Top News:
Lukas I. Alpert / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: a bitter feud has emerged between Patrick Soon-Shiong and Michael Ferro as they compete for larger stakes in Tronc — Ousted director Patrick Soon-Shiong adds to stake in Los Angeles Times publisher, setting up for showdown with its biggest shareholder and chairman Michael Ferro
Discussion:
Adweek, @robertfeder, @lesliepicker, @matthewherper, @scotthensley, @peternickeas, @joepompeo, @asharma, @srabil and @joewalkerwsj
Jeff Gammage / Philly.com:
Philadelphia Media Network guild members vote down contract that would have ended seniority protections in the event of a layoff — Journalists and other union members at the Inquirer, Daily News, and Philly.com have decisively rejected a contract offer that would have provided solid …
Discussion:
@poynter, @thegoalkeeper and @davisshaver
Joe Pompeo / Politico:
Breitbart investigative reporter Lee Stranahan resigns, saying it was partly because Washington editor Matthew Boyle told him he was no longer allowed at the WH — DEVIN NUNES, FEBRUARY 16: “It's not just about what leaked ... This is a state here that's falling apart …
Discussion:
New York Post, Mediaite, Fortune, @hadas_gold, The Daily Caller and bookforum.com
Hollywood Reporter:
Disney extends Bob Iger's contract as CEO until July 2019 amid concerns that there is no immediate successor within the company's executive ranks — The exec has now re-upped his contract until July 2, 2019 amid concerns among industry observers that there is no heir apparent within the company's executive ranks.
Discussion:
Seeking Alpha, Financial Times, Bloomberg, Investor's Business Daily and @thrmattbelloni
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Medium launches memberships for $5/month, directing early revenue to writers, eventually giving access to exclusive stories and an offline reading list — You don't really get anything yet — Medium has just launched its subscription service, which for $5 per month will give subscribers access to... something, eventually.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Wrap, Nieman Lab, The Next Web, The Hustle, 3 min read, @dtunkelang, @getongab, Editor & Publisher, Engadget, Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check, Mashable, @taylorbuley, TechCrunch, @bluechoochoo, Publishing Executive, @profjeffjarviss, @backlon, @samfbiddle, Business Insider, @caseynewton and Axios, more at Techmeme »
Politico:
Conservative news outlets like Breitbart are singling out federal staffers for criticism, questioning their loyalty to Trump — A spate of stories in Breitbart and other outlets have singled out individual career employees, questioning their loyalty to Trump.
Discussion:
@ericgeller, @tcwittes, @brucebartlett and @blakehounshell
Jeremy Gerard / Deadline:
The New York Times names New York magazine's Jesse Green co-chief theater critic in wake of Charles Isherwood's departure — The New York Times poached New York magazine's Jesse Green to be co-chief theater critic with longtime Number One, Ben Brantley. The hiring, effective May 1 …
Discussion:
The New York Times Company, @aoscott and Playbill
Associated Press:
ABC News says three of its Twitter accounts were hacked and sent out profanity-filled tweets; ABC is “working on resolving the problem” — NEW YORK (AP) — ABC News says three of its Twitter accounts were hacked Thursday morning and sent out profanity-filled tweets to its millions of followers.
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, USA Today, @abcnewspr, @jadamontemarano and twitchy.com
John Eggerton / Broadcasting & Cable:
US Senate begins debate on resolution to roll back FCC's broadband privacy regulations — Vote expected tomorrow on resolution — The Senate began debate late Wednesday on invalidating the FCC's broadband privacy regs, adopted last October by a divided FCC whose dissenters are now in the majority.
Discussion:
Forbes, Recode, Vanity Fair, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, The Hill, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Fortune, MediaPost, Wired and Axios, more at Techmeme »
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Vice Media moves into scripted content with short-form and original programming coming to its US website — Inks exclusive distribution pact with startup studio Blackpills — Vice Media, which has built its brand for more than two decades largely around news, documentaries and other nonfiction fare …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, VideoInk - Medium and Birth.Movies.Death
Shan Wang / Nieman Lab:
Women's Media Center annual study: gender gap in reporting persists across platforms and is large and growing in TV news but smaller at digital outlets — Far more men than women are reporting the news, at least at some of the most prominent news organizations in the United States.
Discussion:
@drewharwell, Women's Media Center, TVNewser, @niemanlab, @spacekatgal and Women's Media Center
Dylan Byers / CNNMoney:
Sources: Trump had a private dinner last week with NBC News' Mark Halperin, who some reporters believe has become too cozy with the president — President Donald Trump had a private dinner with NBC News senior political analyst Mark Halperin last week, sources with knowledge of the meeting told CNNMoney.
Discussion:
@dylanbyers, @dylanbyers and @dylanbyers
Steven Perlberg / BuzzFeed:
Memo: The Guardian announces job cuts at US newsroom, after plan to move NY HQ to Kushner-owned building was scrapped at a cost, according to sources, of $250K — The Guardian's US operation announced a fresh round of cuts two days after BuzzFeed News reported that it had backed out of a move to a Kushner-owned building.
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