Mediagazer: Sources at Vocative say their software, touted to mine the deep web for generating news stories, doesn't work as promised (Johana Bhuiyan/Capital New York)

11:45 AM ET, July 31, 2014

Top News:

Sources at Vocative say their software, touted to mine the deep web for generating news stories, doesn't work as promised — Showtime for Vocativ — Vocativ, the news organization that promises to mine the “deep web” for stories of global interest that cannot be found using traditional reporting methods …

Discussion: Mediaite, @dancow, @melissagira, @jayrosen_nyu, @aubernalevy, @tmcgev, @buzzfeedben, @riceid, @mbradylynch, @petersterne and @mccollumashley

Bill Glauber / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Journal Communications of Milwaukee and E.W. Scripps announce merger, spinning off newspapers — Journal, Scripps deal announced Newspaper firm to be based in Milwaukee; broadcast company in Cincinnati — Two storied media firms, Journal Communications Inc. of Milwaukee and E.W. Scripps Co …

Joshua Benton / Nieman Journalism Lab:

Diversified media companies are hurrying to undiversify — What does the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel know that your newsroom doesn't? — Not long ago — hours ago, actually — both Journal Communications and E. W. Scripps were media company models of diversification.

Discussion: Associated Press, @jayrosen_nyu, @niemanlab and Thomson IR

Michael Sebastian / AdAge:

Sorting the Serious From the Silly, BuzzFeed Develops a Mobile App for Real News — Not Likely to Be Featured: ‘21 Office Printers That Are Going Through a Mid-Life Crisis’ — Best Places to Work … BuzzFeed is known for publishing highly shareable lists and quizzes …

Discussion: niemanlab.org, USA Today, @henryctaylor, @flipprior and BBC

Jeremy Barr / Capital New York:

Marty Baron discusses hiring digital journalists, future of WaPo's blogs, and new ownership — The 60-second interview: Marty Baron, editor, The Washington Post — CAPITAL: Looking at some of the new hires that the Post has made over the last several months, we've noticed that some of them have come …

Discussion: @michaelpaulson, @postbaron, @kenvogel, @themarkberman, @carloslozadawp, @caitlindewey and @mlcalderone

Henry Taylor / TheMediaBriefing:

News Corp's new app plans and how old media is chasing younger audiences — The so-called “millennial” generation - those aged between 14 and 34 - have never really developed the habit of reading newspapers, so how do publishers go about capturing their attention and getting them to read their content?

Discussion: Financial Times

Roy Greenslade / Guardian: News Corp considers app-based news service to attract ‘millennials’

Elizabeth Jensen / New York Times:

ABC Veteran Sara Just named PBS NewsHour executive producer, effective Sept. 2 — An ABC Veteran Is Named ‘PBS NewsHour’ Executive Producer — Sara Just, the Washington deputy bureau chief for ABC News, has been named executive producer of “PBS NewsHour,” the first major change …

Discussion: Broadcasting & Cable, Politico, ABC News, Current.org, @brianstelter, @stephenmfee and @ejensennyc

Peter Sterne / Capital New York:

As Gawker grows, one exec advocates an end to ‘petty feuds’ — A decade-plus into its existence, Gawker Media in 2014 is a very different organization than Gawker circa its 2003 founding, when it entered the Manhattan media fray elbows out, aiming spitballs at the Condé Nast cafeteria.

Discussion: @matthewwells, @timfernholz, @mikeisaac, @moorehn, @jackshafer, @mathewi and @jayrosen_nyu

Benjamin Mullin / Poynter:

Future of Homicide Watch D.C. uncertain as Amico joins Boston Globe — In 2012, Laura Amico got a call that changed a lot of things — her city, her work and, eventually, her future — Amico, who lived and worked in Washington, D.C., had been selected to be a Nieman-Berkman fellow at Harvard University …

Discussion: @poynter

Ravi Somaiya / New York Times:

NYT response to plagiarism claim acknowledges improper use of language, details from Wikipedia — Times Issues Editor's Note in Response to Plagiarism Charge — The New York Times issued an editors' note on Wednesday in response to allegations that a reporter in the culture department …

Discussion: Washington Post, ARTnews, Talking Points Memo, @craigsilverman, @nbj914, New York Magazine, @clpauwels, Politico, @theapjournalist, @paperhaus, @journolibrarian, @saramorrison, New York Times and The Huffington Post

Ian Griggs / PRWeek:

IPSO appoints Matt Tee, former permanent secretary for government comms, as chief executive — Matt Tee appointed as new press regulator's first chief executive — The Independent Press Standards Organisation has appointed Matt Tee, the former permanent secretary for government comms, as its first chief executive.

Discussion: Press Association, Guardian, HoldTheFrontPage, @davidcharter, @bengoldacre, @unity_mot, @nhsconfed, @matttee and @shaunlintern

Roy Greenslade / Guardian:

Two Palestinian journalists killed during Israeli attack on Gaza — Two Palestinian journalists were killed in Gaza yesterday, taking the journalistic toll to eight since the Israeli bombardment began a month ago. — According to an affiliate of the International Federation of Journalists …

Discussion: Latest News & Headlines, IFJ, english.wafa.ps, @paulhansen64, The Electronic Intifada and VICE

Bloomberg:

AMC Networks in talks to acquire almost 50% of BBC America — AMC Networks Said to Discuss Acquiring Stake in BBC America — AMC Networks Inc. (AMCX), the cable network controlled by the Dolan family, is in talks to acquire about a 50 percent stake in BBC America, BBC Worldwide's U.S. channel …

Discussion: Guardian, London Evening Standard, Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, Realscreen, C21Media, Advanced Television, Wall Street Journal, Deadline.com, The Wrap, Telegraph, New York Times, Variety, @tpalazzo and @chrissiemurray

Ricardo Bilton / Digiday:

The Daily Dot goes long and slow with relaunch of The Kernel — Count The Daily Dot as the latest digital publisher getting into the “magazine” business — not just the moniker, but the weekly schedule. — The site is putting the final touches on the relaunch of The Kernel …

Discussion: Talking New Media and @neilthackray

Sophie Knight / Reuters:

Sony Q1 profit jumps as games, networks outweigh smartphone, TV weakness — (Reuters) - Japan's Sony Corp said operating profit doubled in the April-June quarter, helped by a strong performance in its games and networks division, even as the firm cut smartphone and TV sales forecasts that analysts had said were too ambitious.

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, USA Today, NDTV Gadgets and BBC

Brian Steinberg / Variety:

Discovery 2Q Profit Rises 26%, Boosted By International Networks — Discovery Communications said weaker results at its U.S. TV networks were offset by robust activity from its international TV holdings, which helped the company notch a 26% increase in net income for the second quarter.

Discussion: NetNewsCheck Latest, Reuters, Ticker Report, RTTNews and Discovery Communications …

Brian Ries / Mashable:

Twitter Transparency Report Reveals 46% Rise in Government Requests — Twitter released its biannual transparency report on Thursday, revealing a 46% increase in government requests for user information. — See also: Those GIFs on Twitter Aren't Actually GIFs

Discussion: The Twitter Blog, Re/code, The Next Web, Twitter Transparency Report and Twitter Transparency Report

Kara Swisher / Re/code:

Interim No More: Rob Glaser Named Permanent CEO of RealNetworks — Rob Glaser, who founded RealNetworks in 1994 and served as its CEO until 2010, has been named permanent CEO of the Seattle-based digital media company. He has been interim CEO for the last two years, trying to turn around RealNetworks …

Discussion: FierceOnlineVideo News, Brier Dudley's blog, Multichannel News, Wall Street Journal, FierceOnlineVideo News and GeekWire

Jasper Jackson / TheMediaBriefing:

Condé Nast digital director on avoiding a race to the bottom in online ads — Condé Nast, Monetising Media, Advertising, Consumer Media, Digital Media — This is part of a series of articles focused on the key issues that will be covered in our Monetising Media event at the end of September.

Chicago Business:

Six numbers — revenue, costs, profit, debt, cash, circulation — will foretell Tribune Publishing's future

Saeed Kamali Dehghan / Guardian:

Six judges accused of leading role in Iranian crackdown on free speech — Human rights groups say judges, under influence of intelligence apparatus, spearheading crackdown on journalists and activists — Iran's crackdown on journalists and political activists is being spearheaded …

Discussion: @guardian

Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Local World posts adjusted profits of £38.9m — David Montgomery's local newspaper publisher earns DMGT and Trinity Mirror shared payout of more than £22m — David Montgomery's Local World made adjusted profits of £38.9m last year, providing shareholders Daily Mail & General Trust …

Discussion: Ticker Report

Bloomberg:

Thomson Reuters releases Q2 results, beats estimates, but remains flat with $249M net profit amid major reorganization — Thomson Reuters Profit Beats Analysts' Estimates on Cuts — Thomson Reuters Corp. (TRI), the provider of financial data and news, reported second-quarter profit …

Discussion: Benzinga, Reuters, Wall Street Journal, Yahoo! Finance, RTTNews, Irish Independent, BDlive, Yahoo! Finance, TheStreet.com and Rehak/Stuebing Mostly Media

Michael Calia / Wall Street Journal:

Charter Communications' Q2 misses estimates, narrows loss to $45M, loses 29K video subs — Charter Communications Narrows Loss — Cable Operator's Online Customer Base Grows — Charter Communications Inc. 's second-quarter loss narrowed as revenue rose and the company continued to benefit from growth in its online customer base.

Discussion: Associated Press and Thomson IR

David Holmes / PandoDaily:

Breaking news in the social age is a mess. Can Grasswire help stop the spread of misinformation? — From Reddit's catastrophic witch hunt in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing to the deluge of fake images and reports during Hurricane Sandy, social media has turned every breaking news event into a playground of misinformation.

Marc Graser / Variety:

WWE Network ends Q2 with 700K subs; digital channel to launch in 170 countries starting Aug 12 — WWE Network Ready for International Rollout to Pin Down New Subscribers — Ends Second Quarter with 700,000 Subs; New markets include Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Latin America timed with ‘SummerSlam’