Top News:
Kara Swisher / Re/code:
Sources: AOL in talks to spin off HuffPost, primarily with Axel Springer, at a valuation over $1B — AOL Has Been in Talks to Spin Off HuffPost as Part of Verizon Acquisition Deal — According to numerous sources, while it has been negotiating its deal to sell to Verizon …
Discussion:
FishbowlNY, The Huffington Post, Forbes, The Wrap, PRNewser, Quartz, New York Times, The Verge, Business Insider, AdExchanger, Washington Post, Variety, Broadcasting & Cable, @johncolucci, @fishbowlny, @pkafka, @emilybell, Gizmodo, @joepompeo, Adweek, @edgecliffe, Refinery29, @neil_irwin, Mediaite, @melissaleecnbc, ThinkProgress, @digiphile, @lheron, @rmantri, The Week, @thestalwart, TIME and Talking Biz News
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Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Internal memo from AOL CEO Tim Armstrong on Verizon takeover — In Big Media Push, Verizon Buys AOL For $4.4B [Memo From AOL CEO Tim Armstrong] — So this just happened. AOL, owner of TechCrunch, is getting acquired: U.S. carrier Verizon said in a statement that it is buying the company for $4.4 billion, or $50 per share.
Discussion:
Quartz, Radio & Television …, The New York Observer, Reuters, Forbes, TVNewser, Adweek, CNBC, AdExchanger, @readdanwrite, @pkafka, Variety, Wall Street Journal, @ingridlunden, @tkawaja, Fusion, Telegraph, @palafo, Media Wire Daily, @benthompson, @alex, @jeffjarvis, FierceOnlineVideo News, @antderosa, Top Digital Journal News, TIME, @jeffjarvis, AppleInsider, Business Insider, VentureBeat, @simonkhalaf, Broadcasting & Cable, @bmkatz, The Awl, @digiphile, @mathewi, @lukedecock, FishbowlNY, @tvnewslab, @davidramli, @mims, @anildash, @felixsalmon, @anthonyha, @mikebutcher and The Next Web
Verizon:
Verizon to acquire AOL at $50 per share at an estimated total value of $4.4B, Tim Armstrong to continue leading AOL operations — Verizon to Acquire AOL — Deal Creates Unique and Scaled Digital Media Platforms for Consumers, Advertisers and Partners — NEW YORK - Taking another significant step …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Bloomberg Business, Wired, Re/code, Adweek, Business Insider, The Verge, Guardian, VideoNuze Analysis, Mashable, Beet.TV, Vox, AdExchanger, @pmarca, CNBC NOW, @nichcarlson, Associated Press, The Huffington Post, Fusion, @alansmurray, @cnbcnow, @fmanjoo, GeekWire, @karaswisher, ZDNet, @froomkin, @alansmurray, PandoDaily, @emilybell, Bloomberg View, CNET, Hollywood Reporter, Forbes, Techdirt, TIME, LostRemote, Variety, @ezraklein, Gothamist, VentureBeat, @buzzfeednews, @woodyleonhard, www.wnyc.org, @robpegoraro, The Next Web, @jeffjarvis, @bbcrorycj and Electronista
BuzzFeed:
Sources say Verizon has no plans to spin off AOL's editorial properties including TechCrunch and Engadget, with Huffington Post's future less certain — Verizon Likely To Retain TechCrunch And Engadget — Sources say Verizon has no plans to spin off the tech blogs once the $4.4 billon acquisition is approved.
Discussion:
Business Insider, @pkafka and FishbowlNY
Alex Kantrowitz / AdAge:
Ad-Tech, not Content, Is King in the Verizon-AOL Deal — Takeaways From This Morning's Announcement — The deal of the year may be upon us. — Today, Verizon announced it has reached an agreement to buy AOL for $4.4 billion. The move, expected to be completed this summer …
Discussion:
Adweek, The Verge, WWD, Wired, USA Today, @eringriffith, @fmanjoo, The Atlantic, @jyarow, @mhbergen, TheStreet.com and Forbes
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
AOL CEO Tim Armstrong says he signed multiyear contract with Verizon, and “we're really interested in staying in the content business” — CEO Tim Armstrong Says AOL Is Staying In The Content Business (And He's Not Selling TechCrunch) — It was an interesting day at AOL.
Discussion:
PandoDaily, @mathewi, @mathewi, @zseward, Business Insider, Poynter, Adweek and @benthompson
Dennis K. Berman / Wall Street Journal:
Verizon's AOL acquisition suggests its telecom carrier empire is crumbling more than it shows the power of the physical network — Verizon-AOL: A War of All Against All — Surprising deal suggests a crumbling empire more than it shows the power of the network
Discussion:
Gizmodo, The Awl, Digiday, Business Insider and @samsteinhp
Justin Ellis / Nieman Lab:
Knight Foundation invests $1 million in creator-driven podcast collective Radiotopia — A little over a year ago, a group of public radio-minded podcast producers banded together with an idea: to combine their powers to grow a shared audience and develop a better business model for fledgling audio entrepreneurs.
Discussion:
The Awl, @justinnxt, Poynter, @andybowers, @garethstack, @coreyford, @jmooallem, @niemanlab, @heychrisbarr, @mlieber, @stan_alcorn and @chanders
T. Rees Shapiro / Washington Post:
University of Virginia associate dean Nicole Eramo files defamation suit against Rolling Stone, seeks $7.5M in damages over retracted rape story — U-Va. dean sues Rolling Stone for ‘false’ portrayal in retracted rape story — WUVA online, a student-run media outlet, interviewed Nicole Eramo …
Marisa Guthrie / Hollywood Reporter:
ESPN President John Skipper on Bill Simmons: “It Was Business” — The chatter at ESPN's upfront presentation Tuesday morning centered on Bill Simmons, conspicuously absent since ESPN president John Skipper abruptly announced Friday that he would not renew Simmons' contract.
Discussion:
Poynter, New York Times, Mediaite, UPROXX, @erikmal, Business Insider, @lahlahlindsey and Mediaite
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Lloyd Grove / The Daily Beast:
In first public comments on Brian Williams. NBC News Chief Andy Lack promises resolution “soon” — NBC News Chief Andy Lack: 'We're Playing Hurt' Over Brian Williams — In his first public comments about the saga, NBC News chief Andy Lack acknowledged the damage done to the network by the Brian Williams scandal.
Discussion:
TVNewser, @tvnewslab, @thelloydgrove and The Wrap
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Nic Christensen / mUmBRELLA:
Wall Street Journal's head of global media sales, Trevor Fellows, downplays revenue potential of branded content, citing its difficulty to produce at scale — Wall Street Journal sales boss: Branded content will never be a dominant revenue source — Fellows speaking at the INMA World Congress
Kevin Roderick / LA Observed:
LA Times Pulitzer winner Jeff Gottlieb's farewell memo to colleagues hints at dissatisfaction amongst newsroom staff — LA Times Pulitzer winner exits an unhappy camper — Jeff Gottlieb, center, with LA Times reporters Paloma Esquivel and Ruben Vives in 2011. Photo: Knight Fellowships
Mother Jones:
Mother Jones names Monika Bauerlein Chief Executive Officer; Clara Jeffery, Editor-in-Chief — Phone Number: — 415/321-1700 — Today Mother Jones announced a change in leadership as its co-editors, Monika Bauerlein and Clara Jeffery, take on new roles. Bauerlein will become CEO while Jeffery becomes editor-in-chief.
Discussion:
@markfollman, @bendreyfuss, @clarajeffery and Canadian Magazines
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
New questions about bin Laden's death and burial highlight lack of attribution in earlier Vanity Fair reporting — Why didn't Vanity Fair tell readers it hadn't seen bin Laden burial photos? — Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh has shaken Washington with a massive piece, titled …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Politico, Bloomberg Business, FishbowlDC, bookforum.com, Slate, The Week, Wall Street Journal, @cashut, @dlboardman and @erikwemple
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Jason Abbruzzese / Mashable:
New report by veteran journalist Seymour Hersh on Osama Bin Laden's death prompts doubt, conflicting reports, and a partial NBC confirmation
Discussion:
The Intercept, NBC News, New York Magazine, Vox, Politico, New York Times, Politico, Corey Pein, @ronrosenbaum1, Techdirt, The Spy Who BIlled Me, Business Insider, Salon, CNN, @mlcalderone, @sarahw, @declanwalsh, The Huffington Post, Wall Street Journal, London Review of Books, New York Magazine and Poynter
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