Top News:
Edmund Lee / New York Times:
Axios buys Charlotte Agenda, a North Carolina-based digital startup with a staff of 11, as part of a push into local news; sources say the deal was close to $5M — The site focuses on service journalism for North Carolina's largest city. Now it has been scooped up in a deal valued …
Discussion:
Charlotte Agenda, @nathanjmurphy, @milleryoho, @milleryoho, @brooksad, @emmakway, @nytimesbusiness, @jasonwbade, @eatraleigh, @hotlinejosh, @billvoth, @aliciacbell, @heidilegg, @sneddymobbin, @jeremymbarr, @benyt, @matt_mckenzie1, @ted_williams, @heyprofbow, @matt_mckenzie1, @peterhamby, @ylichterman, @maryfgross, @davemildenberg, @sarahscire, @crystalmariecom, @chaykak, @seandkennedy, @mjsolender, @nicktheandersen, @joannakakissis, @sarthakgh, @briandfrancis, @wxbrad, @katie_levans, @ssavitsky, @jbenton, @mikecooperjr, @tommytomlinson, @shanbow, @williamsjed, @bgrueskin, @emmakway, @michaelkruse, @kerrymflynn, @katieperalta, @andrew_dunn, @katie_levans, @katieperalta, @jyarow, @edmundlee and @edmundlee
Twitter:
Twitter says it will start its new verification policy on January 21 and is developing profile labels to designate bots and memorial accounts — A couple of weeks ago, we announced that we're planning to bring back our public verification program in 2021, shared a draft of our new policy …
Discussion:
@twittersupport, Washingtonian, Engadget, @oliverdarcy, @lizkelley, @janelytv, @mattnavarra, @ketanj0, @hodgesmr and @wongmjane, more at Techmeme »
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Jack Morse / Mashable:
Twitter says it will stop prompting users to Quote Tweet, restoring the standard RT functionality, and says QT use increased but overall sharing dropped by 20% — Well, it was worth a shot. — Twitter announced Wednesday that it will cease prompting users to quote tweet in lieu of the standard retweet.
Discussion:
@twittersupport, @twittersupport, Adweek, Breitbart, @henrymance, @carnage4life, @veronica, @javi_draws, MacRumors, @jordanlperkins, @robmanuel, 9to5Mac, @oliverjia1014, Engadget, Pocket-lint, @anthony, @noupside, @jsstansel, @sistertoldjah, @carynrose, @luulubuu, @kevinbparry, @parkermolloy, @dacidbro, @digiphile, @twittersupport, Engadget and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Kevin Roose / New York Times:
Facebook rolls back temporary post-election change that lifted news from authoritative outlets over hyperpartisan sources — Facebook confirmed that it has in the past few days rolled back a change that lifted news from authoritative outlets over hyperpartisan sources after November's election …
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, @tonyromm, @pomeranian99, @poniewozik, @ericschultz, Engadget, @lourdesgnavarro, @jayvanbavel, @slpng_giants, @kantrowitz, @davidbauer, @eshap, @gadyepstein and Reuters, more at Techmeme »
Paresh Dave / Reuters:
The Nation, Genius Media Group, and The Progressive sue Google, alleging it has unlawfully stifled advertising competition; they are seeking class-action status — OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) - Online publishers including Genius Media Group and news website The Nation alleged …
Discussion:
VentureBeat
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Axios:
Texas AG says the state and nine others have filed a lawsuit against Google, claiming Google illegally hurt competition in the ad tech market — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Wednesday that he's leading a lawsuit against Google, accusing the search giant of taking illegal actions …
Discussion:
@txag, New York Times, New York Times, Politico, Vox, @kevinroose, CNBC, 9to5Google, @markscott82, @jason_kint, The Week, @moonalice, @jason_kint, @slpng_giants, @kostasrossoglou, @ineteconomics, @neoavatara, @mmasnick, @alecstapp, @ashk4n, @emilybell, @bmorrissey, @dseetharaman, @daiwaka, @daiwaka, @pkafka, @joshsternberg, @mikebaz, @matthewstoller, @karlbode, @russellbrandom, @lutherlowe, @kantrowitz, @jason_kint, @jasonabbruzzese, @tonyromm, @tonyromm, Bloomberg, New York Post, Associated Press, Reuters, Law & Crime, Adweek, Breitbart, Financial Times, Mashable, nexttv.com, Business Insider, The Wrap, Engadget, The Verge, TechCrunch, CNBC and Skift, more at Techmeme »
William Turvill / Press Gazette:
The Guardian says it has 352K subscriptions to app and tablet editions, up 60% YoY, 548K recurring contributors, up 33% YoY; print subs are up 11% YoY to 119K — The Guardian has more than one million paying subscribers and regular contributors following a surge of interest and support over the past year …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Walmart partners with TikTok to test live-streamed video shopping, during which users will be able to shop Walmart fashion without leaving the app — Walmart and TikTok announced this morning they will be partnering on the first pilot test of a new shoppable product experience on TikTok's social video app.
Discussion:
Adweek, CNBC, @ginnymarvin, Engadget, @mgtalksretail, Marketing Dive, @producthunt, Ad Age and Business Insider, more at Techmeme »
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Vice food vertical Munchies is launching a channel on OnlyFans, the first verified media publisher to do so, to post exclusive weekly videos for $4.99/month — Vice's food vertical, Munchies, is launching a verified channel on the breakout creator platform OnlyFans, a subscription site …
Discussion:
@sarafischer, @moniquewoodard, @mathewi, @modestproposal1, @benvyle, @sachgau, @caseynewton, @neerajka, @00xca, @jscros, @carnage4life, @austin_rief and @richlightshed, more at Techmeme »
Hollywood Reporter:
Inside Warner Bros.' plan to debut movies on HBO Max, as CEO Ann Sarnoff says partners were not told before because of fears the news would leak — As the long-delayed DC Comics sequel finally debuts — on HBO Max and in theaters — it serves as the litmus test for an unprecedented release strategy.
Discussion:
The Desk, @aaroncouch, Business Insider, @getfandom, @boomborks, @griffschiller, @ser_jon_arryn, @theflitecast, @thatrebecca and ScreenRant
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Todd Spangler / Variety:
Roku and WarnerMedia have reached an agreement to distribute HBO Max on the Roku platform, starting Thursday
Roku and WarnerMedia have reached an agreement to distribute HBO Max on the Roku platform, starting Thursday
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Observer, Axios, @trengriffin, @curtishouck, WORLD SCREEN, @ercboxoffice, @j_m_wood, @kateaurthur, @sarafischer, @sarafischer, @richlightshed, Business Wire, CNBC, MediaPost, Light Reading, /Film, UPROXX, Business Insider, TVLine, Bloomberg, The Desk, Wall Street Journal, Awful Announcing, FierceVideo, The Wrap, IndieWire, TechCrunch, The Hill and Cord Cutters News
Martha Carr / New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Times-Picayune and New Orleans Advocate launch statewide investigative unit in a three-year, $1.5M initiative supported by donations to a local community fund — Specialized reporting team will be community funded and double the size of investigative staff — 1 of 21
Discussion:
@marthacarr
Ben Monnie / The Keyword:
Google News Initiative is launching a program to help entrepreneurs as they build digital news startups, seeks applicants for GNI Startups Lab in North America — Over the past nine months, we've been working with LION Publishers and UNC's Hussman School of Journalism and Media to study …
Discussion:
LION Publishers
Sahil Patel / Wall Street Journal:
Oracle has found a streaming TV scam that exploits flaws in ad-serving tech to fool marketers into paying for ads that are never seen, estimates $14.5M stolen — Oracle says it detected a continuing effort to lure ad dollars with simulated devices and apps
Discussion:
Ad Age, @davemorgannyc and @simonjharris
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Substack launches Substack Reader, an RSS reader for tracking newsletter subscriptions and other feeds, in beta — Substack Reader is now available in beta — If you're worried about all your newsletter subscriptions getting lost in your inbox, Substack may have a solution.
Discussion:
@substackinc, Substack Blog, @hshaban, @fvogelstein, @davidcadrian, @lpolgreen, @kimmaicutler, @thestalwart, @jbenton, @seldo, @samueljscott, @charlesflehman, @nathanblawrence, @alexeheath, @jaredbkeller, @rklau, @film_girl, @davewiner, @carnage4life, @alexlmiller, @aripap, @pierce, @luca, @pratikpoddar, @lukeoneil47, @can, @badastronomer, @michaelroston, @jamievaron, @davidcho, @pjvogt, @mylesudland, @stammy, @jackmarshall, @chrismessina, @caseynewton, @grayblue, 9to5Mac and Engadget
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Jacob Cohen Donnelly / A Media Operator:
A publisher of newsletters on digital media discusses the product and philosophical reasons he is leaving Substack, including lack of control over email lists
A publisher of newsletters on digital media discusses the product and philosophical reasons he is leaving Substack, including lack of control over email lists
Discussion:
Fred's Newsletter, Moderns Comms, @prsarahevans, @iankar_, @jarroddicker, @tomcritchlow, @mathewi and @annehelen