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CNN says staff will not attend White House media Christmas party; sources say Trump's tweet about CNN International is believed to imperil journalists abroad — Under fire from Trump, the network says it would be ‘inappropriate to celebrate with him as his invited guests.’
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Trump's comments about CNN are a warning sign for US journalists because Russian examples show how political and financial pressure can destroy media freedom — There are several reasons the Trump administration move to block a proposed merger between AT&T and Time Warner raised eyebrows.


Efforts to undermine the reality-based press, including the Project Veritas scam, have forced media to be more transparent — In the right-wing campaign to discredit the truth, every day brings a new low. — I don't mean Roy Moore's campaign for U.S. Senate, though that certainly has been at the center …
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WaPo publishes off-the-record comments by a woman who falsely claimed to be impregnated as a teenager by Roy Moore and had connections with Project Veritas
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FCC's Pai says tech giants like Twitter and Facebook use “the regulatory process to cement their dominance” and pose biggest threat to online speech, not ISPs — Pai had sharp words for Silicon Valley tech giants who are trying to avoid regulation.
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A profile of Fox News host Sean Hannity, described by Stephen Bannon “as the single most important voice for the ‘deplorables’”, and his influence on Trump — The Fox News host is willing to defend Trump at all costs — and is reaching more than 13 million people a day.
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Media Matters for America, The Wrap, Mediaite, Washington Post, TVNewser, Business Insider, @daweiner and @matthewshaer


Report: Trump is privately telling people, most recently a White House advisor, that the Access Hollywood tape is a fake, despite apologizing for it earlier — A New York Times report on President Trump and Roy Moore features one detail that you may not have expected we'd be revisiting.
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New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, Mashable, VICE, Newser and The Wrap


Facebook partners with Ryerson School of Journalism and DMZ to launch Digital News Innovation Challenge, an incubator for news startups — Five startups from around Canada that ‘drive innovation for journalism’ will be funded — Facebook's highly-publicized efforts to combat online misinformation …
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VentureBeat, Adweek and @rsjnow


Group Nine Media, owner of Thrillist and NowThis, raises $40M led by Discovery Communications with Axel Springer SE, Lerer Hippeau Ventures participating — Group Nine building Snapchat studio, creating TV programming — Investment is on top of $100 million in funding last year
Discussion:
Variety, @benjlerer, The Wrap and Hollywood Reporter


Rival TV executives from ESPN, Time Warner's Turner, and other networks joined a summit convened by NBCU to discuss the industry's advertising woes — A parade of Madison Avenue's top executives streamed into a posh Manhattan restaurant in hopes of starting a conversation orchestrated …
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Ad Age, Broadcasting & Cable, AdExchanger and @jeffjarvis


Koch brothers' ‘passive’ role in Time Inc. takeover met with skepticism — 'They're always looking to exert influence in one way or another,' says Koch biographer after the conservative billionaires backed Meredith's takeover of the magazine giant. — Charles and David Koch …


Bustle founder Bryan Goldberg says the company is on pace to grow revenue by 50% this year to $45M and plans to make acquisitions in the coming year — Female-focused site is on track to hit its target of $45 million in revenue this year, says founder Bryan Goldberg


Memo: NPR names Edith Chapin as executive editor, replacing Chief News Editor David Sweeney, who has left NPR after a review of sexual harassment allegations — NPR Chief News Editor David Sweeney has left the company following allegations of sexual harassment filed against him by at least three female journalists.
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@davidfolkenflik, @alyssaedes, Business Insider, @kainazamaria, @lizzieohreally and @therickydavila