Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Source: Disney is in talks with AT&T to acquire WarnerMedia's 10% stake in Hulu to add to its existing 30% stake and the 30% Disney gains from 20th Century Fox — Disney wants to get even more control over Hulu: The company is in active discussions with AT&T to acquire the 10% stake …
Discussion:
/Film, Multichannel News, Fortune and The Verge
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Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:
Arbitrator awards the team behind TV series Bones $179M after ruling that 21st Century Fox execs fraudulently hid profit info from stars and executive producer — In a long-running legal battle over profits from the David Boreanaz-Emily Deschanel hit, an arbitrator's stunning decision calls …
Discussion:
New York Times, TechCrunch, The Hill, Deadline, Fortune, @billsimmons, Wall Street Journal, Observer, @pareene, @eriqgardner, @jbflint, @thrmattbelloni and @jbflint
Christine Schmidt / Nieman Lab:
Free Press has proposed a tax on targeted advertising, analogous to a carbon tax, to fund noncommercial journalism and to support new news distribution models — Facebook and Google aren't going to stop targeting ads to Internet users, and advertisers aren't likely to stop loving the data …
Discussion:
Free Press, @niemanlab, @joeycoleman, @niemanlab, @freepress, @utknightcenter, @rispolimike and @vincecathomas
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
FTC settles with Musical.ly, now TikTok, for $5.7M, over the app's violation of US child privacy laws; TikTok's app updates with a new UX for users under 13 — A significant FTC ruling issued today will see video app TikTok fined $5.7 million for violating U.S. children's privacy laws …
Discussion:
Federal Trade Commission, TikTok Newsroom, Sensor Tower Blog, Washington Post, Broadcasting & Cable, Ad Age, BBC, @profcarroll, Tubefilter, @pimpmasteryoda1, USA Today, The Daily Caller, @jwherrman, @shiraovide, Variety, CNET, Tubefilter, @tiktok_us, The Verge, Boing Boing, Engadget, @cheddar, @kerrymflynn and Fast Company, more at Techmeme »
Siobhan O'Connor / OneZero:
Medium launches OneZero, a tech and science publication with analysis and commentary, as part of its plan for a portfolio on tech, business, health, and more — Introducing Medium's new tech and science publication — Today, Medium is launching a new forward-looking tech and science publication.
Discussion:
@ev, TechCrunch, @chronotope, @ev, @dlberes, @dlberes, @sdkstl, @sdkstl and @dlberes
Washington Post:
White House excluded reporters from the AP, Reuters, and other outlets from covering Trump's dinner with Kim Jong Un because they had shouted questions earlier — HANOI — The White House abruptly banned four U.S. journalists from covering President Trump's dinner here Wednesday …
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Washington Post:
The US press corps were forced to leave the Melia hotel in Hanoi, where TV crews had spent weeks setting up cameras, after Kim Jong-Un arrived to stay
The US press corps were forced to leave the Melia hotel in Hanoi, where TV crews had spent weeks setting up cameras, after Kim Jong-Un arrived to stay
Discussion:
@johnrobertsfox, NPR, Vanity Fair, @medialawprof, @ron_fournier, @jmartnyt, Mediaite, @jenniferjjacobs, @elianayjohnson, @davidnakamura, @specialreport, @philiprucker, @ewong, @cahnemily, @bradmossesq, @john_hudson, @eamonjavers, @hshaban, The Daily Caller, The Week, Fortune and New York Post
Jon Lafayette / Broadcasting & Cable:
Sinclair Broadcast Group's Q4 earnings: net income fell to $206.2M from $443.5M last year but revenue was up 25.4% YoY to $893M — Sinclair Broadcast Group reported lower fourth quarter profits despite big gains in revenue, including political advertising.
Discussion:
TVNewsCheck, TVWeek.com, Baltimore Business Journal, PR Newswire, AllAccess.com, StreetInsider.com and Deadline
Marguerite Clark / Radio World:
iHeartMedia, via its subsidiary RCS, has acquired Greece-based Radiojar, which offers tools to transition broadcast radio into digital stations and podcasts — The cloud-based audio playout platform lets users transition broadcast radio segments into other audio platforms
Discussion:
Engadget, VitalThrills.com and Billboard
Matt Donnelly / Variety:
Oscar winners behind Free Solo on why documentaries are hot now: sophisticated audiences, a “psychotic” news cycle, and big budgets from streaming companies — On a bustling post-Oscar Monday, “Free Solo” co-directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin arrive …
Discussion:
Multichannel News and MediaPost
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
The BBC and UK broadcaster ITV have confirmed plans to launch a joint, paid streaming service called BritBox by the end of 2019 — Streaming service to launch this year will feature archive shows and new commissions — The BBC and ITV have confirmed plans to join forces and launch a paid …
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, @jimwaterson, @thr, @elenacresci, @tommundaycs, @leahhather, @mrjkilcoyne, @quendergeer and WIRED UK
Gus Garcia-Roberts / USA Today:
Twitter has permanently suspended Jacob Wohl for creating and operating fake accounts, after he shared plans to make deceptive accounts before the 2020 election — Twitter announced that it is permanently suspending Jacob Wohl, a 21-year-old Internet hoaxer and supporter of President Donald Trump …
Discussion:
Washington Post, USA Today, BuzzFeed News, @oneunderscore__, @bradheath, NBC News, @neeratanden, @amy_siskind, @leannewood, @clevertitletk, The Daily Beast, Recode, @rmac18, @willsommer, @clarajeffery, @oneunderscore__, @brendannyhan, @aravosis, @oneunderscore__, The Daily Beast and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Financial Times:
Study estimates 1,000-1,500 US newspapers, many owned by private equity and hedge fund investors, are “ghost newspapers” mainly filled with wire copy and ads — At the start of 2018, Denver Post journalists felt optimistic for the first time in years.
Discussion:
@mattdpearce, @nikkiusher, @charlesornstein, @hilarykoss, @tonyhoehner, @saahil_desai, @empireburlesque, @johnmrod, @jcstearns, @libsolomon, @moorehn, @annaknicolaou, @tanarrowz, @micahmertes, @leahbecerra, @nikkiusher, @cobillard, @torrhl, @jlauck1941, @sarahkwiley, @amelscript and @mattdpearce