Mediagazer: Google and Facebook's dominance in digital ads and Netflix and Amazon's massive programming budgets are forcing big media mergers and streaming ventures (Andrew Wallenstein/Variety)

2:30 PM ET, January 2, 2018

Top News:

Eun Kyung Kim / TODAY.com:

Hoda Kotb is named co-anchor of the Today show, replacing Matt Lauer who was fired — Hoda Kotb has been named the co-anchor of TODAY, making her official debut Tuesday just after an announcement by NBC News Chairman Andy Lack. — Kotb, 53, will join Savannah Guthrie at the anchor desk during …

Justin McCurry / The Guardian:

YouTube star Logan Paul has apologized after posting a video of the body of an alleged suicide victim he found in a Japanese forest; the video was removed — Outcry after American posts video in which he jokes with friends over apparent suicide victim they came across in forest

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Vice Media has suspended President Andrew Creighton and Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano, following NYT story detailing sexual harassment allegations — Vice Media has suspended two senior executives — president Andrew Creighton and chief digital officer Mike Germano …

Discussion: @emilysteel, Deadline, @tomkludt, The Wrap, AOL and @emilysteel

Benedict Carey / New York Times:

A study of 2,525 Americans' web browsing histories showed false news accounted for just 1% of Clinton supporters' overall news diets and 6% of Trump supporters' — Fake news evolved from seedy internet sideshow to serious electoral threat so quickly that behavioral scientists had little …

Discussion: @kreissdaniel, @snurb_dot_info, @kreissdaniel, The Daily Caller, Axios and Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check

Jim Edwards / Business Insider:

Citi analysts say there is a 40% chance Apple will acquire Netflix, as Trump's corporate tax cut will leave the company with significant cash reserves for M&A — There is a 40% likelihood that Apple will acquire Netflix now that US President Trump's corporate tax cut has been passed …

Discussion: /Film, Forbes, AppAdvice.com and Fortune

Liena Zagare / BKLYNER:

Brooklyn-based local news site Bklyner remains open after 1,745 subscribers sign up; Editor Liena Zagare estimates it will need 3K subscribers to be sustainable — The reason you're reading this is because 1,745 of you chose to pay for local news. So we are going to keep publishing.

Discussion: @twotreesny, @lionpubs, @bklyner, @bradlander, @jimbrady, @harrysiegel, @joshrobin, @bklyner and @scottnover

Shona Ghosh / Business Insider:

Analysis: celebrity YouTubers like PewDiePie, Zoella, and DanTDM are witnessing slowing growth in subscribers and monthly views — YouTube blogger Zoe Sugg, known as Zoella, poses during a photocall for her debut novel “Girl Online” in London November 24, 2014

Discussion: hypebot and @lonseidman

Anna Nicolaou / Financial Times:

Vevo says it broke even in 2017, with revenue rising 30% YoY to ~$650M, and expects to be profitable in early 2018 — Vevo, the music video company owned by a group of leading record labels, increased its revenues by 30 per cent in 2017 thanks to swelling global audiences for high-budget pop star videos.

Discussion: RAIN News and hypebot, more at Techmeme »

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Facebook is the official live-streaming partner for the 75th annual Golden Globes red-carpet show, after securing a deal with Dick Clark Productions and HFPA — Facebook is the exclusive official live-streaming platform for the 75th annual Golden Globe Awards red-carpet show.

Discussion: Broadcasting & Cable, TechCrunch and @aaforthewinyay

Andrew Wallenstein / Variety:

Google and Facebook's dominance in digital ads and Netflix and Amazon's massive programming budgets are forcing big media mergers and streaming ventures — There's no debating the #MeToo movement was the biggest story in the entertainment industry in 2017.

Lukas I. Alpert / Wall Street Journal:

Source: private equity firm Rizvi Traverse in talks to acquire remaining 35% stake in Playboy it doesn't own, may ditch the magazine's print edition — Company switches focus to licensing, branding deals in post-Hefner era — The death of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner is ushering in a new era …

Discussion: @theperezhilton

Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:

The Washington Post is launching two newsletters, covering cybersecurity/defense and technology, and will hire four journalists to support this growth — The Washington Post continues to expand its successful 202 newsletter franchise into two new policy sectors: one newsletter will focus …

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More News:

Sara Fischer / Axios:
Ex-Current TV President David Bohrman is launching the Political Voices Network, an OTT video service catering to progressive Americans

Discussion: Deadline

Hiroko Tabuchi / New York Times:
Groups skeptical of climate change are gaming Google's largely automated ad systems to promote misleading claims that reject established climate science

Discussion: @klasfeldreports, @hirokotabuchi, @carlbialik, @fahrenthold, @themadstone, @markgiblin782, @andrewwrites, @kimmasters, bookforum.com, @dangillmor and Sabine Hossenfelder

ProPublica:
Study shows Facebook's hate speech rules are unevenly enforced, with the company agreeing its censors made mistakes on 22 of 49 posts submitted for explanation

David Streitfeld / New York Times:
As the fourth-largest US bookstore chain, Book World, closes and Barnes & Noble remains the top chain, Amazon is set to take the No. 4 spot by number of outlets

Earlier Picks:

Zachary M. Seward / Quartz:
Snap blocked public snaps from area around its New Years Eve party in LA, reported to have cost $4M, but some posted to Instagram, including performer Drake

Discussion: Business Insider

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
NYT's Baquet responds to criticism over 2016 story that said the FBI saw no clear link between Trump and Russia, saying they would cast story differently now

Discussion: Business Insider, Axios, @mlcalderone, @mlcalderone, @talkingnewmedia and The Guardian

Craig Silverman / BuzzFeed:
BuzzFeed News' Media Editor Craig Silverman helped popularize the term “fake news” and watched as it became politicized by Trump and the alt right

Discussion: The Next Web, @buzzfeednews and @lwvmiamidade

From Techmeme:

Gaby Del Valle / The Verge:
The US Senate reauthorizes FISA's Section 702; some communication service providers had threatened to stop cooperating with the US government in case of a lapse

Daniel Wiessner / Reuters:
Google scraps a 2019 policy requiring US suppliers and staffing firms to pay their employees $15 an hour and provide health insurance and other benefits

Isabelle Bousquette / Wall Street Journal:
PCs that can run large AI models may drive an enterprise PC replacement cycle, but some CIOs say they'll wait for the category to mature and prices to come down

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