DETAILS: GBTV and TheBlaze.com to merge into single, multimedia media company!

MERCURY RADIO ARTS MERGES STREAMING VIDEO NETWORK GBTV WITH NEWS AND INFORMATION SITE THEBLAZE

TO CREATE A SINGLE MULTIPLATFORM MEDIA COMPANY

  1. Merger Builds on the Quick Success of both GBTV and TheBlaze Which Receives Over 7 Million Unique Visitors Per Month 
  2. Combines GBTV's Line-up of Programming With TheBlaze.com's Growing Team of More than 25 Journalists Into One Powerful Brand 
  3. Mercury's E-Commerce Site The Marketplace by Markdown.com, Will Also Be Integrated Into New Entity 
  4. The Merged Network, Called TheBlaze Will Be An Online News, Information, Entertainment and E-Commerce Destination Spanning Video, Radio, Publishing and The Internet

(New York, NY and Dallas, TX June 18th) Mercury Radio Arts, Glenn Beck's multi-media production company, announced today that it is merging GBTV, its streaming video network with TheBlaze, its news and information website to create a single multiplatform media company. The new entity, which will be known as TheBlaze, combines one of the world's largest subscription streaming video networks with a website that generates over 7 million unique visitors per month into one powerful multimedia brand. TheBlaze, which will soon offer video content on a 24/7 basis, will be a news, information, entertainment, and e-commerce network, spanning all media including video, radio, publishing, and the Internet.

Glenn Beck said: "I said from the very beginning that I did not want to call the network GBTV, and a year later I finally got my way. We have ambitious plans for this network and combining the power of GBTV and TheBlaze will help us build upon our success."

The Marketplace by Markdown.com will also be integrated directly into TheBlaze.com, giving small businesses that participate in the marketplace access to an even larger audience of potential consumers, and rounding out TheBlaze's revenue mix to include e-commerce.

 

TheBlaze will offer a mix of premium subscription video content and free content:

  • The premium subscription content will be what is currently known as GBTV, a streaming video network featuring Glenn's weekday show. Since its launch in September 2011, the network has already added a wide range of original programming, including the reality show Independence USA, the kid's show Liberty TreeHouse, the news show Real News, and the comedy news show The B.S. of A, totaling over 34 hours of original programming per week. The network will soon provide video content on a 24/7 basis. Beginning later this year, existing subscribers to GBTV.com will be automatically redirected to TheBlaze.com. The network will also continue to be available on iOS devices, Roku and Boxee.

  • The free content will be available at TheBlaze.com and will continue to include a mix of original reporting, curated content and opinion pieces.

Christopher Balfe, President and COO of Mercury said: “TheBlaze and GBTV have each proven to be incredible success stories in a very short period of time. Combining them will help us accelerate future growth by focusing on one world-class brand that offers the best of everything we produce in a single destination."

TheBlaze's executive team, which will report to Balfe, brings years of experience from leadership level positions in television, radio and digital media:

  • Betsy Morgan, formerly President of TheBlaze is being promoted to President & Chief Strategy Officer of the combined company. Prior to joining Mercury, Morgan was CEO of The Huffington Post and a Senior Vice President at CBS News.

  • Joel Cheatwood, formerly President of Programming at GBTV is being promoted to President & Chief Content Officer of TheBlaze. Prior to joining Mercury, Cheatwood was a Senior Vice President at FoxNews and CNN.

  • Kraig Kitchin, formerly Director of Ad Sales at TheBlaze is being promoted to President & Chief Revenue Officer of the combined company. Prior to joining Mercury, Kitchin co-founded Premiere Radio Networks-the top radio network in the country and the distributor of Glenn's radio show.

  • Carolyn Polke, formerly Senior Vice President of Digital at Mercury is being promoted to President & Chief Operating Officer of TheBlaze. Carolyn has helped spearhead Mercury's recent digital growth. Previously, she was a consultant at Accenture.

Scott Baker, who has been with TheBlaze.com since its launch, will continue in his role as Editor-in-Chief.

TheBlaze will be fully integrated with The Marketplace by Markdown.com, a curated marketplace platform to help local small businesses reach consumers across the country. Keith Ferry, former President of Markdown joins TheBlaze as Senior Vice President of Digital.

TheBlaze also includes a monthly magazine and news updates delivered each morning on Glenn’s radio show.

Original Story:

CNN is reporting that GBTV.com, one of the world's largest subscription streaming services, is going to be merging with TheBlaze.com, one of the leading news and information websites. Look for more on this story as it develops...

From CNN:

Hugely successful and often controversial, Glenn Beck is a man full of complexities.

He points the finger in his new book"Cowards" but calls for "Restoring Love" in his upcoming rally. He jokes about being"Unelectable" on his comedy tour, but hisnew studio in Dallas includes a replica Oval Office for his mock presidential addresses.

Now, the media mogul is dropping his name from the online TV network based on his personal brand. GBTV will be merged with TheBlaze.com, the Beck-owned but independently operated news and opinion website. The entire network will be called TheBlaze.

"I didn't like the name GBTV from the very beginning for a couple of reasons," Beck said in an exclusive interview with CNN.com. "One, it's a little egocentric, and two, it's television, which doesn't describe necessarily what we do."

Beck and Chris Balfe, president and COO of Mercury Radio Arts (Beck's company), said they planned to change the name once the online streaming network was more established but the early success of GBTV precipitated an earlier name change.

The latest estimate is that GBTV has more than 300,000 subscribers. While the numbers are strong, that is still a significant reduction from Beck's nightly audience when he worked at Fox News and talked to millions on the traditional media outlet.

"We are out of the comfort zone for a lot of Americans," said Beck of GBTV.

The online network that airs Beck's program also has shows such as "Real News," a news roundtable show; "The B.S. of A," a comedy show; "Liberty Treehouse," a children's program; and "Independence USA," a reality show. Much more programming is on the way, and it will soon become a 24/7 channel.

Read the FULL article here and look for more information shortly!

TOP 5 issues that have gotten WORSE since the last State of the Union

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

If you saw Biden's State of the Union last week, or Glenn's firey reaction to it, you know that Biden hardly spoke a word that wasn't a flat-out lie.

If you spent the last 12 months in a fallout shelter and Biden's speech was the only media interaction you had since the last State of the Union, you might be tempted to believe that the country has improved in some way over the past year. But the rest of us, who have been living above ground, going to the grocery store, and paying some attention to current events, had only to look around to see that Biden's speech was nothing but hot air.

Here are the TOP 5 issues that have gotten worse since the last State of the Union.

Economy

Biden spent a significant amount of time during the State of the Union boasting about the strength of his economy, but anyone who has checked their bank account lately was left wondering if he was holding his speech upside down. It's not just the cobwebs in your wallet; the numbers show the devastation wrought by "Bidenomics" too. In 2022, American grocery bills increased by 11.4 percent and restaurant bills by 7.7 percent. In 2023 prices only continued to rise, with an additional 1.2 percent increase in food-at-home prices and a 5.1 percent increase in away-from-home prices.

Debt crisis and inflation

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

The national debt continues to grow, and Biden managed to add almost 3 trillion dollars in just one year. As of December 2022, the national debt was $31.42 trillion. As of January 2024, the national debt has risen to $34.19 trillion.

Inflation didn't fare much better. While the 2023 annual inflation rate did drop from the horror of 2022, from 6.5 to 3.4 percent, that is still significantly higher than anything we saw before 2021. You also have to remember that it CARRIES year to year, as Glenn explained in his response to Biden's State of the Union: "Yes, it's not as bad as it was, but it's still what it was PLUS what it is now."

Border

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

Biden's mismanagement of the southern border has inflamed the border crisis to all-time highs. In 2022 there were a staggering 2.2 million illegal border crossings, but that wasn't enough for Biden apparently, as an additional 2.5 million illegally crossed in 2023. An estimated 10 million illegal immigrants have crossed the southern border since Biden took office, and the effects are being felt. There has been a surge in crime across the country that is impacting millions of Americans, including the tragic murder of Laken Riley.

Fentanyl

The fentanyl crisis has only continued to worsen as more and more synthetic opioids flood our streets. Between the fiscal year 2021 and 2022, there was a shocking 54 percent increase in fentanyl trafficking offenses as more and more of the narcotic is smuggled across the southern border. We also saw an increase in fentanyl overdose deaths. In 2022 there were approximately 73,654 deaths, which is a significant increase from 70,601 in 2021.

Education and mental health

While the pandemic is long over, the lingering effects of the lockdowns are still being felt. Unsurprisingly, missing years of school has a major impact on the educational development of children. Kids across America are STILL struggling from pandemic-related setbacks, reading scores are still falling, and parents are reporting that their kids are struggling in their studies. The mental health crisis, another symptom of the COVID lockdowns, has also continued to worsen. Tragically, suicides increased by 2.6 percent between 2021 and 2022, marking the continued decline of mental health in America.

TOP FIVE takeaways from Super Tuesday

Anna Moneymaker / Staff, Win McNamee / Staff | Getty Images

The 2024 Presidential Election is taking shape.

Yesterday was Super Tuesday, the single biggest day in the presidential primary season. More than one-third of all delegates needed for a candidate to become the Presidential nominee of their party was up for grabs along with a plethora of state and local elections. In short, yesterday's results will shape the rest of the election season. It was a big deal.

Here are the top 5 takeaways from yesterday's elections:

Haley drops out

Nikki Haley drops out of the 2024 Presidential election.

Anna Moneymaker / Staff | Getty Images

After the mass exodus of Republican candidates in January, most commentators agreed that it was only a matter of time before Haley stepped out as well. Haley put up a valiant effort and held out almost two months longer than the other Republican candidates, but after a disappointing turnout on Super Tuesday, she made the call to step back from the race. There was a small victory for Haley fans, however, in that she won Vermont, her first state primary victory following her win in Washington, D.C.

Trump sweeps the board

Trump wins over 1,000 delegates during Super Tuesday.

Win McNamee / Staff | Getty Images

While Haley had a disappointing day yesterday, Trump and his team celebrated a huge win. Aside from Vermont, Trump won every state that had a primary. At the time this was written, Trump had picked up a whopping 731 delegates, bringing his total to 1,004, out of the required 1,215 to win the presidential nomination.

Democrats are not committed to Biden

Biden wins big on Super Tuesday, but he is struggling to maintain his Democrat base.

Anna Moneymaker / Staff | Getty Images

On paper, Biden had an excellent Super Tuesday, winning every state primary except American Samoa. However, a closer look reveals cracks in his supporter base. Yesterday, a shocking 19 percent of Minnesota Democrats voted for "uncommitted" instead of Biden. While that wasn't enough to change the outcome of the primary, it shows that Biden is walking on shaky ground, even among Democrats.

This phenomenon wasn't limited to Minnesota either. Eight percent of Colorado and Tennessee Democrats voted "uncommitted," and 10 percent of Massachusetts Democrats and 10 percent of North Carolina Democrats voted "no preference." Is this more evidence of a third-quarter bait-and-switch that Glenn has hypothesized?

The search to replace Feinstein continues

Adam Schiff and Steve Harvey compete for Diane Feinstein's Senate seat.

Anna Moneymaker / Staff, Barry King / Contributor | Getty Images

California is having two Senate elections to replace the late Senator Dianne Feinstein. There is a special election to fill out the remainder of her term and a regular election to fill her seat for the next six years. The results of the Tuesday primaries put Republican and former Los Angeles Dodgers player Steve Garvey and Democrat Adam Schiff as the front runners, and the two of them will be going head-to-head in November. Surprisingly, even in deep blue California, Garvey won more votes than Schiff in the special primary. Does Garvey have a chance?

Ted Cruz is back up for election in Texas

Ted Cruz is up for re-election in 2024

Anna Moneymaker / Staff | Getty Images

The Texas senate primaries were also on Tuesday, and Ted Cruz is back up for election in November. Cruz comfortably won the Republican Primaries with 88 percent of Texas Republicans backing him. Rep. Colin Allred, a Dallas-area congressman won the Democratic primary with a narrower margin of 58 percent. While it's easy for Texans to take their state's red status for granted, it is vital Texans stay vigilant and cast their vote this November.

This is YOUR CHANCE to make a difference!

Tomorrow is Super Tuesday, arguably the most consequential election day leading up to the 2024 election. However, every election leading up to November is critical for determining the trajectory of our country. This may be the most important election season in recent memory, so it is imperative that we do our part and head to the polls, even for smaller elections.

Listeners of Glenn's show are already aware of the multitudes of serious problems that face our nation. From the crisis on the southern border that's letting criminals flood our streets to the never-ending flow of American tax dollars funding a proxy war in Ukraine, it's clear that the people currently in charge are not cutout for the job.

We need to put responsible people back in office and we cannot let any more left-wing activists take power. YOU need to go out and vote and make your voice heard. Check out our COMPLETE list of all the upcoming elections in the 2024 election season. Mark your calendars, plan ahead, and STAND UP!

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Soros is trying to elect MORE TEXAS RINOs. Here's how YOU can stop him.

David McNew / Staff | Getty Images

Texas is under threat of a George Soros-backed takeover.

Soros-funded RINO judges have been elected in some of the highest courts in Texas. These judges implemented restrictions that have blocked nearly a thousand cases of voter fraud from being investigated or prosecuted from across the state. These new restrictions are similar to ones in place in states like George, Arizona, and Wisconsin, leaving Texas more susceptible to election corruption than ever. If Texas falls to corruption, America will lose its largest bastion of conservative electoral power in the nation. Without Texas, Republicans WILL NOT be able to win national elections and liberal corruption will go unchecked across the country.

Fortunately, there is a way to stop this: YOU.

If you live in Texas you have a chance to stand up against corruption and to fight back! Starting Tuesday, February 20th, early voting for the primaries begins, where three of these judges are up for election. Go out and vote. If the right people are voted in, there's a good chance the restrictions will be lifted and election fraud can once again be prosecuted.

But remember, you can't just go in and vote for anyone who has an "R" next to their name. Sorors knows that a registered Democrat would never stand a chance in Texas, so his lackeys register as Republicans and ride the little "R" right into office. So who do you vote for?

Fortunately, Glenn had Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on his show today and Ken gave us his list of judges that he vouches for. His list is as follows:

  • Gina Parker
  • Lee Finley
  • David Schenck
The Primary Election runs from February 20th to March 5th. This is your chance to get out there and make a difference. It might be the most important election you ever participate in. If you need to know where your nearest polling location is, or any other information regarding the election, you can go to votetexas.gov to find out more.
It's time to stand up.