Top News:
Matthew Jaffe / CNN:
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder says Edward Snowden performed a public service by whistleblowing but what he did was illegal and harmed U.S. interests — The Axe Files, featuring David Axelrod, is a podcast distributed by CNN and produced at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics.
Discussion:
The Hill, @snowden, @armscontrolwonk, @trevortimm, @thomas_drake1, @realjamesrisen, @realjamesrisen, The Verge, @danaperino, @ggreenwald, BuzzFeed, @oliyoung, Common Dreams, Forbes, Mediaite, @drudge_report_, @ggreenwald, @jeffjarvis, @chuckrossdc, @jeffreygoldberg, @scottgreenfield, @realjamesrisen, @misscherryjones, @jonswaine, Hot Air, Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check, The Daily Caller and The Week
Liam Corcoran / NewsWhip:
Facebook likes for web content fell 55%, shares declined 57%, comments down 63% between July 2015 and April 2016, NewsWhip analysis of top 10 publishers shows — We look at the decline in Facebook engagements for major Facebook publishers over the last 12 months, and compare it to the rise of Facebook video.
Discussion:
Fortune, @mathewi, @lavrusik, @clarajeffery, One Man & His Blog, Digiday, @myersnews, @elanazak and @zimbalist, Thanks:@steverubel
New York Times:
Source: Gawker Media faces five defamation-related suits in addition to Hogan's privacy lawsuit; by comparison, The New York Times is facing two libel cases — Gawker Media's legal battle with Hulk Hogan over the publication of a sex tape has had wide-ranging impact.
Discussion:
@dankennedy_nu, @dankennedy_nu, @dhulser, Forbes, @penenberg, @va_shiva, @natesilver538, @benedictevans, @mathewi, @rabois and Bloomberg
H.G. Watson / J-Source:
Transcontinental sells 13 Saskatchewan newspapers and announces layoffs — Transcontinental has sold all of its Saskatchewan local newspapers and laid off 35 people from all levels of the company and 30 more from its Saskatoon printing facility. — Effective May 30, the Montreal based …
Discussion:
@hg_watson, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, globalnews.ca and CBC News
Frederic Filloux / Monday Note:
The top 5 things news publishers can learn from game publishers: monetization, design process, testing, metrics, introduction of one-click payment for content — News publishers have a lot to learn from the gaming industry. Especially when it comes to testing and promoting apps.
Discussion:
One Man & His Blog, @afit and @whatthebit
Mark Sweney / Guardian:
Zanny Minton Beddoes, The Economist's first female editor, on increasing the magazine's reach on social media, transitioning to digital, and advertising — Zanny Minton Beddoes on new owners, battling Brexit, and making a 173-year-old title work online — anny Minton Beddoes' office …
Discussion:
One Man & His Blog, @holyroodmandy, @giner and @janebsinger
Cynthia Littleton / Variety:
Viacom independent board members vow to fight if ousted and to continue effort to sell minority stake in Paramount — Viacom's independent board members are vowing to fight any “legally flawed” effort to oust them from their director seats, and they are urging shareholders to support …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Hollywood Reporter, New York Post, New York Times, Reuters and Broadcasting & Cable
Agence France-Presse:
New photo emerges of Japanese journalist Jumpei Yasuda, missing in Syria, with sign saying “last chance” — Tokyo (AFP) - A fresh photo of a Japanese journalist who went missing in Syria last year has emerged online, showing the heavily bearded man holding a sign saying this is his “last chance”.
Discussion:
Japan Times, Newser, Reuters and Mashable
Reuters:
Egypt's journalists' union head and two board members charged for harboring wanted colleagues, Amr Badr and Mahmoud El Sakka; trial begins Saturday — Egyptian prosecutors on Monday ordered the head of the journalists union and two board members to be tried on charges of harboring colleagues wanted …
Discussion:
Reuters
Poynter:
Interview with Poynter VP and media ethicist on how to address critics and why “we stand by our story” must be replaced with point-by-point rebuttals — There's a now-famous scene from “All the President's Men” in which Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee, in the midst of the Watergate scandal …
Richard Ackland / Guardian:
Long-running Australian defamation lawsuit could erode confidentiality of reporters' sources — The right of journalists to protect their sources is being assaulted by the courts, where many judges have long held a sniffy antipathy towards the media — here's a wonderful cartoon by the Australian artist Jenny Coopes.
Discussion:
@lisavisentin
Jack Murtha / Columbia Journalism Review:
How fake news sites frequently trick big-time journalists — It would've been one hell of a story. Early this month, “news” surfaced that Michael Jordan—yes, the Michael Jordan—had threatened to move his NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets, from North Carolina unless the state repealed …