Top News:
The Walt Disney Company:
Disney to acquire 21st Century Fox, including stakes in Sky and Hulu, after spinoff of certain businesses like Fox News, for $52.4B in stock — 21st Century Fox to spin off Fox Broadcasting network and stations, Fox News, Fox Business, FS1, FS2 and Big Ten Network to its shareholders
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Mark Sweney / The Guardian:
Post-merger, “New Fox” to include live news, sports, and the Fox brand, as a return to “our roots as a lean, aggressive, challenger brand”, per Lachlan Murdoch — Sale of 21st Century Fox assets includes stakes in Sky in the UK and Hollywood film studio as tycoon focuses on Fox News and newspapers
Discussion:
New York Times, 21st Century Fox, Adweek, TVNewser, TVNewser, TVSpy, Fox Business, StreetInsider.com, @foxlightmichael and FierceCable
Amy Chozick / New York Times:
With Disney deal, Murdoch's decades-long acquisition streak comes to an end in the face of the rise of streaming, despite past and current efforts to scale — For a while, Rupert Murdoch seemed invincible. — First, the mogul emerged relatively unscathed from a 2011 phone hacking scandal involving …
Discussion:
Stratechery, The Guardian, @nytimesbusiness, @jimrutenberg, @markdistef, @sarahlellison, @cnn and The Daily Caller
Meg James / Los Angeles Times:
Robert Iger's contract as Disney Chairman and CEO is extended from 2019 to 2021 as a condition of Disney-21st Century Fox deal — Bob Iger at a Walt Disney co. event (Drew Angerer / Getty Images) — Walt Disney Co. said Thursday it has extended the contract of Chairman …
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CinemaBlend
Sydney Ember / New York Times:
Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr. to retire as New York Times publisher on Dec. 31 but remain as chairman, as his son, Arthur G. Sulzberger, replaces him — In a generational changing of the guard, Arthur Gregg Sulzberger, 37, will become the publisher of The New York Times on Jan. 1.
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The Wrap, Ad Age, @nytimes, Mediawire, Poynter, Business Insider, @gabrielsnyder, @nickkristof and @sewellchan
New York Times:
Four women detail violent sexual behavior by hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons between 1988 and 2014, and three say he raped them; Simmons denies rape allegations — Mr. Simmons, a powerful gatekeeper in the entertainment and media worlds, damaged careers and self-confidence with his pattern …
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Cecilia Kang / New York Times:
FCC votes to dismantle Obama administration net neutrality rules in a 3-2 vote — WASHINGTON — The Federal Communications Commission voted on Thursday to dismantle landmark rules regulating the businesses that connect consumers to the internet, granting broadband companies power to potentially reshape Americans' online experiences.
Discussion:
act.freepress.net, CBS News and Free Press Blog, more at Techmeme »
Mike Shields / Business Insider:
Internal memo: Refinery29 is laying off 34 staffers, or about 7.5% of its workforce, and sees “a correction” in digital media — - Refinery29 is letting go of 34 staffers, or 7.5% of its workforce. — It's the latest sign of a turbulent market for digital publishers battling the duopoly of Facebook and Google.
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, @willoremus, @toreyvanoot, @mattdpearce, Nieman Lab and BuzzFeed
Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:
Business Insider to drop “business” from its name in January to expand beyond corporate and financial news; Insider to launch niche verticals like Insider Wine — The company will rebrand as Insider Inc. as part of a strategy to expand into niche coverage areas on social media and elsewhere
Discussion:
Business Insider, @stevekovach, @jackmarshall, @larakiara, @4evrmalone, @mdudas and Talking Biz News
Jason Schwartz / Politico:
NYT hires fact-checker for DC desk, an unprecedented move for a newspaper, in response to political weaponization of reporting errors and the volume of news — As news errors become fodder for Trump's attacks, the venerable daily makes an extra push for accuracy.
Committee to Protect Journalists:
CPJ: record high 262 journalists jailed globally in 2017 in relation to their work, with half of those imprisoned in Turkey, China, and Egypt — For the second year in a row, the number of journalists imprisoned for their work hit a historical high, as the U.S. and other Western powers failed …
Discussion:
@pressfreedom, New York Times, Mashable, Mediaite, Journalism News, Al Jazeera English, @journotopia, @sashachavkin and Reuters
Salma Hayek / New York Times:
Salma Hayek details Harvey Weinstein's sexual harassment, threats, rages, and business and creative coercion as she worked to produce movie about Frida Kahlo — HARVEY WEINSTEIN WAS a passionate cinephile, a risk taker, a patron of talent in film, a loving father and a monster. — For years, he was my monster.
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Selina Wang / Bloomberg:
Alibaba's video streaming unit, Youku Tudou, has signed multiyear content licensing deals with NBCUniversal and Sony Pictures — Multiyear agreements give Youku subscribers access to movies — Deal comes as Alibaba doubles down in entertainment, Hollywood
Lulu Yilun Chen / Bloomberg:
Sources: Tencent Music plans IPO in 2018, is expected to raise $1B+, valued at $10B; unit has 120M paying subscribers vs Spotify's 60M — Internet giant is said to plan music-business IPO next year — Katy Perry, local artists exploit messaging, karaoke apps