Top News:
Ken Doctor / Nieman Lab:
Analysis of LA Times deal: factors that led to sale now, speculation on Soon-Shiong 's future strategy, a look at price, and a theory on a future Gannett role — Tronc is getting a big premium for its flagship asset, and the Times is getting a return to private, local ownership.
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Meg James / Los Angeles Times:
Tronc forms new company, Tribune Interactive, with Ross Levinsohn as its CEO and ex-LA Times EIC Lewis D'Vorkin as its chief content officer — Biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong has agreed to purchase the Los Angeles Times from its parent company Tronc, restoring local ownership …
Discussion:
@mattdpearce, New York Times, The Wrap, LA Observed, @mbrauchli, Ad Age, News, East Bay Express, The Daily Caller, @priyakkumar, KTLA, @vinncent, @juliewestfall, @jenyamato, @andrewmseaman, @samocole, @davidfolkenflik, @nycjim, Chicago Business, Hollywood Reporter, L.A. Times Guild and The Week
Claire Atkinson / NBC News:
Newsweek Media Group's head of sales resigns, and a source says the company has lost “hundreds of thousands” in ad commitments since reports it bought traffic — The Newsweek Media Group is reeling. — Ed Hannigan, the company's head of sales, resigned on Tuesday.
Discussion:
@jaysunsilver, @melinadelkic, @journo_christal, @linleyann, @jasonabbruzzese, @sulliview, @rachelcbrody and @claireatki
Hollywood Reporter:
Disney is developing a number of Star Wars series for its streaming service, CEO Bob Iger said during an earnings call on Tuesday — Disney CEO Bob Iger tells investors that the company is close to revealing at least one of the producing teams behind one of the projects.
Discussion:
Slate, StarWars.com, The Playlist, Tubefilter, Vanity Fair, @americanstnick, Fast Company, Deadline, /Film, TechCrunch, Press Association, Recode, CNBC, Variety, CinemaBlend, The A.V. Club and io9
Washington Post:
Executives at The Newseum plan to meet with a real estate firm Thursday to explore options including selling its building in Washington, DC, or moving locations — Two months shy of its 10th anniversary in a glass-and-steel showpiece on Washington's most prestigious thoroughfare …
Local News Lab:
Democracy Fund announces two new funds in NJ and NC totaling $2M to support local news ecosystems and seek long-term solutions for public-interest news — Democracy Fund establishes two new local funds — Local news is critical to a healthy democracy, and we believe that the future of local news is local.
Discussion:
@democracyfund, @melaniesill, @jcstearns and @jcstearns
Anna Washenko / RAIN News:
RadioPublic launches Paid Listens, guarantees participating podcasters $20 CPM for every listen via its iOS and Android apps — Podcast company RadioPublic has adopted a new service for show creators to get paid for their work. The approach is designed for podcasts that don't have the scale …
Discussion:
RadioPublic, @evoterra, @mattervc and Fast Company
Jane Lytvynenko / BuzzFeed:
A look at 29 Facebook pages and sites of fake news publishers, which are using Instant Articles to help completely false stories load faster and earn revenue — While some mainstream publishers are abandoning Facebook's Instant Articles, fake news sites based overseas are taking advantage of the format …
Discussion:
@profcarroll, @firstdraftnews, @janelytv, @niemanlab, @craigsilverman and @craigsilverman
Wall Street Journal:
Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian steps down from daily duties at the company to focus on early stage VC firm he cofounded and personal life, will remain on board — Reddit Co-Founder Alexis Ohanian announced on Wednesday he will step down from daily duties at the internet company and focus …
Max Willens / Digiday:
Condé Nast to begin experimenting with Amazon Echo Look to provide content and recommendations from Vogue and GQ on Look's mobile app starting February 19 — Condé Nast glossies Vogue and GQ are focusing more on content recommendations that lead to e-commerce, and they've found another place to syndicate them.
Discussion:
TechCrunch and Engadget
Christine Wang / CNBC:
21st Century Fox beats Q2 targets with $8B in revenue, up 5% YoY, as higher affiliate, syndication, and ad revenue boost cable revenue, up 11% YoY — Twenty-First Century Fox reported earnings and revenue that topped Wall Street expectations on Wednesday. — The stock edged slightly higher in extended trading.
Discussion:
Variety, Ad Age, Broadcasting & Cable, @edmundlee, /Film, Hollywood Reporter and 21st Century Fox
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Snapchat says it generated $100M in revenue for Discover's publishing partners in 2017, up from $58M in 2016 and $10M in 2015 — Snapchat says it generated $100 million in revenue for content partners on Discover in 2017, up from $58 million in 2016 and $10 million in 2015.
Discussion:
Recode, Wall Street Journal and @matildegiglio
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Wall Street Journal:
Snapchat is launching to tool to let TV networks pipe snippets of live broadcasts directly into the app, starting this Saturday with NBC's Olympics coverage
Discussion:
Ad Age, Business Insider, TechCrunch, The Next Web, @ctrlzee, @mathewi, @georgia_wells, AppAdvice.com, @kerrymflynn, Bloomberg and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »
Jack Nicas / Wall Street Journal:
YouTube's recommendations engine, which drives 70%+ of viewing time, often suggests divisive, misleading, or false content, even to users who don't seek it out — Google's video site often recommends divisive or misleading material, despite recent changes designed to fix the problem
Discussion:
@tripgabriel, New York Magazine, @jacknicas, @trevornoren, @max_read and @bradnews, more at Techmeme »
Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Reddit bans r/deepfakes, which was devoted to making AI-powered porn using celebrities' faces, and updates site-wide rules regarding “involuntary pornography” — Reddit has banned the r/deepfakes subreddit that's devoted to making AI-powered porn using celebrities' faces …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Daily Mail, Vox, Mashable, New York Magazine, Engadget, Motherboard and reddit, more at Techmeme »
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Samantha Cole / Motherboard:
Pornhub says it's banning AI-generated fake porn videos because they're “nonconsensual”, yet such “deepfake” videos are still available via site search results
Discussion:
CNNMoney, The Verge, Engadget, The Guardian, Engadget, Mashable, Fast Company, Trusted Reviews, The Next Web and The Daily Dot, more at Techmeme »
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