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, Forbes, The Wrap, Quartz, The Huffington Post, PRNewser, Broadcasting & Cable, Business Insider, AdExchanger, The Verge, @johncolucci, Adweek, Washington Post, Mediaite, TIME, Variety, @fishbowlny, @pkafka, @emilybell, Gizmodo, @joepompeo, @edgecliffe, Refinery29, @neil_irwin, @melissaleecnbc, ThinkProgress, @digiphile, @lheron, @rmantri, The Week and @thestalwart
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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, Business Insider, Radio & Television …, The New York Observer, Forbes, Reuters, Home Media Magazine, Adweek, TVNewser, CNBC, AdExchanger, @readdanwrite, @pkafka, Variety, Top Digital Journal News, Wall Street Journal, @ingridlunden, @tkawaja, Fusion, Telegraph, @palafo, Media Wire Daily, @benthompson, @alex, AppleInsider, @jeffjarvis, FierceOnlineVideo News, @antderosa, TIME, @jeffjarvis, Poynter, @simonkhalaf, VentureBeat, Broadcasting & Cable, @bmkatz, @digiphile, @mathewi, @lukedecock, The Awl, 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, Business Insider, Adweek, Re/code, Wired, The Verge, Guardian, Beet.TV, VideoNuze Analysis, Mashable, Vox, CNBC NOW, AdExchanger, @pmarca, Variety, @nichcarlson, Associated Press, The Huffington Post, Techdirt, Fusion, @alansmurray, @cnbcnow, Hollywood Reporter, @fmanjoo, GeekWire, @karaswisher, ZDNet, @froomkin, @alansmurray, Forbes, PandoDaily, @emilybell, Bloomberg View, CNET, TIME, LostRemote, @ezraklein, Gothamist, @buzzfeednews, @woodyleonhard, www.wnyc.org, @robpegoraro, The Next Web, @jeffjarvis, @bbcrorycj, Reuters and Electronista
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:
WWD, The Verge, USA Today, Wired, The Atlantic, TheStreet.com, @eringriffith, @fmanjoo, @jyarow, @mhbergen, Forbes and Adweek
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:
TechCrunch, Business Insider, @pkafka and FishbowlNY
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:
The Awl, Gizmodo, Digiday, Business Insider and @samsteinhp
Brent Lang / Variety:
AOL Shares Surge 18% After Verizon Deal
Discussion:
VatorNews, Forbes and VentureBeat
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, @coreyford, @chanders, @justinnxt, @heychrisbarr, Poynter, @andybowers, @garethstack, @niemanlab, @stan_alcorn, @mlieber and @jmooallem
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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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 …
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, FishbowlDC, Politico, Bloomberg Business, 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, Vox, New York Magazine, Politico, New York Times, Politico, Corey Pein, Techdirt, Salon, CNN, The Spy Who BIlled Me, @ronrosenbaum1, Business Insider, @mlcalderone, @sarahw, London Review of Books, @declanwalsh, The Huffington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine and Poynter
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