Joe Biden and Donald Trump agree to two debates, Mark Thompson sheds (some) light on his plans for CNN, #Resistance Twitter twists the truth about Maggie Haberman, Chuck Schumer and the "Senate A.I." gang release their A.I. "roadmap," critics rave about "Furiosa" after Cannes premiere, Max teases its "Dune: Prophecy" series, Netflix renews "3 Body Problem," and so much more. But first, the A1. 

Netflix and the News

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Netflix is rebuilding the cable bundle, sans one important ingredient: news.

The company, having blown up the decades-old linear television business and ushered in the costly and destabilizing era of streaming, is inching closer and closer to resembling the entertainment behemoths of yesteryear.

Netflix has added advertisements to its plans, a move it initially resisted for several years, touting more than 40 million subscribers to the ad-supported tier on Wednesday. It has added live late-night comedy, most recently with the roast of Tom Brady and John Mulaney's "Everybody's In L.A." And it has made great strides into the live-sports arena, despite public statements asserting it does not wish to wade far into such waters.

On Wednesday, the streaming giant announced that it had struck a groundbreaking deal with the NFL to broadcast not one, but two games on Christmas Day this year. Those games add to the company's ever growing portfolio of live-sports offerings, including WWE "Raw," which will air exclusively on the platform starting next year.

"Last year, we decided to take a big bet on live — tapping into massive fandoms across comedy, reality TV, sports and more," Bela Bajaria, Netflix chief content officer, said in a statement explaining the decision. 

Notably absent from Bajaria's statement and the company's programming strategy, however, is news. Netflix has shown little-to-no interest in investing in either live-news or pre-taped programming (a la, a show akin to "Vice News Tonight" or "60 Minutes"). To date, it has neither publicly discussed nor launched any such projects. And in conversations with talent agents, it has made clear that the streamer has no interest in even dabbling in the news business.

"The entertainment platforms are not interested in news," one talent agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told me. "Their audiences don't want it and it can be polarizing. It's just not worth it for them." 

In actively avoiding the news, Netflix joins Meta as a pioneering technology and media company that has upended the business models news organizations have relied on for decades, only to turn its back on the industry.

To be fair to these companies, there are plenty of business reasons to avoid dabbling in the news. First, news reporting is simply not as popular as entertainment content. Second, and perhaps more importantly for these companies, news has become incredibly polarizing in recent years. 

Simply stating that the 2020 presidential election was not stolen — a proven fact — alienates Republicans. That polarizing factor means that not only is it more difficult to sell advertisements around the content, but that by carrying such programming, there is a chance a swath of the customer base will be turned off by the brand and motivated to unsubscribe.

Which is all to say that Netflix investing in news programming would translate into spending money on content that is not as popular as other genres, but far more risky to the overall business. From a purely business standpoint, avoiding that type of programming make sense. 

Of course, the counterargument is that these companies perhaps have a civic responsibility to invest in news and public affairs programming — especially since they contributed greatly to the destruction of the business model that had supported television newsrooms for so long. Journalists are crucial to thriving democracies and the hollowing out of the news industry has vast implications for the future of the free world.

It's anything but unprecedented for large media companies to invest money in journalism. Warner Bros. Discovery has CNN. Comcast has NBC News. Disney has ABC News. Paramount has CBS News. The list goes on. And, back when cable was ascendant and disruptive, as Netflix is today, the major carriers financed the birth of C-SPAN, offering the public a continuous feed of its government at work. So is it really out of the question to wonder whether a streamer like Netflix should consider a similar move to offer news programming that informs and enriches the public?

Rebuilding the traditional cable package without news is akin to putting together a meal that includes steak, potatoes, and ice cream, but not the broccoli. The vegetables might not be the tastiest, most popular item on the menu, but neglecting them would not be healthy. Likewise, only investing in comedy and sports might be more satisfying for its audience, but it certainly isn't a healthy choice for society.

That is the destination, though, where the current decisions are leading. And as the streaming revolution continues to take the wind out of the traditional cable bundle by poaching the rights to live sports, the once-towering television news outlets will be further diminished, turning the situation even more dire. 

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A Deal on the Debates: Mark your calendars! The American public will be treated to a pair of 2024 presidential debates after all — they just won't be hosted by the Commission on Presidential Debates. On Wednesday morning, President Joe Biden wrote the commission, informing them that he would not participate in its previously scheduled fall debates. Instead, Biden's campaign said it would work directly with news organizations to schedule a pair of debates. Soon after, both Biden and Donald Trump accepted invitations from CNN and ABC News to participate in two separate face-offs. CNN's will occur next month, on June 27, and will be moderated by Dana Bash and Jake Tapper. ABC News will host its debate on September 10, moderated by David Muir and Linsey Davis. CNN's Betsy Klein, Michael Williams, and Kristen Holmes have more here.

🔎 Zooming in: Given the non-partisan CPD is not hosting the debates, an immediate question came to mind: Will CNN and ABC News provide a pool feed of their debates for other outlets to use? ABC News said it "will make the debate available to simulcast on additional broadcast and streaming news networks in America." CNN has not yet answered about its plans.

🦊 Will there be a Fox News debate? Bret Baier confirmed that the right-wing network did send an invitation to Biden and Trump, offering a debate moderated by him and Martha MacCallum. Trump posted on Truth Social that he had accepted the October 2nd invitation. But Biden's campaign said he will only be doing the two debates.

📺 The NYT's Michael Grynbaum has a behind-the-scenes look at how CNN and ABC News landed "the TV coups of the year." Meanwhile, Puck's Dylan Byers reported on the "blues" at NBC News as the network learned it had "been left out of the debate sweepstakes." 

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Thompson's CNN Talk: Mark Thompson's vision for CNN is coming into better focus. The CNN boss, who recently passed his six-month milestone leading the network, took the stage on Wednesday at parent company Warner Bros. Discovery's upfront (more on that below), where he announced that the outlet will build "branded verticals" around various topics. "We don’t believe news is just politics," Thompson explained. "Business and tech are news. Climate and weather are news. Health, wellness and living longer are news. So expect to see us build new branded verticals in all these areas on TV, on our apps, and across our other platforms." Thompson cited "Five Things" as a multi-platform example, given its presence as a newsletter, podcast, and Max streaming show. Thompson also announced that CNN will design a digital offering around its iconic "Magic Wall." Deadline's Ted Johnson has more on that here.

On the television programming front, CNN announced plans to re-invest in its Original Series unit after previous boss, Chris Licht, took an axe to its budget. "I think we are very much in the rebuild phase," Amy Entelis, executive vice president for talent and content, told Variety's Brian Steinberg. To that end, at the upfront, CNN announced it had revived its "Searching For" franchise, with Eva Longoria heading to Spain. And Entelis said that CNN wants its Saturday night lineup to move into the "topical entertainment" zone, with CNN launching an American version of the British show "Have I Got News For You" that will complement its re-airing of Bill Maher's HBO show "Real Time." Entelis said she believes viewers might want a break from the news over the weekend and instead "have a laugh about something and maybe be able to connect to a personality who wouldn’t necessarily be anchoring a show on CNN or even an original series." Steinberg has more.

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Hysteria Over Haberman: #Resistance Twitter X is all worked up again, raging against The NYT's Maggie Haberman. The latest reason? Because a Michael Cohen text was released in court during the Donald Trump hush-money trial. The message Cohen sent Haberman said Trump had approved him responding to the Stormy Daniels allegations back in 2018. "Please start writing and I will call you soon," Cohen wrote. Some on the left have twisted that message to assert it is proof that Haberman takes orders from the Trump campaign. Which as Mother Jones' Clara Jeffrey pointed out is "patently insane." As Jeffery explained, "Guys, texting with sources is how you get the inside dope and 'start writing' isn't an order from Trump HQ, it's like, start your process and I'll maybe feed you something." Any working reporter understands this, which is why NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen agreed with Jeffery. And CNN's Jake Tapper defended Haberman as a "first-rate reporter" on Wednesday. Which, of course, she is — despite the constant attacks on her character.  

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Schumer's A.I. Roadmap: A group of bipartisan senators led by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer released an A.I. "roadmap" on Wednesday, a 32-page report offering a blueprint on how to regulate the technology. The report from the so-called "Senate A.I. Gang" was the product of nine "Insight Forums" in which more than 150 experts participated. The biggest takeaway from the roadmap was the group's recommendation that the U.S. eventually spend at least $32 billion a year on A.I. innovation. The senators also did call out the impact A.I. will have on news, suggesting the Senate "examine the impacts" and "develop legislation to address areas of concern." CNN's Brian Fung has more.

🔎 Zooming in: "The latest plan highlights how Senate leaders are trying to move from a learning phase to an action phase, by issuing assignments to committees to craft legislation that may be passed piecemeal," Fung wrote. "Schumer has previously said that with the 2024 elections fast approaching, he may make it a top priority to pass legislation aimed at protecting the elections from A.I.-driven interference."

CNN Photo Illustration/Warner Bros. Pictures

'Furiosa' Brings Fire: The first reviews for "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga" are streaming in from the Cannes Film Festival, where the film premiered to several minutes of applause — and critics are raving about the dystopian Warner Bros. Pictures film. With 31 reviews, the film, which hits theaters May 24, is boasting an 87% score on Rotten Tomatoes. "Retroactively enriching 'Fury Road' with greater emotional heft if not quite matching it in propulsive throttle, 'Furiosa' is another glorious swerve in mastermind George Miller's breathless race towards cinematic Valhalla," the ratings aggregate website said, summarizing reviews. The site has a helpful round up here.

► Related: "Furiosa" has been cleared for release in China.