Top News:
David Folkenflik / NPR:
VOA staff say Michael Pack is seeking political influence over coverage, in one instance violating the firewall that assures journalistic independence — Toggle more options — At the Voice of America, staffers say the Trump appointee leading their parent agency is threatening …
Discussion:
Washington Post, @brianstelter, @jbenton, @cliffschecter, @shawnpowers, @sulliview, @davidfolkenflik and @amy_siskind
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission:
ACCC calls Facebook's “threat” to prevent sharing of news on its services in Australia ill-timed and misconceived — Facebook's threat today to prevent any sharing of news on its services in Australia is ill-timed and misconceived. — The draft media bargaining code aims …
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New York Times:
Facebook warns it will block Australian users and news organizations from sharing news stories on Facebook and Instagram if the ACCC's proposal passes — The move, a response to pressure to pay publishers when their stories are posted on the social network, could add to internet silos springing up around the world.
Discussion:
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Chris Wallace to moderate first presidential debate, Steve Scully the second, and NBC's Kristen Welker the third; USA Today's Susan Page to moderate VP debate — Fox News' Chris Wallace, NBC News' Kirsten Welker, and C-SPAN's Steve Scully will each moderate one of three Presidential Debates leading …
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@stevescully, @brianstelter, Mediaite, TVNewser, The Wrap, Los Angeles Times, @tommyxtopher, @cspan, @daveweigel, @cairo67unedited, @yashar, @bristei, @brianstelter and @maggienyt
Boone Ashworth / Wired:
Google updates Your News Update, its Assistant-powered audio news service, with new features including its own “newscaster voice” — The company's latest news product is an ever-replenishing playlist of audio stories—curated, in part, by the wealth of data it has on you.
Discussion:
The Keyword, TechCrunch, @benwerd, Engadget and @techcrunch
Joshua Franklin / Reuters:
Sources: PE firm TPG is exploring a sale of Astound that could value the owner of the US network of regional cable TV and internet providers at more than $8B — (Reuters) - Private equity firm TPG is exploring a sale of Astound that could value the owner of a U.S. network of regional cable TV …
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Light Reading and Axios
Maria Armental / Wall Street Journal:
Patreon says it has raised $90M at a $1.2B+ pre-money valuation, nearly twice the $660M valuation it had after a funding round last year — New Enterprise Associates and Wellington Management led the $90 million funding round — Membership platform Patreon Inc., which enables musicians …
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The Wrap, Patreon Blog, @jackconte, Tubefilter, @saarsaar, @thepropermood, @caseynewton, @jessicalessin, The Information and Variety, more at Techmeme »
Naman Ramachandran / Variety:
Indian media conglomerate Zee launches a premium VOD service called Zee Plex, as cinemas remain closed and a spate of Indian films go direct-to-OTT — The platform makes it likely that more top film titles will bypass cinemas and release directly online, at a time when Indian cinemas remain shuttered due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
Sources detail how speculation about Dean Baquet's successor at NYT was upended by BLM protests and COVID-19; Sulzberger say he's “in no hurry” to make a change — Even a virtual newsroom can be a hotbed for gossip, with long-running speculation about Dean Baquet's successor …
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@joepompeo, @mitrakalita, @mattgertz, @brianstelter, @froomkin, @mlcalderone, @gerryfsmith and @joepompeo
Alex Barker / Financial Times:
Google says it will raise the price for ads 2% in UK and 5% in Turkey and Austria to cover the cost of digital services taxes in Europe, starting in November — US tech group to charge additional fees in the UK, Turkey and Austria — Google is to pass on the cost of digital services taxes …
Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times:
With NewsNation, Nexstar plans to air a politically neutral newscast, hiring staff to scrutinize stories for biased language and to monitor fairness of coverage — When entrepreneur Ted Turner first launched CNN in the early 1980s without any big name anchors, one of his credos was that the news …
Discussion:
@jaycaruso, @dave_schilling, @ewerickson, @charrisazrep, @kimmasters, @kimmasters, @maghielse, @egavactip, @sgstorey, @ibishblog, @ckrewson, @jbarro, @blakehounshell, @kerithburke, @hshaban, @clancyreports and @jayrosen_nyu
Kerry Flynn / CNN:
The “stick to sports” mandate at ESPN and some rivals has largely faded away, and coverage has increased of athletes who have joined Black Lives Matter protests — New York (CNN Business)In the three years since ESPN denounced then-staffer Jemele Hill's tweets …
Discussion:
Poynter, @nrarmour, @cosidanews, @film_girl, @dianamoskovitz, @cnnbusiness, @mcwm and @kerrymflynn