Top News:
Richard Gingras / The Keyword:
Google says it changed how it ranks stories and updated guidelines for evaluation of search results to help better identify and surface original news reporting — Google Search was built to provide everyone access to information on the web—and with tens of thousands of web pages …
Discussion:
New York Times, Nieman Lab, TechCrunch, @dannysullivan, @ow, @nxthompson, @dannysullivan, @rosshudgens, @pranavdixit, Search Engine Land, @neddesmond, @googlenewsinit, Axios, @rafat, @mishaalrahman, The Verge, @lindsaypgorman, @lindsaypgorman, @wongmjane, The Hill, @matthewherper, @mollyjongfast, @richardgingras, Adweek, @lskmakani, @adriana_lacy, @dejanseo, @emilybell, @adriana_lacy, MediaPost, Engadget, 9to5Google, CNET and Boing Boing, more at Techmeme »
Lesley Goldberg / Hollywood Reporter:
AT&T's WarnerMedia signs an exclusive five-year deal with J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot for TV, film, and streaming projects; sources: deal is worth ~$250M — Bad Robot, the production company he runs with his wife and co-CEO, Katie McGrath, will now have all of its divisions …
Discussion:
Variety, Deadline, Bloomberg, @snoodit, CNN, CNET, The Wrap, /Film, Broadcasting & Cable, Fast Company, Business Insider, @owillis, The Verge, The Playlist, The Streamable and Crain's New York Business, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Rankin / Associated Press:
Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax files a $400M suit against CBS alleging defamation for broadcast interviews with women he says falsely accused him of assault — RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax has filed a $400 million lawsuit against CBS, alleging the company defamed …
Discussion:
Richmond Times-Dispatch, TVNewser, @gmoomaw, @jason_kint and The Wrap
Claudia Koerner / BuzzFeed News:
Facebook takes down fact-check of anti-abortion video after complaints from four GOP senators alleging bias; Facebook's fact-checking partner is investigating — Facebook on Wednesday removed a fact-check conducted by doctors of an anti-abortion activist's video, which falsely claimed abortion …
Discussion:
@passantino, @ktbenner, @penamerica, @melissaryan, @jazzpatron and The Daily Dot, more at Techmeme »
Facebook:
Facebook lays out four values that guide its Community Standards, in order to promote freedom of expression: authenticity, safety, privacy, and dignity — Today, we're expanding the values that serve as the basis for our Community Standards — the guidepost for what is and isn't allowed on Facebook.
Discussion:
@evelyndouek, Adweek, @evelyndouek, CNET, @evelyndouek and @kurtwagner8, more at Techmeme »
Denise Petski / Deadline:
BBC News will produce an international news show for short-form video startup Quibi, to be filmed in London five days a week and launching in April 2020 — Quibi, Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman's short-form video platform, has announced a partnership with BBC News to produce …
Discussion:
Gizmodo, Variety and TechCrunch
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Rooster Teeth, an Otter Media subsidiary focused on sci-fi and anime online video content, has laid off 13% of its staff, about 50 employees — Rooster Teeth, for the first time in its 16-year history, has made a broad cutback in its workforce — laying off 13% of its employees, or about 50 staffers.
Discussion:
Austin Chronicle, Kotaku Australia, Hollywood Reporter, @tyler_stab, Deadline and The Wrap
Isabel Kershner / New York Times:
Facebook imposed a 24-hour ban on a chatbot operated by the official account of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for violating hate speech rules — JERUSALEM — Facebook suspended a chatbot operated by the official account of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday …
Discussion:
VICE, Jerusalem Post, The Hill, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, Haaretz, The Independent, The Guardian and Fox News, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Marsh / Reuters:
Twitter blocked accounts of Cuban Communist Party Leader Raul Castro and Cuba's top state-run media outlets Wednesday, during a TV speech by Cuba's president — HAVANA (Reuters) - U.S. social media company Twitter Inc has blocked the accounts of Cuban Communist Party Leader Raul Castro …
Discussion:
@reuterssarah, @camilatelesur, Agence France-Presse, @aaberwick and @hillelneuer
Alex Burness / The Colorado Independent:
As part of its $50K settlement with the Colorado Independent editor for wrongfully detaining her, Denver PD agrees to strengthen First Amendment training — Denver's Police Department has agreed to a $50,000 settlement with Colorado Independent Editor Susan Greene, whose …
Discussion:
@jimsmall and @tinagriego
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Walmart's Vudu is launching family-friendly features, like Family Play, which lets viewers automatically skip or mute “objectionable” content, and a kids' mode — Vudu, Walmart's video-streaming unit, is promising parents new tools to evaluate and control what their kids watch …
Discussion:
The Verge, TechCrunch and The Streamable, more at Techmeme »
Michael Calderone / Politico:
Some presidential candidates and others say fact checkers give equal weight to Democratic candidates' comments as to Trump's, creating false equivalences — By assessing Trump's whoppers and Democratic data disputes in the same forums, they say, the media normalizes the president's behavior.
Discussion:
@ddale8, @brendannyhan, @owillis, @brendannyhan, @ddale8, @mlcalderone and Columbia Journalism Review