Top News:
Ben Smith / @benyt:
Memo: The Atlantic is laying off 68 people across divisions, or about 20% of its staff, after collapse of its events business, with the rest getting pay cuts — The Atlantic is laying off about 20% of its staff — 68 people across divisions — per a memo from David Bradley, after collapse of events business. https://twitter.com/...
Discussion:
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Jessica Bursztynsky / CNBC:
Netflix says it will ask customers who have been inactive for a year or more if they want to keep their subscriptions, canceling accounts that take no action — - Netflix will start asking customers who haven't used its platform in the past year if they want to keep their subscriptions.
Discussion:
Netflix Media Center, TechCrunch, Bloomberg, Variety, Business Insider, The Wrap, Gizmodo, @drbarnard, CNN, @sub8u, @xpangler, Decider, @lucas_shaw, @aweissman, @prashanth, @intrinsicinv, @jbursz, @newsynick, @joshconstine, @pogue and @loudmouthjulia, more at Techmeme »
Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple is seeking an executive to lead its original podcasts effort and is acquiring podcasts that would tie into shows on its TV+ service — - Company is seeking executive to lead development of new shows — Apple faces threat from Spotify's growing podcast ambitions
Discussion:
@sportsrapport, @nwquah, @apollozac, @nwquah, 9to5Mac, @kerrymflynn, @lucas_shaw, @mikerugnetta, MacRumors, iDownloadBlog.com, AppleInsider and @lucas_shaw, more at Techmeme »
Layla Ilchi / WWD:
Court documents: Kendall Jenner agreed to pay $90,000 to settle a suit over an Instagram post she made promoting Fyre Festival; docs say she was paid $275,000 — The model has settled the lawsuit over her Instagram post related to the failed 2017 music festival.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, @mmasnick, Vanity Fair, Fox News and Forbes
Trevor Knoblich / ONA20:
The Online News Association will host its annual conference online, Oct. 1-16, and says the event won't be as expensive as its previous physical gatherings — Chief Knowledge Officer Trevor Knoblich details what to expect from our global journalism innovation festival
Discussion:
Online News Association, @elanazak, @kelseyproud, @versharma, @robpegoraro, @meena_thiru, @ckrewson and @shanbow
Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
Sources: Apple TV+ is in the early stages of developing a series about Gawker, with ex-Gawker staffers Max Read and Cord Jefferson working on scripts — Former Gawker staffers, led by Max Read and Cord Jefferson, are now developing scripts about the site's glory days skewering the powerful.
Discussion:
@joepompeo, 9to5Mac, @jbflint and @waywardwinifred
Ashley Feinberg / Slate:
A close examination of Ben Smith's column about Ronan Farrow reveals weaknesses in Smith's indictment, including a fuzzy definition of “resistance journalism” — It was a tantalizing story, written by the New York Times' freshly poached media columnist and published …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, @sulomeanderson, @chuckrossdc, @kabarkoff, @ashleyfeinberg, @pastinaco, @jayshams, @feliciasonmez, @marisakabas, @beschizza, @dominicholden, @jennbinis, @lam_barrett, @brizzyc, @mollypriddy, @penenberg, @feliciasonmez, @andrewgiambrone, @ashleyfeinberg, @zunguzungu, @wesleylowery, @whstancil, @tomwferguson2, @lam_barrett, @eddie_small, @alexmleo, @jonlovett, Page Six, Fox News and American Press Institute
RELATED:
Freddy Mayhew / Press Gazette:
UK newspapers no longer have to make their print circulations public through ABC as they give “stimulus to write a negative narrative of circulation decline” — UK national newspapers no longer have to make their print circulations public through auditors ABC from today …
Discussion:
@jimwaterson, @pressgazette, @arusbridger, @jimwaterson, @drevanharris, @jimwaterson, @jamesrbuk, @stevenjbarnett and @christineburns
RELATED:
Jason Lynch / Adweek:
Disney moves back ad sales and media distribution divisions to its Media Networks group, following the departure of Kevin Mayer — Media distribution team also moving from company's DTCI segment, effective immediately — Key insights: — Disney streaming head Kevin Mayer's surprise exit …
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter
Lesley Goldberg / Hollywood Reporter:
ViacomCBS licenses Some Good News, John Krasinski's YouTube series that gained 2.56M subscribers in 2 months, to be shown on CBS All Access and linear networks — The feel-good web series will have a multiplatform showcase across all of the conglomerate's brands and platforms, though the actor …
Discussion:
/Film, CNET, Always Be Watching, The Week, @jondenton, @kottke, @willdarbyshire, @lindseyweber, @ahhensel, @jimbo_sl1ce, @kimmasters, @richsullivan, New York Post, Vulture, @jaredbkeller, @kevintporter, Tubefilter, @loudmouthjulia, The Verge, The A.V. Club, @thr and @kerrymflynn, Thanks:@tubetattle
Jem Aswad / Variety:
Spotify, which has about 4,400 full-time employees in 79 countries, has told its staffers that they can choose to work from home until next year — As the coronavirus-induced lockdown begins to ease in Europe and the U.S. and people begin to confront the realities of returning …
Discussion:
@navjosh, @xpangler, Music Business Worldwide, Music Business Worldwide, The Verge, TechCrunch and CNET, more at Techmeme »
Alexandra Alter / New York Times:
Association of American Publishers: book sales fell 8%+ YoY in March, with ebooks down 5% and print books up 1%; digital audio grew 15% YoY — Total U.S. sales in March were down 8.4 percent to $667 million, a sign of how the early days of the pandemic hurt booksellers and publishers.
Discussion:
@geraldposner, @audiobooks and @meggamonstah
Etan Vlessing / Hollywood Reporter:
Lionsgate took $50.5M in charges due to COVID-19 in the quarter ending March 31, with revenue of $944M, loss of $44.9M, down from $155.2M in same quarter 2019 — The studio posted a narrowing quarterly loss of $44.9 million, against a year-earlier loss of $155.2 million.