Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Univision confirms it hopes to sell Gizmodo Media Group and its stake in The Onion and has hired Morgan Stanley to help with the sale — Univision Communications is officially looking to unload the Gizmodo Media Group — which mostly comprises the sites it acquired in the bankruptcy auction …
Washington Post:
UK watchdog gives Facebook a preliminary fine of about $664,000, the maximum allowed, for letting Cambridge Analytica access data about millions of people — Facebook is staring down its first fine for allowing Cambridge Analytica to improperly access data about millions of people …
Discussion:
ico.org.uk, Politico, @carolecadwalla, Bloomberg, The Verge, The Hill, @themediaisdying, @stevekopack, Gizmodo, Slate, @profcarroll, @profcarroll, @mathewi, @carolecadwalla and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Pranav Dixit / BuzzFeed:
Netflix launches Smart Downloads feature to automatically retrieve your next episode for offline viewing on Android, will launch on iOS later this year — Netflix is automating downloads of series so you can binge-watch shows off-line without even pressing a button.
Discussion:
Netflix Media Center, VentureBeat, Business Insider, MacRumors, USA Today and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »
New York Times:
The New York Times says its 55 newsletters now have over 14M subscribers collectively — Times Insider delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how news, features and opinion come together at The New York Times. — Chris Stanford likes to think of himself as a “news concierge.”
Megh Wright / Vulture:
For a few hours, the Washington Post cited satire site Clickhole as a reputable source in a story on UK effort to push “American Idiot” to top of music charts — You may have heard the news that Brits are trolling Donald Trump ahead of his visit with Prime Minister Theresa …
Maxwell Tani / The Daily Beast:
Business Insider removed a post about portrayals of trans individuals in Hollywood following staff complaints, said article did not meet its standards — Business Insider removed a post about portrayals of trans individuals in Hollywood after staff complained internally about the column …
Jagmeet Singh / NDTV Gadgets 360:
To combat the spread of fake news on its app, WhatsApp is rolling out “Forwarded” label to indicate when messages have been forwarded to users — WhatsApp has started rolling out a feature that will indicate to users which messages they receive were forwarded by as is the sender.
Discussion:
Poynter, BGR, The Verge and The Hindu, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Taylor Kate Brown / BBC:
A look at how the loss of local newspapers, combined with dwindling regional coverage, is affecting American cities like Boulder and Denver — In the past decade, hundreds of local US newspapers have closed or merged. What happens to the communities they leave behind?
Discussion:
@jhoekemaphotog, @businessofnews, @coreyhutchins, @hadas_gold, @ehernandez and The Rural Blog
Scott Roxborough / Hollywood Reporter:
EU's biggest TV broadcasters are combining resources to launch streaming video services in countries like UK, France, and Germany to compete against Netflix — Old media broadcasters in Germany and France are setting up ambitious joint national video platforms, but do they have what it takes to compete with the streaming giants?
Ted Johnson / Variety:
The FCC prepares to take steps toward easing rules on the amount and type of children's programming required to be provided by broadcasters — WASHINGTON — The FCC on Thursday will take the first step toward easing a set of rules that requires the amount and type of children's programming …
Discussion:
TVWeek.com
Lesley Goldberg / Hollywood Reporter:
Actor and director Jason Bateman has signed a first-look, multiple-year overall film and TV deal with Netflix — His Aggregate production company will team with Michael Costigan for a first-look deal with the streaming giant. — Jason Bateman is putting down his roots at Netflix.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Philo, a low-cost live-streaming TV service, has raised $40M Series C led by existing investors AMC Networks, Discovery, and Viacom — Internet TV provider launches service on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV — Philo has nabbed more dough: The low-cost live-streaming TV “skinny bundle” …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Multichannel News and MediaPost, more at Techmeme »
Todd Spangler / Variety:
BuzzFeed News partners with NPR's Audie Cornish for “Profile”, a live-recorded interview series filmed in front of an audience and broadcast on Facebook Watch — Facebook has funded BuzzFeed News' “Profile,” a weekly interview show hosted by Audie Cornish of NPR's “All Things Considered …
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, BuzzFeed and Current