Top News:
Jay Rosen / PressThink:
What Chuck Todd blamed on naiveté to lessen his error of ignoring the GOP's spread of disinfo was in fact willful blindness and malpractice — That disinformation was going to overtake Republican politics was discoverable years before he says he discovered it.
Discussion:
Letters from an American, @bandyxlee1, @bruce_arthur, @digitalsista, @teymoornabili, @nhannahjones, @msignorile, @wphillips49, @zimbalist, @lindafader, @janetoppan, @ravmabay, @amy_siskind, @jayrosen_nyu, @xgambitt69x, @naretevduorp, @andreachalupa, @sylviakalston, @annecw, @penenberg, @digitalsista, @jayrosen_nyu, @michaelleppert, @aishas, @moonalice, @soledadobrien, @jason_pontin, @merrillbro, @nhannahjones, @sarahlerner, @brianstelter, @deniseshrivell, Roland Martin, @nhannahjones, @toddzwillich, @pkalina, @tpcarney, @sgw94, @digiphile, @zathras3, @chrismessina and Mediaite
RELATED:
Peter Wade / Rolling Stone:
Q&A with Chuck Todd about a Dec 29 edition of Meet the Press focusing on journalism and disinformation with guests like NYT's Dean Baquet and WaPo's Marty Baron — Chuck Todd has had a front-row seat for the spread of disinformation, here's how he sees it happening and the media's role in it
Discussion:
@jayrosen_nyu, Washington Examiner, BizPac Review, @brianstelter, @lukebrussel, @teri_atthepaper, The Wrap, @drvox, @teroterotero, @katzonearth, @jimhansondc, Axios, @hoi_pollois, @karacalavera, @imillhiser, @patblanchfield, @adamantxyves, @brooklynmarie, @soledadobrien, @elongreen, @armandondk, @mayatcontreras, @jayrosen_nyu and Fox News
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Comcast is in advanced talks to acquire Xumo, which offers an ad-supported video streaming service, as Comcast prepares to launch NBC's Peacock — Deal would help cable giant's digital-video ambitions as it prepares to launch its own video-streaming service
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, Engadget, MarketWatch, @tomventimiglia, @aagave, @digitalshields and @benmullin, more at Techmeme »
Katharine Q. Seelye / New York Times:
William Greider, a reporter, editor, and author who wrote about the economy and politics for WaPo, Rolling Stone, The Nation, and other outlets, dies at 83 — In interviews with Reagan's budget director, David Stockman, he exposed doubts about the supply-side economics that the administration had embraced.
Discussion:
@blaineharden, @tmorris504, @herecomesdrbob, @markamesexiled, @mikeelk, @marcacaputo, @mikeelk, @katrinanation, @schwarz, @charlesppierce, @willdarrell, @schwarz, @notjessewalker, Associated Press, @schwarz, @eilperin, @mikeelk, @damonsilvers, @jonathantasini, @eetheridge, @mikeelk, @danbalz, @bcappelbaum, @aewright, @jordangreentcb, @davidsirota, @rjeskow, @mikeelk, @jonathanalter, @jentaub, @irvingswisher, @froomkin and @mikeelk
Allyson McCabe / Wired:
As labels increasingly rely on streaming data to scout talent, they could become less willing to sign artists whose music isn't engineered to maximize profit — The explosion of metrics and algorithms isn't just reflecting what's happening in the music industry. It's transforming it.
Discussion:
@wiredculture
Constance Grady / Vox:
With print books often cheaper than ebooks, whose sales stabilized at ~20% of total book sales, a look at the aftermath of Apple's ebook price fixing lawsuit — Publishing spent the 2010s fighting tooth and nail against ebooks. There were unintended consequences.
Discussion:
@dandrezner, @irhottakes, @sea_baugruppe, @jackshafer, @constancegrady, @voxdotcom, @marshacollier and teleread.org
David Uberti / VICE:
CrowdTangle: Breitbart's page racked up 57.8M Facebook likes, comments, and shares since Sept. 1, more than the 42.6M of NYT, WaPo, WSJ, and USA Today combined — Want the best of VICE News straight to your inbox? Sign up here. — Soon after President Donald Trump was inaugurated in 2017, Breitbart appeared to be on the ropes.
Discussion:
@emeraldrobinson and @alexmarlow
New York Times:
Studios produced 58 franchise films in 2019, which accounted for 82% of the worldwide Hollywood box office — In 2019, Hollywood put out a whopping 58 franchise films, including “The Rise of Skywalker,” released this weekend. Still, ticket sales dropped.
Discussion:
@ticoromao, @sameepa, @davidpoland, @kennethturan and @curtis_1myers
Associated Press:
Turkey's top court rules that a two-year ban on Wikipedia violates freedom of expression; it remains unclear when access to the site will be restored — ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey's highest court on Thursday ruled in favor of Wikipedia, saying the Turkish government's two-year ban …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Fox News, The Hill, @krmaher and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed News:
A look back at how Facebook and Twitter evolved over the 2010s, chasing size and influence at a cost to society that will take years to understand — The two companies had a bad run in the 2010s. It was their own fault. — It's been a rough decade for Facebook and Twitter.
Jim Milliot / Publishers Weekly:
Private equity firm KKR has signed a deal to acquire OverDrive from Rakuten USA; OverDrive helps libraries and schools access digital and audio books and more — The private equity firm KKR has signed a definitive agreement to acquire OverDrive in a deal announced on Christmas Eve.
Discussion:
@markcoker, Publishers Lunch, The eBook Reader Blog, Business Wire, MarketWatch and teleread.org
Monica Nickelsburg / GeekWire:
Q&A with Snopes CEO David Mikkelson and reporter Alex Kasprak on the state of news, working and breaking up with Facebook, and preparing for the 2020 election — Disinformation campaigns are expected to be just as pervasive in 2020 as they were in the 2016 presidential election …
Discussion:
Digital Trends