Mediagazer: Byliner uses social media to monetize back catalog, tie older stories to current news hooks (Edward Nawotka/Publishing Perspectives)

6:45 AM ET, April 18, 2014

Top News:

Record Labels Sue Pandora Over Pre-1972 Recordings — The popular streaming service is hit with a complaint in New York court with potentially big consequences. — The major record labels are now suing Pandora for exploiting sound recordings made prior to February 15, 1972.

Discussion: New York Times, Billboard and PC World

Barbara Selvin / Poynter:

Newseum will include weeklies in its “Today's Front Pages” exhibit after campaign by editors — Newseum relents, will display weeklies after protest by editors — A daylong protest by weekly newspaper editors from around the U.S. against the Newseum's snubbing …

Discussion: @poynter

Edward Nawotka / Publishing Perspectives:

Byliner uses social media to monetize back catalog, tie older stories to current news hooks — Byliner Sees Huge Opportunity in “Second Serial” Rights — Join us on April 24 in NYC at this half-day event, where we'll discuss how to sell more backlist titles, find new licensing and distribution channels …

Emil Protalinski / The Next Web:

Amazon is adding Hulu Plus, Crackle, and Showtime Anytime catalogs into Fire TV's voice search — Amazon today announced Hulu Plus, Crackle, and Showtime Anytime will be adding support for their full catalogs into Fire TV's unified voice search feature “starting this summer.”

Discussion: Amazon.com, MediaPost, AppleInsider, VentureBeat and The Verge

Politico:

Conservative radio hosts garnered nearly $22M in sponsorships from conservative lobby groups — The tea party radio network — Glenn Beck worked the crowd like a preacher at a rally this month in Louisville, Ky., declaring that God had responded to conservatives' prayers by sending a slate …

Jennifer Faull / The Drum:

Nearly 20% of YouTube users now pay less attention to TV, finds Google study — YouTube is having a measurable impact on TV consumption, with nearly one fifth (19 per cent) of YouTube users saying they pay less attention to TV and 17 per cent stating that they watch TV less overall.

Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:

Former Maker employee and shareholder Andy Faberlle sues to block acquisition by Disney — Maker-Disney: New Lawsuit Asks for Unwinding of Merger — A shareholder argues that Disney's acquisition came after fraud at the company. — Maker Studios CEO Ynon Kreiz

Discussion: Variety

Jeff John Roberts / Gigaom:

Confusion over dead celebrities on social media, as Twitter suspends James Dean fan account — Twitter's finished being a rebel, at least when it comes to standing up for a James Dean fan who is being sued by a celebrity licensing company that wants to claim the fan's @jamesdean account.

Sandra Oshiro / Poynter:

Media organizations challenge order to take down anti-Muslim video — Major news organizations have filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting Google and YouTube in their effort to overturn a takedown order for an anti-Muslim video that inflamed Islamic communities worldwide.

Discussion: Reporter's Committee … and Ars Technica

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Denver Post strengthens sponsored content designation on energy section — Following articles that said a Denver Post-sponsored energy section wasn't marked clearly enough, Post President and CEO Mac Tully told Poynter in an email the paper decided to “strengthen the sponsored content designation …

Discussion: Center for Western Priorities, Wonkette, @bj_bobbijo, @wglabe, @markloundy and ThinkProgress

Andrew Wallenstein / Variety:

Video news snacks of 15 and 30 seconds lack depth but are smart experiments from NBCU, MSNBC — #30SecondstoKnow, ‘15 Seconds to Fame’ video clips are rapid and vapid, but not without value — #30SecondstoKnow, ‘15 Seconds to Fame’ video clips are rapid and vapid, but not without value

Mathew Ingram / Gigaom:

Appeals court says blogs are not only media, they're an important source of news and commentary — It would be nice if the debate over whether bloggers are journalists could be put to rest, more than a decade after it first began, and especially after bloggers like Glenn Greenwald …

Discussion: @dsearls, @benkepes, The Legal Satyricon, Kirk LaPointe's … and Techdirt

Casey Hynes / Asian Correspondent:

Journalists in Thai Navy defamation case ‘disappointed’ in Reuters' response — Two Phuketwan journalists were charged today with defaming the Thai Navy, and face seven years in prison and a $3,000 fine if convicted. A Thai Navy captain brought charges against Alan Morison and Chutima Sidasathian …