Latest news with #DrPhil
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Professional Bull Riders Move to Block Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media's Bankruptcy
Professional Bull Riders Move to Block Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media's Bankruptcy originally appeared on Daytime Confidential. Several weeks after the -helmed media network and streamer Merit Street Media filed for bankruptcy, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) organization is filing an objection. Their reason? Via contract arbitration, they want to recoup claims that they are disputing—to the tune of $181 million—according to the Dallas Morning News. RELATED: The biggest bull-riding league worldwide, PBR filed this objection last week. PBR went its separate ways from Merit Street in November 2024, pulling their programming and alleging Merit Street had committed a contract breach and that it had not paid rights fees. The partnership apparently deteriorated as Merit Street's finance problems and relationship with Trinity Broadcast Network got worse; Merit Street is now suing Trinity. In a statement released on Friday, PBR said: PBR honored its contract with Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media, delivered on every performance metric, and brought more than one million viewers to the new network. Dr. Phil and his company completely reneged on the deal just five months in. PBR is pursuing all available pathways to recovering the monies owed by Merit Street and Dr. Phil. The Morning News added that PBR is looking into avenues that could potentially hold McGraw responsible for the money that Merit Street allegedly owes, but his legal team has rejected this so far. Merit Street has not apparently explained why it hasn't paid part of its media agreement with PBR from 2024, but it has argued that PBR didn't live up to its contractual obligations and filed counterclaims (for things such as fraud). While Merit Street has between $100 and $500 million in assets, according to its bankruptcy filings, it has over 200 creditors. PBR claimed that it was left off the list of the biggest creditors, although Merit Street chief restructuring officer Gary Broadbent did make clear in filings that the PBR lawsuit was a reason for filing for bankruptcy. Reps for McGraw, Merit Street Media, and Trinity Broadcasting did not get back to the paper right away with a comment. This story was originally reported by Daytime Confidential on Jul 22, 2025, where it first appeared. Solve the daily Crossword
Gizmodo
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
Dr. Phil's Anti-Woke News Channel Went Bankrupt. His Next Platform Is Even More Doomed
Dr. Phil might not be a real medical doctor, but he sure seems to be good at reanimating his own corpse, because somehow he just keeps coming back from the dead. Just a couple of weeks after his streaming venture, Merit Street Media, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy, the second-most-embarassing person that Oprah rocketed into fame is launching another venture called Envoy Media Co., according to The Hollywood Reporter. Envoy, much like Merit Street, will be anchored by original programming starring Dr. Phil and Steve Harvey. It'll also include a library of content (Merit Street had a whole back catalogue of Harvey's talk show and Nancy Grace's 'Crime Stories,' so keep an eye out for those). An Envoy television channel is expected to launch later this month, per Bloomberg. But the real hook is a feature that will let 'citizen journalists' upload their own content to the platform. According to the company, it'll give people the chance to 'share news and stories from their communities while seamlessly integrating curated user-generated content on a national scale.' The details on how that'll work are sparse at this stage, but it surely won't lead to terrible outcomes. The citizen journalist schtick has been tried ad infinitum in the social media era. There is a graveyard full of efforts to create a platform built around such content. Arguably, platforms like Substack and Medium have come the closest to creating something sustainable around such a thing, but even those are dominated more by professional, independent journalists rather than your average Joe. If anything, the YouTubes and Twitters of the world have proven the most effective way to turn a local story into a national one. But who knows, maybe Envoy will crack the code on curating citizen reporting. It's not like Dr. Phil has a history of running with dubious claims for the sake of content or anything. If there is any reason to believe that Envoy Media will be a success, you won't find it by looking at Dr. Phil's last venture. The streaming option launched in 2024 with a linear cable app and streaming options. Per The Hollywood Reporter, the channel averaged 27,000 viewers during its first year of operation, which is…bad. Its short run through 2025 saw those figures drop to 17,000 viewers, which, if you're keeping score, is worse. Even the channel's YouTube channel languished, despite Dr. Phil having a pretty robust presence on the platform. Merit Media has under 90,000 subscribers, and its most recent videos have barely cracked 1,000 views. Not exactly the kind of audience that warrants its own standalone service, but hey, it ain't my money.
Bloomberg
14-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Dr. Phil Launches Envoy Media Following Merit Street Bankruptcy
Phil McGraw, the celebrity psychologist known as 'Dr. Phil,' is starting a new media company following the bankruptcy of an earlier startup, Merit Street Media. Called Envoy Media Co., the new company will focus on 'delivering live, balanced news, original entertainment programming and immersive viewer experiences through both traditional and emerging technologies,' according to a statement Monday.
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What Happened to Dr. Phil's Cable TV Network? Bankruptcy Report Explained
Dr. Phil McGraw's return to TV through his own cable network, Merit Street Media, made headlines when it launched with promises of bold, viewer-focused programming. But just months after its debut, the network has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The filing, tied to a financial dispute with its broadcasting partner, has raised concerns about the future of the channel, its shows, and Dr. Phil's primetime comeback. Here's a breakdown of what happened and what it means going forward. Dr. Phil McGraw's ambitious cable TV venture, Merit Street Media, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This development sparked questions about its future. The filing, made in the Northern District of Texas earlier this week, stems from a dispute with its broadcast partner, the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). Despite the financial upheaval, sources say this isn't the end of the road for the network. It certainly isn't for Dr. Phil's media ambitions. The bankruptcy filing is viewed as a strategic move to protect the Merit Street brand, rather than a full shutdown. 'Dr. Phil is deeply committed to the future of the brand and his employees,' said People's source familiar with the situation. They added that McGraw remains 'focused, energized,' and actively engaged with his team. The legal drama began when Merit Street Media filed a lawsuit against TBN and TCT Ministries, Inc. The complaint accuses TBN, which held a controlling stake in the network, of intentionally sabotaging operations. The network alleges that TBN forced it to take on unsustainable debt and failed to make necessary distribution payments — a responsibility TBN had acknowledged in the past. As a result, Merit Street lost its national distribution channels, leaving it with nowhere to air its content. The lawsuit claims TBN's actions resulted in over $100 million in financial obligations and called the conduct 'a conscious, intentional pattern of choices' that ultimately undermined a promising, nationally recognized network. The next chapter of Merit Street Media will depend on the outcome of ongoing legal proceedings. Whether the brand can recover from its sudden loss of distribution is also a key factor. The post What Happened to Dr. Phil's Cable TV Network? Bankruptcy Report Explained appeared first on - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Gizmodo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Gizmodo
Dr. Phil's ‘Anti-Woke' TV Network Files for Bankruptcy After Only a Year
Last year, in an effort to capitalize on anti-woke backlash, Dr. Phil (real name Phil McGraw) launched his own TV channel, which he said would be used to fight the good fight against the far left's radical crazies. Merit Street Media, according to McGraw, would be a vanguard in the battle for the soul of America. 'Merit Street Media will be a resource of information and strategies to fight for America and its families, which are under a cultural 'woke' assault as never before,' said McGraw at the time. 'I love this country and I believe family is the backbone of our society. Together we are going to stand strong and fight for the very soul and sanity of America and get things that matter back on track.' Merit Street partnered with Trinity Broadcasting Network, which calls itself the 'most-watched faith-and-family broadcasting network' in the world. Since then, things have not gone particularly well for the TV mogul's company. Last summer, just a few months after it launched, the company laid off 28 staff members, which was purported to be over a third of its staff at the time. Then, last month, Merit Street laid off another 40 employees, culling the staff further. This week, Merit Street also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Variety reports. At the same time, the company has sued TBN, and accused it of sabotaging the business, the outlet notes. Merit Street claims that TBN has 'abused its position as the controlling shareholder' and that, as a result, Merit Street was forced to 'pay or incur obligations to third parties in excess of $100 million.' The litigation further has stated that TBN made the 'conscious and knowing choice to cause Merit Street to lose its national distribution by withholding distribution payments despite repeatedly acknowledging those distribution payments were 100% TBN's sole responsibility.' The company further states that TBN provided production services that were 'comically dysfunctional. Although it promised the equivalent of the professional facilities and services that Dr. Phil had long relied on when producing his show in Los Angeles for CBS, the supposed 'first class' services TBN promised under the Joint Venture Agreement were nothing of the sort. TBN provided screens and teleprompters that blacked out during live shows, an incomplete control room operating out of a truck, an unusable cell phone app for viewers, and amateur video editing software.' The bankruptcy motion filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Northern District of Texas states that the company has reported 'assets and liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million,' The Daily Beast writes. 'These failures by TBN were neither unintended nor inadvertent,' Merit Street says in its lawsuit. 'They were a conscious, intentional pattern of choices made with full awareness that the consequence of which was to sabotage and seal the fate of a new but already nationally acclaimed network.' Gizmodo reached out to Merit Street for more information. A representative from TBN said that the company currently had no comment on the litigation.
