Top News:
Ben Smith / New York Times:
Sources: after handing over to the new CEO, Bob Iger effectively returned to run Disney in March, as the pandemic decimated its most profitable businesses — The former C.E.O. thought he was riding into the sunset. Now he's reasserting control and reimagining Disney as a company with fewer employees and more thermometers.
Discussion:
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Peter Kafka / Vox:
In some early COVID-19 coverage by the US media, conflicting and sometimes inaccurate information from experts and officials resulted in muddled messages — President Trump speaks during a news conference with members of his Coronavirus Task Force on March 19. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Discussion:
@benyt, @moorehn, @emilystewartm, @dylanbyers, @dwallacewells, @sarthakgh, @robdet, @willoremus, @pkafka, @ranimolla, @ssdai, @dylanlscott, @amandamarcotte, @jerylbier, @cwarzel, @adamgoldmannyt, @drjoehanson and @djcdiem
Lauren Feiner / CNBC:
Meg Whitman says Quibi had 1.7M downloads in its first week and is accelerating plans to let the app cast to TVs due to the lockdown — - New mobile streaming service Quibi saw 1.7 million downloads in its first week, CEO Meg Whitman said on CNBC's “Squawk on the Street” Monday.
Discussion:
Multichannel News, Apptopia Blog, MediaPost, Adweek, Forbes, The Verge, Vanity Fair, The Streamable, Variety, @jbenton, @stevekovach and @stevekovach, more at Techmeme »
New York Times:
Condé Nast announces pay cuts of 10%-20% for those earning over $100K and expects “some role eliminations” as it seeks government assistance in the UK and EU — The glossy magazine publisher says it is experiencing “significant financial pressure” and imposing cost-saving measures across the globe.
John Ourand / Sports Business Daily:
ESPN confirms it is asking about 100 commentators to take a temporary pay cut; sources: ESPN is asking talent to take a 15% pay cut over the next three months — ESPN has asked its 100 most highly paid commentators to take voluntary 15% pay cuts over the next three months …
Discussion:
Variety, Broadcasting & Cable, TVNewser, Awful Announcing, The Wrap, New York Post, Hollywood Reporter, @ourand_sbj and Chicago Sun-Times
Chris Stokel-Walker / OneZero:
As some YouTube advertising rates drop by as much as 50% while viewership rates are up, YouTubers say their pay has declined dramatically — Advertising rates on the platform have dropped significantly during the coronavirus pandemic — Newspapers, websites, and TV channels have all been decimated by the coronavirus.
Discussion:
Business Insider, @carnage4life, @ozm, @baekdal, @therevmountain, @ozm, @baekdal and @stokel, more at Techmeme »
Jane Perlez / New York Times:
Interviews with 41 foreign correspondents shed light on reporting from the US during the Trump administration, often having to decode unprecedented events — Dagens Nyheter, Sweden — Reporting from Washington, D.C., since 2017; first foreign posting. — A lot of Swedes are interested …
Discussion:
@brianod_news, @kaedotcom, @rcoreyb, @beanavarro and @eyderp
Mike Brest / Washington Examiner:
The White House Correspondents' Association says it has rescheduled its annual dinner for August 29 “after consulting with public health and medical officials” — The White House Correspondents' Association has rescheduled its annual dinner for the fall after its spring date …
Discussion:
@erikwemple, @mmcauliff, @yashar, @secretsbedard and @oliverdarcy
Renée DiResta / The Atlantic:
Chinese state media is amplifying conspiracies from the internet, aimed at muddying the origin of COVID-19, through official channels, paid ads, and diplomats — The coronavirus that became a global pandemic first surfaced late last year in Wuhan, China. But according to one common narrative making …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Fox News, VICE, Breitbart and @alexstamos
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
Trump campaign sues Wisconsin TV station WJFW-NBC for “common law defamation” after it ran a Priorities USA ad alleging Trump called the coronavirus a “hoax” — A few weeks back, we noted that the Trump Campaign was sending threatening letters about a TV ad …
Discussion:
Variety, The Hill, Deadline, Bloomberg, @brianstelter and New York Post
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
Instagram updates its IGTV app with a hands-free recording mode, a Discover tab, and a redesigned homepage featuring a recommended creator at the top — Is anyone using this app, though? — Instagram is updating its IGTV app today, likely in the hopes of getting more people to use …
Discussion:
@everyvowel, more at Techmeme »
Seb Joseph / Digiday:
Esport sites are struggling to monetize the huge rise in viewership due to the drastically slowed ad market; Twitch had a record 1.1B viewing hours in March — Viewership of esports may be booming right now, but the drastically slowed ad market has made capitalizing on that audience difficult.
Discussion:
@alex