Top News:
Kali Hays / WWD:
Memo: LA Times is furloughing some non-union, business-side employees up to 16 weeks, and some editorial staff and managers will get pay cuts from 5% to 15% — A company executive told staff that the coronavirus has caused an “unprecedented” decline in revenue for the paper.
Discussion:
@marcatracy, @laura_nelson, @latguild, @kdrobinett, @mrwagner25, @natsfert, @katelinthicum, @tvietor08, @mattyglesias, @thezanesimon, @passantino, @tonyajoriley, @adamconover, @jbenton, @arashmarkazi, @zachsdorfman, @marcatracy, @ischafer, @noah__goldberg, @nycsouthpaw, @jbenton, @fidmart85, @jonheyman, @yashalevine, @johnpgarrett, @neoliberal_dad, @sarahparvini, @jenhab, The Big Lead and Variety
Kerry Flynn / CNN:
Memo: Valence Media lays off staff, cuts pay due to COVID-19 and as part of revamping at Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Vibe; source: media unit lost 100+ jobs — New York (CNN Business)The media industry continues to see widespread cuts as Valence Media slashes jobs across several of its brands …
Discussion:
@zackwhittaker, The Wrap, @funkbutcher, Axios, @sarafischer, @kerrymflynn, @zackwhittaker, @pcrowl, Variety, New York Post and The Daily Beast
Annie Palmer / CNBC:
Amazon will cut commission rates for its affiliate program starting April 21; amount of drop dependent on category, rates for grocery products dropping 5% to 1% — - Amazon on Tuesday told members of its affiliates program that it will cut commission rates beginning April 21.
Discussion:
The Verge, @raju, @tweetermeyer, @bcmerchant, @passantino, @markreadings, Folio, @jordanchariton, @scottgerber, @jasonrmcintyre, @tomgara, @joshsternberg, @robaeprice, @thrasherxy, @kifleswing, @jbenton, @jasonsjigs, @jbenton, @matthewstoller, @mattrosoff and @naomiaklein, more at Techmeme »
Ben Jacobs / New York Magazine:
WH press corps reporters discuss risking their health to attend daily press briefings that have provided the most direct access to the president in modern times — The White House briefing room is a low-ceilinged claustrophobic space. Built on top of a swimming pool where Franklin Delano …
Discussion:
Press Watch, @iraflatow, @froomkin, @seungminkim, @maggienyt, @brianstelter, @olivianuzzi, @froomkin, @bencjacobs, @mehdirhasan, @jayrosen_nyu, @jayrosen_nyu and @boutrousted
Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:
Taboola, Parse.ly, Chartbeat data: COVID-19 traffic to news sites peaked in mid-March and traffic has now gone down, though it remains higher than average — Audience numbers now look more like a standard busy news week than a global pandemic that's captured the world's attention.
Discussion:
@jbenton, @raju, @ahmalcolm, @saffronhowden, @g_piechota, @davelucas, @domdifurio, @meghin_, @rasmus_kleis and @jaredbkeller
Todd Spangler / Variety:
NBCUniversal's ad-supported Peacock Premium tier launches for Xfinity X1 and Flex customers on Wednesday; the bulk of Peacock's originals are delayed until 2021 — NBCUniversal's Peacock is ready to start rolling out to Comcast cable customers starting this week as scheduled …
Discussion:
CNET, MediaPost, @joan_e, @xpangler, Digiday, @richlightshed, The Wrap, CNET, Multichannel News, corporate.comcast.com, TechCrunch, The Streamable and The Verge
Taylor Lorenz / New York Times:
Amid the pandemic, demand for newsletters, Instagram accounts, and YouTube channels focused on good news has grown, from NatGeo to Upworthy — The coronavirus pandemic has driven interest in uplifting headlines way, way up. — Though it can be hard to see past the daily deluge of devastating headlines …
Discussion:
@marklittlenews, @jaconi, @michatagana, @drewharwell, @washpostpr, @saba_h, @sophiasgaler, @laurenthomas, @alliklein, @dubois, @rasmus_kleis, @taylorlorenz and 9to5Google
Zoe Schiffer / The Verge:
Medium's opaque moderation of user-created content related to COVID-19 has allowed misinfo to spread, making it harder to tell fact from fiction on the platform — The platform empowers voices — and misinformation — On March 20th, an article about the novel coronavirus started to spread.
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
Stanford and Google News Initiative launch tool that lets journalists embed up-to-date maps of US COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people, using NYT county-level data — Stanford University's Big Local News and Pitch Interactive projects, along with the Google News Initiative …
Discussion:
Press Gazette, Behind Local News UK, The Keyword and 9to5Google
Ty Pendlebury / CNET:
Sling TV debuts Happy Hour Across America, which lets new users stream its 50+ channel Sling Blue package for free from 5pm ET to midnight — Live TV streaming service Sling TV has been rolling out a bunch of promotions in response to coronavirus stay-at-home orders nationwide, and the newest one could be its best yet.
Discussion:
Variety, Light Reading, Mashable, The Streamable and Fortune
Greg Dool / Folio:
Modern Luxury Media, publisher of 40+ regional magazines, is furloughing staff and suspending some executive pay through June, aiming to avoid permanent cuts — Modern Luxury Media, publisher of more than 40 high-end regional lifestyle magazines, has furloughed a significant number …
Jon Lafayette / Broadcasting & Cable:
Scripps' board members and executives including the CEO are taking 10% to 15% pay cuts with the money saved going to the company's COVID-19 employee relief fund — Top executives and director of the E.W. Scripps Co. are taking voluntary salary and fee reductions as the Coronavirus crisis continues.
Discussion:
Cincinnati Business Journal and PR Newswire