Mediagazer: The death of Bon Appétit shows why media companies, which have no idea what makes videos work, failed with their half-baked plans to pivot to video (Victoria Song/Gizmodo)

4:35 PM ET, August 14, 2020

Top News:

As ViacomCBS expands CBS All Access with programming from Viacom and Paramount, it is considering rebranding the streaming service to Paramount+ — ‘Paramount+’ tops shortlist as battle with Disney moves centre stage in attempt to lift shares — ViacomCBS is considering a plan to rebrand …

Discussion: @mattgarrahan, The Streamable, @tvmojoe, @sherman4949, @mgsiegler and @annaknicolaou

Bloomberg:

ViacomCBS shares rose as much as 5.8% on Friday following a researcher's report that an activist investor may be gathering a significant stake — - Credit Suisse trades hint that shareholder is amassing stake — But any activist would have to win over Shari Redstone

Victoria Song / Gizmodo:

The death of Bon Appétit shows why media companies, which have no idea what makes videos work, failed with their half-baked plans to pivot to video — There are a zillion reasons why I have been mourning the Bon Appétit Test Kitchen. The one that hurts most is that the slow …

Discussion: Digiday, @kolbemarket, @sesmith, @clairelizzie, @heyamandabrown, @msmiller, @decadent_hag, @gabrieljr and @stefthepef

Jacob Bernstein / New York Times:

W magazine will now be called W Media after being sold to Bustle Media Group and investors including film and TV producer Jason Blum — The movie and television producer Jason Blum, the racecar driver Lewis Hamilton and the model Kaia Gerber will also be investors.

Discussion: MediaPost, Adweek, @eiffeltyler and @kerrymflynn

Press Gazette:

More than 2,000 jobs at UK-based news organizations have been cut during the COVID-19 crisis so far, with a large proportion of editorial staff affected — More than 2,000 jobs at UK-based news organisations have been put at risk during the Covid-19 crisis so far, with more expected to follow.

Sara Fischer / Axios:

Facing saturation and stiff competition in the US, media giants including Fox News and ViacomCBS are planning to launch new streaming services internationally — Facing saturation and stiff competition in the U.S., media giants are planning to launch new streaming services internationally to accrue more subscribers.

Discussion: MediaPost and Insights - Nielsen

BuzzFeed News:

Facebook's employees and third-party fact-checkers say Facebook has sometimes overruled decisions on divisive content with little transparency — On May 8, Prager University, a nonprofit conservative media outlet, published a video on Facebook that incorrectly claimed “there is no evidence …

Discussion: @rmac18, @craigsilverman, @prageru, @slpng_giants and @taraemcg, more at Techmeme »

Kristen Hare / Poynter:

Santa Cruz Local, a startup that focuses on county-level public policy reporting, has grown amid the pandemic to 500 paying members and 3,800 newsletter subs — Santa Cruz Local nearly doubled paying members since the coronavirus pandemic … “Hey everyone.

Discussion: American Press Institute, @anikaanand00, @phillipadsmith, @needhibhalla, @kristenhare, @karambutan, @ckrewson, @jmpasko96 and @kdeanct

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:

Warner Music acquires IMGN, which creates and tracks viral social media content in categories like e-sports, gaming, and ASMR, source says for just under $100M — It's a whole new playing field these days for music labels and publishers, and today one of the big three made an acquisition …

Aaron Mak / Slate:

Google's Ad Exchange is demonetizing pages that merely mention issues of race and LGBTQ rights, classifying them as “dangerous or derogatory content” — On Martin Luther King Jr. Day this year, the Atlantic decided to recirculate King's famous “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” …

Discussion: @josh_levin, @michellemanafy, @slate, @jon_fischer and @hypervisible, more at Techmeme »

Spencer Hsu / Washington Post:

USAGM removed seven top execs on Wednesday after suspending their security clearances, citing security concerns over hiring of foreign workers — Members of Congress on Thursday condemned a leadership purge at the parent agency of Voice of America, escalating criticism that a new chief executive appointed …

Discussion: @karenkornbluh and @vivian

Daniel Lippman / Politico:
USAGM has hired Frank Wuco, a former talk radio host who has called Obama a Kenyan and Nancy Pelosi a Botox-using Nazi, among other incendiary statements

Discussion: CNN, @alanmillernlp, Gizmodo, @muslimadvocates, @awarriorscholar, @mmasnick, @schwartzbcnbc, @gavinsblog, @ambdana, @dlippman, @dlippman, @media_evan and The Guardian

Diana Kuryshko / BBC:

How Nexta, with a small editorial team of four in Warsaw and no website, is using its Telegram channel with 1.5M subscribers to bypass news blackout in Belarus — For days Belarusians have had little information of the unrest filling their streets, with state-run TV making little attempt …

Press Gazette:

UK court rules that Reach must pay damages of £49,000 to a school teacher following defamatory articles in The Sunday Mirror, Mirror Online, and Kent Live — A primary school teacher has been awarded damages of £49,000 over a series of articles published by three Reach titles.

Discussion: bailii.org

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:

Sources: Apple to launch “Apple One”, tiered subscription bundles, which will include Music, TV+, News+, and a new virtual fitness service, as early as October — - Company seeks more customer loyalty with twist on Amazon Prime — Bundles to include video, music, news, fitness and more

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple to start offering first video content bundle to TV+ subscribers, combining CBS All Access and Showtime for $9.99/mo, starting as early as Monday

Discussion: Digital TV Europe, MediaPost, MacRumors, Variety, The Streamable, AppleInsider, 9to5Mac, The Wrap, Vox, Gizmodo, VentureBeat, Decider, Cord Cutters News and Business Insider

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More News:

Patrick Frater / Variety:
Baidu's video streaming service iQIYI says it is being probed by SEC, after a report in April accused it of inflating its 2019 revenue by around $1.13B

more at Techmeme »

Christopher Palmeri / Bloomberg:
Disney shut down more than 20 foreign channels last week and took a $4.9B charge against earnings to instead focus on international streaming via its Star brand

Discussion: @archivistpulp and @ballmatthew

Associated Press:
The Albuquerque Journal and the Santa Fe New Mexican will combine printing at The New Mexican's Santa Fe facility, resulting in about 70 Albuquerque layoffs

Discussion: @afcc_esq

WashPost PR:
Zeus Technology, WaPo's revenue platform, announces it will license its Zeus Performance ad framework and rendering engine to Tribune Publishing for 8 markets

Discussion: Talking Biz News, @sprakash007, @wapoarc, @hswolff, @mikeorren, @jarroddicker, Washington Post, @ckrewson and @arctictony

Earlier Picks:

Digiday:
Sources at publications partnering with Apple News+ say Apple did not tell them about changes that force News+ users into its app instead of to publisher sites

Discussion: @arctictony, @arctictony, Press Gazette, @arctictony, @nevadapress, @maxwillens, @digiday, @arctictony, @arctictony, @larakiara, @larakiara and AppleInsider

Tommy Christopher / Mediaite:
Newsweek stands by an op-ed by a former Kamala Harris opponent that used arcane arguments to question Harris' eligibility for VP

Discussion: @nancycoopernyc, The Atlantic, Newsweek, Vox, @isaacdovere, @blakehounshell, POLITIC, Newsweek, The Objective, @craigipedia, The Nation, @jonathanalter, @graubart, New York Times, The Banter, @richsignorelli, @anildash, @katestarbird, @katestarbird, @katestarbird, @taniel, @kat__stafford, @jonlemire, @alexkotch, @alexkotch, @alexkotch, @brhodes, @jayrosen_nyu, @donwinslow, @jrubinblogger, @robinkirk, @teri_kanefield, @teri_kanefield, @joycewhitevance, @teri_kanefield, @redtraccoon, @yarotrof, @bungdan, @ischafer, @malcolmnance, @mpinoe, @asharangappa_, @goldietaylor, @kyle_feldscher, @jbkjbk1234, @jessicahuseman, @josh_hammer, @benyt, @jbenton, @jacobfhsmith, @nc_cyberlaw, @zunguzungu, @jimswiftdc, @markjacob16, @normative, @mmcauliff, @craigipedia, @jbendery, @normative, @normative, @melissaryan, @craigipedia, @mollyjongfast, @marthasjones_, @deniseshearin, @angryblacklady, @connieschultz, @kurteichenwald, @reignofapril, @soledadobrien, @jemelehill, @johnwdean, @juliettekayyem, @jbouie, @davidfolkenflik, The Wrap, Newser, Axios, Newsweek, The Mary Sue, Devil's Tower, New York Times, Raw Story and Neeha Curtis

Frank Pallotta / CNN:
AMC will reopen more than 100 theaters on August 20 and expects to open two-thirds of its 600+ US theaters by September 3, when Tenet comes out

Discussion: Numlock News, The Week, Associated Press, @nicoleblades, @alexjamesfitz, @cnnbusiness, @asteadwesley, @media_marshall, @michael_steel, @adamweinstein, Variety, Techdirt, The A.V. Club, The Media Nut, The Playlist, /Film, Vanity Fair and The Verge

From Techmeme:

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple is working on a smart doorbell system with advanced facial recognition that can wirelessly connect and unlock third-party smart locks

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
Donald Trump announces that Sriram Krishnan, until recently a general partner at a16z, will serve as senior policy advisor for AI at the White House OSTP

Financial Times:
Sources: Palantir and Anduril are in talks with OpenAI, SpaceX, and more to form a consortium to bid for US defense contracts and plan to announce it in January

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