Mediagazer: Can ‘Veronica Mars’ Convince Mainstream Hollywood to Embrace Crowdfunding? (Lucas Shaw/The Wrap)

3:55 AM ET, March 15, 2014

Top News:

Lucas Shaw / The Wrap:

Warner Bros. to Refund Angry ‘Veronica Mars’ Contributors — Warner Bros. will provide refunds to backers of the “Veronica Mars” crowdfunding campaign who struggled to download the movie they helped support, the studio said Friday. Irate contributors complained about their problems throughout the day …

Discussion: @lucas_shaw

Moisés Chiullan / TechHive:

Why Veronica Mars embraced UltraViolet and angered fans — The campaign to revive Veronica Mars delivered a number of cool things—an enormous number of new Kickstarter users and, lest we forget, a full-length motion picture of a deeply loved TV series that arrived Friday.

Discussion: Flavorwire, @film_girl, @moiseschiu, @kvetchup, @waxpancake, @timhorsburgh, @iamchoppah and Variety

Lucas Shaw / The Wrap:

Can ‘Veronica Mars’ Convince Mainstream Hollywood to Embrace Crowdfunding? — “Veronica Mars” will be the greatest test yet of Hollywood's uneasy relationship with crowdfunding. — Few established filmmakers had experimented with Kickstarter when Rob Thomas, creator of the “Veronica Mars” …

Discussion: Home Media Magazine, Gawker, Variety, Chicago Tribune, New York Times and Los Angeles Times

Emil Protalinski / The Next Web:

Kickstarter brings hundreds of its funded films to iTunes — Kickstarter today launched a new room on iTunes, featuring “hundreds” of films that have launched thanks to the crowdfunding service. Some notable Kickstarter-funded films in the room include Veronica Mars, Gimme the Loot …

Scott Roxborough / Hollywood Reporter: What a German Comedy Can Teach Kristen Bell About Crowdfunding

Reuters:

Sina Weibo files for $500 million U.S. IPO — A man holds an iPhone as he visits Sina's Weibo microblogging site in Shanghai May 29, 2012. — (Reuters) - Twitter-like messaging service Weibo Corp filed on Friday to raise $500 million via a U.S. initial public offering …

Discussion: TechCrunch, Wall Street Journal, @wsjd, BuzzFeed, Forbes, @hannahkuchler, @wsjd, Quartz, Wall Street Journal and Gigaom

Edirin Oputu / Columbia Journalism Review:

Digital media hiring diversity under the microscope — As Nate Silver and Ezra Klein were being criticized for their homogenous hires, suggestions for diversification came to the fore — On Wednesday, Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center and a member of CJR's board of overseers …

Discussion: Medium, @cindylgeorge, @cindylgeorge, @melissabell and @melissabell

Ed Christman / Billboard:

Rate Court Judge Rules Pandora Will Pay ASCAP 1.85% Annual Revenue — In what is being viewed as a defeat for songwriters, the ASCAP/Pandora rate court judge has decided that Pandora will pay the performance rights organization a rate of 1.85% of annual revenue.

Discussion: New York Times, Bloomberg, Associated Press and @edchristman

Brian Fung / The Switch:

Reporters Without Borders: For the first time, America is an enemy of the Internet — For the first time, the United States has made it onto Reporters Without Borders' “Enemies of the Internet” list, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Jillian York. — How did Washington win this distinguished (dis)honor?

Discussion: Poynter, Electronic Frontier Foundation and The Huffington Post

Meg James / Los Angeles Times:

L.A. city attorney sues Time Warner Cable for $10 million — Los Angeles is suing Time Warner Cable for $10 million over fees. (Andrew Harrer / Bloomberg) — Time Warner Cable has more problems in Los Angeles. — Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer took a swing on Friday …

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, Adweek and Deadline.com

Joanna Plucinska / Columbia Journalism Review:

Q&A: Radio Free Europe's Ukrainian director — Maryana Drach on her staff's experiences reporting on the conflict — For journalists in Ukraine, safety has become a leading concern. Radio Svoboda, the Ukrainian branch of Radio Free Europe, had been covering the protests (in Ukrainian) since they started in November.

Jim Romenesko:

Don Graham: I'm really impressed with the Washington Post right now — Former Washington Post Co. CEO Don Graham (now head of Graham Holdings Co.) spoke with OZY for a two-part video interview. Here are some excerpts: — On the Post under Jeff Bezos: — “I've stayed away from the Post [since selling it].

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Vice News Quickly Makes Mark With Ukraine Dispatches — NEW YORK — Vice News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky has reported extensively through Central Asia, the Middle East and the Caucasus region, but says he's never encountered as much hostility as he has covering the Russian invasion of Crimea.

Discussion: NY Daily News and Columbia Journalism Review