Mediagazer: POLITICO hires Marilyn Thompson as deputy editor (Jeremy Barr/Capital New York)

1:30 AM ET, January 6, 2015

Top News:

Sources: Verizon approached AOL about possible acquisition or joint venture to strengthen mobile-video offerings — Verizon Said to Approach AOL About Possible Takeover or Venture — Verizon Communications Inc. has approached AOL Inc. (AOL) about a potential acquisition or joint venture …

Discussion: Quartz, The Wrap, USA Today, @jledbetter, Telegraph, Business Insider, @om, The Verge, @howardlindzon, @sherman4949, @tactical_intel, @pkafka, @mattzeitlin, ValueWalk, @peter_tl, @benmuessig, @rakeshlobster, @pkafka, @ggreeneva, @jyarow, @caseynewton, @rafat and Consumerist

Matt Apuzzo / New York Times:

James Risen, in Tense Testimony, Refuses to Offer Clues on Sources — ALEXANDRIA, Va. — James Risen, a reporter for The New York Times, took the witness stand in federal court on Monday and refused to answer any questions that could help the Justice Department home in on his confidential sources.

Discussion: Politico, The Wrap, ExposeFacts, @nicoleperlroth, @alovizavickery, US News, Bloomberg, @onekade, @jeremyscahill, @dangillmor, The Newspaper Guild, @ryanjreilly, @atabarrok, @paulszoldra, @thewillhobson, @eisingerj and @mattapuzzo

Jeremy Barr / Capital New York:

POLITICO hires Marilyn Thompson as deputy editor — POLITICO has hired Marilyn Thompson as a deputy editor, POLITICO editor Susan Glasser and executive editor Peter Canellos announced in a staff memo Monday titled “The Politico Class of 2015.” — Thompson currently serves as Washington bureau chief for Reuters.

Discussion: @adamnagourney, @peterbakernyt, @thegarance, @carolleonnig, @michaelkruse, @mattdelong and @joepompeo

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Politico's deputy managing editor Dianna Heitz leaves for editor role at CNN Politics Digital — Politico's Dianna Heitz Joins CNN Digital Politics Team, The Latest In String of Departures — NEW YORK — Politico deputy managing editor Dianna Heitz is joining CNN Politics Digital …

Discussion: Politico, FishbowlDC, @erikwemple and The Daily Caller

Peter Kafka / Re/code:

Dish announces Sling TV: stream channels like ESPN, CNN, and TNT over the internet for $20 per month without a cable subscription — You Can Finally Get ESPN on the Web, For $20 a Month — Lots of people say they want to ditch cable TV for the Web, but can't because they want to watch sports …

Howard Kurtz / Fox News:

Former CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson sues Justice Department over alleged computer hacking, seeks $35M in damages — Sharyl Attkisson sues administration over computer hacking — Former CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson has sued the Justice Department over the hacking of her computers …

Discussion: Politico, Mediaite, Western Journalism, @mlcalderone, @dylanbyers, The Wrap, Gawker, Poynter and The Daily Caller

Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:

Viacom Settles Intern Class Action Lawsuit (Exclusive) — Casey O'Jeda, the lead plaintiff, worked at MTV three years ago — Viacom is about to become the latest media giant to stage an exit from the messy litigation over unpaid internships. On New Year's Eve, attorneys informed …

Discussion: @amandapendo and The Wrap

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Former Drudge Report Editor Launches Politics-Focused Site ‘Right Read’ — NEW YORK — Joseph Curl, a veteran political writer and most recently an editor for The Drudge Report, unveiled a new politics-focused, aggregation-heavy site on Monday called Right Read.

Discussion: @ron_fournier, @majorcbs and @johnmcglasson1

John Eggerton / Broadcasting & Cable:

FCC launches new site for consumer complaints about Internet, broadcast, cable, and wireless phone providers — FCC Launches Consumer Complaint Help Site — Says filing complaints contributes to consumer protection — The FCC has launched a new online consumer help center to make it easier …

Discussion: FCC.gov, Consumerist, The Daily Dot, The Hill, Ars Technica and Gizmodo

Ev Williams / Medium:

Metric measurement is imperfect, so don't get too caught up in the numbers — A mile wide, an inch deep — I was recently quoted as saying, “I don't give a s**t” if Instagram has more users than Twitter. If you read the article you'll note there's a big “if” before my not giving of said s**t.

Discussion: @startupljackson, @margarita, @mikeisaac, @fmanjoo, @jakeludington, @alex, @ptraughber, @jukayhsu, @peteshelly, @om, @sippey and @pkafka

PEN American Center:

Survey: concern about surveillance is nearly as high among writers in democracies as among those in non-democracies — Global Chilling: The Impact of Mass Surveillance on International Writers — Global Chilling: The Impact of Mass Surveillance on International Writers is a new report demonstrating …

Discussion: New York Times, PEN American Center, The Paris Review, The Intercept and The Hill

Andrew Wallenstein / Variety:

Skeptical About North Korea's Role in Sony Hack? Don't Be — If the mounting skepticism regarding North Korea's involvement in the Sony hack was expected to weaken the resolve of President Obama, that's not what happened last week. — Days after the FBI reaffirmed its initial contention …

Discussion: @jayrosen_nyu and @devincf