Top News:
Andrew Ross Sorkin / New York Times:
Peter Thiel acknowledges he spent around $10M to fund a team of lawyers to help Gawker “victims” like Hulk Hogan sue the company, in act of “deterrence” — A billionaire Silicon Valley entrepreneur was outed as being gay by a media organization.
Discussion:
Stratechery, Elizabeth Spiers, The Huffington Post, Slate, FishbowlNY, Recode, CNNMoney, Newser, @ndhapple, Fast Company, @tmcgev, @sdkstl, Vanity Fair, Daily Mail, Beyond Search, @alexjamesfitz, @markarkleiman, @loisbeckett, @loisbeckett, The Loop, Fortune, Talking New Media, @mattdrange, Guardian, Recode, @cenedella, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo, Dave Pell, VatorNews, The Verge, @cenedella, @sacca, @dansinker, @karnythia, @megan, @dangillmor, @deep_beige, Engadget, @heerjeet, TechCrunch, @libbycwatson, @akruglov, @justinjm1, Mashable, INSIDER, Guardian, @sacca, @howardowens, The Wrap, @jackmirkinson, @carlzimmer, @yashalevine, @max_read, Mediaite, @mlcalderone, @lucas_shaw, @jwherrman, @ejacqui, @jyarow, @mikeisaac, @felixsalmon, Daring Fireball and Vanity Fair
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Felix Salmon / Fusion:
If Peter Thiel's strategy against Gawker works, it may then be emulated by other billionaires against any media organization — Funding Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against Gawker? That's not cool. Actively going out to find potential plaintiffs who might have cases against Gawker and then giving them the money to bring those cases?
New York Times:
Gossip, revenge, and the complicated relationship between Silicon Valley and media including Gawker's Valleywag — SAN FRANCISCO — Silicon Valley likes to keep the media on a tight leash. Tech executives expect obedience, if not reverence, from reporters. They dole out information as grudgingly as possible.
Discussion:
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Jack Shafer / Politico:
Questions about Peter Thiel's motives, secrecy, and position on Facebook's board amid lawsuit funding disclosure — Nobody's ever sympathized with Gawker before. — Multibillionaire Peter Thiel's desire for revenge has led him to do a wild but entirely legal thing.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Daring Fireball, @mcarney, Mashable, Real Stories, NPR, ThinkProgress, Variety, Fast Company, @ggreenwald and CBS News
Peter Sterne / Politico:
Florida judge upholds $140.1 M verdict against Gawker, Nick Denton, and AJ Daulerio; Gawker to appeal — A state court judge in Florida upheld a jury verdict of $140.1 million in damages against Gawker Media, CEO Nick Denton and former editor in chief A.J. Daulerio.
Discussion:
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Joe Pompeo / Politico:
Newspaper Association of America requests FTC investigate adblockers for trade practice and consumer protection rule violations — A newspaper trade organization is taking the industry's fight against ad blocking to the Federal Trade Commission. — The Newspaper Association of America …
Callum Borchers / Washington Post:
Thiel's backing of Hogan suit against Gawker shows the heavy price media companies face, heightened by Trump's litigious, anti-media stance
Discussion:
Fortune, @elidourado, @ilyasu, Fast Company, @clarajeffery, @rabois, @birsic, @libbybrittain, @fmanjoo, Daring Fireball, Poynter, @benmullin, CNNMoney, @penenberg, @marklittlenews, Salon, Recode, GQ, Media Law Prof Blog, USA Today, CNBC, Politico and @laura_hudson
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
Subjects in Under the Gun documentary object to deceptive editing; producer apologizes if anyone was offended, and Katie Couric stands by producer's statement — It looks as though Katie Couric stunned her interviewees. Knocked them out with a bombshell inquiry: “Let me ask you another question …
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Politico to drop paywall on its media coverage, consolidate under a single hub, and add morning newsletter — Media junkies will soon have a new way to get their fix. Politico, the news outlet devoted to all things politics, is taking much of its media coverage out from behind a paywall …
Discussion:
@joepompeo
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Bloomberg:
A look at the old media companies that own or have invested in new media companies and comparison of traffic cross top digital media sites — Rani Molla is a Bloomberg Gadfly columnist using data visualizations to cover corporations and markets. She previously worked for the Wall Street Journal.
Financial Times:
Sources: Apple had preliminary discussions about buying Time Warner last year as spending on original content set to increase — A top Apple executive raised the prospect of the iPhone maker buying Time Warner at a meeting with the owner of HBO, CNN and Warner Brothers, according to three people who were briefed on it.
Discussion:
Fortune, The Wrap, @joshuatopolsky, @joshegea, AppAdvice.com Latest, Gizmodo, MacRumors, 9to5Mac and FTVLive
Elisabeth Witchel / Committee to Protect Journalists:
US on verge of expanding Magnitsky Act which could curb impunity for murderers of journalists globally — Last week, the proposed Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act emerged from the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee with approval. The bill was passed by the Senate last year.
Discussion:
Human Rights Campaign, Ottawa Citizen, @billbrowder and Guardian
Trevor Timm / Columbia Journalism Review:
Chelsea Manning case could be the catalyst for courts to rule that using the Espionage Act against leakers is unconstitutional — WikiLeaks whistleblower Chelsea Manning filed her long-awaited appeal to a 35-year jail sentence last week, and her case brings up an important question for journalists …
Discussion:
MWC News and @trevortimm
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