Mediagazer: Disney says Verizon can't distribute ESPN in an optional pack of sports TV channels (Peter Kafka/Re/code)

12:20 PM ET, April 18, 2015

Top News:

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 …

Discussion: New York Times, Quartz, CNNMoney, Engadget, Daily Mail, @waltbtig, Ars Technica, Reuters, SlashGear, Hollywood Reporter, @mgsiegler, The Week, The Huffington Post, Free Press Blog, USA Today, Variety, The Hill, Business Insider, The Wrap, The Verge, Deadline, Consumerist, @brianstelter and BGR

Bloomberg Business:

If Comcast-TWC deal collapsed, related Charter and Bright House deals would be affected — Comcast Deal Collapse Would Kill Other Mergers in Domino Effect — The potential collapse of Comcast Corp.'s merger with Time Warner Cable Inc. wouldn't just be a setback for those two companies.

Discussion: The Week

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, @mmasnick, @xor, @sarahjeong, @mccanner, Techdirt, New York Magazine, News One, Business Insider, WCIV-TV, Gawker, @levendowski, BuzzFeed, TVSpy, International Business Times and The Daily Beast

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: Poynter, @jeffjohnroberts, @mmasnick, Mediaite, @sarahjeong, UPTOWN Magazine, The Daily Caller, NY Daily News and New York Times

Jeremy Barr / Capital New York:

New York Times' experiment in curated aggregation finds an audience who returns to homepage after clicking links — Six months of front-page aggregation for the Times — In September 2014, The New York Times began an ambitious experiment in aggregation, and did it in a very public way …

Mike Shields / Wall Street Journal:

YouTube is Once Again Marketing Its Stars, Including Talk Show Host Grace Helbig — Last year, YouTube pleased many a Web video creator and ad buyer by running a national ad campaign promoting some of its biggest stars. — And this year, with the digital NewFronts right around the corner, the Web video giant is back at it.

Jordan Sargent / Gawker:

A New York Times front-page story on teen vaping used a false anecdote from a Twitter user who made up his name and other details — Twitter Guy Says He Hoaxed NYT In Teen Vape Article — Yesterday's New York Times features an A1 article written by science correspondent Sabrina Tavernise …

Discussion: @drugleaf, @bjacobel, @weskrantz, @kevinroose, @rga, @pbump, @anthonyquintano, Imedia Ethics and Gizmodo UK

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

Michael Cieply / New York Times:

Sony again warns news media against using stolen emails, citing copyright and computer fraud laws — Sony Studio Renews Warning After WikiLeaks Posts Stolen Data — LOS ANGELES — David Boies, a lawyer for Sony Pictures Entertainment, began warning news media outlets on Friday …

Discussion: Deadline, Above the Law, Hollywood Reporter and Bloomberg Business

Brian Lambert / MinnPost:

The strange saga of John Rogers, the man who bought the Star Tribune's vintage photo archive — Whatever else you might say about him, John Rogers was clearly one hell of a salesman. — After first buying up several high-profile collections of sports memorabilia, the Little Rock entrepreneur hit …

Discussion: @saniac, @mccanner, @colvinius and @stevebuttry

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, @bcmerchant, Daily Mail, @dangillmor and Mediaite

Peter Kafka / Re/code:

Disney says Verizon can't distribute ESPN in an optional pack of sports TV channels — Disney Says Verizon's Bundle-Breaking Pay TV Plan Breaks Its Rules — About that Verizon plan to break up the pay-TV bundle into smaller bundles? — Not so fast, says Disney's ESPN.

Discussion: The Verge, Wall Street Journal, @pkafka, Home Media Magazine, @pkafka, Tech Times, 89.3 KPCC, AdAge, Deadline and Re/code

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, Vulture, Jezebel, CNET, Guardian, SlashGear, Gizmodo UK and VentureBeat

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: Reporters Without Borders and @daviduberti