Scouting Hollywood: May 25-31

A roundup of news, gossip and history of the entertainment business brought to you from Hollywood, Calif.

Advertisers are pulling back and media companies are nervous about the ongoing writers’ strike. Due to threats of picketing writers, Netflix decided to cancel its live upfront presentation in lieu of a zoom meeting. The other major networks and services are scheduled to present shortly. The goal is to get advertisers to purchase billions of dollars worth of airtime up front rather than scattershot purchases made over the coming TV season. Research groups predict the market will total as much as $32 billion, down about 6 percent from national TV network ad buys last year.