Mediagazer: The 2020 Oscars drew 23.6M viewers, an all-time low and down 20% YoY; the 2018 Oscars held the previous all-time low of 26.5M viewers (Tony Maglio/The Wrap)

9:50 PM ET, February 10, 2020

Top News:

Tony Maglio / The Wrap:

The 2020 Oscars drew 23.6M viewers, an all-time low and down 20% YoY; the 2018 Oscars held the previous all-time low of 26.5M viewers — Audience for 92nd Academy Awards declines 20% — The 2020 Oscars drew 23.6 million viewers on ABC, down a whopping 6 million viewers — or -20% from last year.

Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:

Netflix won only two Oscars despite 24 nominations: Best Supporting Actress for Laura Dern and Best Documentary Feature for American Factory from Obamas' studio — Although Netflix received 24 nominations (the most of any studio) at this year's Oscars, its films only ended up winning two awards.

Discussion: CNBC, @barackobama, The Wrap, Broadcasting & Cable, Ad Age, Variety, @scottfeinberg, Business Insider, Breitbart, @lawrence, The Root, The Wrap, @sarahwhit10, /Film, The Streamable, @stevepasquale, @web, @jonerlichman and Observer

Wall Street Journal:
Inside Netflix's aggressive Oscars campaign, spending an estimated $100M+ mainly to promote two films, while other studios usually spend $5M-$20M per film

Discussion: Variety, The Wrap, Business Insider, TechCrunch, @filloux, Daily Herald, @pkafka and @pkafka, more at Techmeme »

Emily Bell / The Guardian:

NYT's success in hitting a target of $800M annual digital revenue, while young startups struggle, lays bare media's disastrous winner takes all state of affairs — A handful of legacy institutions thrive as digital startups face increasing pressures — The financial health of journalism …

Discussion: Nieman Lab, @ndhapple, @chriselliott57, @wblau, @nicnewman, @garyfoskett, @baekdal and THEFUTURE

Adam Sherwin / inews:

Sources: the BBC is almost certain to appoint its first female Director-General, with Elisabeth Murdoch and ITV CEO Carolyn McCall as two top contenders — Prospect of Rupert Murdoch's daughter running the BBC will unnerve staff - but she has the right credentials for Downing Street

Discussion: careerssearch.bbc.co.uk, Press Gazette, @jbenton, @markdistef, @arusbridger, @tcmbigcheese, @janinegibson, @adamsherwin10, @emilybell, @jimwaterson, Digital TV Europe, @jamesrbuk, @peterjukes, @rmcunliffe, @taraconlan, @markdistef and @adamsherwin10

Ren LaForme / Poynter:

Muck Rack launches Trends, a Google Trends-like tool that shows which journalists and news organizations wrote about topics the most — What are journalists writing about? It seems like a question with an easy answer. Just go to a news outlet's homepage and take a peek, or do a quick internet search.

Discussion: @poynter, @itsren and @michellemanafy

David Streitfeld / New York Times:

After Amazon removes Nazi and neo-Nazi books, some third-party booksellers say it seems to operate under vague or nonexistent rules regarding prohibited books — The retailer once said it would sell “the good, the bad and the ugly.” Now it has banished objectionable volumes …

Discussion: The Hill, @brendannyhan, @jgreenblattadl, @nytimesbooks, WIRED UK, @kirstinestewart, @oliverdarcy, @redlianak, @henrywfowler, @puiwingtam and @davidstreitfeld, more at Techmeme »

Brian Steinberg / Variety:

CBS Sports strikes a deal with British bookmaker William Hill, making it the official provider of sportsbook and wagering data across all CBS Sports properties — CBS Sports is making a bid to one-up its competitors in the rapidly developing arena for U.S. sports betting.

Discussion: Axios, MediaPost, Broadcasting & Cable and @alexweprin

Elaine Low / Variety:

Sony Pictures Television Chairman Mike Hopkins will exit this month to oversee Amazon's video entertainment operations, including Amazon Studios and Prime Video — Sony Pictures Television Chairman Mike Hopkins is departing his post at the industry's largest independent TV studio later …

Discussion: Deadline, Adweek, Hollywood Reporter, The Wrap, IndieWire and The Streamable

Jason Gutierrez / New York Times:

Philippines moves to end the franchise of the country's leading broadcast network ABS-CBN, the latest push by Duterte's admin against critical media outlets — It's the latest push by the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte against media outlets he views as critical of his government.

Discussion: @nytimes, @heyitsmemistera, @alders_ledge, @alfonslopeztena and Agence France-Presse

Marc Tracy / New York Times:

Profile of New Hampshire Public Radio's Lauren Chooljian, whose Stranglehold podcast has made her a divisive figure due to its unflattering look at NH's primary — The podcaster Lauren Chooljian has irked some people in the state with “Stranglehold,” a close look at an all-important contest.

Discussion: Nieman Lab, @tonyjarnold, @nytimesbusiness, @jaxalemany, @meg_heckman, @marcatracy and @nytimesbusiness

Jim Waterson / The Guardian:

Sources: George Osborne is expected to leave the Evening Standard, as the publication changes direction under CEO Mike Soutar amid widening losses — Exclusive: former chancellor expected to leave role amid shakeup by new chief executive, sources say — George Osborne's future …

Discussion: @suzanne_moore and @markhorsleyuk

The Information:

Sources: YouTube is considering a competitor to Amazon and Apple TV channels for accessing premium video subscriptions from other companies — YouTube is sending signals that it wants to become a destination site for every part of the TV universe. — The Google-owned video giant …

Discussion: Engadget and @alexeheath, more at Techmeme »

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