Top News:
Gizmodo Special Projects Desk:
Univision has been in decline for years, with a shark-obsessed boss, millions wasted on consultants, and an executive who insisted on publishing softcore porn — This is the story of how corporate raiding, complacency, excess, and incompetence are gutting a media company that matters to tens of millions of people.
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, The Wrap, @niemanlab, @lifehacker, @ftrain, @mattdpearce, @verambergen, @hadas_gold, @traciemorrissey, @mattdpearce and @hadas_gold
Mathew Ingram / Columbia Journalism Review:
NewsWhip data shows Facebook's algorithm changes have adversely affected the engagement rates of quality news sources like the NYT and NBC — Some recent data on the best-performing news brands on Facebook seems to show that high-quality new sources are getting less engagement on Facebook …
Discussion:
@kevinroose, @astroehlein, @altrabbi, @caseynewton, @davidfrum, @danpfeiffer, @jacobwe, NewsWhip, Fast Company and Mashable
Reuters:
Sources: Comcast is preparing an all-cash bid for 21st Century Fox's media assets which it has agreed to sell to Disney, but bid is dependent on AT&T case — (Reuters) - U.S. cable operator Comcast Corp is asking investment banks to increase a bridge financing facility by as much as $60 billion …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Financial Times, The Wrap, Variety, Mediawire, /Film, UPROXX, Light Reading, Fortune, C21Media, @escoblades, Media Star, The Hill, CNBC, Financial Times and Multichannel News
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
CNN is currently battling to keep its editorial guidelines secret, as part of a legal battle over an investigative piece from June 2015 — The New York Times puts its editorial guidelines on the Internet, for all to sample. So does The Post. BuzzFeed published its “News Standards And Ethics Guide” …
Discussion:
@jayrosen_nyu and @niemanlab
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Following its merger with Scripps Networks, Discovery posted an $8M loss in its Q1 but revenue soared 43% YoY to ~$2.31B — The acquisition of Scripps Networks Interactive is likely to be a boon to the new Discovery Inc., which has swelled in size thanks to the companies' recent merger.
Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:
Christiane Amanpour named as Charlie Rose's official replacement — Christiane Amanpour will officially replace Charlie Rose on PBS stations across the country. — The move was made official at the public broadcaster's annual meeting on Tuesday. It has been in the works for five months …
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, The New York Observer and TV Tattle
Joshua Fruhlinger / Thinknum Media:
Analysis of Apple's job listings suggests that the company appears to be investing in a newsroom, recruiting for staff positions like Politics Editor — There's a certain air of mystery as to what Apple ($NASDAQ:AAPL) is up to when it comes to content. In March, Apple acquired digital …
Discussion:
9to5Mac
Politico:
Scott Pruitt fast-tracked a water district in California for clean-up at the personal request of conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt — EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt placed a polluted California area on his personal priority list of Superfund sites targeted for “immediate and intense” …
Jason Guerrasio / Business Insider:
SEC filing: MoviePass parent Helios and Matheson Analytics had $43.4M on hand on April 30 and average cash deficit of $21.7M/month since Sept.; stock down 29% — - On Tuesday, MoviePass' parent company, Helios and Matheson Analytics, said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission …
Discussion:
New York Post, The Playlist and @jasonguerrasio, more at Techmeme »
Eric Levitz / New York Magazine:
Liberal publications like The Atlantic can have ideological diversity without hiring sub-standard conservative writers with ideas that are demonstrably false — Donald Trump's election exposed the irrelevance of conservative intellectuals — and thereby, the incoherence of many a liberal publication's mission statement.
Discussion:
@seanmcelwee, @seanmcelwee, Hit & Run, @johnosullivannr, @robbysoave, @monachareneppc and @brithume
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Vox Media used Recode Editor Kara Swisher for a sponsored audio ad for HBO's Silicon Valley series, heard on some of Vox's podcasts, including Recode's — Vox Media publishes many articles that get people talking. But now the company is doing something it hopes will get its consumers to listen …
Shan Wang / Nieman Lab:
In an experiment to connect with readers, the New York Times hosts conference calls for subscribers that feature reporter interviews and audience questions — “We weren't sure how they would work out initially — the format sounded a little analog to us...As we've continued to do them, we noticed momentum building."