Mediagazer: No Amazon TV Box for Christmas (Peter Kafka/AllThingsD)

5:35 AM ET, October 30, 2013

Top News:

Senate confirms Wheeler to lead FCC — The Senate unanimously confirmed Tom Wheeler, an investor and former industry lobbyist, to be chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday. — The vote was delayed for two weeks by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who expressed concern about Wheeler's views on political disclosure rules.

Discussion: TechCrunch, Variety, Gigaom, CNET, TIME, Broadcasting & Cable, New York Times, The Wrap, The Verge and Ars Technica

Glenn Greenwald / Omidyar Group:

Dan Froomkin and Liliana Segura join Glenn Greenwald's new news venture — Two New Journalists Join the Team — We're very excited to announce two new members joining our team: Dan Froomkin and Liliana Segura. Dan and Liliana will work alongside Laura Poitras, Jeremy Scahill …

Discussion: @sulliview, @ggreenwald, Politico, @brianstelter, @trevortimm, Erik Wemple, @sharifkouddous, @davidkaib, @alexbkane, @mlcalderone and @allisonkilkenny

Peter Lauria / BuzzFeed:

Exclusive: CBS News In Talks With Distributors For 24-Hour Digital Video Service — The company's news and interactive units are developing a digital programming service to be distributed on mobile phones, tablets, game consoles and over-the-top TV distribution systems. — CBS headquarters.

Discussion: New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Variety, Deadline.com, TVNewser and @brianstelter

Edmund Lee / Bloomberg:

New York Times Struggles to Replace Print Ads With Digital Sales — The New York Times Co.'s advertising department is struggling to replace its once-lucrative print ads with digital sales, as Google Inc. (GOOG) and Facebook Inc. gobble up increasingly large chunks of marketers' budgets.

Discussion: Guardian, @joepompeo, @raju, @abeaujon, @felixgillette and @edmundlee

Michael Sebastian / AdAge:
New York Times Ad Chief: Branded Content Units Coming Soon

Thanks:@steverubel

Alan Rusbridger / The New York Review of Books:

The Snowden Leaks and the Public — 1. — It is harder than you might think to destroy an Apple MacBook Pro according to British government standards. In a perfect world the officials who want to destroy such machines prefer them to be dropped into a kind of giant food mixer that reduces them to dust.

Discussion: @smithsam and @nybooks

Wayne Friedman / MediaPost:

Consumers Remain Indifferent To Smart TVs — A majority of consumers aren't interested in buying a new smart TV over the next 12 months — but advertising its strong attributes could help turn that indifference around. — Some 73% of consumers have given a thumbs down to buying a new smart TV …

Jim Romenesko:

Salt Lake Tribune retirees call for a U.S. Department of Justice probe of JOA revisions — Salt Lake Tribune retirees and other former employees have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the recent Tribune-Deseret News joint operation agreement revisions.

Arti Patel / Folio:

In Keynote, Elisabeth DeMarse Addresses TheStreet Inc.'s Turnaround — The company has $60 million earmarked for acquisitions. — New York—Transitioning from one model to another is a difficult undertaking for any media publishing company. However, morphing within an industry in constant tumult is an entirely different situation.

Karen Fratti / 10,000 Words:

On the Media Asks Listeners to ‘Be the Journalist,’ With Web Tool — On The Media, the NPR podcast, is part media reporting, part commentary, and part investigative journalism organization. And I'm not just saying that because the pledge drive is going on. — Sometimes they just fall into it.

Discussion: AppNewser and Techdirt

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Comcast to Stream 35 Live TV Channels to Mobile Apps Outside the Home — Renamed Xfinity TV Go app lineup includes live feeds of ESPN, CNN, Fox News and other cablers — Comcast has inked deals to let subscribers tune in to 35 live cable channels through its updated video-player app …

Discussion: The Wrap and The Verge

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

No Amazon TV Box for Christmas — Amazon is going to sell a lot of stuff in the next couple of months. * But it is very unlikely to be selling its own Web video box. — Jeff Bezos and company have been prepping a set-top box meant to compete with Roku and Apple's Apple TV device …

Discussion: Pocket-lint, AppleInsider and CNET

Alex Halperin / Salon:

This man decides what you read — Miley Cyrus gave us so much that night. Just trying to count her blessings smacks of ingratitude, like regifting manna. — But two months later, as we attempt reentry into our dreary little lives, it's worth remembering two articles that followed her star-turn at the Video Music Awards.

Discussion: @petersmeg and bookforum.com

Alastair Reid / Journalism.co.uk:

New BBC reporting unit tracks stories taking off on social — BBC Trending will report on social media stories from around the world using in-tweet video, the BBC magazine news site and radio — Read more — Other top stories — Also on Journalism.co.uk...

Discussion: Big News Network.com

Dru Sefton / Current:

Bill Moyers ending Moyers & Company in January — Bill Moyers announced today to his colleagues in public TV that the last broadcast of his Moyers & Company public-affairs show will air Jan. 3, 2014, when current funding commitments end. — He also said that his production company is …

Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:

Mobile Video App Snapverse Raises $3.5M And Announces Deals With Universal, Warner Bros, And Sony — Snapverse is an iPhone app that combines 20-second user videos with licensed music. The amount of licensed music available is about to grow significantly, thanks to partnerships with Universal, Warner Brothers, and Sony.

Lou Carlozo / NetNewsCheck Latest:

Kroeger: BHM ‘Interested’ In Trib Co. Papers — Warren Buffett's BH Media Group could be eyeing some of the smaller newspapers in the Tribune Co. stable, possibly including titles such as the Allentown Morning Call, the Newport News Daily Press and the Hartford Courant.

Discussion: Poynter

Joan E. Solsman / CNET:

Aereo to launch in Denver as it scampers to year-end goal — Aereo, the cloud-based TV service, said Tuesday that it will launch next week in a TV market that covers Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming, as it rushes to meet its goal ofexpanding from New York to 22 new cities in the US this year.

Discussion: The Wrap and @tajarz