Top News:


Top media outlets normalized Trump's often incoherent press briefing Wednesday on the coronavirus, downplaying his campaign-style insults and slinging of blame — Here is some of what Donald Trump had to say Wednesday evening at a briefing intended to inform and reassure the American public about a public-health emergency:
Discussion:
@brhodes, CNN, New York Times, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Beast, Washington Post, @froomkin, @froomkin, @froomkin, @brianbeutler, @b52malmet, @vermontgmg, The Hill and The Hill


Layoffs are under way at newspapers owned by Gannett; one employee has tracked at least 24 newsroom staffers affected, with 40 pressroom positions cut — Layoffs continued Thursday at Gannett newspapers, which recently merged with GateHouse to form the nation's largest newspaper chain.
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, @pbnewsguild, @travdorman, @katiekull1, @ryan_dipentima, @5reasonssports, @jbenton, @buxmontnews, @azrepublicguild, @charlesornstein, @gregorykorte, @wwbrown19, @pattmlatimes, @mizzousundevil, @yelvington, @sgfnewsguild, @oneheraldguild, @paul_bowers, @jbenton, @mcallguild, @jbenton and @os_guild
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Discovery names Hulu's Lisa Holme head of direct-to-consumer content strategy, in charge of commissioning and acquiring US content — Lisa Holme, a Hulu veteran who had been leading its international expansion strategy, has joined Discovery in a newly created role to oversee content …
Discussion:
Deadline and Multichannel News
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Discovery to grow Dplay, its on-demand European streaming service, to 18 countries in 2020; Joyn, its ad-supported German streaming service, has 7M users
Discussion:
@discoveryinctv

Discovery reports Q4 earnings of $476M, up 77% YoY, on revenue of $2.87B, up 2% YoY; ad revenue grew 1% and distribution 5% thanks in part to carriage on MVPDs
Discussion:
Variety, @thr, @thr, The Wrap, Broadcasting & Cable, Discovery Communications and The Streamable


YouTube TV is dropping Fox Regional Sports Networks and YES Network on February 29, calling the move “a reflection of the rising cost of sports content” — Just before the start on baseball season, YouTube TV is about to lose 21 Fox Regional Sports Networks and YES Network beginning February 29th.


Carson Griffith, tapped in January 2019 to revive Gawker, sues the Daily Beast over a story she claims portrayed her as racist and homophobic — A former Gawker editor has sued the Daily Beast over an explosive exposé last year that portrayed her as racist and homophobic …


Google News Initiative Innovation Challenge opens applications today for projects focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion in journalism — Most communities in North America are diverse. They are comprised of people of various ethnicities, income levels, and countries of origin.
Discussion:
Digiday, @markyk and @googlenewsinit


YouTube says it is testing a way for creators to sell ads directly to brands “with whom they already have a relationship” — In the perhaps not-too-distant future, YouTube will let creators sell ad space on their own videos. — “We're experimenting with a new way for creators …
Discussion:
@profcarroll, @taylorlorenz, The Verge and @digiphile


UK regulator IPSO dismisses five complaints from the ruler of Emirate of Sharjah about nine stories in the Sun, Mail, and Metro newspapers on his son's death — The ruler of the Emirate of Sharjah has lost complaints about coverage of his son's death in the Sun, Mail and Metro newspapers …
Discussion:
@ipsonews


The Boston Globe partners with Applied XLabs, which aims to help newsrooms automatically gather and process data and generate insights — Applied XLabs is a new startup building tools that can automate data-gathering for journalists — and eventually, for knowledge workers in other industries.
Discussion:
The Boston Globe, @hilszy and @fpmarconi

iQIYI reports Q4 revenues reached $1.1B, a 7% increase YoY, as membership grew 21% to 106.9M subscribers — iQIYI, Inc. (Nasdaq: IQ) ("iQIYI" or the “Company"), an innovative market-leading online entertainment service in China, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter …


NBCU launches NBC Spot On, a streaming ads business for its local TV stations group, as advertisers shift budgets from local spot TV ads to streaming TV — The company plans to hire up to 20 staffers for a new local ads business tasked with tackling the surging local TV streaming ads category
Discussion:
FierceVideo and PR Newswire


In China, people openly criticize state media as Beijing sends hundreds of journalists to Wuhan and other regions to publish stories of sacrifice — Beijing is pushing tales of perseverance, but many young people are openly questioning the Communist Party's message.
Discussion:
@jeffgiesea, ABC17NEWS, @brianstelter, @jeffgiesea, @senrickscott and @marklittlenews