Top News:
Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:
Luminary Media raises $40M; sources say it plans to launch subscription service for premium podcasts, has begun to strike licensing deals with podcast creators — The newly created venture has raised $40 million from New Enterprise Associates and others to enter the rapidly expanding realm of podcasting and audio.
Reuters:
Internal email: AT&T's CEO says hiring Michael Cohen was a serious misjudgment, but “was done according to the law and entirely legitimate” — (Reuters) - Hiring President Donald Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, was a “big mistake,” AT&T Inc (T.N) …
Discussion:
CNNMoney, @hadas_gold, @crewcrew, Vanity Fair, CNNMoney, Quartz, CNBC, The Wrap, Above the Law and Splinter
RELATED:
Freia Nahser / Global Editors Network:
Q&A with The Guardian's Anna Bateson, chief customer officer, on asking readers for funding, the importance of Google and Facebook, and preparing for the GDPR — In a conversation with the Global Editors Network, Anna Bateson, chief customer officer at the Guardian talks about the Guardian's reader …
Thanks:@geninnovate
Stella Bugbee / The Cut:
Anna Wintour's effort to rehabilitate the reputation of Harvey Weinstein's estranged wife, designer Georgina Chapman, is a way to seek forgiveness for herself — Anna Wintour is our Fashion Pope, the infallible ruler of Vogue, fashion's Vatican. Both because of her reputation …
Discussion:
Racked, @gregorg, Fashionista, New York Times, @lpolgreen, Fortune, @janinegibson, @victoriaspies, @edmundlee, @askmrmickey, @ruthannharnisch, Vogue and Slate
Marcela Kunova / Journalism.co.uk:
Al Jazeera develops InterviewJS, an open source tool that turns Q&As into interactive messaging where the reader asks the interviewee pre-selected questions — This free tool allows readers to ‘interact’ with an interviewee making the content and reading experience more engaging
Christine Schmidt / Nieman Lab:
Zetland, a Danish subscription news outlet with 10K members, has been testing news via audio and found 60% of members prefer listening over reading — “We're definitely not a short-form news outlet. When we launched, we thought it would be late evening media, something where you would crash on the sofa and read our stories."
Discussion:
@martinsfp and One Man & His Blog
Carol Morello / Washington Post:
One of only two reporters on Mike Pompeo's mission to North Korea gives a behind-the-scenes account of the trip to bring three prisoners home — The State Department normally craves elaborate planning and procedures for everything. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's 13-hour visit to North Korea had little of that.
Discussion:
@nktpnd, Columbia Journalism Review, @yashar, @davidnakamura and @cfishman
Amy X. Wang / Rolling Stone:
Apple Music says it removed R. Kelly's music from featured playlists weeks ago while Pandora currently does not promote the singer's music — Three streaming services have now removed the R&B singer's music from curated playlists — Spotify caused a mighty stir yesterday when it announced that …
Discussion:
The Ringer, Fortune, The Verge, Engadget and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »
Ann-Christine Diaz / Creativity Online:
HBO joins The Atlantic's Question Your Answers series, a collection of short films designed to foster civil discourse and help expand the magazine's reach — The campaign broadens with support and talent from the broadcaster — Editor's Pick — Actor Jeffrey Wright ("The Hunger Games" …
Ian Burrell / The Drum:
The BBC is hoping to use its strength in music coverage to sell more sponsorships via its branded content arm, StoryWorks, to support its global operations — The BBC plans to use its reputation for championing music artists, such as Ed Sheeran, Adele and Jay-Z, to strike commercial deals around …
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Sources: NewTV, Jeffrey Katzenberg's effort to fund high-end TV series with short episodes, raises $800M, including from 21st Century Fox and Warner Bros. — - Hollywood mogul looks to make shows with short running times — Executive helped lead Walt Disney's comeback during the 1980s
Discussion:
@joshelman, Tubefilter and Hollywood Reporter, more at Techmeme »
Maxwell Tani / The Daily Beast:
Sources: NBC News staffers skeptical of Lauer harassment internal inquiry; Brokaw accuser declined to participate in investigation without a neutral third party — The results of NBC's internal investigation into how its former biggest star repeatedly engaged in sexual misconduct in the office …
Discussion:
@sarahlellison, Mediaite and Variety