Kevin Hart's company fired two Black podcast producers, shelved all their work, then sued them for leaving. INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MAY 10: Kevin Hart attends Netflix Is A Joke Festival Presents: The Roast of Kevin Hart at The Kia Forum on May 10, 2026 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Netflix) By Kimberly Wilson · Updated May 12, 2026 < /> Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... No matter your feelings towards Kevin Hart, his list of accomplishments is to be admired and respected. From taking home the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center in 2024, to hosting the BET Awards in 2025, to earning a Golden Globe nomination for his Netflix stand-up special Acting My Age, the Philadelphia native has had no shortage of wins. And just this week, Netflix dropped the trailer for his upcoming film 72 Hours ahead of its July premiere. It's no wonder then that a group of peers came together this past weekend to show their admiration (and a few jabs they've been holding in) for the comedian during Netflix's Kevin Hart Roast. And though the roast may be over, unfortunately for him, the punchlines at his media company are just getting started. A Bloomberg investigation published Sunday reveals that Hartbeat, Hart's media company once valued at $650 million, has been quietly unraveling for the past few years. At the center of the latest controversy are two Black podcast producers, Eric Eddings and Lesley Gwam, who were hired to expand Hartbeat's audio footprint, never given the green light to do it, and then taken to court when they tried to move on. The situation is a complicated one, particularly given that Hart has been vocal about his admiration for Black talent. As ESSENCE previously reported, Hart has credited Black women specifically as his biggest motivation, saying he admires their fight for equality and opportunity in the workplace. Hartbeat hired Eddings and Gwam specifically to build out the company's podcast division with projects that didn't need Hart's name to carry them. During their time at the company, they'd go on to develop a full slate of projects that never got a green light. When Hartbeat learned the two had started their own company (so their projects could finally see the light of day) and were raising money, the company fired them and filed a lawsuit alleging trade secret theft and breach of contract. A judge later sided with the producers, ruling that Hartbeat failed to prove anything proprietary had actually been taken. The court described Hartbeat's claims as "vague, ambiguous, and overly broad." The case is still ongoing. But the lawsuit is really just the most recent chapter in a longer collapse. Since 2024, Hartbeat has cycled through multiple rounds of layoffs, lost a string of senior executives, and watched projects stall before they ever got started. Hart stepped in as CEO in January 2025, but according to Bloomberg's sources, he was rarely around. After another wave of cuts in December, he addressed the remaining staff on Zoom briefly and left without answering questions. Hart then struck a deal with Authentic Brands Group, the firm behind the estates of Marilyn Monroe and Muhammad Ali, handing over his name, image, and likeness in exchange for equity and an undisclosed payout. His endorsement deals, which had been keeping Hartbeat afloat, went with him. As for what comes next, current and former employees told Bloomberg they aren't optimistic. The company has stayed quiet.

Kevin Hart's Hartbeat expands LOL Network into vertical comedy. HARTBEAT's LOL Network is moving into vertical comedy with a slate of original IP, positioning the company to define a category that has seen rapid growth in the microdrama format but remains dominated by melodrama and romance. The microdrama category is crowded with hundreds of apps competing for the same audience, with industry analysts reporting that as much as 90% of platform spend goes to marketing and user acquisition rather than content. Customer acquisition has become the category's defining cost problem. HARTBEAT's LOL Network is positioned to absorb that cost structure entirely. With more than 13 million existing social followers, over 500 million vertical views generated in 2025, and 6.8 billion minutes already streamed across thirteen CTV and FAST platforms, LOL Network doesn't need to acquire an audience. The audience is already watching comedy in vertical on LOL's platforms every day. "Let's call it what it is. Vertical is the business, and microdrama is just one genre inside it," said Jeff Clanagan, President and Chief Distribution Officer at HARTBEAT. "Right now that genre is stacked with the same billionaire-CEO, secret-marriage, mafia-romance cliffhangers running on repeat. Comedy is the open lane, and we've been operating in it at scale for a decade. The audience, the talent, and the distribution are already here. We're not entering vertical. We're expanding what we've already built." Freshman 15 anchors the slate, a series of fifteen 15-minute stand-up specials spotlighting the next generation of digitally native comedic talent. It debuts later this year as a LOL Network first-window exclusive. "The microdrama category has proven that vertical storytelling is a real business," Clanagan continued. "What it hasn't proven yet is that the genre monoculture we're seeing today is what audiences will still be watching five years from now. Every dominant format eventually opens up. Comedy is where vertical opens up first." HARTBEAT's LOL Network is partnering with Artists First and Kids at Play on the slate. Artists First, the talent management and production company behind comedic voices including Anthony Anderson, Awkwafina, Niecy Nash, Rob Riggle, and Ronny Chieng, brings its creator-first development pipeline and represents two of vertical's top directors, Danny Farber and Kristen Brancaccio. Kids at Play, the award-winning production studio known for high-volume, platform-native content across YouTube, Snap, and TikTok, brings digital-first production capability. The three companies have collaborated previously, including on the Die Hart franchise and the 2024 Paramount/Comedy Central film Cursed Friends. "We are excited about this opportunity with Hartbeat and Kids at Play. We have deep experience producing high-quality programming across micro-budget and independent formats, and look forward to bringing that experience into the vertical space," said Peter Principato, Chairman of Artists First. Luke Kelly-Clyne, Head of Studio at HARTBEAT, added: "This slate is designed to expand what comedy can be in vertical format. We're working with a new generation of comedic creators who understand the audience, and with legacy comedic voices whose work deserves to reach that audience in the format it's already watching. The goal is to build programming that surprises, that feels built for this moment, and that continues the work HARTBEAT has been doing in comedy for years." Amy Laslett, President of Kids at Play, said: "We've been creating content in the vertical space for a long time so combining our content and digital production expertise with partners who have proven track records across all distribution channels is very exciting. We've got a deep slate, great talent and massive distribution." Additional projects from the slate will be announced in the coming months.

Scripps is launching a new free Sports Network & adding original programs to its OTA TV networks, Bounce and Grit. March 23, 2026 The E.W. Scripps Company is moving into its annual upfront week with an ambitious expansion of original programming across four of its networks, signaling a strategic push to deepen viewer engagement and strengthen its pitch to advertisers. The media company, which trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker SSP, announced new series for Bounce, Grit, Scripps News and the newly launched Scripps Sports Network - a lineup that touches entertainment, news and live sports. The announcements come days before Scripps holds its upfront event on Wednesday, March 25, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, where the company is expected to present its full advertising pitch to media buyers. Bounce Teams With Kevin Hart for Unscripted Series The most high-profile addition to the Bounce network is a new unscripted series called "The Silver Fox Squad," developed in partnership with comedian and entertainment entrepreneur Kevin Hart's Hartbeat Productions and BluSpeed Productions. The show centers on a group of stylish, accomplished men over 50 - dubbed the Silver Foxes - who became a viral phenomenon for their polished appearance and entrepreneurial spirit. Each episode will follow them as they help other men improve their personal style, physical health and mental well-being. The series is framed as a celebration of confidence and reinvention in later life, emphasizing that personal growth is not bounded by age. It is scheduled to premiere later this year on Bounce, with a 10-week weekly run. Hart serves as an executive producer alongside a team that includes Luke Kelly-Clyne, Meghan Hoffman, Candice Wilson Cherry, Brendon Carter, Harry Ratchford, Joey Wells and Chris Spencer. Scripps-side executive producers include Keisha Taylor Starr, Adam Harman and Amira Lewally. Grit Breaks New Ground With First-Ever Originals In a notable shift for one of its most established brands, Scripps announced that Grit - a network built around action-oriented programming and heroic narratives that has operated for nearly 12 years exclusively on acquired content - will produce original programming for the first time in its history. The company indicated that several series are currently in development and that a first production announcement is expected soon. The move marks a new chapter for a network that has built a loyal audience without investing in originals, suggesting Scripps sees an opportunity to deepen its connection with Grit's viewership through exclusive content. Scripps News Adds Interview Series With Alisyn Camerota On the news side, Scripps is bringing veteran television journalist Alisyn Camerota to its national streaming news network for a new original interview series. Camerota, who built her career at Fox News and later CNN and has also authored a book, will host "Connected with Alisyn Camerota," a 30-minute weekly program featuring one-on-one conversations with figures from politics, journalism, music, sports and everyday life. The series launches Friday, March 27, at 8 p.m. ET, with former CNN anchor Don Lemon as the inaugural guest. It is scheduled to run for six consecutive weeks. The pairing of Camerota with Scripps News, which positions itself as an unbiased national news outlet, reflects the network's interest in interview-driven programming that goes beyond traditional newscasts. New Sports Streaming Channel Launches With Women's Sports Icons Perhaps the most forward-looking element of Scripps' announcement is the launch of Scripps Sports Network, a free, 24/7 streaming television channel set to go live on March 24. The channel will combine live sports, archival sports content and original programming, with its first two series built around prominent figures in women's sports. Sports broadcaster Suzy Kolber, whose four-decade career spans multiple network roles and is widely credited with breaking barriers in a male-dominated industry, will host a conversation series focused on trailblazers who have redefined their fields through unconventional thinking. Olympic track and field champion Sanya Richards-Ross will lead a separate series exploring life after athletic competition, sitting down with athletes, entertainers and others navigating professional reinvention after peak achievement. Both series are positioned as evergreen programming - content built for repeated viewing rather than tied to news cycles or live events. The launch of Scripps Sports Network places the company squarely in the growing competition for streaming sports viewers, a segment of the audience that has increasingly moved away from traditional linear television. By offering a free ad-supported product, Scripps is betting that accessibility and original content can differentiate the channel in a crowded marketplace. A Programming Strategy Centered on Diversification Taken together, the announcements reflect a deliberate effort by Scripps to broaden the appeal of its network portfolio while maintaining distinct identities for each brand. The company manages a wide range of television properties, including local broadcast stations in approximately 40 markets and national entertainment networks such as ION, Laff and the recently announced additions. The programming push comes as the broader television industry continues to face pressure from streaming platforms and shifting viewer habits. The Scripps Networks division is led by Keisha Taylor Starr, who also serves as the company's chief marketing officer. Programming development falls under Adam Harman, a veteran media executive. Scripps was founded in 1878 and remains one of the nation's largest holders of broadcast spectrum. Please add Cord Cutters News as a source for your Google News feed HERE. Please follow us on Facebook and X for more news, tips, and reviews. Need cord cutting tech support? Join our Cord Cutting Tech Support Facebook Group for help.