Here’s everything you need to know about the world of television for Wednesday, February 4th, 2026:
'HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE WATCHING? LOTS! LOTS, I TELL YOU!
Several of the big media companies announced their latest quarterly earnings reports this week and the remarkable thing is how little we know about their core digital businesses. Disney had their analyst call yesterday and Fox's was this morning. And good luck if you were hoping for some kind of specific guidance on how things are going.
So how is that new ESPN/Fox One digital bundle doing? Totally great, both companies insist. Although they aren't offering a lot of specifics about what great looks like, exactly. For instance, Fox One revenues are put in the Corporate and Other business reporting line of the earnings, it also spends nearly all of its content budget licensing stuff from the main company. We have no idea how many subscribers Fox One has, how many of those are part of the discounted bundle with Disney or the result of other bundling deals in the works at other virtual cable companies such as YouTube TV. We have no real idea of revenue directly attributable to Fox One, no idea what the customer acquisition costs are or any other metric that might allow a reporter such as myself to determine whether their strategy for growth is a success. And things are no more transparent at Disney.
And to be honest, there is a lack of transparency across the spectrum of streaming television platforms. I agree with Netflix's decision not to release raw subscriber numbers, because reporters tend to conflate subscriber number growth or decline with business success and especially in the streaming world, there is not much of a correlation between the two. You can add 30 million subscribers who aren't paying much to subscribe and they are worth much less to your bottom line that 10 million who are paying full price.
The problem is that Netflix and other streamers haven't replaced those raw subscriber numbers with any other useful metrics. I don't give a crap if viewing on X is up 20% year-over-year. Without any context, those claims don't tell me anything. And that goes double for reports of ad-revenue increases. Percentages of growth or some vague claim a title is the "most watched in three years" tells me nothing. It is the streaming world's equivalent of "Yes, of course I have a hot girlfriend. You don't know her. She lives in Canada."
For example, Fox reported that the revenue for its AVOD platform Tubi was up 19% year-over-year. What was the actual number last year? We don't know. What was the actual number this year? We don't know. But it was up 19%, so break out the champagne. And let's open a second bottle because overall viewing time is up 27% year-over-year. Although we don't know what either of those numbers were, either.
The one interesting datapoint about Tubi is that 95% of the viewing time is spent on demand and not on the platform's channels. Which is good knews for reruns of Next Level Chef, not so good for the Bob Ross FAST channel.
When you ask media executives about this lack of transparency, they claim they don't release it for "strategic reasons." Although the cynic in me suspects they hide the numbers because they would often be "strategically embarrassing."
MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY SEES DOING COMMERCIALS AS 'LITTLE VACATIONS'
Matthew McConaughey is starring in another Uber Eats commercial that will air during the Super Bowl, and Ad Week's Kathryn Lundstrom has a really fascinating interview with the actor, which provides a lot of context for why you see him in so many commercials:
Do these ads scratch a different itch for you than filmmaking?
I’ve been doing a lot of dramas. I hadn’t found any comedies to do. So I look at something like Uber Eats or some of the Salesforce ads I’m doing. I’m going, ‘Oh, great time for comedy.’ I can scratch that itch. And maybe somebody watches it and goes, ‘Oh, I forgot McConaughey’s funny!’
I look at them as little vacations.
Are there any other creative itches you scratched with this Uber Eats ad?
This is a big commercial, we’re doing a three-day shoot.
With Uber Eats, I’ve already got a shorthand with them. And for these scenes to work, especially in the comedy, [snapping his fingers] it’s rhythm, and it’s timing, and it’s punch.
You hear on set: ‘Can we do this faster?’ Because they’re already timing out the 60 seconds.
It does need a clip, because each scene’s gotta be beginning, middle, end. It’s gotta bop-bop-PUNCH. And it’s gotta HA. And so there’s a rhythm to the timing.
FORMER WASHINGTON POST WRITERS HEAD TO SUBSTACK
The Washington Post has reportedly laid off around 1/3 of its staff today. And as you might expect, a number of them have already launched their own newsletters, primarily on Substack:
Former book critic at The Washington Post Ron Charles just launched his at roncharles.substack.com
And while there is nothing there yet, tech writer Geoffrey Fowler has also started one at geoffreyafowler.substack.com
Along those lines, Catherine Valentine, Head of Politics at Substack, announced that she and Chris Cillizza- both of whom used to work at the paper - are planning a Washington Post Masterclass to help laid off journalists launch their newsletter careers.
ODDS AND SODS
* HGTV is rolling out yet another Property Brothers series. Property Brothers: Under Pressure premieres Sunday, March 15th. Here is the official logline: "The Scott Brothers will guide clients through the ups and downs of the home buying process—from fiercely competitive markets and sticker shock to personal wish lists and tough compromises—when their emotional and financial stakes are at an all-time high. Once the deals are done, Drew and Jonathan will then incorporate stunning, smart and functional design solutions into budget-conscious renovations that create their dream homes."
* Season four of the underrated MGM+ series From premieres on Sunday, April 19th. Here is the official logline: "In Season Four, the closer the residents of town get to the answers they seek, the more terrifying their search becomes. Who is the Man in Yellow, and what does he want? Will Jade and Tabitha’s revelation be the key to finally going home? How much longer can Boyd hold the town together, even as his body and mind are falling apart? And what role will the town’s most recent arrival play in the events to come? Season Four will open doors that some in town will end up wishing had remained closed. FWIW, here is an interview I did with series star Harold Perrineau ahead of the show's second season.
* Hulu is getting into the Podcast business. It has signed an exclusive deal for We're Here to Help, a comedy advice pod hosted by Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds. It will begin streaming twice-a-week beginning Tuesday, February 10th.
* The animated series Rooster Fighter will premiere Saturday, March 14th at midnight ET/PT on Adult Swim, as part of its Toonami anime/action block. Here is the official logline: "The adaptation of Shu Sakuratani’s manga “Rooster Fighter” follows “cock-about town” Keiji. More than just an ordinary rooster—he’s humanity’s greatest defender! When strange creatures suddenly appear and start attacking, he confronts them head-on while scoffing: “You make my crown curl!” His opponents may be ten stories tall, but nothing is bigger than his stout heart and his fearsome battle cry—Kokekokko!"
* Status is reporting that Samantha Skey stepped down as chief executive of SHE Media, which was acquired by Penske Media Corp in 2018.
* Trump will tape an interview with NBC's Tom Llamas today, and a portion will air on Nightly News tonight. A separate segment will be saved for the Super Bowl Sunday pregame show on NBC. I wonder if there were any "no editing" restrictions placed on the interview?
* If you want to know more about Peter Attia, the new CNN contributor who is also all over the just-released Epstein Files, this piece in Atlantic Magazine (gift link) provides a solid overview.
* Fred Armisen will host an as-yet untitled music docuseries giving fans an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look into the Universal Music Group (UMG) vaults, which make up the world’s largest music archives.
* Mary Carillo will take up co-hosting duties for coverage of the Winter Olympics' opening ceremonies, NBC Sports announced Wednesday, replacing Savannah Guthrie, who is dealing the abduction of her mother.
* Telly-visions has a nice rundown of everything British that is coming to streaming in America in February.
TWEET OF THE DAY
Here is some of the recent comments and feedback from readers:
"Spot on. PBS operates in this weird space where it produces genuinely excellent content but gets zero buzz because it doesn't fit the streaming-wars narrative. The point about donating $5/month for Passport is legit - that's like one coffee and you get access to archives most people don't even know exist. Quality doesn't scale the way attention does, and that's exactly PBS's problem in 2026."
--A.A.
"Another show to add to your list of important PBS shows premiering this week: PHOEBE & JAY, a media literacy show for wee ones on PBS Kids. It features a rare representation of a Black working-class family with a single dad, and it was the last show to receive Ready To Learn grant funding before the Trump admin shut that down. Nowhere but PBS, but where after this, we have to wonder."
--Christine B.
"I plug PBS so much you’d think I worked there lol"
--Reda R.
WHAT'S COMING TODAY AND TOMORROW
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4TH:
* Assisted Living Season Premiere (BET)
* House Of Payne (BET)
* Is It Cake? Valentines Special (Netflix)
* Nature: Parenthood (PBS)
* Nova: Can Dogs Talk? (PBS)
* Relationship Goals (Prime Video)
* The Coach Vick Experience Series Premiere (BET)
* The Investigation Of Lucy Letby (Netflix)
* The Muppet Show Special (ABC)
* We Call It Imagineering (Disney+)
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 5TH:
* Black Heat (ALLBLK)
* Cash Queens Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Grace Season Five Premiere (Britbox)
* Field Generals: History Of The Black Quarterback (Peacock)
* The Lincoln Lawyer Season Four Premiere (Netflix)
* Unfamiliar Series Premiere (Netflix)
SEE YOU THIS THURSDAY!