Top News:
Nathan Bomey / USA Today:
Elon Musk unleashes barrage of criticism aimed at “big media companies” in at least 19 tweets and says he plans to launch a site to assess journalists — Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, ripped the news media for what he described as irresponsible reporting …
Discussion:
BuzzFeed, Techdirt, Associated Press, @elonmusk, @tomgara, Fast Company, @elonmusk, @alexisohanian, @alistairweaver, @ggreenwald, @juliacarriew, @elonmusk, @juliachanb, @tonyromm, @natesilver538, @petersterne, @bobvulfov, @petersterne, @jedediahspurdy, @elonmusk, @ashleyfeinberg, @buzzfeedben, @evacide, @aurabogado, @karaswisher, @karaswisher, @andyjayhawk, @dancow, @dancow, @monikabauerlein, @wendi_c_thomas, @oneunderscore__, @bro_pair, @tracetravers3, @elonmusk, @howelloneill, @malcolmnance, @snackfight, Bloomberg, CNNMoney, CNBC, @jessicahuseman, @jessicahuseman, @dancow, @natesilver538, @digiphile, @mdrndad, @trzhean, @laura_hudson, @moryan, @jessicahuseman, @jaspar, TechCrunch and @digiphile
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
The Daily Beast's EIC John Avlon is moving to CNN as a full-time senior political analyst and anchor, replaced by Noah Shachtman, moving from executive editor — How do you improve the Daily Beast? — “I want us to lean harder into who we are,” says Noah Shachtman of the Daily Beast.
Discussion:
TVNewser, Mediaite, @jayrosen_nyu, @jackshafer, @margarethoover, @bendreyfuss, @tomgara, @katie_m_baker, @joshrogin, @olivianuzzi and @erikwemple
Rob Leathern / Facebook:
Facebook rolls out “Paid for by” disclosure labels on Facebook and Instagram for political ads in US, including issues ads that deal with 20 specific subjects — As we announced last month, we're making big changes to the way ads with political content work on Facebook to help prevent abuse, especially during elections.
Discussion:
Washington Post, VentureBeat, Facebook, CNET, Reuters, The Verge, The Daily Beast and CNNMoney, more at Techmeme »
Janko Rottgers / Variety:
Vevo is shuttering its Android, iOS, and Windows Mobile apps and website to refocus on YouTube following resignation of several execs and significant layoffs — Major-label owned Vevo is giving up on plans to build its own music video platform outside of YouTube's control …
Discussion:
Vevo, CNET, MediaPost, RAIN News, TechCrunch, The Wrap, @pkafka, hypebot, Tubefilter, @mmasnick, @pkafka and The FADER, more at Techmeme »
Abigail Abrams / Fortune:
Netflix market value reaches $149B, surpassing Comcast's $147B, and approaching Disney's $153B; the company's stock has gone up 70% since January — Netflix passed Comcast in market value on Wednesday, signaling another win for the streaming service as it continues to compete with traditional television.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Wrap, Recode, @taralach and The Next Web, more at Techmeme »
Lucia Moses / Digiday:
Some publishers sit out meetings with Google about GDPR, citing its public silence on how it will use the data it expects publishers to give it access to — Google is set to have meetings today with media trade associations and various publishing company representatives to address their concerns …
Discussion:
Digital Content Next, @jason_kint, Wall Street Journal, @dcnorg, @jason_kint, @jason_kint and @jason_kint
Garrett Camp:
Sixteen years after it started, StumbleUpon to shut down and transition its accounts to content discovery platform Mix.com over the next couple of months — Sixteen years ago, we started StumbleUpon to help people discover new webpages. The idea was simple: click a button to find a cool webpage.
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Fast Company, BetaNews, Gizmodo, @pranshumaans, @d4nricks, @jimminy, The Next Web and VentureBeat, more at Techmeme »
Jeff Baumgartner / Multichannel News:
Verizon seems to abandon plans to build its own OTT service as CEO says it wants to partner with an existing OTT service to deliver Oath digital content — Verizon has been adamant that the OTT TV service it was developing would not be a “me-too” amid a growing sea of virtual MVPDs.
Discussion:
The Verge and Light Reading
Gavri Smith / The Keyword:
Google Trends gets revamped Trending searches and Explore pages, new infographic types like an intensity map, showcased data stories curated by News Lab, more — {[drawerToggle.open ? ‘Hide Related Articles’ : 'Show Related Articles']} — Google Trends has become a key part …
Discussion:
Engadget
Alan Feuer / New York Times:
Sources: federal prosecutors in Manhattan expand investigation into Harvey Weinstein to include allegations that he may have violated federal stalking laws — Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have expanded a months-old investigation into financial improprieties by Harvey Weinstein …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, The A.V. Club, New York Daily News, The Hill, Los Angeles Times and Variety
Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:
Buzzfeed to develop a Hulu documentary about R. Kelly abuse allegations; Peretti is also considering subscription products in subjects like education and gaming — - Production for Hulu marks company's latest programming deal — CEO Peretti says BuzzFeed seeing ‘double-digit’ sales growth
Discussion:
The Wrap, Variety, Deadline, Tubefilter, Hollywood Reporter, @jasonabbruzzese, @gerryfsmith, @shani_o and Axios
BBC:
Egypt detains prominent blogger and activist Wael Abbas, and sources say he faces accusations of “disseminating false news and joining an outlawed group” — A prominent Egyptian activist and blogger known for documenting alleged abuses by the security forces has been detained, his lawyer says.
Discussion:
Al Jazeera English, Associated Press, DW.COM and Committee to Protect …