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To serve advertisers, digital media companies are shifting away from text and pictures toward video, a hard move for small web properties with few resources — It's been a big, weird year for the media industry. Gawker, the pioneering blog, declared bankruptcy and was sold off to Univision …
Discussion:
New Republic, @noahchestnut, @mariekshan, @lauraelizdavis and The Hairpin


Facebook will now select stories and excerpts automatically for Trending topic pages, show topics instead of story descriptions in Trending section — Today, we're making some changes to the Trending feature on Facebook that will make the product more automated and will no longer require people …
Discussion:
@marshallk, The Verge, Recode, Mashable, Refinery29, The Wrap, Recode, TechCrunch, The Drum, New York Magazine, Washington Post, @emptywheel, @zeynep, @zeynep, @goc9000, fox13now.com, Wall Street Journal, ZDNet, CNET, @rsingel, GeekWire, Fortune, Ad Age, The Huffington Post, SocialTimes, VentureBeat, Business Insider, CNNMoney, Forbes, Fast Company, Engadget, @moneyries, @dseetharaman and @anildash
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Sources: Facebook letting go of entire Trending Topics editorial staff, consisting of 15-18 workers contracted through a third party — Facebook will no longer employ humans to write descriptions for items in its Trending section, which attracted controversy over allegations of political bias in May.
Discussion:
@nathanjurgenson, @mcwm, @codybrown, @charlesarthur, @marginoferror, @caitlin__kelly, @glennf, @michaelroston, @_alastair, @daveyalba, @oneunderscore__, @dseetharaman, @digiphile, @dsilverman, @walldo, @geoffreyfowler, @auerbachkeller, @schwindter, @resnikoff, @fmanjoo, @phogan, @leibelm, @mattdrange and Business Insider


The dominance of Drudge, Breitbart, Hannity, and Coulter and their Trump support have damaged Republican party, some other conservative media figures say — Sean Hannity, sitting comfortably in his air-conditioned New York studios on a hot August afternoon, was on a fiery rant.
Discussion:
@albertocairo, @jayrosen_nyu, @danriehl, @danshafermke, @realmreynolds, @kylegriffin1, @monkbowlin, @oliverdarcy, @melodgrl, @baboomfitness, @toayc and @erikashaker
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Breitbart News and the far-right views it amplifies gain visibility during US presidential campaign — Breitbart News has arrived. — The opinion and news site, once a curiosity of the fringe right wing, is now an increasingly powerful voice, and virtual rallying spot …
Discussion:
@brianstelter, @sopandeb and @pkafka


Although Hillary Clinton held no press conferences in 2016, she did 350 interviews in the first seven months of 2016, favoring national TV and local radio — Hillary Clinton has not held a single press conference since the start of 2016, triggering charges that she's trying to duck questions from reporters on the campaign trail.
Discussion:
The Wrap and @danmericacnn


Sources leak 400-page “oppo” file shared inside Fox News in 2012 on Ailes biographer Gabriel Sherman, with details on property records and voter registration — The memo is dated January 5, 2012. “To: Interested Parties.” “Re: Gabriel Sherman.”
Discussion:
@connieschultz, The Wrap, @brianstelter, @brianstelter, @philiprucker, @juliaioffe, @themurdochtimes, Mediaite, @lizmeriwether, @gabrielsherman, @chucktodd, AOL and Vanity Fair


How USA Today's nuanced coverage of Ryan Lochte's Rio drama provides insights into handling a fast-moving story with caution — Last Thursday, Taylor Barnes and other journalists crowded into a theater across the street from a police station in Rio de Janeiro.
Discussion:
Forbes, USA Today, NPR, @dangillmor and @jayrosen_nyu


Spotify calls report that it demotes songs in search due to artists' exclusives with rivals “unequivocally false” — Spotify doesn't like exclusives. But it says it won't bury Frank Ocean and other acts in its search results. — Spotify doesn't like it when big-name acts take their music to Apple or Tidal first.
Discussion:
AppleInsider, The Verge and Daring Fireball
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Sources: Spotify retaliates against artists who give exclusives to rivals by demoting their songs in search results and excluding tracks from promoted playlists
Discussion:
Fortune, The Drum, TechCrunch, BGR, AppleInsider, The Verge, @om, @lucas_shaw, Engadget, The Next Web, Business Insider and Daring Fireball

Frank Ocean's exclusive, independent release of new album highlights tensions among artists, music labels, and digital services
Discussion:
The FADER, Complex, AppleInsider, @caseynewton, The Verge, hypebot, MacRumors, MacRumors, Pitchfork, Variety, @lucas_shaw, @1000timesyes, @forbestech, @leftsentthis, @forbes, @anildash, @judystakee, @ennisnyt, 9to5Mac and Fast Company


Inside NBC's Olympic live streaming operation, which required a remote support staff of 1,100+ in Stamford, Connecticut — For NBC, this year's Olympic Games coverage was more than just a series of household rating points: it was a moment of truth in a fast-changing media world.


Amazon is opening an offline bookstore in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood next year; the online retailer opened its first store in Seattle last fall — Construction signs are posted Aug. 24, 2016, at 3443 N. Southport Ave., the Lakeview neighborhood location where Amazon plans to open a Chicago bookstore in 2017.
Discussion:
GeekWire, Publishers Weekly and Business Insider

Reporters for Adelson's Las Vegas Review-Journal were told to ask candidates a not-for-publication question about public funding for Raiders stadium — Reporters for Sheldon Adelson's newspaper have been told to ask candidates if they support public money for the stadium proposed …
Discussion:
Deadspin, Deadspin, Awful Announcing, @jayrosen_nyu, Mediaite, @ralstonreports and @ralstonreports


Alibaba Pictures lost $69.4M in six months up to June, up from $22.7M in same period in 2015, as it used subsidies to build market share for online ticketing — Alibaba Pictures Group lost $69.4 million (RMB456 million) in the six months to June as it used subsidies to build the market share …
Discussion:
Deadline and South China Morning Post