Top News:
Siva Vaidhyanathan / New Republic:
Criticism of Facebook must move beyond content moderation issues; the effort to invent and invest in public cultural institutions should be our focus instead — Every day, a Twitter account run by Kevin Roose, a technology reporter for The New York Times, posts a list of the top 10 sources …
Rachel Olding / The Daily Beast:
The 5 female anchors at NY1 who sued for age and gender discrimination say they have mutually agreed to leave the local news station after settling their suit — Five female anchors at NY1 said Thursday they have “mutually agreed” to leave the local news station after settling their age and gender discrimination lawsuit.
Discussion:
New York Times, @erinmdurkin, TVNewser, @nygovcuomo, @moreandagain, @cynthianixon, @pdjplano, @raquelcepeda, @nmalliotakis, @jsoabove, @neilmsbgc, @ltgovhochulny, @iamsophianelson, @aoc, @tangentialism, @gretchencarlson, @comedydaddy, @wigdorlaw, @yashar, @dianafalzone, @galeabrewer, @katie_honan, @s_evangelina, @nycspeakercojo, @jimmyvanbramer, @liamstack, @vanya42nd, @mcbc, @specificny, Mediaite and The Wrap
David Folkenflik / NPR:
Boards of RFE/RL and Radio Free Asia and their chairman Michael Pack have added binding contractual agreements that they can't be removed for the next two years — Michael Pack's stormy tenure over the federal agency that oversees government-funded broadcasters abroad — including Voice of America — appears to be coming to a close.
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Jennifer Jenkins / Center for the Study of the Public Domain:
Books, movies, and songs published in 1925 enter the public domain as their copyrights expire; works include F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby — On January 1, 2021, copyrighted works from 1925 will enter the US public domain,1 where they will be free for all to use and build upon.
Discussion:
NPR, @dadavies01, @timothynoah1, @apantazi, @annebillson, @tobalspielmann, Opus, The Daily Cartoonist, @timothynoah1, @libraryjournal, @dukecspd, @dukecspd, Fortune, Smithsonian Magazine, The Verge and Techdirt
Rusty Foster / Today in Tabs:
Today in Tabs, a popular media newsletter that closed in 2016, relaunches on Substack — Gather Ye Round, And Hear a Tale of Long Ago — One day in 2013, underemployed and wasting time on Twitter, I tweeted “Today in Tabs,” and Caitlin Kelly replied: — Caitlin Kelly @caitlin__kelly
Discussion:
@taylorlorenz and @waxy
New York Times:
Small movies like Moonlight, which depend on theaters to find their audiences, are unlikely to have the same success as film releases move to streaming services — We streamed, we watched, we worried. We also wondered what the catastrophe called 2020 will mean for movies.
Sean Burch / The Wrap:
WaPo publisher Fred Ryan says paper's employees will get a bonus of $2,021 as a sign of “gratitude for your exceptional service through the challenges of 2020” — If you work at The Washington Post, congratulations, you're starting the new year with some extra cash in the bank.
Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
How the op-ed page became the outrage-generating machine of 2020, 50 years after the New York Times introduced the format — Joseph Epstein says he has a lot of hate mail but no regrets. — A few weeks ago, the veteran writer and former university lecturer dashed off a few hundred words …
Discussion:
@sonnybunch, @sushantsin, @hotlinejosh, @janebsinger, @napolitanodean, @raju and @michaelsocolow
MediaPost:
Parks Associates: 20% of US broadband households currently use ad-supported streaming services and 15% use a freemium service, like Peacock — Twenty percent of U.S. broadband households currently use an ad-supported OTT service, and 15% use a “freemium” service, according to Parks Associates research.
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Wall Street Journal:
Top nine streaming services to end 2020 with combined US subscribers up 50%+ YoY; US households now subscribe to 3.1 services on average, up from 2.7 in 2019
Top nine streaming services to end 2020 with combined US subscribers up 50%+ YoY; US households now subscribe to 3.1 services on average, up from 2.7 in 2019
Discussion:
@trengriffin, @mukund, Forbes, @raju, Business Insider, @wsj, @jbflint, @drewfitzgerald, Fast Company, Context is King and New York Post, more at Techmeme »
Steve Inskeep / NPR:
Biden's press secretary Jen Psaki on not letting the briefing room become a “platform for propaganda”, engaging with right-wing media, dealing with leaks, more — President-elect Joe Biden's choice for White House press secretary says she will restore a tradition.
Discussion:
@rachelsklar, The Daily Cartoonist, @mollynagle3, @redsteeze, @froomkin, @ameshiacross, @mr_mxyplyzyk, @jrpsaki, @mbaram, @aravosis, @jayrosen_nyu, @jayrosen_nyu, @austan_goolsbee, @nprinskeep, @nprinskeep, @quintforgey, @lisasabinwilson, @redeye11055, @blakehounshell, Talking Points Memo and Al Jazeera
TOLOnews:
Journalist Bismillah Adil Aimaq has been killed in Afghanistan, the sixth one to be killed in the last two months in the country — Bismillah Adil Aimaq, a journalist and civil society activist in Ghor, was killed in an attack by unknown armed men in the city of Feroz Koh, the center of the province, local officials said.
Discussion:
@cpjasia, @joanne_stocker, Associated Press and Al Jazeera
Michael J. de la Merced / New York Times:
Alden says it is bidding for full control of Tribune Publishing, in which it has a ~32% stake, with an offer that values the newspaper chain at about $520.6M — Alden Global Capital, which is already Tribune's biggest shareholder, valued the company at about $520.6 million.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Media Nation, @lalpert1, Axios, @pdavis_llc, @senatorbrowne, @mcallguild, @senatorbrowne, @pwoodreporter, @byjonharris, @pwoodreporter, @byjonharris, @pwoodreporter, @mattstephens, @ssdance, @raju, @samjmintz, @hocorising, @justin_fenton, @stevelackmeyer, @garyaharki, @marcatracy, @seanrobinson1e4, @fenitn, @laurakeeney, @ctguild, @benbradleytv, @megreenwell, @scottshanenyt, @pwoodreporter, @marcatracy, @courantguild, @kbui1, @royalpratt, @dicktofel, @w_katz1, @kdoctor, @robillard, MediaPost and The Wrap
Frank Pallotta / CNN:
Inside Universal's decision to debut Trolls World Tour online on the same day it opened in theaters, which may have changed the movie business forever — Delaying a Fast & Furious movie is no easy feat. — For starters, it involves finding a new release date for a film with a $250 million production budget.
Discussion:
@frankpallotta