Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Tuesday, November 18th, 2025:
WHY CAN'T I JUST WATCH SPORTS ON TELEVISION?
Stephanie Hayes at The Atlantic makes the complaint that you'll hear from just about every sports fan in 2025: why is it so hard to watch every game of my favorite sports team?:
In what feels like a cruel joke, the NBA League Pass subscription I got for free with my quarter-season Knicks tickets gives me live access to games that aren’t nationally broadcast except—get this—those featuring the New York Knicks (and the Brooklyn Nets, but whatever). Those are blacked out because of local broadcasting agreements.
A subscription to MSG+ gets me the majority of Knicks games—and is worth the $29.99 a month just for Walt “Clyde” Frazier’s commentary (when he’s at the mic, the Knicks aren’t just playing good basketball; they’re “swoopin’ and hoopin’” or “dishin’ and swishin’”). But Peacock and Prime Video have exclusive rights to certain games, too.
At one point, baffled as to whether I needed another subscription to get games broadcast on ESPN or ABC, I, too, headed to Reddit. Some Redditors console others or offer advice on the cheapest legal route to fandom. More often, they post pictures of ships and suggest that you “sail the seven seas, matey!” (i.e., just pirate games). But even that requires a certain amount of savvy, as anti-piracy organizations and law enforcement play whack-a-mole with illegal streamers. After Streameast, the world’s largest illegal sports-streaming platform, was shut down in September, fans complained that they had to spend games toggling between grainy, glitchy bootlegs.
For all of the complaints leveled at the various streamers, the real villains in this scenario are the leagues, whose greed and desire to grow revenue knows no bounds. And while you'll hear athletes complain about this issue, they don't complain too loudly. Because they get a cut of all this new revenue and no athlete is going to take a pay cut so their fans can watch every game through one streamer.
I became a Chicago Cubs fan because back in the day, nearly every game was available for free on WGN. And that national network was included on nearly every cable package in America. In much the same way that for years, fans of the Atlanta Braves could watch every game on "Superstation TBS." Intellectually, I understand the business reasons why that is no longer possible. But I have to admit that I miss those days.
I do have an annual subscription to MLB.TV, which is a great deal. It provides live coverage of all the Cubs farm team games, as well as the majority of the Chicago Cubs games. But in the season that just ended, a few games streamed exclusively on Apple TV and a couple of other ones were MLB Network exclusives, which is a bit surreal, since they didn't stream on the MLB app.
On a related note, I had a reader ask me the other day about the best options for watching soccer. Until I did some research, I had no idea how difficult that question was going to be. If you are only interested in a specific league, you can likely find most of the games on one (or maybe two) streamers. But there are dozens of leagues of very sizes and they are scattered across not only every major streaming platform, but also many minor SVODs, FAST channels and small, ad-supported soccer-oriented streamers. It is an insane, incredibly unworkable situation.
PENSKE IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE PENSKEING
I've written a great deal over the past couple of years about the challenges - financial and ethical - that are facing Penske Media Corporation. The most recent ethical issues revolved around the Golden Globes. PMC is both running the Golden Globes, while simultaneously selling pricey ad packages tied to coverage provided by its various trade publications.
The Globes added a new "Best Podcaster" category this year and as nearly anyone could have predicted, its turned into an ethical landmine for journalists there, as Oliver Darcy reported late last night in Status:
Indeed, with the award, Penske has opened the door to extracting advertising money from some of the very actors in today’s media ecosystem who have built their businesses on poisoning the public discourse and also villainizing the entertainment industry. While Shapiro himself is a more moderate Disney-bashing figure within MAGA Media, many of the personalities employed under his Daily Wire banner engage in far more incendiary rhetoric. In any case, Shapiro pales in comparison to some of the other nominees. Figures like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens aren’t merely controversial, they’re outright extremists.
Of course, just being considered for a Globe is a huge win for these figures. By simply inviting these personalities into the same awards ecosystem that has for years represented cultural prestige, the Globes are—intentionally or not—lending legitimacy to voices that have spent years working to undermine trust in media and democratic institutions. And if one of the programs is ultimately nominated, it will be a much bigger win. Which is why Shapiro—and perhaps others—will be campaigning so hard for the opportunity. It would help catapult him onto a far more mainstream stage.
What remains to be seen is how Penske’s staffers respond. People familiar with the matter told Status last week that employees within PMC have been embarrassed by the pay-to-play offers made to podcasters. Some are now wary of participating in editorial initiatives tied to the award, given it will be known podcasters can purchase positive coverage from PMC. And while Shapiro is a more restrained voice in MAGA Media, if a figure like Carlson or Owens opts to purchase an advertising package, it’s hard to imagine the journalists at PMC would be on board with showering them in positive coverage.
Aside from the qualms of Penske journalists, a win by someone like Shapiro would prove to be problematic for the Globes, which would face the prospect of welcoming the controversial conservative media figure into an awards show filled with Hollywood figures less than excited about sharing a stage with him.
THANKS FOR NOTHING, GOOGLE AI SEARCH RESULTS
CHRISTMAS EPISODES OF 'BEYOND PARADISE' & 'DEATH IN PARADISE'
BritBox has announced it will have special Christmas episodes of two of its most popular series, streaming "over the holidays."
Here is the official logline for the Beyond Paradise Christmas special: "When Esther discovers a man on the steps of the Shipton Abbott police station with no memory, holding a photo of Humphrey, the team gets to work to uncover who the mysterious man is while balancing a flurry of festive cases. At the same time, with the help of Anne, Zoe and a special guest, Martha races to pull off her secret plan while Kelby tries to help a mystery man trapped inside his snowman costume. But with an influx of unexpected visitors, a slew of holiday crimes to crack, and a heartwarming reunion on the line, can the team juggle it all and still be ready for a life-changing reveal?"
And here is the official logline for the Death In Paradise Christmas special: "The office Christmas party of a lifetime takes a dark turn when four co-workers wake up to find a stranger dead in the pool of their Caribbean villa. DI Mervin Wilson and the team identify the murder weapon, but they’re left baffled when they find that it was locked in a drawer when the murder took place... thousands of miles away from the crime scene, in Swindon! Stuck in Saint Marie, the team calls on the help of a familiar face to crack the case. Meanwhile, Mervin’s anxiously waiting to hear back from his newly discovered brother, which prevents him from embracing Saint Marie's Christmas celebrations. Can Mervin resolve his family situation and get into the festive spirit – for the sake of his team and the island?
ODDS AND SODS
* In what is yet another blow to original television coverage, Paste Magazine has shuttered all its non-music verticals, including its TV and movie reporting.
* If you want to see Rian Johnson's new movie Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Movie in the movie theater, here is a website that will let you know which local theaters are screening in during its small theatrical window.
* At Next In Media, Mike Shields argues that Amazon should buy DirecTV, take the DirecTV streaming service, and Amazon-ify all the ads.
* Daniel Dae-Kim will star in K-Everything, a four-part CNN travel series in which he "will go on a quest to discover how South Korea has sparked a global pop culture movement."
* The stand-up special Tom Segura: Teacher will premiere Wednesday, December 24th on Netflix.
* Disney+ has struck a multi-year deal to stream the NBA in the Philippines. The deal begins this Thursday and will also include a selection of ESPN documentaries as well as live broadcasts of NBA Countdown. This is the first time NBA games have been available live in that country.
* The music documentary Music Box: It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley premieres Thursday, December 4th on HBO. Here is a first video look at the film. And here is the official logline: "Buckley launched his career at a tribute to his late father, folk musician Tim Buckley, but quickly became a rising star himself and signed with Columbia Records. His only studio album, “Grace,” was released to rave reviews and challenged conventional ideas of genre and gender. His intimate and influential cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” further catapulted him to fame. Under pressure to produce his second album, he retreated to Memphis to escape the spotlight and the ever-growing glare of the public eye. In a tragic accident, Buckley drowned in the Wolf River in Memphis in 1997, leaving behind an unfinished second album and devastated family, friends, and fans. An intimate portrait of Buckley, the documentary celebrates his timeless body of work."
* I don't typically do a lot of "told ya!" types of posts. But I will point out that when I wrote about the YouTube/Disney carriage dispute in late October, I highlighted the very things that ended up being the core issues of the dispute - and the eventual settlement:
The dispute is apparently less about money and more about YouTube's desire to have the ability to directly ingest content from various Disney apps directly into YouTube. Or at the very least, having Disney agree to offer free ad-supported versions of Hulu and Disney+ to YouTube Live TV subscribers.
* The documentary For King + Country: No Turning Back premieres Sunday, November 23rd on Wonder Project’s subscription channel on Prime Video in the U.S. Here is a first video look at the film. And here is the official logline of the project: "For King + Country: No Turning Back is the powerful true story of Joel and Luke Smallbone, the music duo and four-time Grammy Award winners. In this intimate documentary, the Smallbones pull back the curtain on their extraordinary journey from Australia to America, through nearly a decade of failed starts, industry rejections, personal health struggles, and navigating the ever-changing world of music. With raw emotion and candid honesty, and grounded by faith, they explore the perils of ego, the strength of family, and the power of a brotherhood forged in both triumph and trial. From mowing lawns and hauling gear to selling out arenas around the world, No Turning Back is a story of perseverance, purpose, and the redeeming grace that made it all possible, revealing the heart behind the band like you’ve never seen before."
* Eight years after the second season ended, the BBC is apparently close to ordering a new season of Doctor Foster. Suranne Jones will reprise the lead role of Gemma Foster, a GP who takes revenge on her cheating husband when she discovers he has been cheating with a younger woman.
TWEET OF THE DAY
WHAT'S COMING TODAY AND TOMORROW
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18TH:
* Gerry Dee: Funny You Should Say That (Netflix)
* Thoughts & Prayers (HBO)
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19TH:
* Champagne Problems (Netflix)
* Daughter On Fire Series Premiere (Hulu)
* Envious (Netflix)
* 59th Annual CMA Awards (ABC)
* Merry Little Mystery! (The Roku Channel)
* Southern Charm Season Eleven Premiere (Bravo)
* The Carman Family Deaths (Netflix)
* The Mighty Nein Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* The Son Of A Thousand Men (Netflix)
SEE YOU EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING!