Mediagazer: Tony Blair ‘offered Rebekah Brooks help’ day after Milly Dowler revelations (Lisa O'Carroll/Guardian)

7:45 AM ET, March 4, 2014

Top News:

Janko Roettgers / Gigaom:

In ad-skipping deal, Dish gets rights to internet-based TV service that includes ABC and ESPN — Dish just secured rights to launch an internet TV service — Dish and Disney confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that they've reached a retransmission agreement late Monday …

Discussion: Forbes, Los Angeles Times, ESPN MediaZone ESPN MediaZone, Latest News & Headlines, C21Media, Reuters, The Wrap, @ryanlawler, Sports Update, @jbflint, @pkafka, @johnbattelle, @dangillmor, The Verge, Variety, CNET and Deadline.com

Peter Kafka / Re/code:

With a Whopper of a Disney Deal, Charlie Ergen Gets a Head Start on the Web TV Race — Intel tried and failed. Sony says it's going to try, but it has a long way to go. Google, Apple and Microsoft haven't even started, at least officially. — But as of right now …

Shalini Ramachandran / Wall Street Journal:
Dish disables “auto hop” ad-skipping feature for ABC shows until three days after they air

Discussion: CNET, @shaliniwsj and Gigaom

Jeremy Hodges / Bloomberg:

Brooks Concerned About BSkyB Deal After Milly Dowler Revelations — Rebekah Brooks, the former head of News Corp. (NWSA)'s U.K. unit, said she was concerned the discovery that journalists at the News of the World tabloid hacked the phone of a murdered schoolgirl would jeopardize the company's bid for British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc.

Lisa O'Carroll / Guardian:

Tony Blair ‘offered Rebekah Brooks help’ day after Milly Dowler revelations — Phone-hacking trial hears ex-PM texted ‘thinking of you’, with Michael Gove and Piers Morgan also offering their support — Tony Blair contacted Rebekah Brooks the day after it was revealed Milly Dowler's phone …

Discussion: @lisaocarroll, ITV News and @dansabbagh

Amy Schatz / Re/code:

Justice Department Backs Broadcasters in Aereo Dispute — In a Supreme Court filing Monday, the Justice Department backed broadcast networks in their fight against online video streaming startup Aereo. — Justice Department lawyers argued that Aereo's broadcast television streaming service infringes …

Discussion: Broadcasting & Cable, @dangillmor, @anildash, @swildstrom, CNET, The Verge, Los Angeles Times, Gigaom and Electronista

Sam Gustin / TIME: Aereo Boss Says He's ‘Confident’ Ahead of Supreme Court Battle

Capital New York:

The Awl hires Matt Buchanan from The New Yorker, John Herrman from Buzzfeed — Matt Buchanan and John Herrman are leaving their positions at The New Yorker and Buzzfeed, respectively, to work for The Awl, Capital has confirmed. — The pair worked together at FWD, Buzzfeed's tech vertical …

Discussion: @alexmleo, @tmcgev, @frucci, @daweiner, @mariabustillos, @chrisgeidner, @choire, @jmbooyah, @fmanjoo, @emmacargo, @peretti, @pkafka, @nbj914, @connorsimpson, @lindseyweber and @emilybell

Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Guardian digital revenues hit £70m — Publisher of the Guardian and Observer to announce 25% rise in revenues in year to end of March 2014 — The Guardian is expected to report an increase in digital revenues of more than a quarter to almost £70m in the last year …

Discussion: @amelscript, @colinmorrisonuk and @gordonmacmillan

Committee to Protect Journalists:

Independent media, journalists obstructed in Crimea — Authorities in the autonomous republic of Crimea in southern Ukraine should ensure that media outlets and independent journalists are allowed to report on the political crisis in the region without being censored or harassed, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Discussion: Mother Jones, The Week and CNN

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:
Russia Wages Media War Alongside Crimea Invasion

Discussion: The Daily Beast, The Week, The Dish, RIA Novosti, Global Investigative … and Politico

Erik Wemple:

Glenn Greenwald, PandoDaily tussle over Ukraine, editorial independence — On Friday afternoon, Paul Carr, the investigations editor for PandoDaily, told his followers on Twitter that something was up: … This story, it turned out, involved First Look Media, the much-discussed …

Discussion: bookforum.com, @mathewi, @ckaratnytsky, @paulcarr, @chanders and Kirk LaPointe's …

Murtaza Hussain / The Intercept:

The Washington Post Uses Biased Experts to Promote Propaganda on Venezuela — The Washington Post's Feb. 19 article about the recent spate of unrest in Venezuela took a breathlessly laudatory stance towards the opposition against President Nicolás Maduro. The opening paragraphs offer a good indication of its tenor:

Discussion: @tomgara

Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:

Wellcome Trust aims to provide a home for long-form science journalism online with launch of Mosaic — The Wellcome Trust is launching a new online magazine tomorrow which aims to provide a home for long-form science-based journalism. — Mosaic will be updated on a weekly basis with 3,000-plus word articles going up every Tuesday.

Discussion: @pressgazette and The Independent

Caysey Welton / Folio:

Tom Drouillard Named AAM CEO — He joins the organization from Scarborough Research. — The Alliance for Audited Media named Tom Drouillard as its new CEO, president and managing director. He will be replacing Mike Lavery, who is retiring on March 31. — Drouillard carries …

Discussion: NetNewsCheck Latest

Tom Ferrick / AxisPhilly:

Life inside the Inquirer — What is the purpose of a newspaper? — “The pursuit of truth so an informed citizenry can make good decisions about its democracy,” might be how you would put it, given knowledge of history and traditional mission. — That thought is as dead …

Discussion: @axisphilly, @jayrosen_nyu and @jlkopf

Marc Fisher / Columbia Journalism Review:

Who cares if it's true? Modern-day newsrooms reconsider their values — BuzzFeed, as much as any newsroom, is the antithesis of traditional. A neon sign celebrates the Hot List, BuzzFeed's signature form. The receptionist hands new employees swag—a sweatshirt and a canvas bag decorated …

Discussion: Fast Company and @jayrosen_nyu