Entertainment Reporters Exchange Insults in Media War Over Paramount Scoop: ‘It’s Called Reporting’

Screenshots via YouTube

Puck founding partner and reporter Matthew Belloni fired back at TheWrap founder and editor-in-chief Sharon Waxman after she publicly questioned whether Puck’s ties to a Paramount investor played a role in his latest Warner Bros. scoop.

Belloni reported on Friday that Warner Bros. film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy will not remain with the studio following its merger with Paramount, citing “two well-placed sources.”

Belloni wrote that the decision had been made but not yet formally communicated to De Luca and Abdy. Both Paramount and De Luca declined to comment.

The article caught the attention of Waxman, who pointed to Puck’s recent deal with RedBird Capital, which acquired a majority stake in the outlet. RedBird founder Gerry Cardinale is also a major Paramount shareholder and appeared, like Belloni, at Bloomberg’s Screentime conference on Thursday. Cardinale’s Paramount ties were disclosed in Belloni’s report.

She wrote in a series of X posts:

I find it so interesting that Matt Belloni managed to break the still-unconfirmed story that Pam Abdy and Mike De Luca are out at Warner Bros, give the purchase of @PuckNews by Redbird Capital, run by Paramount shareholder Gerry Cardinale, who was with Belloni at Screentime.
— Sharon Waxman (@sharonwaxman) October 2, 2026

2/ I”m happy to compete on news as aggressively as the next. But we cherish our independence @thewrap, and you can expect us to continue to break news without fear, favor, agenda or corporate connections.
— Sharon Waxman (@sharonwaxman) October 2, 2026

Belloni then hit back:

It’s called reporting, Sharon, you should try it rather than bottom feed off aggregation and low-paid employees. (Also I was at Screentime for my panel and left, didn’t see or talk to any other panelists, not that you care about facts.)
— Matthew Belloni (@MattBelloni) October 2, 2026

“I’ll try reporting, Matt. Hadn’t occurred to me. Glad to see your instinct to insult a competitor rather than make an argument lives on,” Waxman wrote to conclude the spat. She went on to respond to other users in the comment sections, including one who called her a “sore loser,” with “instant blockorama!”

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!