Top News:
Tribune Publishing Company:
Tribune Publishing says Alden Global Capital is now the company's largest shareholder, buying 25.2% of the company from Merrick Ventures and Michael Ferro Jr. — Tribune Publishing Company (NASDAQ: TPCO), one of the nation's leading media companies, today announced that funds managed …
Christopher Cheung / The Tyee:
Torstar announces 121 layoffs, with 73 to be cut as it closes StarMetro Vancouver and four other free dailies on Dec. 20; more layoffs are in southern Ontario — Five more daily newspapers shuttered, 73 jobs lost across Canada. — Christopher Cheung is a reporter at The Tyee.
Discussion:
Canada NewsWire Group, @ayan604, @bychrischeung, @anna_desmarais, @sdbcraig, @sdbcraig, The Conversation, @jsource and @jsource
Marc Tracy / New York Times:
Gannett and New Media Investment Group's merger became official Tuesday, with executives hoping “efficiencies” will save about $300M/year — The deal to create the largest newspaper company in the nation — which became official at 4:10 p.m. on Tuesday — came about with remarkable speed …
Discussion:
@jamesebriggs, @maxwelltani, @cooperoncourts, @melissayeagr, Brookings, @darrendcarroll, CNN, @mathewi, @joshsternberg, @amandahess, @kerrymflynn, @sethklamann, @joemfox, @spsullivan, @baltsunguild, @jcrutchmer, @jenwsheehan, @alexkotch, @marcatracy, @rebekahlsanders, @simonowens, @jbenton, @mattdpearce, @caspernewsguild, @indyemapolis, @jbenton, @vicky_jacobsen, @reporterdavidj, @dtohl, @courantguild, @pmalonedc and @emilyoverholt
Evan Smith / The Texas Tribune:
Texas Tribune EIC and chief audience officer are stepping down to launch a national nonprofit news organization aimed at giving women “facts, tools, and info” — They'll exit their leadership roles at The Texas Tribune at the end of the year. We couldn't be more grateful …
Discussion:
@amzam, @emilybell, @jwharris, @lmcgaughy, @jeffjarvis, @eramshaw, @amzam, @amzam, @jayrosen_nyu, @eramshaw, @amzam and The Wrap
Saheli Roy Choudhury / CNBC:
Disney says there's no indication of a Disney+ security breach, in response to reports of thousands of users' accounts being hijacked and sold online for $3-$11 — - Thousands of Disney+ user accounts have been stolen by hackers and put up for sale on the dark web, according to multiple reports.
Discussion:
ZDNet, Variety, Los Angeles Times, The Streamable, BBC, Bloomberg, @kaspersky and New York Post
Matt Novak / Gizmodo:
Facebook exec defends Breitbart on Facebook News, saying Breitbart is not being paid and balances out “far left” outlets, but it's unclear which ones she meant — Facebook recently announced that white supremacist propaganda site Breitbart would be considered a “high quality” …
Discussion:
@ranimolla, Vox, @teddyschleifer, @ericboehlert, @alibreland, @jaredlholt, @oliverdarcy, @deborahblum, @slpng_giants, @bgrueskin, Right Wing Watch, @ceciliakang, @voxdotcom and Memex 1.1
Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Google announces Your News Update, an Assistant-powered audio feature that chooses stories based on interests, location, and more, available first in the US — It plays from a variety of sources instead of just the few you hand-pick — Google is rolling out a new service for Google Assistant that it's calling “Your News Update.”
Discussion:
The Keyword, TechCrunch, CNET, @reckless, Search Engine Land, Engadget, @chelseactv, @backlon, @google, Fortune and RAIN News, more at Techmeme »
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
During Tuesday's debate, UK's Conservative party renamed its main media Twitter account as “factcheckUK” and changed its logo to push anti-Labour material — Party accused of misleading public by tweeting anti-Labour posts as ‘factcheckUK’ — The Conservatives have been accused …
Discussion:
@alexhern, First Draft, Financial Times, @alexhern, @lisaocarroll, @broderick, @emilybell, @joe_stone, @lisaocarroll, @alexhern, @aljwhite, @johnedwards33, @carljackmiller, @daveleebbc, @peterstefanovi2, @alexhern, @dsquareddigest, @pickardje, @midlandsound, @dsquareddigest, @grodaeu, @jimwaterson, @sdp and @cononeilluk
Ben Smith / BuzzFeed News:
Sources: NYT is facing a succession contest to replace Dean Baquet before September 2022, with three top candidates: Joe Kahn, James Bennet, and Cliff Levy — If you're following the news these days, you'll notice that a high percentage is about the New York Times — the headlines …
Discussion:
@perpetua, @nbashaw, @annehelen, @tomgara, @katherinemiller, @jasonleopold, @jeremymbarr and @ckrewson
RELATED:
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet says Trump puts journalists' “lives at risk” when he subjects them to personal attacks and calls them names
New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet says Trump puts journalists' “lives at risk” when he subjects them to personal attacks and calls them names
Discussion:
Fox News, @jayrosen_nyu, @bgrueskin, @derektmead, @ajentleson, @arawnsley, @lachlan, @govhowarddean, @josephfcox, @jakemgrumbach, @dropoutnation, @pfpicardi, @ericboehlert, @sikhprof, @ashtonpittman, @dcbigjohn, @froomkin, @soledadobrien, @reignofapril, @chick_in_kiev, @jelani9, @jbenton, @whstancil, @markjacob16, @mehdirhasan, @swin24, @pulitzerprizes, @adamgoldmannyt, @wphillips49, @laurawags, The Wrap, The Daily Beast, Washington Examiner, Mediaite, Breitbart and The Hill
Ted Johnson / Deadline:
DOJ antitrust head Makan Delrahim says the DOJ will move to end the 1940s Paramount consent decrees, which limit major distributors' control over theater chains — The Justice Department will ask a federal court to eliminate the Paramount consent decrees, the 71-year-old restrictions …
Discussion:
U.S. Department of Justice, Wall Street Journal, Multichannel News, Business Insider, The A.V. Club, @joshshepperd, @johnaugust, @eriqgardner, @williambibbiani, @richlightshed, @nick_kapur, Variety, @adamconover, Hollywood Reporter, @mrfengi, @erichschwartzel, @i_zzzzzz, Bloomberg, Reuters, Gizmodo and /Film
NBC News:
Emails show that a 2015 article, fed by Stephen Miller, ran in Breitbart with a “Breitbart News” byline at Miller's insistence, disguising opinion as editorial — The emails offer a window into just how closely Miller coordinated with Breitbart, a publication that backed President Donald Trump early in his campaign.
John Ourand / The Business Journals:
Report: Trump is in negotiations with Fox to buy a Super Bowl ad; 30-second spots are reportedly selling for $5.6M — It appears likely that President Trump's re-election campaign will buy an ad during February's Super Bowl telecast, marking what would be the first time in recent memory …
Discussion:
@ourand_sbj, Awful Announcing, Breitbart, @tim_bays and @ccadelago