Top News:
Ben Smith / New York Times:
Sources: Trump allies including a White House lawyer first approached WSJ with their Hunter Biden story, but WSJ couldn't corroborate claims about Joe Biden — Inside the White House's secret, last-ditch effort to change the narrative, and the election — and the return of the media gatekeepers.
Discussion:
UnionLeader.com, @carolynryan, Wall Street Journal, @ryangrim, @scottlincicome, Mediaite, Politico, @lrozen, BuzzFeed News, @mattgertz, @lpolgreen, Law & Crime, Poynter, Gothamist, @benjysarlin, @timodc, @dandrezner, The Geyser, @ericowensdc, @justinjm1, @joenbc, @alexburnsnyt, @nancook, @thesiskar, @parkermolloy, @swin24, @nickbaumann, @raju, @davidenrich, Breitbart, The Hill, @maddow, @redistrict, The Week, @cwarzel, @rexhuppke, @myrmecos, @benyt, @_cingraham, The Guardian, Fox News, Talking Biz News, Business Insider, New York Post, @noahshachtman, A Slow Social Media Newsletter, @mrjoncryer, @dicktofel, @kimstrassel, @kylegriffin1 and Vanity Fair
Kevin Roose / New York Times:
How the Falun Gong-backed Epoch Times used aggressive Facebook tactics and right-wing misinformation since 2016 to create an anti-China, pro-Trump media empire — Since 2016, the Falun Gong-backed newspaper has used aggressive Facebook tactics and right-wing misinformation to create an anti-China, pro-Trump media empire.
Discussion:
@kevinroose, @kevinroose, @ewong, @noupside, @charlescmann, @karenattiah, Gav's Newsletter, @ewong, @felixsalmon, @page88, @xeni, @kyleworton, @jiayangfan, @dethveggie, @nytimes, @tmclaughlin3, @michaelroston, @andrewmarantz, @froomkin, @cwarzel, @realskan, @karaswisher, @emilydreyfuss and दृष …
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Oscar Schwartz / The Atavist Magazine:
An ex-Epoch Times content writer on how he became a cog in the burgeoning propaganda machine and why he stayed on even as the publication's biases became clear — I. — among other publications. Originally from Australia, he is now based in Brooklyn. Follow him on Twitter: @scarschwartz.
Discussion:
@edxjohnson, Paragraphs, @moorehn, @jonahogles, @seywarddarby, @seywarddarby, @eileenguo and @oneunderscore__
William D. Cohan / Air Mail:
A look at Vice following Shane Smith's departure in late 2017, shifting from edgy coverage under Nancy Dubuc while struggling to become profitable — Shane Smith convinced Rupert Murdoch and Disney that his company was, as the kids say, the sh!t. Until it wasn't. How did Vice blow it—and trash billions in valuation?
Discussion:
@benyt, @alxthomp and @tattytats
Wall Street Journal:
From Go90 and Vessel to Fullscreen, Quibi was yet another high-profile failed attempt to create a streaming platform focused on short-form content — Streaming platform pitched high-production shows in format dominated by user-generated content — The demise of the mobile-streaming platform Quibi …
Discussion:
@jbflint, @wsj, @maxwellelliot and @karaswisher
Doug Mack / The Counter:
How the “Rust Belt Diner” genre of journalism became the “Trump Country Diner” in 2016, driven by a sense that media failed to understand the mood of rural US — Steph Chambers/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP — The “Rust Belt Diner” genre of journalism isn't new.
Discussion:
@profmusgrave, @thecounter, @douglasmack, @douglasmack, @evaholland, @billlindeke, @douglasmack, @douglasmack, @jayrosen_nyu and @douglasmack
Columbia Journalism Review:
A look back at the media's coverage of the Trump presidency, what has changed in the press, its failings, and how the press has simply not learned its lesson — In November 2017, the International Center for Journalists gave Fox News's Chris Wallace an award for excellence in journalism.
Discussion:
@mathewi, @ericschultz, @aaschapiro, @cjr, @jon_allsop, @mlcalderone, @jon_allsop, @jon_allsop, @jon_allsop, @wesleylowery, @jon_allsop, @jon_allsop, @bypetevernon, @notaaroncraig, @jon_allsop and @cjr
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
The Atlantic published a lengthy magazine story by disgraced New Republic editor Ruth Shalit as Ruth S. Barrett with no disclosure about her checkered past — A new story from the Atlantic explores the culture of niche sports in Fairfield County, Conn. — parents trying to turn their offspring …
Discussion:
@mathewi
Alex Sherman / CNBC:
Sources: at least three large US media companies expect the number of US households with pay-TV to fall to ~50M by 2025, a drop of $25B in cable revenue — - At least three large U.S. media companies expect the number of U.S. households that subscribe to a traditional pay-TV bundle to fall to about 50 million in the next five years.
Discussion:
@pkafka, @trengriffin, @peterasussman, @richr, @maggiomatt, @sherman4949, @richlightshed, @cnbctech, @sherman4949, @sherman4949, @sherman4949, @mattrosoff, @megancgraham and @sherman4949
Mike Butcher / TechCrunch:
China-based esports platform Versus Programming Network (VSPN) raises $100M Series B led by Tencent — Further confirmation that the esports market is booming amid the pandemic comes today with the news that esports ‘total solutions provider’ VSPN (Versus Programming Network) …
Discussion:
Gamasutra, more at Techmeme »
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Fox News confirms “a few positive” exposures to COVID-19, after report says its president and some top anchors were advised to quarantine due to exposure — Fox News Media confirmed “a few positive” exposures to the coronavirus among its employees in the wake of a New York Times report …
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post, The Wrap and @oliverdarcy
Kate Knibbs / Wired:
ClickHole, whose staff became worker-owners in May, struggles to stay relevant in 2020 while reckoning with a lack of diversity and facing a financial crunch — The humor site has survived it all: new owners, layoffs, a culture war. Now a worker-owned cooperative, it needs to update its voice—and bring home the bacon.
Discussion:
@knibbs, @n_j_davis, @labsplice, @kyle_ryan, @mattsaincome, @gracegthomas, @nxthompson, @kslane, @oknox, @sandraupson, @laurawags and @bypatrickgeorge