Top News:
David Marchese / New York Times:
Interview with Graydon Carter, on claims he cut accusations by women from a 2003 Epstein profile: “I didn't invent the system. I just lived by the system” — “I didn't invent the system. I just lived by the system.” — Graydon Carter on Vanity Fair, Jeffrey Epstein and an editor's power.
Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:
Source: BuzzFeed has agreed to voluntarily recognize the BuzzFeed News union, following months of negotiations and a walkout by staffers last month — - Employees had staged walkout in June to pressure company — Agreement is part of wave of unioning at digital-media sites
Discussion:
@bfnewsunion, @katenocera, @reckless, @reckless, @reckless, @erinscafe, @chrisgeidner, @mat and @jaimealyse
New York Post:
Sources: GateHouse Media, owned by Fortress Investment Group, is nearing a deal to buy Gannett, which would create the biggest newspaper chain in the US — GateHouse Media and its publicly traded publisher New Media Investment Group is deep in talks to buy USA Today owner Gannett …
Discussion:
Poynter, Nieman Lab, Wall Street Journal, American Press Institute, @mathewi, @arobwriter, @mtdukes, @poynter, MediaPost, @ehernandez, @nycjim, @pdpj, @wblau, USA Today, @cararlombardo, The Wrap, @jbenton, @jbenton, @jbenton, @jsodonoghue, @brynstole, @byrickbrown, @aethefranchise, @jbenton, @chriscincibiz, @kmtorralva, @charlesornstein, @johnnewsomnr, @dbarkin, @dbarkin, @dbarkin, @johnnewsomnr, @johnnewsomnr, @jpelzer, @_davidelman, @austinbureau, @dkiesow, @ethanmayj, @dkiesow and @dylan_segelbaum
Charlie Deitch / Pittsburgh Current:
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to phase out print operations and become digital only; from September 30, the print version will only run Thursday, Friday, Sunday — Pittsburgh Current Editor — charlie@pittsburghcurrent.com — The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will eliminate its entire print product …
Discussion:
@jsilverinpgh, @thesmithminute, @charliedee71, @rob_rogers and @robcurley
Madeline Peltz / Newsweek:
A researcher who watched Tucker Carlson each weeknight for two years says society should not ignore his vitriol against Ilhan Omar just because it is routine — Tucker Carlson raced to the defense of President Donald Trump and his racist tweets against “the Squad” this week …
Discussion:
@peltzmadeline, @ryp__, @mattgertz and @danmartintalks
Wall Street Journal:
The Google Transparency Report, a searchable database of political ads, has errors, delays, and failures in recording political ads bought with Google's tools — Mistakes have occurred in the Google Transparency Report for both Democratic and Republican presidential and congressional candidates
Discussion:
9to5Google
Matthew Moore / The Times & The Sunday Times:
Head of BBC tells MPs they “could decide BBC is a subscription service” once the compulsory license fee system expires in 2027, but says it's the “wrong model” — The BBC could switch away from the licence fee to a Netflix-style voluntary subscription model, the director-general acknowledged yesterday.
Discussion:
@jayrosen_nyu, @emilybell and @robertandrews
Sahil Patel / Wall Street Journal:
Nielsen says Pluto TV, Tubi, and Xumo are in talks to use its ad ratings; sources: Nielsen is in talks with Roku, Pluto TV, and Tubi to add its content ratings — A lack of outside verification has frustrated marketers — Netflix Inc. only selectively releases unverifiable viewership numbers …
Discussion:
@megancgraham and @sizpatel
Todd Spangler / Variety:
BuzzFeed to stage its first live event, a free, invite-only, unsponsored show with musicians and influencers on July 25 in NYC, plans ticketed events later — BuzzFeed is going IRL by staging its first live event — a variety-style show in New York it's billing as an in-real-life version of scrolling through your social feed.
Discussion:
@waxpancake, @alicetiara and Tubefilter
Tim Ingham / Rolling Stone:
A look at 5 initiatives Spotify has abandoned: original video content, its hateful conduct policy, Spotify apps, direct music distribution, and Spotify Running — While it's common for tech companies to test out new ideas in public, the streaming giant has done so more than most
Joseph Bernstein / BuzzFeed News:
A profile of Andy Ngo, whose assault by antifa elevated his career seeking violence and victimization in response to corporate demand for dramatic video — Late last month, the conservative media personality Andy Ngo sent me a video made by Popular Mobilization, a group of anti-fascists …
Discussion:
@davidgross_man, @ameliaopb, @alex_zee, @markdistef and @bernstein
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Zefr sells RightsID and ChannelID, its video rights-management technologies, to Vobile in a deal estimated at $90M — Vobile Group, a video protection and measurement company, announced a deal to acquire Zefr's RightsID copyright-management and ChannelID YouTube channel-management businesses for about $90 million.
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable, Los Angeles Business Journal and Tubefilter