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The dearth of TikTok videos on Hong Kong protests offers a glimpse of how China could shape the perception of real-world events by US and global audiences — Hong Kong unrest features prominently on most social media, but not on TikTok — A search for “#hongkong” on Twitter reveals …
Discussion:
@sarahfrier, @craigsilverman, @profcarroll, @jorge_guajardo, @matthewstoller, @jchengwsj, @jchengwsj, @mattdpearce, @markseibel and @parmy, more at Techmeme »
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A look at TopBuzz, the English version of ByteDance's Chinese AI-powered news aggregator Toutiao, that rose from 1.8M MAUs in Nov. 2017 to 23M MAUs by Oct. 2018 — The MIT Technology Review called it “the insanely popular Chinese news app that you've never heard of.”
Discussion:
@mattnavarra and @rkellett, more at Techmeme »


Netflix acquires the global rights to Seinfeld for five years, starting in 2021 when Amazon and Hulu's rights expire; Hulu was paying $150M a year for US rights — Netflix has fired back in the battle for popular network sitcoms by landing the global streaming rights to “Seinfeld.”
Discussion:
Variety, New York Times, Ars Technica, Business Insider, The Wrap, The Streamable, CNN, Vanity Fair, The Playlist, The Week, @megancgraham, The Verge and CNET


Since CJR and The Nation announced Covering Climate Now in July to spur focused climate crisis coverage, over 250 news outlets have committed to the effort — New York (CNN Business)More than 250 news outlets around the world have committed to Covering Climate Now. — What is it?


Facebook says it is planning changes to tool allowing advertisers to rewrite news story headlines after UK's Conservative party altered a BBC headline in an ad — BBC article used in ad with a changed headline that contradicted article content — Advertisers on Facebook are able …
Discussion:
CNET, more at Techmeme »


Filing: Endeavor, Ari Emanuel's entertainment company, seeks to raise $600M+ at a valuation of ~$8B in its IPO — The entertainment company's IPO is now expected this fall. — Endeavor hopes to raise $600 million-plus in its initial public offering, according to a filing with the Securities …
Discussion:
SEC.gov, Financial Times, The Wrap, Variety, Deadline, Wall Street Journal, CNBC and @edmundlee


The Daily Beast says cutting the cost of Beast Inside by 65% over the past 15 months to $35/year has led to conversion rates 5x that of initial $100/year — Since The Daily Beast launched its membership program, Beast Inside, last summer, the IAC-owned news brand has managed to improve …


The Guardian apologizes for publishing an editorial that originally said that ex-UK PM David Cameron had only felt “privileged pain” over the death of his son — The Guardian has apologised for saying David Cameron had only felt “privileged pain” over the death of his son.
Discussion:
The Guardian, BuzzFeed, @markdistef, @markdistef, @markdistef, HuffPost UK, The Times & The Sunday Times, The Week and Bookseller News


Bloomberg says roughly two-thirds of its subscribers convert from site visits, 25% from its app, and around 8% from Apple News — Bloomberg Media is on track to double its digital subscribers by the end of the year, with revenue from subscribers reaching double-digit percentage …


NYT corrects story with new Kavanaugh allegation, says full account from upcoming book notes that friends of woman involved say she does not recall the incident — When the New York Times revealed a new allegation of sexual misconduct against Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh this weekend …
Discussion:
The Hill, Mediaite, Fox News, The Wrap, @alxthomp, New York Magazine, @howardkurtz, Mediaite, @sulliview and @daviduberti
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New York Times gets heavily criticized over a now-deleted tweet that described sexual assault as “harmless fun”
Discussion:
@dkiesow, @nytimespr, The Hill, Raw Story, @jeremymbarr, Fortune, @erickfernandez, HuffPost, @jeffjarvis, Poynter, @adamparkhomenko, @cliffschecter, @atrupar, @yashar, @schemaly, @atrupar, @brianbeutler, @3vansutton, @turtletears, @drmistercody, @realsaavedra, DNA India, Daily Mail, BizPac Review, Boing Boing, Fox News, New York Post and Raw Story


UK government drops probe into Saudi investments in Evening Standard and Independent, after regulators conclude the deal didn't warrant further inquiry — The government has decided not to pursue a probe into Saudi investments in the Evening Standard and the Independent, despite concerns they could harm freedom of expression.
Discussion:
Financial Times and GOV.UK


Following Twitter and Facebook, Snapchat launches a library of political ads on its platform from 2018 and 2019, available as downloadable spreadsheets — New York (CNN Business)Snapchat launched a political ads library as the mobile app becomes a campaign tool for 2020 candidates.


How WGBH's Emerging Platforms Initiative for creating original, mobile-first content is experimenting with Twitch to live stream a science-themed escape room — “What made us want to watch this for an hour and a half? Their ability to talk through the puzzles made me not only understand …
Discussion:
Trapology Boston