Top News:


Trump attacks Vanity Fair and its editor Graydon Carter on Twitter, after the magazine published a negative review of Trump Grill, a steakhouse in Trump Tower — on Thursday blasted Vanity Fair, claiming the magazine was in “big trouble.” — “Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers …
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, TVWeek.com, Adweek, CNNMoney, TheBlaze, Mediaite, FishbowlNY, New York Post, Variety, Washington Post, Politico, Jezebel, Eater, @davidkushner, @ananavarro, @shaunking, @kylegriffin1, The Daily Caller, @poniewozik and The Week
RELATED:


Trump has gone 36 days without holding a press conference since becoming President-Elect, twelve times longer than Bush and Obama
Discussion:
NPR, Washington Post, The Week, Mediaite, bookforum.com, The Hugh Hewitt Show, @mlcalderone, @danpfeiffer and CNNMoney


NJ newspapers could lose $20M a year if bill passes allowing local governments to forego publishing legal notices in print and instead post them online — A fast-tracked bill that would allow governments to forgo publishing budgets, bids for services and other public records in newspapers …


The New York Times launches a confidential tips page with secure communication channels for sources, including SecureDrop, Signal, and WhatsApp — A strong news tip will have several components. Documentation or evidence is essential. Speculating or having a hunch does not rise to the level of a tip.
Discussion:
@runasand, @gabrieldance, @jodikantor, @graybeltran, @markmazzettinyt, @jeremybowers, @hamman, @dvsch, @pressfreedom and @adamgoldmannyt, Thanks:@ahmed


Memo: Politico ends Julia Ioffe's contract after she sends vulgar tweet about Trump, reiterates that its journalists should not share opinion on any platform — Politico has terminated its contract with magazine writer Julia Ioffe after she sent a tweet that referenced a possible incestuous …
Discussion:
FishbowlNY, TheBlaze, @juliaioffe, @juliaioffe, @elenzner, Mediaite, Infowars, The Gateway Pundit, @erikwemple, @sarahkendzior, New York Magazine, @craigipedia, @juliaioffe, @andizeisler, @daveweigel, @dwdavison9318, @nataliaantonova, iMediaEthics, @shashj, @susan_hennessey, @mattyglesias and The Daily Caller

Sources: Verizon is looking to get a price cut or exit the $4.8B Yahoo deal after company discloses 1B accounts hacked in 2013; Yahoo stock down 4.5% — Verizon Communications Inc. is exploring a price cut or possible exit from its $4.83 billion pending acquisition of Yahoo! Inc. …
Discussion:
Business Insider, @ajs, @alexjamesfitz, @technology, @bdsams and BGR


Twitter's rule against inciting harassment means it could ban President-Elect Trump, but free speech advocates argue his tweets have value — If Twitter wanted to, it would be well within its rights to suspend Donald J. Trump's account. — After the president-elect used Twitter last week …


Democratic FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler says he will resign on January 20, which will allow a new Republican majority to begin dismantling Obama-era regulations — Democratic FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said today he would resign, ending months of will-he or won't-he speculation about his plans.
Discussion:
@tomwheelerfcc, The Wrap, CNBC, The Hill, @jeff_foust, The Verge and @heminator


Instagram doubles its monthly active user base in two years to 600M, adding 100M in six months — That's 600 million Instagrammers, and a whole lotta brunch pics — It appears that the rise of Snapchat and all its Spectacles fun have yet to slow Instagram's growth: the Facebook-owned …


21st Century Fox says it has agreed to buy Sky for $14.6B despite complaints from some investors; the acquisition is expected to complete before the end of 2017 — Rupert Murdoch's Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA.O) said on Thursday it had agreed to buy European pay-TV firm Sky (SKYB.L) …
Discussion:
21st Century Fox, Bloomberg, @skynewsbreak, Engadget and BBC
RELATED:


Australian federal court orders ISPs to block torrenting sites, including The Pirate Bay, within 15 business days under new site-blocking law — Goodbye Pirate Bay, farewell TorrentHound — Australia's ISPs have been ordered to block a raft of torrenting sites under new site-blocking laws.
Discussion:
ABC, The Guardian, Softpedia News and Techly


150 prominent filmmakers sign an open letter to major camera makers, including Canon, Nikon, Sony, and others, asking for default storage encryption — In the summer of 2013, when documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras was shooting a still-secret NSA leaker named Edward Snowden in a Hong Kong hotel room, she took security seriously.
Discussion:
The FJP, Freedom of the Press …, Techdirt, Mashable, ZDNet, TechCrunch, @snowden, @trevortimm, The Verge, @snowden and @freedomofpress

DirecTV and U-verse drop Esquire Network, owned by NBCUniversal and Hearst; network will still be carried in 45M homes — Net will still be available in about 45 million homes — AT&T's DirecTV and U-verse subscribers will be without the Esquire Network as of about 1 a.m. Eastern Time on Dec. 15 …


Mike Flynn, Trump's pick for national security adviser, has deleted a tweet that linked to a fake news story about Hillary Clinton — Gen. Mike Flynn quietly deleted a tweet that promoted a baseless story about Hillary Clinton's “sex crimes.” — Associate Politics Editor, The Huffington Post
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, CNN and The Hill
RELATED:

Michael Flynn Jr., son of Trump's national security advisor General Michael Flynn, slammed the Washington Post and questioned if it should continue to operate
Discussion:
RT, @kylegriffin1, @usaredorchestra, The Wrap, Mother Jones, Business Insider, @clarajeffery, Washington Post, @badpressawards, @globalfreemedia and @anthony