Top News:
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Comcast: Without Time Warner Cable, we can't compete against Google, Netflix — Comcast says it has “one arm tied behind our back” on eve of Senate hearing. — Comcast today filed a 175-page “public interest statement” with the Federal Communications Commission to explain …
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Free Press Blog:
More Than 50 Public Interest Groups Oppose the Comcast-Time Warner Cable Merger — On Tuesday, more than 50 public interest groups sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice outlining their case against the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger.
Discussion:
The Switch, @katyonthehill, The Switch and The Huffington Post
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Comcast, Time Warner Cable Defend Union as Benefiting ‘Millions’ in FCC Filing
Comcast, Time Warner Cable Defend Union as Benefiting ‘Millions’ in FCC Filing
Discussion:
Comcast Voices, New York Times, TheHill, Politico, Broadcasting & Cable, Reuters, Re/code, Los Angeles Times, Reuters, The Switch, Forbes, Crain's New York Business, Fast Company and The Wrap
Alex DeMarban / Alaska Dispatch:
Digital news organization Alaska Dispatch buys McClatchy's 68-year old newspaper Anchorage Daily News for $34M — Alaska Dispatch to purchase Anchorage Daily News — In what amounts to a stunning media shakeup in the 49th state, the still-young online news organization Alaska Dispatch announced …
Discussion:
PR Newswire, @alaskadispatch, KDLG, Merced Sun-Star & …, @alaskarobyne, @anjumsheh, @adn_jomalley, @ethanklapper, @vosdscott, News, sports and weather …, Mashable, New York Times, Reuters, @wconnors, bizjournals, @arcticassembly, Associated Press, Associated Press, @weberwest, @nickriccardi, @mlcalderone, @ethanklapper and Poynter
Lisa O'Carroll / Guardian:
News of the World boss denies ‘concealing’ payments to phone hacker — Former managing editor Stuart Kuttner denies ‘cooking the books’ to avoid awkward questions, Old Bailey told — The former managing editor of the News of the World has denied “concealing” payments for hacker Glenn Mulcaire …
Caroline O'Donovan / Nieman Journalism Lab:
How some journalists are using anonymous secret-sharing apps — Gwyneth Paltrow's divorce from rock star husband Chris Martin is not an event with great civic impact. But it's big news to the many writers whose salaries depend on highly trafficked stories about celebrities, as well as to the massive audience that loves to read them.
Discussion:
Mashable and @niemanlab
Press Gazette:
UK minister responsible for the future of press regulation, Maria Miller, resigns over expenses row — Culture secretary Maria Miller quits over expenses row — The government minister responsible for the future of press regulation, Maria Miller, has resigned as Culture Secretary …
Discussion:
Guardian, Mirror.co.uk, Telegraph, Bloomberg, The Independent, Daily Mail, BBC, Daily Star and Telegraph
Jack Shafer:
NYT's Times Premier is mainly a repackaged New York Times subscription, not worth the upgrade — Dressing up the NYT with fins, chrome and glitter — At the beginning of April, the New York Times launched its “Times Premier” digital offering, accessible to Times home delivery subscribers …
Discussion:
@mathewi, @markleibovich, @pkafka, @sulliview, @lmoses and @antderosa
Lucia Moses / Digiday:
Michael Wolff: 'Online journalism can't pay for itself' — When author, Internet entrepreneur and media pundit Michael Wolff surveys the landscape, few are safe from his bleak prognostications. In recent columns for USA Today, the Guardian and GQ, he has skewered Marissa Mayer for wanting …
Discussion:
@lmoses, @bobtheprguy, FishbowlNY, @mediaczar, @niemanlab, Kirk LaPointe's …, @jason_pontin, @emilybell, @bmorrissey and @mathewi
Mike Isaac / Re/code:
Reddit Execs Ellen Pao and Jena Donlin Get Serious About the Site's Business (Q&A) — Reddit is one of the biggest sites on the Web. Now it just needs to start making it rain. — Since 2005, the online community message board and link-sharing site has risen from an esoteric bulletin board service …
Discussion:
@laurahazardowen, @pkafka, @niemanlab and The Switch
Casey Johnston / Ars Technica:
Just having a 4K TV isn't enough to see Netflix's 4K streams — Netflix just added 4K, but it won't work everywhere. — Netflix has added 4K streams to its slate of offerings as of Tuesday, according to a report from CNET. However, the streams only work on TVs that were released this year …
Discussion:
Multichannel, HDTV News, CNET, TechRadar.com, TIME and The Verge
Paul Sawers / The Next Web:
Sesame Street now has its own dedicated video-on-demand service called Sesame GO — Breaking Bad fan? Sign-up to Netflix. Looking to stream more recent theatrical releases? Check out Amazon Instant Video. Kids addicted to Sesame Street? Well, there's a new kid on the VOD block just for that.
Wall Street Journal:
DirecTV Reaches Deal With Weather Channel — Pact Ends Monthslong Dispute, Will Restore Channel to Satellite Operator's Lineup — DirecTV reached an agreement to restore the Weather Channel to its program lineup, say people familiar with the matter, after a monthslong dispute between the two companies over program fees.
Discussion:
New York Times, @jbflint, @jimcantore, The Wrap, CNET, AdAge, Hollywood Reporter, Mashable, Variety and Inside Cable News
Lucia Moses / Digiday:
The Accelerator: Condé Nast tries its hand at social ads — Social is the new search, but many publishers are then left with heaps of traffic they can't make money from. — Condé Nast is attempting to solve that problem with The Accelerator, a platform that predicts when a story …
Discussion:
@ben_kaplan, AdExchanger and Business Insider
BBC:
Venezuelan Globovision editor Nairobi Pinto kidnapped — Ms Pinto's father said the journalist was seized at gunpoint when she arrived at home in Caracas — The assignment editor of the Venezuelan TV news network Globovision has been kidnapped, according to her father.
Discussion:
laht.com, Associated Press and Guardian