to make a living from posting content to social media sites."
>> Scoreboard: Instagram "hit 1 billion monthly users in June 2018. By contrast, Snapchat, which has been around nearly twice as long, said earlier this year that it had reached 500 million monthly active users. When Twitter last reported this metric in 2019, it had 330 million monthly active users..." FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO -- Dr. Rochelle Walensky urgently needs a better answer to this Q: "Are masks with us for a long, long time? Years? Forever?" When Shep Smith asked, she expressed hope that "we will one day be able to get rid of those masks," making it sound far in the distant future... (Twitter)
-- Sophia Smith Galer writes about how some doctors "are being forced off Clubhouse by anti-vax harassment..." (Vice)
-- With his televised booster shot on Monday, "Biden continues a strong tradition of public figures setting a public health example, by getting flu shots etc in public," James Fallows says... (Twitter)
-- Jon Porter writes about how NBCU is getting "super aggressive" in its dispute with YouTube TV... (The Verge)
-- Spotify is beginning "its first global brand campaign designed to court marketers" as the company "tries to expand the revenue it collects from advertising..." (WSJ)
-- "The Largest Autocracy on Earth:" Adrienne LaFrance makes the case that Facebook should be viewed as "a foreign state, populated by people without sovereignty, ruled by a leader with absolute power..." (The Atlantic) Facebook pauses Instagram Kids
Oliver Darcy writes: "Ahead of a Congressional hearing this week, and on the heels of WSJ's reporting, FB said Monday it would pause building Instagram Kids, a version of the app meant to be used for children under the age of 13. Exec Adam Mosseri made the announcement in a blog post and appeared on the 'Today' show to explain it. Mosseri said in the interview that he still does 'firmly believe' that 'it's a good thing to build a version' of the app 'designed to be safe for tweens.' But he said the company would take more time to talk to parents and experts before moving forward. CNN Business' Samantha Murphy Kelly has more details here..."
"The ultimate product manager"
Darcy adds: "During the 'Today' show interview, Craig Melvin asked Mosseri whether the two of them would even have been having a convo about Instagram Kids if not for WSJ's 'Facebook Files' reporting. Mosseri said he believed it was 'impossible to say.' But it's hard not to draw the connection. As NYT's Ryan Mac commented after the announcement that it once again proves 'public perception is still the ultimate product manager at Facebook...'" FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE -- This just in: "Activision Blizzard will pay $18 million to settle a lawsuit by a US government agency alleging harassment and discrimination," Rishi Iyengar reports...(CNN)
-- The Wikimedia Foundation announced Rebecca MacKinnon would join as its first VP for global advocacy who will work to "establish and defend a legal and regulatory landscape essential to the future of free knowledge globally..." (WikiMedia)
-- TechCrunch announced it is "changing the name of our membership product to TechCrunch+" which aims to provide "advice and analysis to help startups..." (TechCrunch)
-- Correction: Last night I said Andrew Yang's book was slated to come out on Tuesday. It's actually due out next Tuesday, Oct. 5. D'oh... New 'oral biography' of Anthony Bourdain
"Laurie Woolever's new book 'Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography' exemplifies its subject's unapologetic and unbridled world view, with a narrative that favors honesty over hagiography," Leah Bhabha writes for Vogue. "The biography is told entirely through thoughtfully deployed quotes from the TV host and author's inner circle." And it is honest about Anthony's darkness as well as his light. "He wasn't someone who only wanted to show you the shiny, polished side," Woolever says. "He was willing to point out his own failures and shortcomings and not live up to the world's ideals. That made me comfortable sharing the good with the bad." The book is out Tuesday... "NO NEWS MONDAY"
Oliver Darcy writes: "A TV station in the Pacific Northwest skipped its morning and afternoon broadcasts so that staff could participate in a Poynter-led program aimed at improving their mental health. KATU-TV photojournalist Mike Warner shared the news about 'NO NEWS MONDAY.' He said that 'the entire news team' at the station was 'attending a seminar to help deal with on-the-job stress and trauma,' noting that in his 25 years as a photojournalist he's 'never seen a newsroom do this.' Warner added, 'It's hard for us news folks to stop. But I am grateful for a company and managers who care about our mental health and well being...'" FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR By Kerry Flynn:
-- NYT is "changing one of its major pathways to the newsroom, and it's picked a military metaphor," Joshua Benton writes of the new program called The New York Times Corps... (Nieman Lab)
-- Sara Guaglione looks at publishers' coverage of the climate crisis ahead of COP26 such as initiatives from Bloomberg, The Economist and FT... (Digiday)
-- Another from Guaglione: Axios' local news expansion plans include being in 25 markets by Q3 2022. GM Ted Williams says his team will bring in $4 million to $5 million this year... (Digiday)
-- NPR has named Nick Charles its new chief culture editor. He was most recently managing director at Word in Black... (NPR)
-- "CBS named veteran local media exec Joel Vilmenay president and general manager of CBS News and Stations' businesses in Los Angeles several months after an internal investigation into racism and misogyny at the stations led to high-profile ousters in LA and Chicago..." (Deadline) Sorting out the agency alphabet
Brian Lowry writes: "The 'landmark' CAA-ICM deal, announced Monday, has numerous implications, the most obvious being that these agencies feel the need to consolidate in order to have more leverage in dealing with giant studios and tech companies in a streaming world, where the formula for getting a share of the pie has changed, with the Scarlett Johansson lawsuit against Disney over 'Black Widow' cited as an example. The news is also sure to set off shock waves within the talent guilds, which have understandable reason to be worried about larger agencies whose interests might not necessarily align with that of their clients – a concern that already triggered the acrimonious dispute with the Writers Guild. And while CAA's Richard Lovett told Variety that the united agency would possess 'more resources as a result of working together for clients than ever before,' that scale also creates the risk of smaller clients getting lost in the shuffle..." Elizabeth Holmes' relationship with the media is also on trial
With Elizabeth Holmes' criminal case underway in a San Jose federal court, her relationship with the media keeps coming up in the courtroom. "The allegations against her include leveraging the media to defraud investors," Sara Ashley O'Brien writes. Of course, the dominos started to fall for Holmes after John Carreyrou started sniffing around. "Carreyrou and another journalist, Roger Parloff, are both listed as possible witnesses in the trial which is slated to continue into December," O'Brien writes. "Parloff, who wrote a glowing look at Theranos for Fortune that he later retracted, is listed as a possible government witness; Carreyrou, as a possible Holmes witness." Read her full story for CNN Business here...
O'Brien adds: "When William Evans, the father of Holmes' partner, posed as a random man named 'Hanson' during jury selection and chatted up reporters, he told me Carreyrou would soon be 'out of a job' -- referring to a possible subpoena order -- which struck me as odd that an average man attending the trial would be familiar with Carreyrou by name. (Carreyrou is currently hosting a podcast about the trial.) If you missed the 'Hanson' story, you'll want to start by reading NPR reporter Bobby Allyn's story. If you're itching for more after that, here's a short Twitter thread of what happened when I confronted Evans about his true identity before it became clearer as to why he was really in attendance..." FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE -- "Bruce Berman is stepping down as chairman and CEO of Village Roadshow Pictures" after a 24-year run... (Variety)
-- Eriq Gardner's latest is about Disney's "Avengers-sized legal problems..." (THR)
-- For this week's cover of NYMag, Camonghne Felix interviewed Simone Biles about Tokyo and more... (The Cut)
-- And for November's cover of GQ, Wesley Lowery profiled Will Smith, who is out promoting a new memoir. They spoke about "his life, his marriage, his forthcoming projects and about storytelling – the stories people believe about us, the stories we believe about ourselves, and the gulf between those two things," Lowery tweeted... (GQ)  The Tonys, the day after
-- The ratings for Sunday's big billboard for Broadway's comeback were disappointing. Although apples to apples comparisons are hard to make, it looks like the prime time special on CBS had an "all-time low viewership" of 2.6 million viewers... (Deadline)
-- The LAT's Charles McNulty said the "weirdly concocted Tony Awards was the booster shot Broadway needed. Playbill collected other reviews here... (LAT)
-- Michael Schulman writes that the Tony Awards ceremony was a "pep rally and a processing of trauma, but it also raised questions about inclusivity..." (New Yorker)  Beck Bennett leaving "SNL"
"SNL" regular Beck Bennett "is departing the NBC late night show," but the "rest of the core cast will return for SNL's 47th season," THR's Rick Porter reports. "Lauren Holt, who was a featured player last season, also isn't returning. The remainder of last season's cast" will all be back... FOR THE RECORD, PART SIX -- "Drake held onto the No. 1 spot on the album chart for a third straight week..." (Variety)
-- "Netflix's 'On My Block' might be gearing up to premiere its fourth and final season on October 4, but its universe is expanding with the spinoff series 'Freeridge...'" (Deadline)
-- Lisa Respers France writes: "Singer Kelly Price was the subject of a missing persons report after her family said they lost contact with her after she was hospitalized for Covid-19. Price has now broken her silence -- and says she almost died from the virus..." (CNN)
-- France spoke with singer/reality TV judge Kelly Rowland about life planning amid the pandemic... (CNN) SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST...
Pet of the day!
Reader Stuart Pruzansky emails: "This is our new puppy, Archie! He's a new viewer to the show but doesn't know how to read yet...."   Thank you for reading. Email us your feedback anytime. Oliver will be in the saddle tomorrow... Share this newsletter:
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