Top News:

Mashable raises $17M in series B funding led by Time Warner, Business Insider raises additional $25M led by Axel Springer — Mashable and Business Insider close large new financing rounds — Mashable announced late Wednesday night that it has closed a new round of financing worth $17 million …


The New Republic's next issue to discuss its “perceived legacy of racism”, directly addresses past criticism — The New Republic addresses its ‘perceived legacy of racism’ — The forthcoming issue of The New Republic — its first since a mass staff shakeup in December …
Discussion:
Mediaite, @mrwaltershapiro, @pegobry, Talking Points Memo, FishbowlDC, @ggreenwald, @jayrosen_nyu and @blakehounshell


Andrew Sullivan fueled a blog ecosystem that rose from troublemaking to fatal respectability — My Life In The Blogosphere — One of the first, and last, great bloggers pulled the plug today. — John Gara/BuzzFeed — I first really understood the secret power of the early 2000s political blogosphere …
Discussion:
@ezraklein, @jayrosen_nyu, @sippey, @johnness, @dylanlscott, @tomgara, @demfromct, @jrboh, @stephengutowski, @televisionary, @ddayen, @annehelen, @ecourtem, @nycsouthpaw, Gawker, Washington Post and The Daily Caller
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Andrew Sullivan to give up blogging; future of The Dish unclear — A Note To My Readers — One of the things I've always tried to do at the Dish is to be up-front with readers. This sometimes means grotesque over-sharing; sometimes it means I write imprudent arguments I have to withdraw …
Discussion:
Columbia Journalism Review, Guardian, New York Times, Poynter, BusinessJournalism.org, PandoDaily, The Daily Caller, Washington Post, Nieman Lab, Hit & Run, Bloomberg View, bookforum.com, Gigaom, @davidlat, Advocate, @brainpicker, @mattyglesias, @jbenton, @daveweigel, @kbsmoke, @monkeycageblog, @daveweigel, @chanders, @poniewozik, @patrickruffini, Mashable, @billsimmons, The Wrap, Gawker, Mediaite, @tanehisicoates, @ethanjweiss, Associated Press, @cjr, @sternbergh, FishbowlDC, @carlzimmer, @buzzfeedben, @sternbergh, LA Observed, @vpostrel, @tinabrownlm, Wall Street Journal, @mattbors, @millie, @davechensky, @michaelroston, Politico, @tcarmody, @jayrosen_nyu, @jeffjarvis, @sarahw, @jdickerson, @themurdochtimes, @jkottke, @jamesmartinsj, Capital New York, @fo_aschatz, @dangillmor, Talking Points Memo, @pgourevitch, @rafat, @lydiadepillis and New York Magazine


BBC releases report looking at its plans to cover news as it prepares for 2017 charter renewal — Here's how the BBC, disrupted by technology and new habits, is thinking about its future — As the United Kingdom's national broadcaster, the BBC operates under a royal charter …
Discussion:
@lakitalki, @nywici, @amlwhere and @katieyaeger
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BBC News director James Harding's multimedia look at the past, present, and future of news
Discussion:
Jon Slattery, Press Gazette, @joannauk, allmediascotland and Washington Post


Super Bowl Halftime: Katy Perry to Pitch Merch on YouTube, Twitter, Roku and Connected TVs — Katy Perry will use her time in the spotlight of the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show as a launchpad to flog limited-edition products to her fans. — The songstress, in partnership with Universal Music Group …
Discussion:
Reuters, AdAge, Adweek, Forbes, Globe and Mail, LostRemote and CraveOnline
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Days before kickoff, NBC sells out of Super Bowl ad space
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable, The Wrap, Marketing Charts …, Adweek and Business Insider


Emily Bell says digital news is askew, journalists need to be technically proficient and technologists need to be adept at news — Emily Bell's 2015 Hugh Cudlipp lecture - full text — The 12th annual Hugh Cudlipp lecture, as delivered by the director of Columbia University's Tow centre for digital journalism
Discussion:
@dgtedford, @lisaocarroll, @acuity_design, @miskaknapek, @mattmcalister, @lisaocarroll, @emilybell, @rifish, Guardian and Press Gazette


Snapchat's new Discover feature could be a significant moment in the evolution of mobile news — You may have missed it in the #snowpocalpyse that wasn't1, but Snapchat unveiled a new feature called Discover Tuesday that puts news into the ephemeral chat app so popular among American teens and young adults:
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Snapchat's Discover feature for news could also function more broadly as an app platform
Discussion:
@besvinick, @buster, @caseynewton and @calebgarling

Talks with ISIS for release of Japanese journalist and Jordanian pilot said to have failed — Jordan's Talks With ISIS for Hostage Release Said to Fail — AMMAN — Negotiations between Jordan and the Islamic State over the fate of two hostages appeared to have collapsed on Thursday …
Discussion:
The Independent, CNN and Canadian Press
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Kenji Goto's reporting is voice of humanity in times of atrocity
Discussion:
@ishaantharoor, @camanpour, @dgisserious, DW.DE and Reuters


Nickelodeon to Unveil Stand-Alone Subscription Video Service in February — Kid-entertainment giant Nickelodeon intends to follow the example of HBO and unveil a direct-to-consumer subscription service in February, the chief executive of Nickelodeon's parent, Viacom, said during a call with investors Thursday morning.
Discussion:
CNBC, Deadline, AdAge, Ubergizmo, Hollywood Reporter, Gizmodo, Mashable, Consumerist, The Verge, Digital Spy and WebProNews


Viacom Q1: profit down 8.6% to $500M, ad revenue down 6%, revenue up 4.4% to $3.34B but missing estimates — Viacom Net Drops 8.6% Even As ‘Interstellar,’ Cable Fees Boost Revenue — Viacom said profit in its first quarter profit fell nearly 9% despite a 4.4% rise in revenue in the period sparked …
Discussion:
Home Media Magazine, Reuters, Bloomberg Business and Wall Street Journal


Tumblr Takes On Medium With Upgrades To Its Writing Interface And More — Starting today, Tumblr is rolling out a series of updates to its online blogging platform designed to make the service more attractive and useful for content creators, and specifically for those writing long-form content.
Discussion:
Tumblr Staff, Ubergizmo, Tumblr Staff, The Next Web, Fast Company, SlashGear and The Verge


Time Warner Cable Q4: 38K cable subscribers lost, revenue up 3.8% year over year to $5.8B — Sub Losses Improve At Time Warner Cable — Q4 Is Best Subscriber Period in 7 Years — Time Warner Cable, in perhaps its last quarterly earnings release before it is acquired by Comcast …
Discussion:
Media & Entertainment, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Bloomberg Business


New study finds 60% of Americans who have heard of Hebdo attack are okay with published cartoons of Prophet, with 70% citing freedom of speech/press — After Charlie Hebdo, Balancing Press Freedom and Respect for Religion — Majority Says Publishing Cartoons Was ‘Okay,’ But About Half of Non-Whites Say ‘Not Okay’
Discussion:
Forbes, Washington Post, @mlcalderone and The Week

HBO tech executives leave ahead of Internet launch as network's strategy changes — (Reuters) - Time Warner's TWX.N HBO is preparing to sell a standalone service over the Internet for the first time, in one of the most closely watched moves in pay TV history.
Discussion:
App Advice