Top News:
Jason Gurwin / The Streamable:
Universal Pictures to make digital rentals of some new movies now in theaters available for $20 from March 20, and upcoming Trolls World Tour on its release day — In light of the movie theaters being brought to a standstill, Universal Pictures is changing the game.
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Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, @awallenstein, @kylebuchanan, Deadline, NME, @lucas_shaw, @mattgoldberg, @larryowenslive, @davidmullings, @aaronsagers, @louispeitzman, @alexmonney, @thr, @htranbui, @richdemuro, Multichannel News, MediaPost, /Film, Always Be Watching, 9to5Mac, The Week and Broadcasting & Cable, more at Techmeme »
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Hollywood Reporter:
Movie theater chains, including Regal Cinemas, Landmark Theatres, and Alamo Drafthouse, are temporarily closing their cinemas across the US until further notice — The move follows a federal government recommendation for U.S. adults to avoid public gatherings of more than 10 people.
Discussion:
@erik_hayden, @thr, @brianstelter, @carriecoon, @thr, @erik_hayden, Deadline, /Film, INSIDER, The Verge and WFLA-TV
Rebecca Rubin / Variety:
North American box office plunged to around $55.3M this weekend, its worst weekend since sales of $54.5M from September 15 to 17 in 2000 — Much of public life in the United States essentially ground to a halt this week. In the entertainment world, theme parks shut down, Broadway went dark …
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Hollywood Reporter, Hollywood Reporter, The Daily Beast, Mumbrella, The Wrap, @ecareyo, @variety, @ewagmeister, @ecnalhanid, Fortune, /Film, The Guardian, CNN, The Playlist, MediaPost, Wired, Vanity Fair and KRON4
Washington Post:
Fox News hosts have quickly shifted their tone on the COVID-19 pandemic from media conspiracy to crisis, after Trump declared it a national emergency on Friday — For weeks, some of Fox News's most popular hosts downplayed the threat of the coronavirus, characterizing it as a conspiracy …
Stefanie Murray / Nieman Lab:
A look at some of the collaborative efforts by independent newsrooms in states like Oregon, North Carolina, and New Jersey to cover the COVID-19 pandemic — Having access to accurate information can mean the difference between life and death during a crisis.
Discussion:
Columbia Journalism Review, Oregonian, @thenewsan, @edercampuzano, @jtierney6, @niemanlab, @johnupton and @niemanfdn
Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter, and YouTube say they're working with each other and healthcare agencies to tackle misinfo about COVID-19 — Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter, and YouTube put out joint statement promising to fight COVID-19 fraud and curb misinformation.
Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
How reporters at the Plain Dealer in Cleveland, Ohio are struggling with deep staff cuts while reporting on COVID-19's spread in the state — News organizations everywhere are under immense pressure as a pandemic sweeps the globe. — Reporters scurry to cover an eruption of breaking news …
Discussion:
@jeremylittau, @davidfolkenflik, @benpershing, @alanmillernlp, @annabruchez, @sulliview, @kimmasters, @mmlederman1 and @blmckean
Rachel Abrams / New York Times:
Inside The Seattle Times' COVID-19 coverage, as nearly all of its 58 reporters cover a pandemic affecting their neighbors and friends while trying to stay safe — “That's what local papers are meant to do”: The journalists at The Seattle Times have been aggressively covering the coronavirus as it affects their neighbors and friends.
YouTube Creator Blog:
YouTube says it will be relying more on automated systems as content moderators stay home, and creators may see fewer strikes against videos but more removals — Today, as the unprecedented COVID-19 situation continues, Google outlined how it's reducing the need for people to come …
Discussion:
The Keyword, The Verge, Adweek, @susanwojcicki, @mhbergen, @ytcreators, @youtubeinsider, Business Insider, Marketing Land, Variety, Engadget and 9to5Google, more at Techmeme »
Tim Ingham / Music Business Worldwide:
Tencent Q4: ~$1.03B in total online music revenue, of which $160M from music subscribers, up 60.1% YoY; paying music subscribers up 47.8% YoY to 39.9M — Tencent Music Entertainment, parent of China's biggest streaming music platforms, ended 2019 with 39.9m paying users worldwide.
Discussion:
Seeking Alpha, MarketWatch, Reuters and Tencent Music
Jamie Lang / Variety:
European media firms are navigating the loss of live sports during COVID-19 lockdown with replays of old games, free content, reduced prices of sports packages — A continent mad about sports has gone mad without sports. This past weekend was the first in which nearly …
Pete Brown / Columbia Journalism Review:
Study of 13K+ stories on News Corp's Knewz between February 4 and March 2 shows that the news aggregator frequently defaults to Murdoch titles and Daily Mail — Knewz, News Corp.'s recently launched news aggregator—not to be confused with the polka band of the same name—debuted with a grand promise …
Discussion:
@cjr, @dangillmor, @niemanlab, @jbenton and @cjr
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