Top News:
Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
Departed White House staffers, including John Kelly and Rex Tillerson, validate stories about the Trump administration, despite Trump's claims of “fake news” — The Trump White House isn't big on sharing information or answering questions asked on behalf of the public.
Discussion:
Washington Post, @hunterwalk, @sarahlellison, @saletan, @dabeard and Mediaite
Howard Kurtz / Fox News:
In her new book “Merchants of Truth”, former NYT Executive Editor Jill Abramson says the paper has become “unmistakably anti-Trump” under Dean Baquet — President Trump appears content to ride out partial government shutdown stalemate over border security funding
Discussion:
@howardkurtz, @peterdaou, @wxdam, @politicalshort, @oliverdarcy, @daviduberti, @byronyork, @carol_cardwell, @jorjadavis, @realjameswoods, The Hill, @howardkurtz, @greta, @petehegseth, @sulliview, @parkermolloy, @cjr, @piersmorgan, @khanoisseur, @leba_miller, @martinsfp, The Wrap and Mediaite
Radio & Television Business Report:
Gray TV completes acquisition of Raycom Media and now holds stations in 91 US markets; nine stations and Raycom's community newspaper unit, CNHI, were spun off — For the last time, we present to you the Raycom Media logo. That's because Raycom no longer exists — it has been officially swallowed …
Discussion:
Multichannel News, Broadcasting & Cable, TVSpy and The Herald
Sara Fischer / Axios:
The rise of cord-cutting is hurting profit margins at cable and satellite providers, leading to programming blackouts and niche channels being dropped — Cable and satellite companies are struggling to reach deals with TV channels over how much they should have to pay for the content those channels provide.
Discussion:
@alexweprin and @hunterwalk
RELATED:
Meg James / Los Angeles Times:
A carriage dispute forces 33 Tribune Media stations off the air, affecting about 6M Charter cable customers, including 1.5M around Los Angeles — Nearly three dozen Tribune Media television stations, including KTLA Channel 5 in Los Angeles, went dark Wednesday afternoon …
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News, Deadline and @techjournalist
Jenna Amatulli / HuffPost:
Netflix has removed an episode of “Patriot Act With Hasan Minhaj” in Saudi Arabia after the country complained about MBS criticism over Khashoggi murder in show — In an episode of “Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj,” the host criticizes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the Yemen war.
Discussion:
@hasanminhaj, NPR, Press Association, The Guardian, @anujchopra, CNN, New York Times, CNBC, @sarahleah1, @karenattiah, @dabeard, @nesgritton, @karenattiah, @mehdirhasan, @johnrobb, The A.V. Club, Variety, @teymoornabili, @ahmed, @pronounced_ing, IndieWire, @zenjournalist, @dennisperkins5, @lailalalami, @martina, @stephenjmcmanus, @cmclymer, @jamesaalongman, @dmiliband, @rulajebreal, @aligulpir, @hawthornrants, @satchelldrakes, @soniasaraiya, @sethamandel, @poniewozik, @bencnn, @penamerican, @bungdan, @borzou, @amiraminimd, @jonrosenberg, @bartongellman, @john_hudson, @dangillmor, @kimmasters, @iyad_elbaghdadi, @hashashintag, @karenattiah, @bintabuahmed_, @djrothkopf, @pranavdixit and @theseantcollins
Sara Salinas / CNBC:
Netflix confirms it has hired Spencer Neumann as new CFO; source says Activision Blizzard fired Neumann because he was pursuing another job — - Netflix has hired Spencer Neumann as chief financial officer. He was the former CFO at Activision Blizzard. — Activision Blizzard fired Neuman …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Engadget and MediaPost, more at Techmeme »
Emma Best / Muckrock News:
In 1976, FBI investigated The Village Voice and Reporter's Committee for Freedom of the Press for espionage after magazine published a secret report on the CIA — WikiLeaks wasn't the first organization investigated for espionage over publishing classified information
Discussion:
@aaschapiro
Nu Yang / Editor & Publisher:
News executives from Tampa Bay Times CEO Paul Tash to San Diego Union-Tribune EIC Jeff Light discuss challenges, priorities, opportunities, and goals for 2019 — When Dictionary.com announced its 2018 Word of the Year was misinformation, I'm sure many of us in the news industry were not surprised.
Drew Harwell / Washington Post:
How deepfakes, AI-generated videos that graft a person's face onto another's body, have been weaponized to harass and humiliate their subjects, mostly women — ‘Deepfake’ creators are making disturbingly realistic, computer-generated videos with photos taken from the Web, and ordinary women are suffering the damage
Chris Welch / The Verge:
Roku Channel adds premium subscriptions, with networks including Showtime, Starz, and Epix available on Roku devices and apps, Samsung smart TVs, and more — Pay for everything on one bill with your Roku account — The Roku Channel, which offers free-to-watch, ad-supported movies …
Discussion:
Mashable, more at Techmeme »
Jon Levine / The Wrap:
Ex-Fox News Chief Washington Correspondent James Rosen, who was ousted amid allegations of sexual misconduct, joins Sinclair as an investigative reporter in DC — “Proud to start the New Year by joining @WeAreSinclair as an investigative reporter," James Rosen says in a tweet
Discussion:
@howardkurtz, @david_bossie, @levinejonathan, @mollyjongfast, @tomborelli and TVNewser
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