"170M Down To 22M” - Daily Wire Layoffs REVEALS Billion Dollar Miscalculation

So, story comes out, and you know everybody is in the market.The moment something bad happens, they're losing, they're doing this, they're doing that.Oh, we're killing it.Let me tell you how many subscribers.We're doing so well.So, you know, when you're doing great, you brag, but when you have a setback, the market's going to criticize you as well, and that's part of capitalism and how it works, and you have to kind of take it.

So, Rob, what numbers do we have?Which one is this?So, Daily Wire's hit with layoffs across a number of teams, largely from their Nashville Headquarters, this is what page page 31 I believe if I'm not mistaken page 33.Let me go to it and read some of the numbers to you And then Vinny I'm gonna come to you on this one here first.So daily wire has been hit with another round of layoffs.Okay, so There's a couple stats.

This article I can read, Rob.I'm more interested in reading the stats because the stats I'm reading about is 50%, 60%, 85%.They went from 200 employees to losing 100 employees, you know, in the Nashville office.And so today the Daily Wire made a difficult decision to restructure the organization, which included layoffs of a number of teams.Spokesperson said, we are deeply grateful.to those impacted their contributions were instrumental in the building of daily wire into what it is today.

The statement continued, the cuts were largely concentrated at our national production office as the company has invested in new formats, locations, and production models.Our footprint As the company has invested, there has evolved over the last year.We have added production staff in D .C., the Northeast, and Florida.The step allows us to focus our resources on an ambitious slate of new entertainment projects set to be released later this year.

Additionally, we will continue to invest in our editorial team and investigative journalism, where we have already added numerous new reporters across the country and established a D .C.bureau with a seat in the White House briefing room.Cameron Arcan, a political reporter for the site, was affected.by round of cuts.He posted about the layoffs on social media on Friday.

Hey, friends, tough news to share.I was impacted by the layoffs today at Daily Wire, so I'm looking for opportunities in journalism, communication here in D .C.Candace said, who worked at the company until 2024, commented on the layoffs.She hinted that at least 50 % of the company staff was affected.That has yet to be confirmed.

Hearing that Daily Wire laid off over 50 % of their staff today, as much as I positively despise what their executives put me and my family through, there are a lot of good people at the company.Brent shared, the editor -in -chief from Daily Wire, refuted this claim and other similar on X. Yes, the company has had layoffs.It's always rough.No, it is not nearly at 50 % of the company.That's insane and also insane to post without verifying.

Vinny.I mean, this is what happens when your whole company is built on personalities and then you forget they have a massive audience.Like you fire them or they just leave.A big chunk of that audience is going with them.And at one point, Ben Shapiro was pulling 170 million views a month on YouTube.

Oh, you have the chart that shows the clips?Oh, go ahead.

Yeah, it was massive.It was massive.And then post -October 7th, a lot of things changed.He got a lot more aggressive, going after anyone not lining up with his stance on Gaza.That shift alone starts narrowing the audience, and you create tension inside the company.Then long after that, Candace Owen gets fired, whether you agree with her or not.

That move sends the message, OK?You're not just losing a voice.You're pushing out someone who built a real audience underneath your umbrella.Same pattern with Brett Cooper.She left.Different situation, same result, her entire audience left with her, you know what I'm saying?

So instead of locking in on what already worked, they tried doing this whole thing into something conservative.They tried doing like a conservative Disney.They did studio, you know, movies, kid content, streaming products, everything at once.Sounds great.until it doesn't work, okay?You can't run a newsroom, a film studio, a kid platform, a product line, all at once unless you have endless money and you have serious discipline.

And they stretch themselves thin chasing everything instead of just dominating the lane that they're in.They had a couple of wins.I think Matt Walsh, Rob, I think the racist one did very, very well, his documentary.Really, really good numbers.But most of those big wins, Pat, they didn't land.Then Jeremy Boring steps down.

That's not stability.That's cracks starting to show.And as my friend Thomas DeBisdock, as Ellsworth says, words talk, numbers scream, and these numbers scream.170 million views to 22 million views.You know this guys, that's not a dip.That's a collapse and they're still carrying the same heavy operation built that when things were booming.

So here's the truth.The brand matters, but the connection people have is with the person.That's what keeps them watching.So when those voices leave or get pushed out or fired because they don't agree with the boss and they can't have a debate, That's a big piece of the audience goes with them.So that's how you end up with a company that looked like a billion -dollar machine, but it's, you know, leaning heavy on the people carrying at them.

Look, this thing comes down to one word, and that's Ben.Ben Shapiro is the face of The Daily Wire, and they have incredible talent.I think Matt Walsh is an incredible talent.I think Michael Knowles is a very likable, smart guy.They have their whole crew over there, respect to what they've done.Obviously, when Ben stood up for Israel against Hamas, that showed cracks in the system.

So I'll ask you one question.Did the daily wire change, or did the consumer media landscape change?What do you think the answer is?I don't think the daily wire changed at all.I think they've stood for exactly what they stand for as a group, collectively, and the market has changed.If you look at the Israel approval ratings, there's a direct correlation to how Americans and the world feel about Israel.

fighting this war in Gaza and against Iran to how daily wire subscriptions go.Now, if you ask me, hey, Ben, if you had the chance.to do it all over again, fire Candace, go against Tucker, defend Turning Point USA, defend Israel, would you do it all over again?Do you know what I think his answer would be?One million percent.Because to me, this is not about likes, views, clicks.

Even when he attacked Megyn Kelly, he said, stand for something.Even if he loses subscribers, even if he loses viewership, it doesn't matter to him.I'll ask you a question.if all of a sudden capitalism wasn't that cool.And we do fear that communism has taken over America.And we saw that the media landscape and the consumers were like, I don't know, we're kind of into the socialism thing.

Do you think we'd give one inch to that?We would double down on capitalism.So when you believe in something, you stick with it.And I think that's what he's doing.

Well, I see, I have a couple observations and one of them, I was trying to find the numbers over the weekend because I didn't want to put my, hang my hat on a number that was, that was incorrect.So you have, is Pat, Pat, you and I always talk, when you say they, say who they is.If you say a lot, say a number and do your research and put it up.So what do we know that They spent millions of dollars on BentKey, didn't work, and then they canceled.Okay, so wow, an entrepreneur started a product, they spent a bunch of money on it, it didn't work, and the board at the same time, coincidentally, not coincidentally, March of last year, I think it's been over a year since Jeremy Boring stepped down as CEO, and they say, okay, maybe that didn't work.Well, look, Meta, they tried to do the Metaverse and they spent billions of dollars into a hole, that didn't work either.

So you see things like that, you say, wow, maybe that affected your cash reserves.But what was very interesting to me, can you go back to the ratings, the chart that Vinny was talking about, the kind of the green, yeah.Pat, take a look at this.Most media companies, and I looked at this this weekend, most media companies, 2024 from January to October was like fantastic.what I'm talking about right now If this is correct from this group, then the daily wire viewership was going down into an election cycle, where most of the podcasts and the media kind of went up into an election cycle.So I thought that was kind of interesting difference that they experienced.

And those are my observations.

Yeah.So my thoughts here on this story here.Number one, running a business is very hard.And running a business that's a public business is even harder.And in running a business where the face of the business has an opinion is even 10 times harder.So in this case, the guy that when you think about daily wire, who's the face of daily wire?

Ben Shapiro.Guess what?It comes with the territory.upset about it, but one thing with him, I don't think he's not a sensitive guy that is going to be affected by it.I will tell you a couple of feedback here.When did Jeremy Boring step down, Rob?

A year ago.I think it was March.March of last year?Yeah.Okay.I believe so.

By the way, this makes Jeremy Boring look good.This makes Jeremy Boring look good because this says the creative guy was gone.Love him or hate him, he at least maybe was the creative guy that was doing stuff, okay?He was a guy that was going out there doing, if you have to say naturally, who was more funny, Ben Shapiro or Jeremy Boring?Jeremy Boring.It's not even close, right?

Not Ben.

But I'm going to tell you.

Smarter.

I'm going to tell you.No, no, that's not the conversation.Genius.Yeah.So the rebranding of Ben has been, let's try to see if he's funny and let's make him be funny and doing all this stuff.I don't think it's working.

The rebranding of trying to attack in the way they do with Candice the way they're doing, I also don't think that's working, okay?I don't think that's working.I think if Ben went on the road and did some of the stuff with campuses and schools and stuff like that, I think they can bring that eyeball back up again because he's phenomenal with that, being on the road and talking to kids and You know, he's one of the OG guys who did this.Ham, Crowder, this is way before anybody else was doing it.That's kind of how they built it.Even before Charlie, yeah.

So I think he can get back into it.Does he want to do it or not?Probably security, his family.People are probably saying no.I think he's got three or four kids.So he's a family guy as well.

I don't think that's going to be happening.And then, you know, last but not least is, I do believe, you know, they may have tried to sell a year ago, maybe two years ago, And the numbers were higher.It's like, hey, let's go to the market because they went from Fox News's enemy to Fox isn't an enemy.And maybe we team up together and maybe Fox acquires us and we go under them.And I don't know if that went through or not.OK, go back up there, Rob.

What does it say?Shapiro solicits backers or buyers for build out daily wire.What's the date on this?What's the date on this?Yeah, a year ago.I've spoken to a few different people that's when they was on the market.

We had some interesting conversations with a few people.Tom, you remember this one?Some people came in and they asked us about our interest about, uh, you know, some, some different moves.And, but you know, this is the part about business, you know, we sold a week before money being cheap a week before money went up in prices, Vinny.And, and, and sometimes like, that's not like, oh my God, you guys were such geniuses.No, it got lucky.

I mean, I'm bottom.I'm being serious.It's very easy to say, let me tell you how brilliant we are.No, it was just timing.Cause then all of a sudden, boom, rates went up.And then companies are like, time out.

We're not making any acquisitions the way we were.So our timing, of course, the company is worth way more than will be sold today.The EBITDA is much higher.The company is happy.Everything ended up working out.But a part of it is also timing of when you drop and you move on.

So repositioning, re -messaging.And see if the market, you know, is turned on by it or not.And then you gotta go from there.But this is not an...And by the way, CBS is having a hard time right now.Of course they are.

It's not like CBS is like winning.CBS is getting criticized.So let me get this straight.The 60 Minutes person that's doing the interview, what's her name, Leslie Stahl?Yeah.Is a Jew, reporting to a Jew and working for a Jew, right?

That's right.We're going to own your ass.And FYI.I knew it.I knew it.None of that is wrong.

None of that is wrong.So Leslie Stahl, where is Leslie Stahl's family from?I don't know.Is Leslie Stahl Jewish rep?I don't know.Leslie Stahl, where's her family from?

Do we know her family?Yeah, Jewish family.OK, there you go.So she's Jewish.Who she reports to, very wise, is Jewish.Who bought the company.

Who bought the company is David Ellison and Larry Ellison, who's Jewish.So guess what?Go ahead.How do you fix that?Go ahead and change the messaging.You have to find a way to go through it.

I'm not going to watch CBS because I don't know what these guys are trying to do.This is a very, very, very weird time to be in a media space.Very weird time to be in a media business.It's going to be very difficult.It's going to be very challenging.And you're better off building on systems instead of personalities.

Because if you only build it on personalities, they're going to go, they're going to leave.They're going to do this and look what happened.Candace boom, Brad Cooper.And then Jordan Peterson's going through some challenges.Hopefully he feels better.And I saw the Michaela Peterson that put a clip about it.

Of course, Jordan Peterson at one point played a very, very important role for young men in America.And we heard some news with Rudy Giuliani is also not feeling good.I hope he recovers.He was one of the biggest fighters in America we ever had.He cleaned up the streets of New York.No matter how much people say stuff about Giuliani, our prayers are with him and his family, and I hope they go through it, make it through.

But this game of media is not for everybody.It's nasty, it's ugly, and you have to change your approach or the reasoning for it.The other day I went to Publix.Early in the morning, I went to Publix because we didn't have mushrooms.And Jen's like, you're really going to Publix?I said, babe, the way I make my omelet, both me and Tico like it with this mushroom.

So I go to Publix.And by the way, when I go to Publix, 7 o 'clock, 6 .30 in the morning, whatever time it is, I'm dressed like a...You know, I just got up.I'm not fixing my hair or anything.So I go, Oh my God, guy pulls up.I'm like, Oh shoot.

What?And I didn't have my, I wasn't, I wasn't carrying.So guy comes up, he's giving me a hug and I'm just, when he's hugging me, I'm just watching his hands, you know, cause there's different kinds of hugs.I'm like, Hey, nobody, you know what I'm saying?When you're hugging somebody with the hands like, Oh good.By the way, he stays with me for 10 minutes.

Every aisle we went, he's following me.Why'd you start a podcast?I noticed you're doing a lot of podcasts.Why do you do the podcast?What nice guy.Well, why are you doing a podcast?

You're you're a guy that's successful.Is it that important?Why is it so important?Your strategy for running your media company may have to adjust instead of the traditional way of doing it to get sponsorship money.And if you make the right adjustments, maybe you want long term.If you don't and you bring personalities, personalities nowadays, no matter the moment you bring in, there's everybody in their ear saying, hey, you know, you should do this.

You should do that.You should do that.So this.constantly gets people to not be able to retain.So kudos to Knowles and Walsh and all those guys for being there because they get so much pressure every day for leaving.And so I don't know.

I don't know what's going to happen for staying.I'm sorry for staying.Yeah.So they're constantly getting criticized to leave.Hey, why aren't you leaving and doing your own thing?But this is a very tough business.

We're going to see this thing over and over again with stories.

It's a tough business.Let me ask you one thing, Pat.There's only a few people that I'd put in this category of Ben Shapiro, meaning you you're the the owner, operator, founder.You're also the main talent.I think you're in that category, obviously.I think someone like Dave Portnoy is in that category.

You know, the talkers of the world, the candidates of the world are quickly finding out it's hard to be the owner operator talent.We'll see what happens.But here's my biggest thing.If you listen to the voices that, you know, choose your enemies wisely, He's made Candace an enemy.He's made Tucker an enemy.To an extent, he's made Megyn Kelly what happened.

But look at what his enemies are saying.

Tucker is calling Trump the Antichrist, and then forget he said that.

Candace is telling people in the military, just unlist from the army a dishonorable discharge.Don't die for Israel.Okay, that's, at the very least, un -American.You have Nick Fuentes, who's basically saying, go vote Democrat.And I'll ask you this initial question.What has changed from the perspective, not the business model, the perspective from what you're hearing from the Daily Wire, because I would argue nothing's changed.

They're doubling down on what they've always done.Do you think they should change or should they stay the way they are personality wise and content wise?I'm not saying business perspective or do they stick to their morals and their values and say, no, this is what we stand for.We're not going to, we're not going to listen to you, uh, trash turning point USA or an Erica Kirk or basically say, let me tell you this still, let me tell you how this works.

One day I'm in Atlanta.And I'm talking to this other guy, and the company has pinned us against each other.I'll give you the dates.It's probably like, you know, October of 2008.And this is not a guy I trust.Shady guy.

He got promoted and demoted three times.But I got along with everybody, including this guy.But I knew who he was, and he knew who I was.Both of us knew we're players.This guy ended up making $10 million a year.Very, very good at what he does.

but not my kind of guy.It's the kind of guy that looks at you, says stuff, and then behind your back, it says stuff.And when I sold the company, he came here, tried to get me to help him out.I'm like, listen, I don't play these big shot bullshit games, never responding back to his texts, nothing.Because to my face, he would compliment behind my back.He would go out there and try to destroy.

Fake friend.I don't do that kind of stuff at all.And by the way, I wish him nothing but the best.He knows who he is.They're going to share this video with him and he'll see it.He knows exactly my position is, the moment you did that one thing, you lose me permanently.

I don't play games.But I'm going to tell you what happened.When we were at this event, he says, my style is...You know, I destroy you, and then we become friends.And then when I'm bigger than you, then we become friends.

What the hell is that?

So he said this to me, and it's like, hey, we should start doing - He said that to your face.Yeah.But he's talking about other people, but I get what he's saying.He says, we should do events together.I'm like, I'll never do events with you.But the reason why I didn't want to do events with him is because I knew he would brainwash and confuse others and divide.

I don't play those games.I understand deception very quickly when people try to play games.It's very obvious, very effective.I've read all the power books, 40 Laws of Power, Art of War, 33 Strategies of War, The Rings.You read any of these stuff on manipulation and power, I read them because I knew what...By the way, I gave...

One of our guys in the company was using 40 Laws of Power against our guys.You know what?I made the book of the month.The next month, I had everybody in the company read 40 Laws of Power, so nobody could do what they wanted.Flip the script.I said, everybody read 40 Laws of Power, so nobody can manipulate against you.

But you know what happened?Here's the challenge, Adam.If we come up And I, behind closed doors, I'm constantly trying to destroy your career in media, and you're an 18 -year -old kid, 19 -year -old kid, and I'm telling everybody how bad you are, that may work on 99 % of 18, 19 -year -old kids, they can destroy their career, and then comes the one guy.And the one guy you don't F with.So if you came up in any business, including media, and behind closed doors, you made the phone calls because you have access to those guys to destroy their careers, I'm not with that either.So I'm not saying that's what they did.

I haven't been around the game long enough to know what everybody did.I do know this is a very nasty, nasty game, and I would size everybody up when I would talk to them.We're new in this space.It's not like we've been in this space for a long time.And I don't even know if you understand what I just said right now.Some people did understand exactly what I just said right now.

I'm reading between the lines here.

If you came up and you intentionally used your power to destroy people's career, F you if you did that.Because if that's how you win, you deserve everything that's coming your way because that's how capitalism works.You can't do that.Sure.The way to compete is beat me.Out message me.

What did Biden's administration do?Hey, silence those YouTube channels.What did Fauci and those guys do on COVID?Hey, silence those guys.I remember there was a guy named Dr. Mike.I'm like, hey, come on.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.Three times he's agreed and then cancels.Why not?Next week he has Fauci on.Oh, you can't because I'm going to talk about Fauci?And who was telling you that we were getting strikes?

So if you played those games, don't think it only happens on the liberal side.If conservatives do it, I'm not with that either.I'm with arguments.Like, I enjoyed watching Tucker's interview with New York Times.I don't agree with him.I've already called him out.

I said what my position is, but I actually enjoyed the interview.Why?Because I'm watching the game, how it's being played, and I want to know people's positions so we can adjust accordingly on what we're doing.So, no, I'm not part of the, as much as people are like, you know what, all the death threats I got for interviewing Bibi and Nick Fuentes, who the hell had both of them on within 30 days?

Nobody.

I enjoyed both their conversation.I wish I had, you know, An hour and a half would be why because last minute you remember what happened last minute?We're on the other side of the building last minute.He wants to start earlier.We got 30 minutes.I'm like, dude.

I thought I had ahour.Do you remember this?Of course.When we had to come out and, I don't know, you were in the room as well.We started 15 minutes early.

I was supposed to come, like, that threw my calendar off, and I couldn't really get into these.But the market doesn't know.This is not their fault.They're supposed to grow at a size.But if you came up and you used your card to do that, I don't play that game.I know.

I don't play that game.And by the way, you and I could agree together politically.And I still don't play that game.I still don't play that game because, you know, uh, my, my daughter's at, and I'm going to get to next doors.We've got so many stores.I don't want to stay on the story for too long.

I'm getting Brooklyn to get in the habit of, you know, what are the four things we do as a family?Read, respect, improve love.Do we bully?No.Do we get bullied?No.

Okay.What are the three things we pray for?Courage, wisdom, tolerance, you know, courage, wisdom, understanding.Great.You know, I, I Brooklyn, Ivy bed, David, Brooklyn, Ivy.Well, one day, one day, BA, BA, great leader.

I'm in that phase with her.Cause she's four years old.I haven't had to do this because Santa's nine.About to be 10.So I'm shaping them.I said, I don't want to write.

Let me just watch.No, go do your steps.And she has to do these steps, exercise every morning.And then she has to go write the letters.Oh, daddy, please.I don't want to do it, please.

I'm like, baby, as cute as you are, you have to write it.You're not going to get nothing with daddy.I love you so much.I don't want to write lead 10 times.Write lead 10 times.So she writes.

I'm like, dude, that's great.Good.And we're going back and forth.But if the one thing in our family, we don't bully and we don't get bullied.And the market is filled with a lot of bullies, and some of them that are covert bullies.You know what the covert bully is?

You know what I'm talking about?

Like the guy that's behind, oh, oh, Heavenly Father.Like China.

And then you're doing this.You especially are the kinds I don't like.Because I like bullies like this, okay?Like Trump's this kind of a bully.But there's some deceptive James bully.I don't, I don't know.

And we try not to touch a lot of different positions.Anyways, I'm going to move on because we'll be in this topic here for another 45 minutes.Every three to four years, we find ways to improve value attainment.And I'm talking about with the public.So I want to hear commentary from the public.We want to get feedback on what things can happen better with PBD Podcasts, what content you want to see improving, business, how -to, whatever it is that we cover, we want to get your feedback and your input.

So here's what we're doing.We are creating a survey.Anybody that texts the word PBD to 310 -340 -1132, again, texts the word PBD to 310 -340 -1132, you will automatically get a survey to do.And I think the survey is a couple basic questions to ask about everybody here, about what things can happen better, all the things that we can improve in.And for anybody that completes the survey, beginning to the end, all of it, answers, we're giving a $25 gift card to the store.It doesn't matter if it's 50 ,000 people that take it or 5 ,000 people that take it, everyone gets a $25 gift card to VTMerch .

com.Go purchase whatever you want.You have a $25 gift card for completing the survey because we want to hear from you.This thing started off, Valuetainment started off with me doing a couple basic videos with Mario, two minutes with Pat, with me in pink socks, the first episode we ever did.Till today, it haunts me every time I see those pink socks.And the way I'm sitting on that couch, Rob, if you want to show the first clip we ever did on Valuetainment, it really inspires me to know how far along we've come.

And all the board videos we used to do, to then starting the podcast.Yeah, if you go there, go to videos, and go to the oldest, oldest right there, and go to that one right there.No, go to the second one.

Go to the second one, Rob.Look at those things.

Go a little bit right there, the second one.Look at the way I'm sitting.Go to 40 seconds.We won't.Look at the way I'm sitting.Just right there is fine.

Rob.I mean, it's like horrible, right?What is that?That's the first video ever.That's Woodland Hills.Look it up.

I think it's 2013, whatever it is, when I wrote a book.So now PBD Podcasts where it's at.So it wouldn't happen without you.Everywhere I go and I run into people and we talk and we have different stories that we discuss, it's always great, the relationship that we have together for those guys that tune in.So it would mean a lot to us if you can go do the survey.Again, text the word PBD to 310 -340 -1132 and we'll send the link for you to do the survey.

Or, Rob, what is the link that they can go to?Do you have the link?

I do.It is survey .vt .

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You guys don't need to hear from me.We want to hear from everybody.From the guy that is a CEO of a Fortune 100 company that watches the podcast regularly and messages me, to the person that watches you, your family, your farmer, your somebody that's just tuning in, you like the style, we want to hear from you.Please go to survey .vt .com and complete the survey.

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