Mediagazer: A look at the work of Tallahassee Democrat reporter CD Davidson-Hiers, who became a one-woman help desk for seniors trying to get the COVID-19 vaccine (Kristen Hare/Poynter)

5:05 PM ET, January 6, 2021

Top News:

Kristen Hare / Poynter:

A look at the work of Tallahassee Democrat reporter CD Davidson-Hiers, who became a one-woman help desk for seniors trying to get the COVID-19 vaccine — A Tallahassee Democrat journalist told seniors to reach out if they needed help signing up for COVID-19 vaccines, and boy did they

Discussion: @kathrynvarn, @kristenhare, @willoremus, @ylichterman, @marklittlenews, Tampa Bay Times, WFTV and New York Post

Julia Alexander / The Verge:

Peacock's signup page breaks down tiers according to the degree of access to The Office, as annoyed users complain of ads in the Premium Plus tier — Just buy the box set — Chances are if you're looking into signing up for Peacock ("Ugh, another streaming service!") …

Discussion: @itsretronemo, @loudmouthjulia, @freakinglogan, @waltmossberg, @mancewarner, @parismartineau, @hanaatameez, @bergmayer, @dgoforth918, @betterwithbears, @tvaziri, @filmfatale_nyc, @waltmossberg and @sherman4949

Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:

Reuters EIC Stephen J. Adler announces that he will retire in April 2021, after ten years at the head of the newsroom — Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen J. Adler announced Wednesday that he will retire in April 2021, after ten years at the head of the award-winning global newsroom.

Discussion: Reuters, The Wrap, @stephenjadler, Mediaite, MediaPost, Thomson Reuters, @kathleencarrll, @zenjournalist, @williamsjon, @craignewmark, @brianstelter, @rasmus_kleis, @andysullivan, @wadenyc, @tglocer and @iron_emu, Thanks:@talkingbiznews

Manori Ravindran / Variety:

Comcast appoints Dana Strong to succeed Jeremy Darroch as CEO of Sky Group; Strong was previously president and COO of UK's Virgin Media — Comcast Cable executive Dana Strong is set to succeed Jeremy Darroch as CEO of Sky Group in what is a major restructure at the European pay-TV operator.

Discussion: C21Media, @claireatki, nexttv.com, Digital TV Europe, Advanced Television, The Desk, Broadband TV News, Financial Times, FierceVideo, Hollywood Reporter, The Wrap and Reuters

Dave Sebastian / Wall Street Journal:

Wyndham Destinations, which runs resorts, buys Travel + Leisure from Meredith for $100M; Meredith will continue publishing the magazine under a licensing deal — Meredith to continue publishing Travel + Leisure under licensing agreement; Wyndham to rebrand itself

Discussion: MediaPost, Ad Age, @rafat, Skift, The Media Nut, New York Post, @depsebastian, @ashkan, @wyndestinations, @lowrytom, Moderns Comms, @byerussell, @blackamazon, Context is King, @wanderlust13 and @bmorrissey, Thanks:@ashkan

Dade Hayes / Deadline:

NBCU Ad Chief Linda Yaccarino named chair of the Ad Council's board of directors, succeeding David Fischer, chief revenue officer of Facebook — Linda Yaccarino, NBCUniversal's chairman of global advertising and partnerships, has been named chair of the Ad Council's board of directors.

Discussion: Ad Age, The Drum, @lisaesherman, @adcouncil, Adweek and MediaPost

Michael Schaffer / Washingtonian:

Newsrooms wrestle with what to call crowds that stormed the US Capitol, with WaPo Editor Marty Baron choosing “mob”, and WAMU choosing “insurrectionists” — The question of what to call people engaged in angry protests has been a recurring theme in media this year.

Discussion: @johnmyers, @bsam2424, @leojtravis10 and @abeaujon

Ashley Carman / The Verge:

Amazon marked some free podcasts as $8.95 with a discount for Audible subscribers as part of a “limited deal”; pricing disappeared after asking for comment — Trying to sell those Audible subscriptions — Charlie Harding, the host of the podcast Switched On Pop …

Discussion: @bzamayo, @ashleyrcarman, @ronmknox, @nwquah and @backlon

Naman Ramachandran / Variety:

Discovery partners with VOD company Starzplay to launch Discovery Plus in 18 countries and territories across the Middle East and North Africa — Discovery has struck a strategic partnership with VOD player Starzplay to launch streamer Discovery Plus in 18 countries and territories across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

Mark Kleinman / Sky News:

Sources: UK to announce former Goldman Sachs banker Richard Sharp as the next BBC chairman — Richard Sharp is to be named as Sir David Clementi's successor at the BBC as soon as Thursday, Sky News learns. — City editor @MarkKleinmanSky — Created with Sketch.

Discussion: BBC, New York Times, Reuters, @markkleinmansky, Broadband TV News, Press Gazette, The Guardian, Variety and @raju

Press Gazette:

UK's GB News raises new funding from investors including Dubai-based Legatum, says it will hire 120 journalists; sources: the channel raised £60M in this round — Bosses of news channel GB News have confirmed two new backers for its 24-hour TV and online service set to launch …

Discussion: @jamesefoster, @shahmiruk, @edmundheaphy, @ian_fraser, @acgrayling, @alixwiltonregan, @pressgazette, @bakerstherald, @emmakennedy, @sturdyalex, @marcusbrig, @joncstone, @greenslader and @peterjukes

Apple:

Apple says Books now has over 90M MAUs — As the world navigated an ever-changing new normal of virtual learning, grocery deliveries, and drive-by birthday celebrations, customers relied on Apple services in new ways, turning to expertly curated apps, news, music, podcasts, TV shows, movies …

Discussion: TechCrunch, CNBC, Bloomberg and MacRumors, more at Techmeme »

Corin Faife / The Markup:

Study of 58 Facebook users' feeds in Georgia found partisan content elbowed out traditional news sites after Facebook reversed its political ad ban — Ahead of crucial senate runoffs, Facebook reversed its political ad ban, and the impact was visible on users' feeds

Sara Fischer / Axios:
Facebook says it will resume its political ad ban in Georgia after the polls close in the Georgia runoff elections

Discussion: Politico, Media Matters for America, Mediaite, @benjancewicz, Wall Street Journal, Variety, Gizmodo and TechCrunch

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Alex Weprin / Hollywood Reporter:
C-SPAN says Steve Scully, the host placed on leave for “Twitter-related controversies” ahead of the second presidential debate, will return to work this week

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Reuters:
BBC says it will broadcast its biggest education offering ever, with many hours of programming for primary and secondary students, amid new pandemic lockdowns

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Khanh Vu / Reuters:
Vietnam court sentences two freelance journalists to 11 years and one to 15 years after finding them guilty of spreading anti-state propaganda

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