Top News:
Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:
Sources: DoJ investigation of Fox News widens, with interviews being conducted by the US Postal Inspection Service, which probes mail and wire fraud cases — Fox News still under grand jury probe — The U.S. Justice Department's investigation of Fox News has widened to include a second law enforcement agency.
Discussion:
Mediaite, The Week, TVWeek.com, Variety and Axios
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Gabriel Sherman / New York Magazine:
Sources: Fox News co-president Bill Shine asked Lachlan and James Murdoch to release a statement supporting him recently but they refused — As Fox News is roiled by lawsuits and the ouster of Bill O'Reilly, the network's co-president Bill Shine has retained the backing of the Murdochs.
Discussion:
@seanhannity, Bloomberg, New York Times, Deadline, @seanhannity, The Wrap, Politico, Mediaite, Boing Boing, TVNewser, Variety, @hadas_gold, CNNMoney, Media Matters for America, Business Insider and The Week
Kaitlin Menza / Marie Claire:
Interview with New York Times reporter Emily Steel, who with Michael Schmidt spent six months investigating sexual harassment claims involving Bill O'Reilly — He was the most popular figure on the country's highest-rated television network. But he was no match for New York Times reporter Emily Steel.
Discussion:
New York Times, @ennisnyt, @kimseverson, @jmartnyt, @juliezeilinger, @andybechtel, @aoscott, @davidjoachim, @vindugoel, @michellerafter, @danbobkoff, @melbournecoal, @lkherman, @ashadahya, @ndungca, @reynadesai, @markberman, @michaelluo, @saralibby, @bydanielvictor, @danielle_ivory and @maggiecoughlan
Joseph Menn / Reuters:
Facebook identifies efforts to falsely amplify content and sentiment using fake accounts, as seen in US election, improves detection using patterns of activity — Facebook Inc acknowledged on Thursday that it has become a battleground for governments seeking to manipulate public opinion …
Discussion:
Facebook, The Guardian, The Verge, @emilybell, Bloomberg, @mantzarlis, Engadget, @digiphile, TechCrunch, Mashable, @pinboard, Fortune, @justinhendrix, @mathewi, CNNMoney, Gizmodo, Adweek, New York Magazine, Margarita Noriega, @intelwire, @elbeldner, @pwnallthethings, @emptywheel, @normative, @selectedwisdom, CNBC, CNBC, @alexstamos, @josephmenn, @jenrweedon, @ericgeller, @profcarroll, @micahgrimes and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Charlie Warzel / BuzzFeed:
Jury rules for the ex-wife of Infowars' Alex Jones in a custody case where Jones' lawyer portrayed him as a “performance artist” — “Mr. Jones is like a cult leader,” the conspiracy blogger's ex-wife told the jury. “And we've seen the horrific damage cult leaders do to their followers.”
Discussion:
@cwarzel, @jtilovetx, @cwarzel and @cwarzel
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
FCC releases the full text of Ajit Pai's proposal to roll back Title II net neutrality rules ahead of May 18 vote — The FCC will now take your comments on whether to kill net neutrality. — You can now start filing public comments on the Federal Communications Commission plan to eliminate net neutrality rules.
Discussion:
Backchannel, Electronic Frontier Foundation, TechCrunch, Free Press Blog, Fortune, @stevenlevy, @scrawford, @backchnnl, Consumerist, The Next Web, Ars Technica, Techdirt, The Verge, @jbrodkin, Hindustan Times, Variety, New York Times, TechCrunch, Recode, Vox, @pattymurray, Free Press Blog, @ajitpaifcc, World News Publishing Focus …, Ars Technica UK, eMarketer and Newsroom Posts, ZDNet, Boing Boing and New York Times, more at Techmeme »
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Facebook updates Rights Manager tool to let creators claim ad earnings on copyright-infringing videos posted by others — Facebook finally has a better solution to freebooting — the common practice of stealing video and uploading it to one's Facebook Page to reap the engagement and audience growth.
Discussion:
Facebook Media, @pkafka, Adweek and Recode, more at Techmeme »
Alex Emmons / The Intercept:
Barrett Brown, on parole after serving time related to a hacking case, was re-arrested Thursday, the day before he was to be interviewed for PBS documentary — Award-winning journalist Barrett Brown was re-arrested and taken into custody Thursday, the day before he was scheduled to be interviewed for a PBS documentary.
Discussion:
D Magazine, @freedomofpress, Hit & Run, @theintercept, @kateconger and @alexanderemmons
Stephen Gardner / Bloomberg BNA:
EU panel approves changes to media rules to combat harmful content, mandate video streaming services offer 30% European content — FREE TRIAL — The Internet Law Resource Center™ is the complete information solution for practitioners in cyberlaw. Follow the latest developments …
Discussion:
European Parliament, @whatthebit, ebu.ch, Broadband TV News, Business Insider and The Drum
Krishna Bharat:
Creator of Google News describes traits of story clusters and their sharing patterns that can be used by algorithms and humans to flag them as fake — Fast enough to empower humans to take action — Last November, a friend told me about his extended family of Filipino-Americans in the Fresno area.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Ex-BuzzFeed staffers are posting videos on YouTube discussing why they left the site; some have garnered millions of views — BuzzFeed has drilled its young employees in the dark arts of crafting viral content. And many of them have been using those skills in spades — after they've quit the company.
Discussion:
@theinsneider, @cebsilver and YouTube
Tony Maglio / The Wrap:
Comcast beats Q1 targets with revenue of $20.46B, as cable network revenue rose 7.6% to $2.6B and broadcast revenue rose 5.9% to $2.2B — Comcast is off to a strong start in 2017, thanks in large part to its better box office beginning. — The NBCUniversal parent company topped media …
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable, Fortune, Multichannel News and @bobbierman