Top News:
Laura Hazard Owen / Nieman Lab:
Knight Foundation pledges $300M over five years to further local news and free speech, with the bulk going to national orgs working with local partners — The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation will provide a whopping $300 million over five years to organizations including …
Jacob Granger / Journalism.co.uk:
Google News Initiative aims to provide 4,000 journalists in Australia and New Zealand with training on new revenue streams, SEO, fighting misinformation, more — Students and publishers alike will learn about new revenue streams and optimising content for digital audiences under latest GNI training programme
Ian Sample / The Guardian:
Interviews with 30 flat Earth conference attendees finds most did not consider the Earth to be flat two years ago, but YouTube videos changed their minds — Conspiracy theories shown on video-sharing site persuade people to doubt Earth is round — Researchers believe they have identified …
Discussion:
New York Times, Boing Boing, @jimalkhalili, Daily Mail, CNET, The Economic Times, BBC, BGR, HuffPost, Engadget, The Independent and Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check, more at Techmeme »
Melissa Brown / The Montgomery Advertiser:
Goodloe Sutton, publisher of the Alabama newspaper the Democrat-Reporter, authored an editorial calling on the KKK to “ride again” and “clean out DC” — The editor of a small-town Alabama newspaper published an editorial calling for “the Ku Klux Klan to night ride again” …
Discussion:
@itsmelissabrown, New York Post, The Wrap, @repterrisewell, The Week, The Guardian, @espiers, al.com, @jeffamy, AOL, @blakehounshell, @kristenclarkejd, @kevinmkruse, @adamhdomby, @debramessing, @laneyruckstuhl, @will_bunch, Newser, Slate, KTLA and Boing Boing
CNN:
Justice Clarence Thomas calls for a review of a 1964 decision that said the Constitution created a higher barrier for public figures to claim libel — Washington (CNN)Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Tuesday called for reconsideration of a landmark First Amendment precedent …
@polkawards:
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, the two Reuters reporters sentenced to jail in Myanmar for their reporting, have won the Polk Award for Foreign Reporting — Polk Award for Foreign Reporting: Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo of Reuters for “Massacre in Myanmar” documenting the execution of 10 #Rohingya.
Discussion:
@miriamelder and @tostevinm
Politico:
Sarah Isgur, who was the DOJ's lead spokesperson under AG Jeff Sessions, is joining CNN as political editor next month and will coordinate 2020 coverage — Sarah Isgur will coordinate political coverage for the 2020 campaign at the network. — President Donald Trump has derided CNN …
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Lara Logan and CBS News parted ways in 2018; the split was disclosed following comments Logan made on a podcast about the press being “mostly liberal” — Lara Logan, the journalist who gained wider renown covering war-torn spots in the Middle East for CBS News …
Discussion:
TVNewser
Rebecca Keegan / Hollywood Reporter:
Q&A with Amazon Studios Chief Jennifer Salke on her content acquisition strategy, potentially broadcasting a ceremony such as the Oscars one day, and more — The studio head opens up about her Sundance buying spree, blockbuster ambitions and the secret room where Amazon's 'Lord …
Discussion:
Observer, Business Insider, Deadline, Variety, @thrmattbelloni, New York Times, Engadget and The Playlist, more at Techmeme »
Daniel Funke / Poynter:
First Draft, the verification organization behind CrossCheck, has left Harvard over a “series of miscommunications”, citing problems with brand control — A little more than a year after moving there, First Draft is no longer based at Harvard University.
Eric Johnson / Recode:
IAC Chairman Barry Diller says Hollywood movie studios are now “irrelevant” as the market has fragmented, says Netflix cannot be displaced in streaming — Diller, the former CEO of Paramount and Fox, talks about the diminished power of movie studios and why “Netflix has won this game” on the latest Recode Decode.
Discussion:
Cult of Mac, @drudgefeed, @skiscontent and @noltenc
Declan Walsh / New York Times:
Egyptian authorities detained NYT correspondent David D. Kirkpatrick for hours on Monday and confiscated his phone before forcing him on a flight to London — CAIRO — Egyptian officials detained a New York Times correspondent after he arrived in Cairo on Monday, holding him incommunicado …
Discussion:
@tackettdc, @declanwalsh, @orlaguerin, @micheleddunne and @maggienyt
Brooks Barnes / New York Times:
Inside Netflix's all-out effort to win its first Oscar for Roma, including the hiring of a savvy campaigner and over-the-top spending — LOS ANGELES — Netflix called it “'Roma' Experience Day.” — On a Sunday in December, the streaming giant rented two soundstages on a historic movie lot …
Discussion:
@kimmasters, @nytmedia, @davidmwessel, The Wrap and IndieWire
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Brooks Barnes / New York Times:
Inside the struggle between the Academy and Oscars producer Donna Gigliotti to shorten the awards ceremony, as ratings gradually decline
Inside the struggle between the Academy and Oscars producer Donna Gigliotti to shorten the awards ceremony, as ratings gradually decline
Discussion:
@marinafang, @ennisnyt, @nytimesarts, @davidkorins, @brooksbarnesnyt, @nytmedia, @hunteryharris, The Wrap, The Week, /Film, IndieWire, The Playlist and The A.V. Club