Two strong quarters, two very different stories -- and one worrisome sign that everyday Americans are running on empty. Read the full story by Sarah Mahoney

A federal judge has thrown out a class-action privacy complaint claiming that Meta wrongly collected location data about Facebook users via tracking software embedded in mobile apps. Read the full story by Wendy Davis

The World Cup frenzy is real. Gartner's research shows most sponsors have no idea if it's working. Read the full story by Sarah Mahoney

Just 10% of Americans have an interest in the World Cup, making it one of the countries with the lowest level of engagement. Read the full story by Tanya Gazdik

AI has become "the great creative equalizer," allowing smaller brands to punch above their weight with cheaper production tools, new media channels and AI-assisted commerce experiences, Kantar says. Read the full story by Rob Williams

That's what I asked Brandience's Brian McHale when he briefed me on the agency's new AI-generated "Synthetic Market Research & Testing" system. Read the full story by Joe Mandese

"Ask Advisor," which creates a unified experience for agentic capabilities, will roll out later this year to lead a team of expert agents across Google products, serving as an "always-on … Read the full story by Laurie Sullivan

Google brought new Universal Commerce Protocol features to retailers Wednesday with the launch of "Universal Cart," which introduces intelligent shopping and works across retail and services including Search. Read the full story by Laurie Sullivan

The acquisition puts Publicis in another category for agencies that support addressable ad targeting, and furthers its investment in technology, data, and AI and agentic services after the purchase of … Read the full story by Laurie Sullivan

The seasoned pro is responsible for global operations, reporting to CEO Bill Wise. Read the full story by Fern Siegel

The projected gain shows a slowdown in overall political ad spend. For the 2024 Presidential election year, ad spend increased 13% ($15.9 billion) vs. the 2020 election year ($14.1 billion). Read the full story by Wayne Friedman

The company's net new business (factoring in wins, retentions and losses) for the period was $1.98 billion, according to COMvergence. Read the full story by Steve McClellan

With tonight's Stephen Colbert "Late Show" finale, many will understandably feel emotional over the fact that a TV personality they love is leaving television. Read the full story by Adam Buckman

Stephen Colbert was the late-night host we didn't know we needed until we really needed him. And by we I mean the majority of us who still believe media is … Read the full story by Joe Mandese