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:
USA Today, Digiday, Guardian, @fishbowlny, The Wrap, Forbes, FishbowlNY, AdExchanger, @johncolucci, Washington Post, Gizmodo, @pkafka, Refinery29, Business Insider, National Journal, The Huffington Post, The Week, ThinkProgress, TIME, The Verge, Variety, Mediaite, Adweek, Talking Biz News, @emilybell, @joepompeo, @edgecliffe, @neil_irwin, @melissaleecnbc, @digiphile, @lheron, @rmantri and @thestalwart
RELATED:
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
Tim Armstrong says AOL to remain in content business, denies spin-off of Huffington Post, says TechCrunch won't be sold and will retain editorial independence — 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:
Digiday, PandoDaily, Business Insider, @startupljackson, @alexjamesfitz, @mathewi, @mathewi, @zseward, Poynter, Adweek and @benthompson
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, The Huffington Post 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, USA Today, @eringriffith, @fmanjoo, Wired, WWD, The Atlantic, @jyarow, @mhbergen, TheStreet.com and Forbes
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:
Adweek, Reuters, PRNewser, @pkafka, @ingridlunden, @tkawaja, @palafo, @benthompson, @alex, Mashable, @jeffjarvis, @readdanwrite, @antderosa, @jeffjarvis, Variety, AdExchanger, Wall Street Journal, TIME, Fusion, Radio & Television …, The New York Observer, Forbes, FierceOnlineVideo News, Business Insider, Top Digital Journal News, Quartz, Telegraph, AppleInsider, Media Wire Daily, TVNewser, The Awl, Broadcasting & Cable, @simonkhalaf, CNBC, @bmkatz, @digiphile, FishbowlNY, @mathewi, @lukedecock, @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 at $50 per share at an estimated total value of $4.4B, Tim Armstrong to continue leading AOL operations
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, Adweek, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Wired, AdAge, Mashable, VideoNuze Analysis, Business Insider, The Verge, @nichcarlson, New York Times, @fmanjoo, @karaswisher, @froomkin, AdExchanger, @pmarca, @alansmurray, @alansmurray, @cnbcnow, @emilybell, PandoDaily, GeekWire, Guardian, Beet.TV, LostRemote, Bloomberg View, CNET, Hollywood Reporter, Fusion, Vox, ZDNet, TIME, Associated Press, www.wnyc.org, Forbes, Techdirt, @ezraklein, CNBC NOW, Gothamist, Electronista, @bbcrorycj, Variety, @buzzfeednews, @woodyleonhard, @robpegoraro, The Next Web and @jeffjarvis
Kara Swisher / Re/code:
Although Tim Armstrong's vague memo emphasized content and touted new opportunities, Verizon deal is about ad-tech and arose from few options for AOL
Although Tim Armstrong's vague memo emphasized content and touted new opportunities, Verizon deal is about ad-tech and arose from few options for AOL
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, @reckless, @pkafka, Business Insider and VentureBeat
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's AOL acquisition suggests its telecom carrier empire is crumbling more than it shows the power of the physical network
Discussion:
The Awl, Gizmodo, Quartz, Business Insider, Los Angeles Times, GeekWire, 9to5Mac, Newser, Boing Boing, @joannastern, @johndstoll, @sub8u, The Week, The Loop and www.wnyc.org
Brent Lang / Variety:
AOL Shares Surge 18% After Verizon Deal
AOL Shares Surge 18% After Verizon Deal
Discussion:
Forbes, VatorNews and VentureBeat
Michael Reckhow / Facebook Media:
Facebook launches Instant Articles on iPhone, with interactive features like videos and maps, names NYT, BuzzFeed, Guardian, and six other partners — Introducing Instant Articles — As more people get their news on mobile devices, we want to make the experience faster and richer on Facebook.
Discussion:
BuzzMachine, BuzzFeed, New York Times, VentureBeat, TechCrunch, New York Times, BBC, @petersterne, @petersterne, @jbenton, @daweiner, @jbenton, @yappelbaum, @mathewi, The Verge and Engadget
RELATED:
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 …
Jack Bouboushian / Courthouse News Service:
Disney, CBS Win Battle with FCC Over Disclosure — (CN) - The FCC cannot expedite the public disclosure of contracts and documents relevant to its review of the proposed AT&T-DirecTV merger, the D.C. Circuit ruled. — The Federal Communications Commission is tasked with reviewing merger proposals …
RELATED:
Douglas Martin / New York Times:
William Zinsser, Author of ‘On Writing Well,’ Dies at 92 — William Zinsser, a writer, editor and teacher whose book “On Writing Well” sold more than 1.5 million copies by employing his own literary craftsmanship to urge clarity, simplicity, brevity and humanity, died on Tuesday at his home in Manhattan.
Discussion:
@danielpink, @katiewoodray, @tvnewslab, Yale Alumni Magazine, Gawker and @clydehaberman
Liana B. Baker / Reuters:
Exclusive: Cablevision to drop $1 bid for NY Daily News - source — It was one dollar too much for Cablevision Systems Corp (CVC.N). The cable company is planning to pull out of the auction process for the New York Daily News after spending hundreds of hours analyzing a potential deal, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
New York Times, @petersterne and Gawker
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, UPROXX, Mediaite, Business Insider, @lahlahlindsey and @erikmal
RELATED:
Jordan Chariton / The Wrap:
Tom Brokaw Says Media Is ‘Completely Wrong’ About His Feelings on Brian Williams Controversy — Appearing on Fox News to discuss his memoir Monday, Tom Brokaw said the media has been swimming in speculation over his take on the Brian Williams controversy. — “There's been way too much speculation,” he told Sean Hannity.
RELATED:
Lloyd Grove / The Daily Beast:
In first public comments on Brian Williams. NBC News Chief Andy Lack promises resolution “soon”
In first public comments on Brian Williams. NBC News Chief Andy Lack promises resolution “soon”
Discussion:
TVNewser, The Wrap, @thelloydgrove and @tvnewslab
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, @garethstack, Poynter, @justinnxt, @andybowers, @jmooallem, @niemanlab, @heychrisbarr, @mlieber, @stan_alcorn and @chanders
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