Top News:
Devlin Barrett / Washington Post:
Mueller's office disputes description of statements, documents, and testimony in a BuzzFeed story on Trump and Cohen; BuzzFeed says it's confident in its report — Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III's office on Friday denied an explosive report by BuzzFeed News that his investigators …
Discussion:
@buzzfeedben, @buzzfeednews, emptywheel, Media Nation, CNN, @ronanfarrow, @dicktofel, @emptywheel, @rachelvand, New York Times, The Wrap, The Hill, @yashar, @mikedelmoro, Sputnik International, Splinter, The Daily Caller, @mattbors, The Week, The Wrap, @dankennedy_nu, @pwnallthethings, @pwnallthethings, @renato_mariotti, @pwnallthethings, @pwnallthethings, @pwnallthethings, Slate, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @petersterne, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @axios, @kimzetter, @ronanfarrow, @journo_christal, @kendilaniannbc, Mediaite, @emptywheel, @dangillmor, @brianstelter, @vanityman, TheBlaze, @jasonleopold, RT, Al Jazeera, Raw Story, New Yorker, MSNBC, CNBC, The Wrap, Politico, USA Today, Fox News Insider and New York Times
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Facebook confirms it is testing LOL, a feed of funny videos and GIF-like clips pulled from News Feed posts by top meme Pages — How do you do, fellow kids? After Facebook Watch, Lasso, and IGTV failed to become hits with teens, the company has been quietly developing another youthful video product.
Discussion:
Fortune, @joshconstine, @taylorlorenz, @sapere_vivere, @caseynewton, @ajchavar, @mathewi, The Verge, SlashGear, Mashable, Adweek, Engadget, Gizmodo, Business Insider and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »
Borys Kit / Hollywood Reporter:
Pixar's Lee Unkrich, who directed Toy Story 3 and Coco, is leaving the company after 25 years; sources say the departure is amicable — The move marks an end of an era. — Lee Unkrich, the Oscar-winning director behind Toy Story 3 and Coco, is leaving Pixar Animation Studios.
Discussion:
@leeunkrich, Deadline, @robdelaney, Bleeding Cool, Vanity Fair, @colinlevy, The Wrap, @thr, The A.V. Club, CinemaBlend, /Film and TVWeek.com
New York Times:
How after decades of Viacom's mismanagement, Paramount is trying to turn itself around by investing in TV production and revitalizing its movie franchises — After decades of nearly slapstick mismanagement — spinning off TV and missing the internet — the studio behind “The Godfather” is fighting for its life.
Discussion:
@pkafka and @misterpatches
Jonathan Randles / Wall Street Journal:
Gizmodo Media Group settles defamation suits from clients of Charles Harder; no money changes hands and two articles stay online, with explanatory notes — Blog publisher claimed the litigation was meant to harass journalists, which Mr. Harder denied. — Gizmodo Media Group …
Discussion:
@annamerlan, @emmacargo, @benmullin and @benmullin
Alex Sherman / CNBC:
SEC filing: Disney lost $1B+ from streaming in its 2018 fiscal year, with a $580M loss attributed to its stake in Hulu and $469M to ownership of BAMtech — - Disney's stake in Hulu and its ownership of BAMtech led to a loss of more than $1 billion in the latest fiscal year.
Eric Johnson / Recode:
Interview with Axios business editor Dan Primack on producing newsletters, valuations of VC-backed online media, Facebook, IPOs in 2019, and the launch at Axios — “I want to tell a reader something they don't know yet ... I want to make them feel smart when they get to work and feel like they're ready to do their jobs."
Discussion:
@edmundlee
Cynthia Littleton / Variety:
Disney rearranges business segments for earnings reports to reflect income from streaming operations, will present its streaming investment plans on April 11 — Disney has rejiggered its business segments for earnings reporting to make room for the new unit housing its global streaming operations.
Discussion:
MediaPost and Multichannel News
Bill Birnbauer / The Conversation:
US nonprofit media funding: biggest three members of the Institute for Nonprofit News received 40% of donations; the least-funded 20 outlets got less than 2% — I analyzed the IRS returns of 60 Institute for Nonprofit News members, about half of the institute's membership at the time.
Discussion:
@billbirnbauer and Editor & Publisher
Dave McNary / Variety:
Several Hollywood figures back Open Screenplay, a free online platform that helps people write screenplays publicly or privately — With backing from longtime Hollywood player Sandy Climan, Khaled Sabawi has quietly launched Open Screenplay as a free online platform for aspiring screenwriters.
Discussion:
@bluechoochoo
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Irish publisher Independent News and Media, owner of the Irish Independent and the Belfast Telegraph, expects to cut 30 jobs as circulation and ad revenue fall — Thirty jobs are at risk after a major Irish news publisher outlined a three-year strategic plan aimed at growing digital revenues …
Discussion:
Independent.ie
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
BuzzFeed UK Editor-in-Chief Janine Gibson is leaving at the end of January after more than three years as its head — Buzzfeed UK editor-in-chief Janine Gibson has announced she is leaving the news website after more than three years in the top job. — Gibson will leave at the end of January …
Discussion:
The Guardian, @davidtpegg, @jeffjarvis, @markdistef, @ninabernstein1, @bradctucker, The Drum and Financial Times