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The Ghost Haunting The Hallways: John Harris, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Politico, speaks at the 2012 Fiscal Summit on May 15, 2012 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images)
Welcome to the latest edition of Breaker. If this email has been forwarded, you can subscribe here and send your questions and complaints here. If you have a tip contact the 24/7 Breaker Tip Hotline via text or Signal # 551 655 2343. Anonymity guaranteed!
In tonight’s edition, we have the latest on the race to become the next editor-in-chief of POLITICO, with one leading candidate no longer in the running. Still on the Axel Springer outlet, the missing byline of their marquee Playbook writer has staffers guessing what the future holds for Brit Jack Blanchard – we have some details below.
Also tonight, the legendary former Fleet Street editor, Lionel Barber, has all you need to know about the next director-general of the BBC – one of the toughest gigs in media – and what the pick says about the future direction of the British public broadcaster, which always seems to be in a pickle. You can subscribe to Lionel’s Substack here.
Plus, production companies chase Clavicular for a Netflix doc, Vanity Fair’s Oscar boom, and a bumper reading, listening, and watching list to ensure you can shut your laptop for the weekend and not miss a media beat.
Mentioned tonight: Mathias Döpfner, Jan Bayer, Goli Sheikholeslami, John Harris, Alex Burns, Peter Spiegel, Jeff Bezos, Matt Murray, Bret Stephens, Julie Pace, James Fontanella-Khan, James Bennet, Matt Brittin, Michael Lewis, Gerry Cardinale, Deborah Turness, Tim Davie, David Ellison, Esme Wren, Tom Bower, Alex Mahon, Jay Hunt, Caitlin Oprysko, David Folkenflik, Erik Wemple, Lucy Mangan, Maxi Tani, Joshi Herrmann, William Turvill, Michael Savage, Sarah Scire, Tyler Denk, Preya Goenka, Ryan Gilbert, Eric M. David, Noah Hock, Matthew Dunckley, Steve Jackson, and more.
An Unlikely Breaker vs Goliath Victory
Tonight, we start the column with some good news.
On Thursday, we named and shamed the Aussie newspaper that pinched one of our exclusive photos from Rupert Murdoch's 95th birthday bash, and refused to pay.
At the time of publication, we hadn’t heard back from The Age or its owner, Nine Entertainment Co. Ever since Nine’s lawyer wrote to Breaker saying “I am instructed that my clients will not pay any invoice in this regard,” erroneously claiming the “alleged use” of the photo was covered as “fair dealing for the purpose of, or associated with, the reporting of news.”
The Breaker legal eagle fired back a letter claiming copyright infringement by The Age and demanding they cough up the cash.
“Your March 12, 2026, message to Mr. Cartwright contends that use of the Photograph was covered by Section 42 of the Australian Copyright Act. That argument is without merit,” Breaker’s counsel, Noah L. Hock, responded.
Even Murdoch’s own hometown paper, The Australian, got behind our cause, saying:
“Hang on … alleged use of a photograph? The frame not only remains on The Age’s website, the caption even acknowledges Cartwright’s Breaker Media owns the copyright. There’s nothing alleged about it ... or anything remotely “fair” about that kind of “dealing,” media diarist Steve Jackson wrote.
But it was only when Jackson contacted Nine about the matter that common sense prevailed.
On Sunday, just hours after The Australian had asked Nine for comment, we received a request for an invoice from The Age’s Deputy Editor, Matthew Dunckley.
We want to thank Tyler Denk, Preya Goenka, and Ryan Gilbert from beehiiv, strident supporters of Breaker and independent journalists, our legal team, Eric M. David and Noah Hock from law firm Brooks Pierce, and all the journos (including several at The Age and Sydney Morning Herald) who contacted us with their support.
We said at the time that our motto of “Support Fearless Independent Journalism” isn't just a rallying cry for Breaker, it’s a message to support all independent journalists and publications out there giving it a crack.
We are putting the $1000 to what we have named “The Age stakeout fund.” We will use the money to hire a snapper for our next two doorsteps of media events. It only seems “fair.”
Politico Punditry
(Exclusive.) Once considered the front-runner for the POLITICO editor-in-chief gig, Washington Post Managing Editor Peter Spiegel is no longer in the running, Breaker has learned.
The former Financial Times U.S. managing editor informed POLITICO and its owner, Axel Springer, at the weekend that he was sticking with the Jeff Bezos-owned paper, according to people familiar with the matter.
It came after Executive Editor Matt Murray made a counteroffer to keep him, including a raise. The move cements Spiegel, who oversees key parts of WaPo, including national, international, and futures, towards the top of the Washington Post line of succession when Murray eventually vacates his post.
While POLITICO’s headhunters, Spencer Stuart, had started dialing and smiling Spiegel's references, part of his hesitation in moving forward with the job was …
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