Liam Reilly - Writer
Liam Reilly
Writer
Liam Reilly is a writer for CNN. He reports on the media industry and assists with the production of the acclaimed "Reliable Sources" newsletter.
Latest
Nearly 40% of young Americans get their news from influencers. Many of them lean to the right, study finds
Nov 18, 2024
Young American adults are increasingly getting their news from social media influencers, a majority of whom are men and lean to the right, according to a new study from the Pew Research Center.
Ann Selzer to end election polling after 16-point miss in final Iowa survey
Nov 18, 2024
Famed pollster J. Ann Selzer will end her election polling operation after her final survey for The Des Moines Register failed to accurately capture former President Donald Trump’s strong support in the 2024 election, resulting in a 16-point miss.
WBD to settle NBA broadcast rights suit, move ‘Inside the NBA’ to ESPN and ABC
Nov 17, 2024
Warner Bros. Discovery will settle its lawsuit against the NBA and announce it has struck a deal with Disney to exclusively license its beloved TNT show “Inside the NBA” starting next season, a person familiar with the matter told CNN.
LA Times owner says Harris’ stance on Gaza war contributed to non-endorsement, plans editorial board revamp
Nov 13, 2024
In an interview with CNN, Soon-Shiong stated publicly for the first time that Harris’ support for Israel’s war in Gaza played a role in his decision to block the endorsement and said he plans to “balance” the paper’s opinion page with more conservative and centrist voices.
Trump has long threatened the media. Press freedom groups fear he might make good on it
Nov 7, 2024
Press freedom groups sounded the alarm Wednesday on the potential dangers facing journalists under a second Trump administration, denouncing threats from the president-elect and his associates to undermine the news media.
Jeff Bezos congratulates Trump for ‘extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory’
Nov 6, 2024
Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder and chairman, congratulated Donald Trump on Wednesday for an “extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory” after the former president won re-election, wishing Trump “all success in leading and uniting the America we all love.”
Hugh Hewitt quits The Washington Post after storming off newspaper’s live show
Nov 2, 2024
Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt resigned from his contributing columnist role at The Washington Post on Friday after storming off the newspaper’s live show over a disagreement with his colleagues.
More than 250,000 Washington Post readers cancel subscriptions in revolt over non-endorsement
Oct 30, 2024
More than 250,000 Washington Post readers have canceled their subscriptions since the newspaper announced last week it would not make an endorsement in the presidential race, leading to a “huge spike” in cancelations, the Post reported late Tuesday.
America’s largest newspaper chain, including USA Today, won’t endorse in 2024 presidential race
Oct 29, 2024
Gannett, the nation’s largest newspaper owner, announced that its more than 200 publications, including USA Today, will not publish presidential endorsements in the run-up to the November 5 election.
Jeff Bezos defends Washington Post non-endorsement after subscribers flee and staffers resign
Oct 29, 2024
The Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos, in his first public comments since igniting uproar last week over his decision to withhold the venerable newspaper’s endorsement in the presidential race, defended the move in a rare op-ed published Monday evening by the Post.
Jon Stewart extends ‘Daily Show’ hosting gig through end of 2025
Oct 28, 2024
Jon Stewart is extending his time in the hosting seat at “The Daily Show” through December 2025.
Daughter of Los Angeles Times owner says Harris endorsement was blocked over Gaza war support
Oct 26, 2024
The daughter of Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong suggested on Saturday that herfather’s decision to block the newspaper’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris was made over Harris’ support for Israel’s war in Gaza.
Fox News edited Trump’s rambling answers and false claims in barbershop interview, full video shows
Oct 24, 2024
The Fox News Channel’s recent segment about Donald Trump’s “surprise” visit to a barbershop in the Bronx resembled a campaign ad for the former president’s reelection.
Los Angeles Times editor resigns after newspaper owner blocked plans to endorse Harris
Oct 24, 2024
The Los Angeles Times’ editorials editor said Wednesday she had resigned from her post after the newspaper’s owner blocked a decision to endorse Kamala Harris in the presidential election.
Olivia Nuzzi is out at New York magazine over undisclosed relationship with RFK
Oct 21, 2024
Olivia Nuzzi has parted ways with New York magazine, the publication shared on Monday, after the star Washington correspondent was placed on leave over a previously undisclosed personal relationship with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Rupert Murdoch’s news outlets sue Perplexity AI for allegedly engaging in ‘massive freeriding’
Oct 21, 2024
Rupert Murdoch’s Dow Jones, the parent company of the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post sued Perplexity on Monday, accusing the generative AI company of illegally scraping its reporting and diverting traffic to its own platforms.
Top DeSantis attorneys penned letters threatening to prosecute local TV stations over abortion ad, affidavit says
Oct 21, 2024
Top attorneys for Gov. Ron DeSantis penned the cease-and-desist letters sent by Florida’s health department threatening to criminally prosecute local TV stations over their airing of an abortion rights ad, the department’s former general counsel said in court documents.
Trump says ‘people from Fox’ helped him write Al Smith dinner speech. The network denies it
Oct 18, 2024
Former President Donald Trump said Friday that Fox News staffers helped him write his Al Smith charity dinner speech, in which he cracked jokes and insulted his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.
‘It’s the First Amendment, stupid’: Federal judge blasts DeSantis administration for threats against TV stations
Oct 18, 2024
Chief U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker granted a temporary restraining order against Florida’s surgeon general after the state health department threatened to bring criminal charges against broadcasters airing the ad.
Fox News did not disclose its all-women town hall with Trump was packed with his supporters
Oct 17, 2024
Fox News hosted an all-women town hall with former President Donald Trump, billed as an opportunity for female voters to ask the Republican candidate questions that matter to them.
Trump backs out of CNBC interview, his second about-face with mainstream press this month
Oct 15, 2024
Donald Trump has backed out of an interview with CNBC, marking the second time this month the former president has canceled on a mainstream press interview.
Trump campaign connected with Elon Musk’s X before it blocked links to hacked materials
Oct 11, 2024
Former President Donald Trump’s campaign connected with Elon Musk’s X last month to discuss hacked Trump campaign materials circulating on the social media platform before X blocked links to the files and banned the independent journalist who published the materials, a person familiar with the matter told CNN.
FCC chair denounces Trump’s calls for CBS to ‘lose its license’ over Harris’ ‘60 Minutes’ interview
Oct 10, 2024
Federal Communications Commission chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel denounced former President Donald Trump’s “threats against free speech” Thursday after he attacked CBS and called for the network to “lose its license” over a recent “60 Minutes” interview with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Shari Redstone says CBS leaders made ‘bad mistake’ with handling of Ta-Nehisi Coates interview fallout
Oct 9, 2024
Shari Redstone, the chairwoman and CEO of CBS’ parent company Paramount Global, said Wednesday that CBS leadership made a “bad mistake” in how they handled the fallout over “CBS Mornings” co-anchor Tony Dokoupil’s contentious last week interview with author Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Florida is threatening to prosecute TV stations over an abortion rights ad. The FCC chief calls it ‘dangerous’
Oct 8, 2024
In a move that critics are calling a flagrant abuse of power, Florida’s Department of Health is threatening to bring criminal charges against local TV stations airing a campaign ad to overturn the state’s six-week abortion ban signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Audacy completes its financial restructuring and now plans to go private
Oct 1, 2024
Audacy on Monday shared that it completed its financial restructuring, successfully reducing its approximately $1.9 billion of funded debt by 80%, to $350 million.
DirecTV agrees to buy Dish for $1
Sep 30, 2024
DirecTV announced Monday it’s buying rival Dish Network, ending multiple decades of on-and-off talks about the satellite services merging.
Did you know violent crime is down? Not if you’re watching right-wing media
Sep 24, 2024
The FBI on Monday reported that violent crime fell across the US last year, including the steepest annual decline in murders in decades. But the report was almost entirely ignored by right-wing media outlets, which have pushed the false narrative that crime is surging under President Joe Biden.
Elon Musk boosts fake Trump rally bomb threat and false claims about the election
Sep 18, 2024
Elon Musk is using his social media platform to promote misinformation about the presidential candidates in the lead up to the November election, amplifying false claims Wednesday about a Trump rally bomb threat and immigrants eating pets in Ohio.
James Murdoch, Mark Cuban and dozens of other business leaders endorse Kamala Harris for president
Sep 6, 2024
Dozens of business leaders are throwing their weight behind Vice President Kamala Harris, saying she is the stronger candidate for the American economy and the future of democracy.
New York Times publisher sounds the alarm on Trump employing authoritarian anti-press ‘playbook’
Sep 5, 2024
A.G. Sulzberger, the New York Times publisher, sounded the alarm Thursday on the “quiet war” against press freedoms unleashed by authoritarians around the world and said Americans should understand the anti-media “playbook” that Donald Trump might employ in a second term.
Disney pulls ABC, ESPN and other channels from DirecTV in carriage standoff
Sep 2, 2024
Disney on Sunday pulled ABC stations, ESPN and other cable networks from DirecTV’s lineup as the two companies failed to reach a new distribution deal, leaving millions of sports fans in the dark as the college football and NFL seasons get underway.
Podcast stars are inking massive nine-figure deals. Here’s why companies are writing the big checks
Aug 31, 2024
Podcasting superstars are taking their fame to new heights as media companies offer nine-figure deals for the rights to their shows.
A veteran reporter was murdered outside his home. Now his newspaper is tasked with covering the alleged killer’s trial
Aug 23, 2024
As opening statements in the murder trial of Robert Telles began last week, the Las Vegas Review-Journal was confronted with a nightmarish question: How does a newspaper cover the trial of a suspect accused of murdering one of its own reporters?
Google agrees to first-in-the-nation deal to fund California newsrooms, but journalists are calling it a disaster
Aug 22, 2024
Google on Wednesday struck a first-in-the-nation deal with California lawmakers to fund newsrooms in the state and end proposed legislation that would have forced technology giants to pay news organizations for distributing their content. But the agreement was immediately met with fierce criticism from journalist unions, who called the deal “disastrous.”
Disney, Fox, Warner Bros. Discovery sports streaming venture launch blocked by federal judge in win for Fubo
Aug 16, 2024
A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the upcoming launch of Venu Sports, the joint sports streaming venture from Warner Bros. Discovery, Disney and Fox Corporation.
Once a mainstay of the radio dial, local news is signing off as stations struggle to survive in the digital age
Aug 16, 2024
For more than a century, Americans have been turning to a trusted and reliable source for local news: the radio. Now, the terrestrial broadcasts are facing an existential threat as listeners and advertising dollars rapidly shift, forcing stations to slash staff and even sign off the air for good.
News outlets were sent leaked Trump campaign files. They chose not to publish them
Aug 14, 2024
In the hours after President Joe Biden’s historic decision to step aside from the 2024 presidential race last month, journalists across three major US newsrooms began receiving emails from an anonymous person claiming to have tantalizing new information about the election.
Paris Olympics ratings soar 82% over Tokyo Games, delivering big boost to NBC’s Peacock streamer
Aug 13, 2024
The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris drew a combined average of 30.6 million viewers across NBCU’s constellation of platforms, marking an 82% jump in viewership compared to the Tokyo Games and making the Games the most-streamed Olympics of all time.
New York Times editorial board will no longer endorse candidates in New York races
Aug 12, 2024
The New York Times is getting out of New York endorsements.
Paramount cuts 15% of US staff, writes down $6 billion in latest sign of TV troubles
Aug 8, 2024
Paramount Global, the storied media conglomerate, will lay off 15% of its US staff and took a $6 billion write down on its cable television networks as it prepares to merge with Skydance Media
Charles Barkley cancels his retirement plans, says he’ll stay with TNT Sports for long term
Aug 6, 2024
Warner Bros. Discovery is betting big on Charles Barkley as the media giant looks to retain its NBA media rights.
Freed American says she’s ‘finally being treated as a human being’ after Russian detention
Aug 6, 2024
Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva said she’s “finally being treated as a human being” following her release from Russian detention in a historic prisoner exchange between Washington and the Kremlin last week.
Bloomberg News dismisses reporter, disciplines other staffers after breaking embargo on US-Russia prisoner swap
Aug 5, 2024
Bloomberg News dismissed a reporter and took disciplinary action against other staffers Monday after the outlet broke a news embargo last week on the release of several American prisoners held by Russia, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Olympics commentator dropped over sexist comments about women’s swim team
Jul 30, 2024
Olympics commentator Bob Ballard was dropped from Eurosport, the European pay TV company, on Monday after the veteran sportscaster made sexist comments about the Australian women’s swim team.
WBD takes NBA to court in legal showdown over broadcast rights
Jul 26, 2024
Warner Bros. Discovery has filed a lawsuit against the NBA over the league’s rejection of its offer to match a bid from Amazon to broadcast the games for the next decade.
Charles Barkley lashes out at NBA for choosing Amazon over TNT: ‘It just sucks’
Jul 26, 2024
Charles Barkley on Friday condemned the NBA’s rejection of Warner Bros. Discovery’s bid to match Amazon Prime Video’s streaming rights, a surprising 180 for the “Inside the NBA” host.
Disney, Hulu and Max launch streaming bundle at up to 38% discount
Jul 25, 2024
Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney launched a cross-studio bundle of Disney+, Hulu, and Max in the US on Thursday as the entertainment giants look to scale their streaming businesses.
NBA rejects Warner Bros. Discovery’s matching offer to retain games, setting up potential legal showdown
Jul 24, 2024
The NBA on Wednesday rejected Warner Bros. Discovery’s offer to match a bid from Amazon Prime Video to broadcast the games, setting up a potential legal showdown between TNT’s parent company and the league.
Warner Bros. Discovery notifies NBA it will match Amazon’s $1.8 billion offer to carry league games
Jul 22, 2024
Warner Bros. Discovery notified the NBA on Monday that it will pay roughly $1.8 billion per year to match an offer from Amazon to carry a package of the league’s games, a last-second buzzer-beating attempt by TNT’s parent company to retain the broadcast rights to the basketball games.
About
Liam Reilly is a writer for CNN. He reports on the media industry and assists with the production of the acclaimed “Reliable Sources” newsletter.
Based in New York City, Reilly has reported on the sweeping changes impacting the media industry, from newspapers and linear TV to digital streaming services. For the “Reliable Sources” newsletter, he compiles and analyzes reporting at the intersection of media, technology, and entertainment, as well as the power players driving the industry. The daily digest chronicling the media ecosystem is read by top industry professionals and media obsessives.
Prior to joining CNN, Reilly worked as a copy editor at the Seoul-based, English-language Korea JoongAng Daily. Reilly first joined CNN in 2021 as a news assistant for the network’s New York Bureau where he reported on politics, business, crime, and the courts for the U.S. Northeast and Midwest. He also briefly worked as a news writer for Bloomberg News.
Reilly is a French American journalist from Brooklyn, NY. He is fluent in English and French.
Reilly holds a B.A. in comparative literature from Kenyon College, an M.Sc. from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an M.A. from the University of Southern California.
You can find Reilly on Threads and Instagram: @unbonfromage
