Top News:
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
CNN calls a threatened lawsuit from Trump lawyer Charles Harder a “desperate PR stunt”; Harder's letter cited the Lanham Act, which deals mainly with trademarks — An attorney for President Donald Trump has sent a letter to CNN that threatens to sue the AT&T-owned cable-news network …
A.J. Katz / TVNewser:
In a letter to Comcast, Gretchen Carlson, Megyn Kelly, and others call for an outside investigation into allegations about NBC News in Catch and Kill — A number of former Fox and NBC Newsers have signed a letter meant for Comcast CEO Brian Roberts asking that the company open a new investigation …
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, The Hill, The Daily Caller, TVWeek.com, The Wrap, Mediaite, @jeremymbarr, Decider, @greta and Page Six
Wendy Lee / Los Angeles Times:
Quibi partners with T-Mobile, which will make the platform part of its offering, giving Quibi a broad distribution platform ahead of its April launch — Telecommunications giant T-Mobile has agreed to partner with Quibi, a Hollywood start-up that plans to distribute bite-size entertainment designed for millennials.
Discussion:
Variety, TechCrunch, @johnlegere, Light Reading, @xpangler and Tubefilter, more at Techmeme »
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
A comparison of how NYT and NBC edited Harvey Weinstein stories, and a look at one obscure legal worry by NBC execs about persuading women to break NDAs — When reporters tilted at allegations of sexual harassment and abuse by movie producer Harvey Weinstein, they squared off against a target …
Discussion:
Nieman Reports, American Press Institute, @husainhaqqani, @postopinions, @mattgertz, @karaswisher and @erikwemple
Rick Edmonds / Poynter:
In memo to staff, Gannett CEO says, “digital is our future” and “We will continue to maintain print if consumers are asking for it and the economics make sense” — In a piece yesterday I reported that phasing out USA Today in print is likely to be part of the calculations …
Janko Roettgers / Variety:
AT&T raises the price of its streaming service AT&T TV Now, with the basic Plus package up $15 to a $65/month; the move follows a similar increase in March — AT&T is instituting a substantial price hike for its live TV streaming service AT&T TV Now: Customers who have subscribed …
Discussion:
Fast Company, The Streamable, The Streamable, The Wrap, Bloomberg and Ars Technica
Ronan Shields / Adweek:
Sources: AT&T's advertising business, Xandr has bought Clypd, an ad platform that uses data to better target TV ads, from European broadcaster RTL — Trade deal comes amid speculation over parent companies' ad tech strategies — A little more than a year after closing its purchase of AppNexus …
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable, Reuters, Ad Age, AdExchanger, MediaPost, @aripap and The Drum
Natalie Jarvey / Hollywood Reporter:
Sources: YouTube is offering public figures five- and six-figure lump sums to subsidize channel startup costs as it becomes an increasingly appealing side job — Six-figure deals for filming everyday trips to the store? It's enough to lure high-profile celebrities to the platform …
Discussion:
@legendaryenergy, @pabastien, @jfgariepy, @raz0rfist, @bitchute, @adam22, @ashkan, @ashfoxhall and @pkedrosky
Garett Sloane / Ad Age:
Verizon Media wins the right to sell ads for Apple News in Canada, Australia, and UK, as NBC Universal extends an exclusive deal to sell Apple News ads in US — An inside look into how media partners operate on Apple's platform — Apple is making changes to its news service …
Discussion:
@garettsloane and 9to5Mac
Committee to Protect Journalists:
Pakistan denies entry to Committee to Protect Journalists coordinator, citing a blacklist by the Ministry of Interior, which voided his journalist visa — Last night, Pakistani immigration authorities denied entry to CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Steven Butler, citing a blacklist managed by the Ministry of Interior.
Discussion:
@hamidmirpak, @mehrtarar, @tahassiddiqui, @nickkristof, @reema_omer, @susanchira and @francescam63
New York Times:
Zuckerberg gives a full-throated defense of Facebook as a champion of free expression and defends Facebook policy to opt out of fact-checking political ads — In an address at Georgetown University, the Facebook chief executive called for more free speech — not less …
Discussion:
@berniceking, Washington Post, The Wrap, Facebook, The Verge, @noupside, Washington Post, @ewarren, The Verge, @anildash, NBC News, @sarahfrier, @mikeisaac, @oneunderscore__, @bernstein, @hypervisible, @shiraovide, Washington Post, Facebook, @cwarzel, Mother Jones, Breitbart, Variety, The Wrap, Vox, Wall Street Journal, @balajis, @naacp_ldf, @natesilver538, @natesilver538, @sriramk, @profgalloway, MIT Technology Review, @manjusrii, Fast Company, @jbouie, The Daily Caller, Ad Age, @balajis, Business Insider, @nickconfessore, @bostonjoan, @ekp, @migueldeicaza, @zeynep, @zeynep, @guyro, @guyro, @guyro, @gabrielsnyder, @hawleymo, @ingrahamangle, @caseynewton, @zeynep, @vanitaguptacr, @oliverdarcy, @mikeisaac, @donie, @donie, @karaswisher, @karaswisher, @ezraklein, @anildash, @kristenclarkejd, @andizeisler, @anildash, @adrjeffries, @brianbeutler, @vijayravindran, @brianstelter, @tonyromm, @rosenbergerlm, @crampell, @jamieogrady, @chanders, @bw, @mikeisaac, @esaagar, @iethics, @ananny, @jaconi, @jaconi, @jaconi, @mikeisaac, @mikeisaac, @mikeisaac, @mikeisaac, @sarahfrier, @mathewi, @karaswisher, @karaswisher, @karaswisher, @karaswisher, @sdkstl, @tonyromm, @cwarzel, @alexstamos, The Hill, @pkafka, The Interface, Salon, Adweek and Media Matters for America, more at Techmeme »
James Thorne / GeekWire:
Maven, which licensed SI's brand and has bought TheStreet, Say Media, and Hubpages, has raised $20M and outlined its SI strategy and plans for political news — Maven, the Seattle-based media company that purchased Sports Illustrated earlier this year, has raised $20 million and revealed …