Mediagazer: Michael Bloomberg's run coming to a close ends a tricky time for Bloomberg News staff, but his political spending and Joe Biden endorsement may usher in another (Brian Stelter/CNN)

1:25 AM ET, March 5, 2020

Top News:

Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed News:

Twitter will begin testing “Fleets”, letting iOS and Android users make posts that disappear after 24 hours, in Brazil, finally using a Stories-like format — On Wednesday, Twitter will begin testing a feature, called “Fleets,” that will allow you to post photos, videos …

Elaine Low / Variety:

Source: Netflix cancels five film screenings and a panel planned for SXSW, joining others who have canceled screenings, including Apple and Amazon Studios — Netflix is the latest company to pull out of SXSW 2020, a source familiar with the situation tells Variety, canceling five film screenings and a panel for #BlackExcellence.

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, CNN, Broadcasting & Cable, CNN, Variety, The Wrap, The A.V. Club, @joeleydon, @martyswant, @wajahatali, @kelseymsutton, AppleInsider, Breitbart, @kerrymflynn, San Antonio Current, @kerrymflynn, IndieWire, @thr, Variety and @xpangler

Ryan Lillis / Sacramento Bee:

Sacramento's mayor is recruiting a group to try to buy McClatchy's Sacramento Bee, convening a forum March 27 to discuss structure with a goal of raising $20M+ — Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg is working to form a local ownership group that could purchase The Sacramento Bee …

Discussion: @mayor_steinberg, @sammy_roth, @amandakrhoades, @jboren4507, @mareevs, @suelmorrow, @mattsebastian, @media_evan, @webjournalist, @greenwombat and @media_evan

Kevin G. Hall / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
A group of McClatchy's least-protected creditors join the federal pension agency in questioning company deals with Chatham Asset Management and Leon Cooperman

Discussion: US Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York and @cltledger

Brian Stelter / CNN:

Michael Bloomberg's run coming to a close ends a tricky time for Bloomberg News staff, but his political spending and Joe Biden endorsement may usher in another — New York (CNN Business)As Bloomberg TV wrapped up its live coverage of Super Tuesday, correspondent Kevin Cirilli asked, “Who had the worst night tonight?”

Discussion: Forbes, @jackshafer, @dlippman and The Mary Sue

R.T. Watson / Wall Street Journal:

Quibi says it has closed a second round of financing worth $750M that includes about $400M raised at the end of 2019, bringing its total raised to $1.75B — Closing $750 million financing round brings total raised to $1.75 billion — Short-form video streamer Quibi said it has closed …

Discussion: NBC News, Variety, @shahrzadrafati, @sub8u, @robertandrews, Tubefilter, @polina_marinova, The Verge, TechCrunch, @devindra, @walthickey, Multichannel News, The Streamable and Broadcasting & Cable, more at Techmeme »

Michael Barba / The San Francisco Examiner:

San Francisco reaches a plan to pay freelancer Bryan Carmody $369,000 to settle claim after police searched his home, office, and phone records in a leak probe — Nearly a year after police raided his home and office in a widely condemned infringement of his rights as a journalist …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, @runthejules, @penamerica, @uspresstracker and CBS San Francisco

Brian Steinberg / Variety:

ViacomCBS CEO Bob Bakish says the company is preparing to sell its publishing unit, Simon & Schuster, as it is “not a core asset” — ViacomCBS is preparing to sell its publishing unit, Simon & Schuster, as the company re-evaluates all its assets in a fast-changing business landscape.

Discussion: @andrewmarchand, @staciadecker, @neontaster, @yashar, @benmullin, @brianstelter, New York Times, @literarypenny, @mollykh, @brianstelter, Publishers Weekly, Broadcasting & Cable and The Wrap

Benjamin Goggin / Business Insider:

American Media, owner of celebrity and fitness magazines, continued cuts this week, laying off at least 23 editorial staffers in its Celebrity Digital Group — - American Media, Inc., former owner of the National Enquirer and current owner of at least a dozen celebrity and fitness magazines …

Discussion: @tabiegermain, Thanks:@benjamingoggin

Mike Jaccarino / Vanity Fair:

A look at the decline of the New York Daily News, which once competed with the New York Post for NYC tabloid supremacy but is now propped up by a skeleton crew — When I worked there as a “runner,” the News was locked in a storied war with the New York Post for tabloid supremacy of New York City.

Discussion: @vanityfair and @arappeport

Washington Post:

Sources: Chris Matthews planned to retire after the 2020 election but was forced out of MSNBC following weeks of embarrassments — On Monday night, Chris Matthews gathered with the crew of his long-running MSNBC show “Hardball,” his family and the network's president, Phil Griffin …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, @sarahposner, @gerryconway, @ericmgarcia, @lisang, @revmusicny and Raw Story

Brian Stelter / CNN:
Chris Matthews abruptly announces his retirement amid his MSNBC talk show Hardball, after a string of recent controversies

Marty Swant / Forbes:

Mailchimp has acquired Courier, a London-based media company focused on entrepreneurs and small businesses, which produces a magazine, newsletter, and more — Mailchimp is expanding its presence beyond email and into the world of print. — The Atlanta-based marketing platform has acquired Courier …

Discussion: @danielgiaco, @martyswant, @benchestnut, @lukesbeard, @rafat, @newconsumer, @marcallera, @matthorrocks, @markdicristina, @jamiebrooker and @jeffxcourier

Kayleigh Barber / Digiday:

Minute Media CRO says ~50% of its revenue, projected to be ~$200M this year, comes from its B2B business licensing tech to clients like USA Today and Billboard — Many digital publishers looking for alternative revenue streams to advertising turn to subscriptions and commerce.

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More News:

Gene Maddaus / Variety:
Jury rules that PBS host Tavis Smiley violated the morals clause of his contract by having affairs with subordinates; PBS will be awarded at least $1.5M

Discussion: NPR, @keithlalexander, The Wrap and Hollywood Reporter

Hollywood Reporter:
Sony Pictures Entertainment closes its offices in London and Paris as well as Gdynia, Poland as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus

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Keith J. Kelly / New York Post:
Sources: American Media cut many digital jobs at its celebrity titles on Friday, with nearly all of Radar Online's digital staffers laid off

Discussion: @seth_prince, @michellemanafy, @whatthebit and MediaPost

Alison Flood / The Guardian:
London book fair, scheduled for March 10-12 with ~25K attendees, cancelled over coronavirus fears; Amazon, Hachette, others have already pulled out of the fair

Discussion: @isolatiberina and Bookninja

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Politico Europe, which has about ten journalists based in London, will expand the UK team by adding four new reporting and editing roles

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Tim Peterson / Digiday:
Sources: Roku has talked with media and entertainment companies about producing original shows for its ad-supported Roku Channel

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New York Times:
Ronan Farrow says he won't work with Catch and Kill publisher Hachette Book Group again, after its division announced plans to publish Woody Allen's memoir

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Bytedance launches its Resso “social music streaming app” in India, with a free tier and a premium tier costing $1.35/month on Android, $1.62/month on iOS

Discussion: @baxiabhishek, @indianidle, RAIN News and Music Business Worldwide, more at Techmeme »

Jane Martinson / Tortoise Media:
A deep look at the feud between Telegraph Media Groups's Barclay brothers, as their companies' recent struggles shine a spotlight on the reclusive press barons

Discussion: @ccampbell_agent, @ruskin147, @janemartinson and @tortoise

Kathryn VanArendonk / Vulture:
A look at the restrictions shaping the format of Snap Originals, from the 5-minute run time to the vertical screen, and the issues with Snapchat Discover

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Reed Richardson / Mediaite:
The White House banned audio and video recording of a COVID-19 media briefing with Mike Pence on Tuesday, stoking criticism

Discussion: @acosta, @noahbierman, Raw Story, Business Insider, @pareene, @benyt, @katierogers, @kimmasters, @weareoversight, @acosta, @kevinmkruse, @waltshaub, @acosta, The Week, The Week and The Hill

Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Daily Caller's Check Your Fact, a Facebook fact-check partner, faces criticism for labeling two stories on Trump, COVID-19 as “false”, raising process concerns

Mary McNamara / Los Angeles Times:
NYT's Ben Smith breathlessly praises his new employer in his first column, with self-congratulatory hyperbole, describing a problem without offering a solution

Dan Mangan / CNBC:
The Trump campaign sues The Washington Post for defamation, citing two opinion posts about the campaign and Russia; the suit follows a similar suit against NYT

Discussion: @davidfolkenflik, @davidakaye, @boutrousted, NPR, US District Court for the District of Columbia, @paleofuture, @mehdirhasan, @helenkennedy, @ddayen, @sbg1, @eriqgardner, @timothynoah1, New York Times, Breitbart, iMediaEthics, Mother Jones and The Week

From Techmeme:

Financial Times:
Microsoft invests $1.5B in Abu Dhabi-based AI group G42 for a minority stake, after G42 severed ties with Chinese suppliers; Brad Smith will join G42's board

Foo Yun Chee / Reuters:
EU antitrust regulators are questioning Broadcom about changes to VMware's licensing conditions, following complaints from EU business users and a trade group

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