Top News:
Jeet Heer / The New Republic:
The New Republic's Legacy on Race — A historical reflection — Legacies are never simple; they create victims as well as beneficiaries. The more substantial the legacy, the more heated the disputes are over who has title of ownership, who gets to enjoy an inheritance, and who is left out in the cold.
Discussion:
@tomsugrue, Gawker, @nickfoxnyt, @seanmcelwee, @clairegroden, @mazmhussain, @rortybomb and The Huffington Post
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Dylan Byers / Politico:
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 …
Margaret Sullivan / New York Times:
After New York Times ends a focused beat on race, proof of its commitment to coverage of the topic remains to be seen — In a Time of Racial Turmoil, Why Change Course on Covering Race? — To state the obvious, it seems like an odd time to discontinue the one Times beat devoted solely to race and ethnicity.
Discussion:
Columbia Journalism Review, The Maynard Institute …, @bluechoochoo, @sulliview, @jamilsmith, @sdkstl, @aaronmedwards, @justinnxt, Poynter and FishbowlNY
Katie Hawkins-Gaar / Poynter:
NYT featured nine Instagram photos on its front page, but didn't tell photographers before publication — Instagrammers discover front-page NYT placement by chance — It was an exciting moment for user-generated content. The New York Times featured nine Instagram photos on the front page of its Wednesday edition.
Discussion:
@mdeziel, @mathewi, @antderosa, @alexjamesfitz, @digiphile and BAGnewsNotes
Benjamin Mullin / Poynter:
Al Jazeera English news director tells employees to continue leaking memos — Al Jazeera English has a plan to deal with the recent leaks that have aired the organization's preferences regarding style and usage: invite its employees to keep leaking. — Salah Negm, director of news …
Discussion:
Capital New York, @ivorytowerjourn, @markgurman, @mathewi, @kristenhare, Fox News, Mediaite and National Review
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Amazon Spent $1.3 Billion on Prime Instant Video in 2014 — Amazon.com, which is gunning for Netflix in the subscription-video space, invested $1.3 billion in its Prime Instant Video last year, according to founder and CEO Jeff Bezos. — Netflix, by contrast, spent $3.8 billion in 2014 …
Discussion:
Home Media Magazine, Pocket-lint, BuzzFeed and @emilysteel
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Ross Miller / The Verge:
Associated Press now writes 3K stories per quarter on US earning reports after teaming with Automated Insights, plans to expand globally — AP's ‘robot journalists’ are writing their own stories now — Minutes after Apple released its record-breaking quarterly earnings this week …
Discussion:
THE DEFINITIVE SOURCE, Washington Post, @mtdukes, @eamonjavers, Poynter and @jameskotecki
Emily Bell / Guardian:
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:
@lavrusik, @sulliview, @marklittlenews, @rifish, @emilybell, @miskaknapek, @mattmcalister, @cityofsound, @lisaocarroll, @dgtedford, @lisaocarroll and @acuity_design
Caroline O'Donovan / Nieman Lab:
Bloomberg digital editor Josh Topolsky on uncomfortable news design, new ad units, and why they killed the comments. — Bloomberg launched a fresh, new Bloomberg Business Tuesday night, to both acclaim and confusion. Change has long been afoot lately at Bloomberg Media …
Discussion:
@mathewi and @bobbymacreports, Thanks:@amandabcowie
Benjamin Mullin / Poynter:
Indiana governor cancels controversial news site — Indiana Gov. Mike Pence has told the Indiana press corps that he plans to cancel “Just IN,” a proposed state-run news source that some feared would be used as an end-around the press. — Maureen Hayden, Indiana statehouse bureau chief …
Discussion:
Indianapolis Star and Talking Points Memo
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Imgur introduces new tool to make high-quality GIFs from streaming video like YouTube — Imgur's new tool makes the most beautiful GIFs on the web — Imgur has been on a quest to upgrade the GIF, and part of that means making GIFs look a whole lot nicer.
Discussion:
Re/code, SlashGear, The New York Observer, The Imgur Blog and BuzzFeed
Ben Cohen / Wall Street Journal:
NBA players and fans turn to Vine for game highlights — Vine: The Best Way to Watch the NBA — How Six-Second Videos Are Changing the Game for Fans; See Ballmer Dance and LeBron Ignore Waiters — It was a play that, in the olden days, no one would have remembered.
David Pierce / The Verge:
Inside the studio where ESPN is betting billions on the future of sports — “Oh my goodness,” NBC football analyst Cris Collinsworth shouts into his headset mic over the roar of the Dallas Stadium crowd. “This is sick. Put this to music. I don't think he stepped out, either.
David Ljunggren / Reuters:
Wife of flogged Saudi blogger says his health is worsening — (Reuters) - The wife of a Saudi rights activist, sentenced last year to 1,000 lashes for criticizing the Kingdom's clerics in his blog, said on Thursday her husband's health had worsened after the first round of flogging and that he could not survive the full punishment.
Andy Baio / Medium:
As Google leaves archival projects in limbo, the Internet Archive steps in to preserve digital history — Never trust a corporation to do a library's job — Google wrote its mission statement in 1999, a year after launch, setting the course for the company's next decade:
Discussion:
@pbump, @exiledsurfer and Techdirt
Paul Sawers / VentureBeat:
RunKeeper and Spotify team up to let you play your music without switching apps — Perennially popular fitness-tracking app RunKeeper is introducing support for Spotify today, meaning runners, walkers, and cyclists can listen to tunes from the music-streaming service while they use the app.
Discussion:
Beyond the Miles, The Next Web, Gigaom, The Verge, App Advice and PlayStation.Blog
Todd Spangler / Variety:
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:
Forbes, Media & Entertainment, Adweek, AgencySpy, Globe and Mail, LostRemote, Wall Street Journal, AdAge, Mediaite and CraveOnline
Mike Farrell / Multichannel News:
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:
Variety, The Wrap, USA Today, Media & Entertainment, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Business, Reuters, @multinews and Home Media Magazine
Reuters:
Facebook challenges Twitter with targeted ads during Super Bowl based on what people are talking about in real-time — Facebook to sell real-time Super Bowl ads, taking on Twitter — (Reuters) - This Super Bowl Facebook is taking a page from Twitter's playbook, for the first time during …
Discussion:
Facebook, Forbes, The Content Strategist, @lavrusik, SocialTimes, Wired, LostRemote, Adweek, AdExchanger, TIME, The Next Web, Pocket-lint, Engadget, New York Times, VentureBeat, AdAge, Business Insider, Gigaom and AgencySpy
Mathew Ingram / Gigaom:
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 …