Top News:
Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:
Longtime E! host Catt Sadler has quit the channel, claiming a male co-host was earning nearly double her salary and the channel refused to correct the gap — Longtime E! channel host Catt Sadler says she is leaving the company due to a “massive” pay disparity.
Discussion:
People.com, TIME, @kellyvski, Mashable, Splinter, @theperezhilton, @natalie_j_stone, Fortune, Vanity Fair, @brianstelter, theCATTWALK, Variety, AOL and The Daily Beast
David Uberti / Splinter:
An audio recording of Ziff Davis executives' first meeting with Mashable staff sheds light on how the site is to be folded into existing e-commerce business — The recent trajectory of tech site Mashable has put it at the forefront of some of the worst trends reshaping digital media.
Discussion:
@rafat, @mlcalderone, @mathewi, @jmrivera02, @tim_bays, @saba_h, @mattrosoff, @bmorrissey, @petersterne, @moorehn, @moorehn and @meena_thiru
James Warren / Poynter:
Incoming NYT publisher A.G. Sulzberger sends “State of The Times” address to newsroom, says paper will try to maintain stable newsroom budget over two years — Amid the hallowing out of newsrooms nationwide, the new leader of The New York Times pledges that …
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Michelle Davis / Bloomberg:
Source: Carlos Slim plans to cut his stake in The New York Times from 17% to about 8%, selling securities in a private offering
Source: Carlos Slim plans to cut his stake in The New York Times from 17% to about 8%, selling securities in a private offering
Discussion:
The Wrap, Financial Times, New York Post, Blog Network, The Daily Caller, PR Newswire, @danprimack, @winnieokelley and @michellef_davis
Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
Sources: potential Rolling Stone buyers include Penske Media plus owners of Playboy and The Hollywood Reporter and Kuok Meng Ru, founder of investor BandLab — After 50 years at his iconic magazine, Jann Wenner will soon be leaving the building, a hard act to follow. Will Jay Penske take his place?
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Reporters Without Borders:
Reporters Without Borders: 65 journalists were killed in 2017, the least deadly year for professionals in 14 years; Syria and Mexico are deadliest countries — Overview: figures at a glance How we calculate these figures — The 2017 round-up figures compiled by Reporters Without Borders …
Discussion:
Reuters, Forbes, @adriennemahsa, Broadcasting & Cable, DW.COM, CBS News and Al Jazeera English
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Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:
Companies from ESPN to Charter are cracking down on password-sharing, with TV industry losses from it estimated to rise from $3.5B in 2017 to $9.9B by 2021 — Using someone else's credentials to stream for free will soon be a $10 billion problem for pay-TV companies.
Discussion:
The Verge, @soshnick, @mbgelman, @gerryfsmith, @richbtig and @dkatzmaier
Media Matters for America:
On Fox News show “Outnumbered”, aired Tuesday, contributor Kevin Jackson suggested the FBI might have planned to assassinate Donald Trump — Serial liar and conspiracy theorist Kevin Jackson suggests “social media” sources indicated a plot against Trump — From the December 19 edition of Fox News' Outnumbered:
Discussion:
Newser, The Wrap, Washington Post, @adrienneelrod, @rolandsmartin, @laurajsilverman, @chrismegerian, @l_tucc, Mediaite and UPROXX
Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:
Fox News settles lawsuit with Julie Roginsky, who alleged she was denied a co-hosting position after refusing to have a sexual relationship with Ailes — The political pundit alleged that Roger Ailes conditioned her network role on a sexual relationship. — Fox News has wrapped up another settlement on the sexual harassment front.
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Netflix orders a sequel of the soon-to-be-released Will Smith film “Bright”, creating what's believed to be the first movie franchise of the streaming era — Will Smith buddy-cop film targets movie industry's breadbasket — Company's $8 billion budget includes 80-movie slate for 2018
Discussion:
@lucas_shaw
Marc Hogan / Pitchfork:
Pitchfork reporter describes a demo of an interactive project with hand-tracking, designed for Magic Leap hardware in conjunction with rock band Sigur Rós — A first look at the billion-dollar company's potentially game-changing collaboration with Sigur Rós
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Forbes, Rolling Stone, Business Insider, The Verge, Mashable, Polygon, BGR, Gizmodo, Pocket-lint, ina and 9to5Google, more at Techmeme »
Lizzie Plaugic / The Verge:
MoviePass says it now has 1M paying users, up from an estimated 150K in August 2017, after it introduced cheaper subscription tiers — MoviePass just announced that it now has more than 1 million paying users. — This summer, the subscription service dropped its prices from a tiered model …
Discussion:
Business Insider
Press Gazette:
Sky News staff write letter to UK competition watchdog CMA, warning it that blocking 21st Century Fox-Sky deal would lead to closure of the channel — Staff at Sky News have piled into the debate over the broadcaster's potential takeover, warning the competition watchdog that blocking …
Yashar Ali / HuffPost:
Despite talent departures and schedule changes, Fox News still leads MSNBC and CNN in Nielsen ratings, both in overall viewers and in 25-54 age group — The cable network's ratings seem immune to turmoil. — Fox News has faced a year of upheaval. Its talent departures and schedule changes …
Discussion:
Mediaite, @brendannyhan and @yashar