Top News:
Comcast:
Comcast acquires the ad-supported streaming service XUMO for an undisclosed sum — We are pleased to announce that Comcast has acquired XUMO, the advertising-supported streaming service based in Irvine, California. — XUMO offers free, live and on-demand streaming entertainment, news …
Discussion:
Variety, Beet.TV, @jbflint, @awallenstein and @taralach
Dawn Chmielewski / Forbes:
Profile of Nickelodeon president Brian Robbins, who is trying to revitalize the channel by bringing in YouTubers like Annie LeBlanc and the 8 year-old Ryan Kaji — As the opening strains of the Ryan's Mystery Playdate theme song begin to play in this San Fernando Valley soundstage …
Discussion:
@forbes
Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
Source: MSNBC plans “to seek out more smart, pro-Sanders voices”, shifting coverage amid criticism, as Sen. Bernie Sanders has surged over the last couple weeks — With Bernie rally coverage, Bernie-friendly guests, and a mandate to “seek out more smart, pro-Sanders voices,” …
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Dino-Ray Ramos / Deadline:
MSNBC's Chris Matthews apologized on air to Sen. Bernie Sanders on Monday after backlash for comments he made comparing Sanders' Nevada win to Nazi invasion
MSNBC's Chris Matthews apologized on air to Sen. Bernie Sanders on Monday after backlash for comments he made comparing Sanders' Nevada win to Nazi invasion
Discussion:
New York Times, The Week, @vanityfair, @bemidji4bernie, MediaFile, The Hill, Salon, living room pundit, The Daily Beast, The Hill, Fox News and The Guardian
Georg Szalai / Hollywood Reporter:
Investor group that includes Searchlight Capital and led by former Viacom CFO Wade Davis agrees to acquire a 64% stake in Univision; Davis to become CEO — The Spanish-language media giant last summer said it would entertain offers from potential buyers as part of an exploration of “strategic options.”
Cynthia Littleton / Variety:
AMC Networks sets a new carriage deal with Dish and Sling TV that expands the distribution of its six linear channels and streaming services — AMC Networks has set a new carriage pact with Dish and Sling TV that expands the distribution of AMC's growing portfolio of subscription streaming services.
Discussion:
Multichannel News
Wayne Friedman / MediaPost:
NBCUniversal launches One Platform, a unified platform for buying TV and digital ads — Just in time for this spring/summer upfront advertising buying season — as well as for its new ad-supported streaming platform, Peacock, which starts in April — NBCUniversal is launching its new …
Discussion:
AdExchanger and Reuters
Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
Report for America, which currently supports ten journalists covering Native American communities, says it plans to help fund nine more journalists this year — It's hard to say that Native Americans have, historically, gotten the kind of journalism they deserve.
Discussion:
@laurenmckown, @lenikacruz, @groundtruth, @aliaemily, @niemanlab and bookforum.com
Gabe Bullard / Nieman Reports:
Magazines like Harvard Business Review, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and The Economist are increasingly using narrated articles to boost reach and retention — How Harvard Business Review, The New Yorker, and The Economist use audio to boost reach and retention
Discussion:
American Press Institute, A Media Operator and help.getpocket.com, more at Techmeme »
Lara O'Reilly / Digiday:
Sources: France's third largest telecom Bouygues awarded a contract to Google to develop a targeted TV ad system using data from Bouygues' set-top TV boxes — Google has long pitched YouTube as an alternative to traditional TV advertising, but it's never managed to make a move into the $170 billion global TV ad market itself.
Kate Linthicum / Los Angeles Times:
How Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is strangling the country's oldest newspaper, La Prensa, using tactics like holding up newsprint and ink supplies — The board of directors of Nicaragua's oldest newspaper sat down in January to discuss the future. It looked bleak.
Discussion:
@sarahemclaugh, @edpadgett, @penamerica, @lavueltablog, @katelinthicum, @rasmus_kleis and Vox
Tomás Mier / People.com:
The Oprah Winfrey Show will launch a podcast on March 3, making 25 years of episodes from the talk show available to stream — The first 10 episodes to be released will feature special guests Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil and Suze Orman — You get a podcast and you get a podcast!
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, @kerrymflynn and @loudmouthjulia
Elidor Mehilli / The Conversation:
Albania passes new “anti-defamation package” laws against disinformation, targeting the websites of online media outlets but not social media platforms — A new set of laws in Albania empowers a government agency to review citizen complaints about online news websites.