Mediagazer: YouTube is funding TYT Academy, a Young Turks online course focused on the creation of digital-first local news; sources: investment is in the mid-six-figures (Sara Fischer/Axios)

3:10 PM ET, February 11, 2020

Top News:

Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:

Source: Spotify is paying close to $200M upfront for the Ringer, to be followed by more than $50M later — - Streamer has spent more than $600 million on podcast deals — Sports columnist Bill Simmons founded the Ringer in 2016 — Spotify Technology SA is paying close …

Discussion: Business Insider and @ajs, more at Techmeme »

Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:

WaPo's digital subscriber growth doesn't seem to be making expected gains on NYT despite a mass-oriented strategy, and WaPo hasn't posted the numbers since 2018 — But will the Journal and The Washington Post be able to catch up to the market leader going forward? Or is the Times preparing to lap the field?

Georg Szalai / Hollywood Reporter:

Sirius XM invests $75M in SoundCloud in exchange for a minority stake and two seats on the board — The audio entertainment giant puts money into the open audio platform. — Audio entertainment giant SiriusXM Holdings said Tuesday it has invested $75 million in open audio platform SoundCloud …

Discussion: Music Business Worldwide, TechCrunch, SoundCloud press releases, CNET, @pkafka, Wall Street Journal, @ldignan and @pkafka, more at Techmeme »

Janko Roettgers / Protocol:

Redbox has begun testing its ad-supported live TV online streaming service, powered in part by Xumo, with preprogrammed channels like USA Today and TMZ — Cord-cutting is driving a rush toward free video, but experts caution not to expect Netflix-size results.

Discussion: Fast Company, Media Play News, @richlightshed and Cord Cutters News

Sara Fischer / Axios:

YouTube is funding TYT Academy, a Young Turks online course focused on the creation of digital-first local news; sources: investment is in the mid-six-figures — The Young Turks (TYT), one of the largest progressive digital publishers on YouTube, is receiving funding from Google-owned YouTube …

Discussion: @oliverdarcy, @jeffjarvis, @jeffjarvis, @vinnysgreen, @jon_allsop, National Review, @scottbrodbeck and @media_evan

Tim Arango / New York Times:

Profile of Carl Butz, a 71-year-old retiree who stepped in at the beginning of the year to save The Mountain Messenger, California's oldest weekly newspaper — High in the Sierra, Downieville, Calif., was about to become the latest American community to lose its newspaper.

Discussion: @themountainmess, @karaswisher, @jswatz, @emilybell, @christopherjm, @livmqhenry and The Rural Blog

Jim Waterson / The Guardian:

Sources close to Elisabeth Murdoch say she has no interest in the job of BBC director and is focused on launching a production company — Sources say Rupert's daughter not interested in job, after press reports made her the favourite — Elisabeth Murdoch has made clear she has no interest …

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

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

Sara Fischer / Axios:

Sources: podcast subscription service Luminary is expanding to New Zealand, Ireland, and South Africa — Reproduced from The Nielsen Total Audience Report, February 2020; Chart: Axios Visuals — Luminary is expanding its service to three new countries, New Zealand, South Africa, and Ireland, sources tell Axios.

Joan E. Solsman / CNET:

Nielsen: streaming makes up 19% of US TV watching, with Netflix comprising 31% of streaming on TVs, followed by 21% on YouTube, 12% on Hulu, and 8% on Amazon — Netflix is big and it's getting bigger. And we're not just watching it on our phones and tablets: That dominance translates …

Discussion: Adweek, MediaPost, The Wrap, Variety, @jtoeman, Reuters, VentureBeat and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »

Liam Knox / NBC News:

Black News Channel, a 24/7 cable channel featuring black anchors and co-founded by former Republican congressman J.C. Watts, launches in select US markets — The Black News Channel, founded by a former Republican congressman, will try to win the growing Black cable news audience.

Discussion: American Press Institute, Fox Business, NPR, @nbcblk, @placebo90511492, @mayaaking, @eviefordham, @mvgal92691, @ronkelawal, @liamhknox, @spj_tweets, BBC, CNN, Mashable, The Hill and The Root

Andrew Bucholtz / Awful Announcing:

FloSports is launching FloBaseball, a platform that will host NCAA, high school, and youth baseball programming — We've seen FloSports amping up their sport-specific offerings recently, most notably with FloBikes offering 75 events and more than 300 days of racing this year …

Discussion: Broadcasting & Cable

BreAnna Bell / Variety:

Drake signs multiyear partnership with live streaming platform Caffeine to produce a series of rap battles and other live content — Live streaming service Caffeine.TV has announced an exclusive multiyear partnership with Drake. Infamous for his own rap feuds, the Canadian artist …

Discussion: TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Fast Company and Forbes

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

Discussion: /Film, Quartz, @barackobama, 5ish from M.G. Siegler, The Wrap, @stevepasquale, @scottfeinberg, @lawrence, @web, @jonerlichman, Broadcasting & Cable, @sarahwhit10, Ad Age, Business Insider, The Wrap, Fox News, The Streamable, CNBC, Variety and Observer

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Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
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Freddy Mayhew / Press Association:
UK-based PA Media Group buys stock image company Alamy for an undisclosed sum

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Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Patreon says creators can now set subscription prices in British pounds and euros, in addition to US dollars, and opens an office in Berlin

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Tubi says MAUs hit 25M in December 2019, up from 20M in June, with total viewing time of 163M hours, up 160% YoY, says content spending to exceed $100M+ in 2020

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Bloomberg:
To challenge Netflix and tap Culver City's deep entertainment resources, Amazon, Apple, and HBO are moving into vast office and production spaces in the city

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NBC News:
Sources: Condé Nast is planning on suspending its Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit this year as the conference is losing money

Kayleigh Barber / Digiday:
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Adam Satariano / New York Times:
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Discussion: @general_ben, @dfrlab, @alexstamos, @satariano, @ngleicher and @benimmo

Earlier Picks:

Irene Wangui / International Journalists' Network:
A look at WanaData Africa, a pan-African network of around 100 women journalists and data experts, who have collectively published over 100 stories since 2017

Discussion: American Press Institute

Mike Canan / Trusting News:
WCPO exec on why the Scripps-owned Cincinnati TV station now only uses mugshots selectively and why it's important to tell viewers about big policy changes

Discussion: The Marshall Project, @jimmacmillan, @spj_tweets, @niemanlab and @grant_blank_

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

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The Information:
Sources: YouTube is considering a competitor to Amazon and Apple TV channels for accessing premium video subscriptions from other companies

Discussion: The Streamable, FierceVideo, MediaPost, @alexeheath and Engadget, more at Techmeme »

Stars & Stripes:
DOD proposes funding cuts to the military newspaper Stars and Stripes; source: around $7M of “operating and maintenance funds” would be cut, or 35% of expenses

Discussion: Task & Purpose, @chadgarland, @starsandstripes, CNN, @rhreid, @kiddaaron, @oliverdarcy, @chadgarland and Wall Street Journal

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

Discussion: Axios, A Media Operator, @alexweprin and MediaPost

daytondailynews:
Cox Enterprises buys back Dayton Daily News and two other Ohio daily papers from Apollo Global Management, ensuring they can continue 7-day publication

Discussion: @madbair, @sensherrodbrown, @scalzi, @sgdoesit, @hollyzachariah, @joshsweigart, @daytonb2b, @lynnhulseyddn and @larryobhof

From Techmeme:

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple is working on a smart doorbell system with advanced facial recognition that can wirelessly connect and unlock third-party smart locks

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
Donald Trump announces that Sriram Krishnan, until recently a general partner at a16z, will serve as senior policy advisor for AI at the White House OSTP

Financial Times:
Sources: Palantir and Anduril are in talks with OpenAI, SpaceX, and more to form a consortium to bid for US defense contracts and plan to announce it in January

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