Mediagazer: Sources: media startup Tech In Asia, which runs a blog and events business in Southeast Asia, laid off a third of its staff in July after canceling planned ICO (Jon Russell/TechCrunch)

Fox News fires contributor Kevin Jackson after tweets calling Kavanaugh accusers “lying skanks” and criticizing Christine Blasey Ford's appearance — Kevin Jackson said that Christine Blasey Ford should stop “opening her legs.” — Radio host and Fox News contributor Kevin Jackson referred …

Discussion: Variety, Mediaite, Variety, The Wrap, Fortune, Multichannel News, The Hill, TVWeek.com, @joeconchatv, The A.V. Club, Deadline, Boing Boing, @jeremymbarr and The Wrap

Columbia Journalism Review:

The effects of the media pursuit of Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford show the urgent need for journalists to examine their own behavior and ethics — Professor Christine Blasey Ford testifies on Capitol Hill September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jim Bourg-Pool/Getty Images)

Discussion: The Wrap, Washington Post, @bypetevernon, @irin, Vox, @crmetzler, @mathewi, @michaelsbarajas, @hbcompass, @hsinhsuan0720, @fernandavanegas, @chrisannesmith, @nausjcaa, @fatimabsyed and @akdarrach

Michelle Castillo / CNBC:

Facebook introduces In-Stream Reserve for companies to advertise on premium video and ThruPlay, which charges for ads only if they are viewed for 15+ seconds — - Facebook is adding more ways for brands to be selective about what videos and shows they advertise on, similar to programs Google offers for YouTube.

Discussion: Facebook, Adweek, @jason_kint, Mashable, The Wrap and Business Insider

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: federal prosecutors have opened a probe into ad buying and have begun issuing subpoenas, examining practices including rebates from media outlets — Investigation examines whether advertising agencies received rebates from media outlets — Federal prosecutors in Manhattan …

Discussion: Variety and MediaPost

Andrew Roth / The Guardian:

How the investigative journalism sites Bellingcat and The Insider used tips and online search techniques to identify a Salisbury novichok poisoning suspect — Old-school journalism and intuition are behind success of Bellingcat and The Insider sites — The odds of finding …

Discussion: bellingcat, @markchisnell, @sophiemcneill, @jmichaelwaller, @peterjukes, @jamiejbartlett, BBC, Coffee House, NPR and France 24

Donnelle Eller / Des Moines Register:

Trump's allegation of Chinese election interference via “propaganda ads” refers to a clearly labeled China Daily ad supplement, akin to ones run in NYT and WaPo — Twice Wednesday, President Donald Trump pointed to a Chinese government-backed advertising insert in the Des Moines Register …

Discussion: @realdonaldtrump, @davidmdrucker, NextShark, New York Times, Financial Times, BuzzFeed News, Fortune, The Daily Beast and The Guardian

Bloomberg:

CBS to open a 260,000 square foot TV and film studio in Canada mid-2019, with six sound stages, production offices, and other facilities — - Site near Toronto is largest for U.S. broadcaster in Canada — TV production is rising in Canada, making space harder to find

Discussion: Financial Post, MobileSyrup, HuffPost Canada, Screen, Hollywood Reporter, CP24, Toronto Star, Multichannel News and Variety

Barbara Allen / Poynter:

The Oklahoman announces it has been sold to GateHouse Media and immediately lays off 37 staffers, with an estimate of 15 staffers from the newsroom — The Oklahoman Media Company, the state's biggest, announced today that it was being sold to GateHouse Media — and laid off 37 staffers.

Discussion: @tcb, @adijoseph, @cathjsweeney, @bigahickey, @guildempower, @dabeard, KFOR-TV and Daily Oklahoman

Jon Russell / TechCrunch:

Sources: media startup Tech In Asia, which runs a blog and events business in Southeast Asia, laid off a third of its staff in July after canceling planned ICO — Earlier this month, media startup Tech In Asia surprised its readers when it announced plans to implement an $18 per month paywall.

Wallace Matthews / New York Times:

After 45 years of broadcasting matches, HBO is dropping live boxing events in 2019 following a decline in viewership — After 45 years, more than 1,000 fights and some of the most lucrative and controversial matches of all time, HBO is throwing in the towel on professional boxing.

Discussion: Awful Announcing, The Wrap, BloombergQuint, The Big Lead, Deadspin, Fightful, Business Insider and TV Tattle

Alexander Fanta / European Journalism Observatory:

Study: Google's Digital News Initiative has given €115M to European journalism projects over the past three years with the majority going to legacy institutions — Facebook, Twitter, Amazon and Google - many tech companies are involved in journalism. A major force, however, is Google's News Initiative.

Discussion: @martinsfp and Netzpolitik.org

Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:

Julian Assange steps down as editor of WikiLeaks but retains publisher title, appoints Icelandic journalist Kristinn Hrafnsson to replace him as EIC — Julian Assange has stepped aside as editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks, with the group saying his departure was “due to the extraordinary circumstances” …

Discussion: Newsweek, The Hill, Engadget, Gizmodo and Fortune, more at Techmeme »