Mediagazer: Sources: US Justice Department lawyers leaning against Comcast merger with Time Warner Cable, could submit recommendation next week (David McLaughlin/Bloomberg Business)

9:50 PM ET, April 17, 2015

Top News:

Sarah Jeong / Forbes:

New York Times gets fair-use rules wrong in story about cop-shooting video, and multiple outlets reblog without questioning premise — The News Media's Use of the Walter Scott Video Is - Surprise! - A Newsworthy Use — The New York Times reports that publicity and celebrity management …

Discussion: @alisternburg, @sarahjeong, @mccanner, @xor and @mmasnick

Frances Robles / New York Times:

PR agency claiming to represent owner of cop-shooting video now charging one-time fee of $10K, sending news organizations cease and desist letters — Fee to Be Charged for Video of South Carolina Shooting, Publicist Says — NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — The video of a North Charleston police officer shooting …

David Kravets / Ars Technica:
News outlets can defend against copyright claims to cop shooting video using fair use, but the issue would need to go to court

Discussion: @jeffjohnroberts, @mmasnick and @sarahjeong

David McLaughlin / Bloomberg Business:

Sources: US Justice Department lawyers leaning against Comcast merger with Time Warner Cable, could submit recommendation next week — U.S. Antitrust Lawyers Said to Be Leaning Against Comcast Merger — Staff attorneys at the Justice Department's antitrust division are nearing a recommendation …

Peter Kafka / Re/code:

Disney Says Verizon's Bundle-Breaking Pay TV Plan Breaks Their Rules — About that Verizon plan to break up the pay-TV bundle into smaller bundles? — Not so fast, says Disney's ESPN. Verizon's plan, which it's supposed to start marketing this weekend, violates agreements the programmer …

Discussion: @pkafka, @pkafka, 89.3 KPCC, Consumerist and Deadline

Peter Kafka / Re/code:
Verizon offering FiOS TV packages with mix-and-match channel packs that viewers can swap out each month; plans start at $54.99

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Reuters, AdAge, Home Media Magazine, Light Reading, bizjournals, SlashGear, USA Today, Media & Entertainment, Broadcasting & Cable and @pkafka

Caroline Davies / Guardian:

Operation Elveden: more journalists cleared of paying public officials — The Sun's Tom Wells, Neil Millard and Brandon Malinsky, and former Daily Mirror reporter Graham Brough not guilty of conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office — More journalists have been cleared …

Discussion: Sky News, BBC, Bulletin Standard, BBC, Telegraph, BelfastTelegraph.co.uk, London Evening Standard, Telegraph, BBC and The Times

Joshua Rozenberg / Guardian:

Operation Elveden: Andy Coulson and eight other cases dropped by DPP — No evidence will be offered in case of nine journalists, including former editor of News of the World, facing trial over leaks from public officials — The director of public prosecutions is abandoning the future prosecutions …

Discussion: BBC, Imedia Ethics, Telegraph, Guardian and Digital Spy

James Cook / Business Insider:

Andy Chen, CEO of Jay Z's music streaming site, Tidal, exits company as 25 employees are “forced to leave” — The CEO of Jay Z's music streaming site Tidal has left the company — Andy Chen, CEO of Aspiro, the Swedish music streaming company acquired by rapper Jay Z for $56 million in March, has left the company.

Discussion: Media & Entertainment, Guardian, CNET, VentureBeat, Vulture, Jezebel and SlashGear

Mari Yamaguchi / Associated Press:

Japan's ruling party questions execs from two TV networks about programs containing “distorted materials”, raising questions about press intimidation — Summons of Japanese media raises complaints of interference — TOKYO (AP) — Japan's ruling party summoned executives …

Discussion: Guardian

David Uberti / Columbia Journalism Review:

Reuters' Baghdad bureau chief on why he fled Iraq — Once Ned Parker saw his face plastered across an Iraqi television channel, he knew he had to flee. On April 3, Reuters' Baghdad bureau chief helped chronicle in gruesome detail the lynching of ISIS captives by government and paramilitary forces.

Discussion: @daviduberti and NPR

Bill Trott / Reuters: Iraqi PM seeks more security for Reuters bureau in Baghdad

Stuart Dredge / Guardian:

YouTube competitor Vessel raises a $57.5M Series B round led by IVP, just weeks after launch — Vessel raises $57.5m funding to expand its ‘first window’ for YouTube creators — Silicon Valley heavyweight IVP joins US startup's investors, and predicts it could be as successful as Netflix and Twitter

Discussion: TechCrunch, Bloomberg Business, Variety, CNNMoney, VideoInk, Tubefilter, @om, Re/code, Hollywood Reporter, VideoNuze Analysis, Financial Times, VatorNews and Multichannel News

Jim Romenesko:

Daily Mail slaps Motherboard writer's byline on story, apparently to avoid plagiarism charges … Merchant tells Romenesko readers what happened and why his byline disappeared: … * Brian Merchant's “The girl who would live forever” (motherboard.vice.com)

Discussion: Motherboard, Daily Mail, @bcmerchant, Mediaite and @dangillmor

Steven Perlberg / Wall Street Journal:

Netflix marketing shifts to focus more on original programs and international markets — How Netflix Is Shaking Up Its Marketing Strategy — Netflix is betting that consumers want to hear a little less about Netflix and a little more about “House of Cards.”

Mark Duffy / Digiday:

Native ads don't sell products or influence consumers but do compromise editorial content — Copyranter: Native advertising on editorial websites doesn't work — Mark Duffy has written the Copyranter blog for 10 years and is a freelancing copywriter with 20-plus years of experience.

Discussion: Poynter