Mediagazer: Eric Pickles: I'll shut council freesheets that publish ‘propaganda on the rates’ (Alexandra Topping/Guardian)

11:45 AM ET, April 18, 2014

Top News:

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: The Rural Blog and @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 …

Reuters:

Weibo debut highlights complicated dance with Chinese censors — (Reuters) - Weibo Corp executives on Thursday toasted the Chinese social media firm's debut at Nasdaq's New York headquarters. Hours earlier in Beijing, Charles Xue, a Chinese-American venture capitalist and prominent Weibo user …

Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg / Wall Street Journal:

Smaller Barnes & Noble Stores? 'Yes, It's Possible,' Says Leonard Riggio … Several weeks before Chairman Leonard Riggio sold his latest tranche of shares in Barnes & Noble, he sat down for a chat at the retailer's corporate offices in Manhattan. Here, an edited Q&A:

Discussion: Melville House Books

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

Brooks Barnes / New York Times:

ESPN Sees Continued Profitability Despite Competition — Aiming to squelch smoldering concerns about ESPN's continued profitability amid rising sports rights costs, the Walt Disney Company on Thursday said profits at its ESPN-dominated cable networks unit would grow in the “high single digits” …

Discussion: Deadline.com

Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:

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, PC World and Billboard

Alexandra Topping / Guardian:

Eric Pickles: I'll shut council freesheets that publish ‘propaganda on the rates’ — Communities secretary targets five Labour-led London boroughs, where he says free press is being put out of business — An advertising board for a London newspaper. Eric Pickles says the capital's local press …

Discussion: Telegraph, Daily Mail, Hacknety Gazette, Hackney Citizen, BelfastTelegraph.co.uk, ITV and Guardian

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: Softpedia News, Reporter's Committee …, @poynter and Ars Technica

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 …

Discussion: @kenvogel

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

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.

Discussion: @gigaom