Mediagazer: Analyst estimates Facebook and Google could lose $44B+ in 2020 global ad revenue due to COVID-19; Facebook says its ad business has weakened in affected places (Todd Spangler/Variety)

11:20 AM ET, March 25, 2020

Top News:

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Analyst estimates Facebook and Google could lose $44B+ in 2020 global ad revenue due to COVID-19; Facebook says its ad business has weakened in affected places — Ad spending is falling off a cliff amid the COVID-19 pandemic — and Facebook and Google, the two heavyweights in digital advertising …

Discussion: About Facebook, New York Times, Vox, Ad Age, @dcnorg, @bobbycblanchard, MediaNama, @pkafka, @loudmouthjulia, @pkafka and Adweek, more at Techmeme »

Oliver Darcy / CNN:

Fox News anchors, from its supposedly hard-hitting news division, failed to challenge Trump as he repeatedly misled viewers during the coronavirus town hall — New York (CNN Business)Anchors at Fox News failed to meaningfully challenge President Trump as he repeatedly misled …

Discussion: Media Nation, Washington Post, Poynter, Columbia Journalism Review, Hollywood Reporter, @oliverdarcy, @oliverdarcy, @ericboehlert, @dougkass, @juddapatow, @speechboy71, @sulliview, The Wrap, Mediaite and New York Times

Joyce Gannon / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Pittsburgh-area newspapers cut staff, suspend or combine print editions, and launch fundraising appeals, as a 175-year old weekly permanently closes — The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a harsh toll on news media in the Pittsburgh region including layoffs, suspension of print editions and, in at least one case, permanent closure.

Discussion: @pittsburghpg, @joyce_gannon, @charliedee71 and Fox News

Jim Waterson / The Guardian:

Some major towns in the UK lose their only print newspaper, leaving self-isolating older people without trusted news sources, as JPI Media suspends 12 titles — Many self-isolating older people left without trusted news source as presses stop rolling — Major towns including Milton Keynes …

Discussion: Press Gazette, @owen_g, @craigsilverman, @pressgazette, @jimwaterson and @pressgazette

Freddy Mayhew / Press Gazette:
UK's Newsquest, with ~200 newspapers and magazines, is furloughing a “significant number” of staff, who will get 80% of their salaries; others get pay cuts

Discussion: @markdistef, @markdistef, @markdistef, @chrisburn_post and @markdistef

Anjuli Patil / CBC News:

Atlantic Canada's largest newspaper chain SaltWire Network says it is temporarily laying off 40% of its staff and shutting down all its weekly publications — All SaltWire weeklies temporarily shutting down amid loss of ads due to COVID-19 — Atlantic Canada's largest newspaper chain …

Discussion: CBC News, @johngushue, @robertmmahoney, @mathewi and @jbenton

Jem Aswad / Variety:

Spotify unveils two initiatives to support the music community: matching donations up to $10M and plans to let artists fundraise directly from Spotify listeners — Spotify today announced a pair of initiatives to support the creative community in the wake of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic …

Discussion: The Wrap, Spotify and NME

ProPublica:

In the last two weeks, several US conservative radio hosts were telling millions of listeners that the coronavirus furor is a politically motivated overreaction — More than 160 million Americans have been urged to stay home in what the World Health Organization has declared a global pandemic.

Discussion: @jackgillum, @doctoryasmin, @jackgillum, @wendellpierce and Vox

BBC:

BBC News has suspended plans, announced in January, to cut 450 jobs as it faces the demands of covering the coronavirus pandemic — BBC News has suspended plans to cut 450 jobs as it faces the demands of covering the coronavirus pandemic. — The job losses were announced in January …

Discussion: @jimwaterson

Patricia Nilsson / Financial Times:

The Athletic COO says readership numbers fell in recent days and revenue growth is expected to slow but it still has a “clear line of sight to profitability” — US website valued at $500m drops paywall after loss of big events challenges its purpose

Discussion: @muradahmed and @dcnorg

Keith J. Kelly / New York Post:

Esquire has quietly trimmed its print edition to six per year, down from eight, and says the reduction is not coronavirus-related but to improve print quality — Popular men's magazine Esquire has quietly trimmed its print edition to six per year — down from eight, Media Ink has learned.

Dani Deahl / The Verge:

Concert notification service Bandsintown partners with Twitch to let artists fast-track new Twitch accounts to Affiliate status, unlocking monetization tools — Bandsintown artists with 2,000 trackers or more are eligible — Concert notification service Bandsintown has partnered with Twitch …

Discussion: @jimmywhis

Michael McCarthy / Front Office Sports:

Newsrooms adjust to the absence of sports with suspended or diminished sports sections, reporters redeployed to new beats, and creative story ideas — - Washington Post redeploying some sports reporters to Coronavirus coverage, while Boston Globe goes to the well for story ideas.

Discussion: @mmccarthyrev, @mmccarthyrev and @frntofficesport

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