Top News:


Jeff Zucker tells employees that CNN Airport Network will shut down on March 31; he blames the rise in mobile video and declines in air passenger traffic — CNN Airport Network — the service that beamed the cable news channel's content into terminal waiting areas throughout the country — is shutting down on Mar. 31.


A look at potential damage from a successful Alden Global Capital bid for Tribune Publishing, and how civic-minded local investors could offer alternatives — Largely lost in the extraordinary national news of the new year is a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that could have an outsized impact on local news.
Discussion:
@chinewsguild, @region_rant, @imleor, @emilybell, @chinewsguild, @tzmorsy, @therealjimrich, @lenfestinst, @cforman, @lalpert1, @rumormill, @courantguild, @cjr, @kenherts and @mcallguild


A look at Spotify's push into podcasting as it seeks profitability: ~2M podcasts are available, up from 2,500 in 2017, and 20% of its users listen to podcasts — When Spotify went public in April 2018, Daniel Ek had been struggling with this question for more than a decade: How would the company make money?
Discussion:
@nicktheandersen, @juliastmi, @abbieruzicka and @lucas_shaw


In reply to a group of public radio stations who aired Caliphate, the NYT acknowledged errors in how it rolled out the retraction of key episodes of the podcast — On Tuesday, the New York Times acknowledged errors in how it rolled out the retraction of key episodes in its 2018 “Caliphate” podcast series.
Discussion:
@wajahatali, @paigepfleger, @pwthornton, @ajmacadam, @jeremymbarr, @erikwemple and @erikwemple
RELATED:

Public radio stations have sent a protest to NYT after the collapse of Caliphate, citing Michael Barbaro's behavior and presence of Andy Mills
Discussion:
CNN, Poynter, The New York Times Company, @erikwemple, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, New York Post, @weinbergrrrrr, @mcguffindavid, @annamerlan, @nicktheandersen, @nwquah, @mc_of_a, @nhpr, @oberandout, @jolentag, New York Times, @diaahadid, @raju, Mediaite, @chsommers, @tylerkingkade, @elizabeth_calo, @erikwemple, @ashleyfeinberg, @davidfolkenflik, @paigepfleger, @loisbeckett, @davidfolkenflik, @willmenaker, @seejanemarie, @bgrueskin, @erikwemple, @davidfolkenflik, @mattlargey, @elizabeth_calo, @davidfolkenflik, @eliztrovall, @erikwemple, Hot Pod News, bookforum.com and @davidfolkenflik


Survey of 9,220 US adults: 53% get news from social media at least sometimes; 36% regularly get news from Facebook, 23% from YouTube, 15% from Twitter — Facebook stands out as a regular source of news for about a third of Americans … As social media companies struggle to deal …
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, @pewresearch, @pewresearch, @mikeelgan, @pressgazette, TechCrunch, Adweek and MediaPost, more at Techmeme »


Sir David Barclay, owner of the Telegraph Media Group with his twin brother Sir Frederick, has died at 86 — One friend recalled that he was ‘able to read the economic tea-leaves like few people of his generation’ — Sir David Barclay, who has died unexpectedly after a short illness aged 86 …
Discussion:
The Guardian, @benfenton, @peterhoskinstv, @mattandersonnyt, @janemartinson, @janemartinson and New York Post


Facebook updates priorities for news articles in News Feed, saying articles that do not contain new original reporting or analysis will get less distribution — Update on January 12, 2021 at 10:00AM PT: News articles that do not contain new original reporting or analysis will now receive less distribution in News Feed.
Discussion:
@campbell_brown, @parkermolloy, @kantrowitz, @campbell_brown, @chanman, @campbell_brown, @campbell_brown, @froomkin, @campbell_brown and @froomkin


An “exit interview” with Aaron Williams, who worked his way up to being a graphics and data reporter at WaPo and then left journalism to join Netflix — “There's a reason why when you think about what a ‘data journalist’ looks like, you don't think of someone who looks like me."
Discussion:
@source, @albertocairo, @sarahkaplan48, @terabithia4, @atmccann, @macloo, @terabithia4, @ajvicens, @becca_aa, @terabithia4, @shmcminn, @choire, @hermanywong, @meghanhoyer, @craftworksxyz, @markberman, @terabithia4, @vigneshr, @tylrfishr, @rdmurphy, @source and @markberman


Disney and MPA join Comcast and AT&T in suspending donations to members of Congress who voted not to certify the presidential election results — The Motion Picture Association and Disney have joined the ranks of companies refusing to donate to members of Congress who voted not to certify the presidential election results.
Discussion:
Variety and Popular Information


Amazon launches a mobile-only Prime Video plan in India starting at Rs. 89, or ~$1.3, per month — Amazon is doubling down on one of the biggest strengths of Prime Video streaming service: Aggressive pricing. — The e-commerce giant on Wednesday launched Prime Video Mobile Edition …
Discussion:
Variety, The Economic Times, Engadget and XDA Developers, more at Techmeme »


Google admits it is running “experiments”, each reaching about 1% of search users in Australia, which remove some media sites from its search results — The tech giant says it is ‘running a few experiments that will each reach about 1% of Google Search users in Australia’
Discussion:
Australian Financial Review and The Keyword


TikTok makes accounts of users aged 13 to 15 private by default, limiting who can comment on the videos and how other users can download or remix their videos — TikTok is introducing a new set of “enhanced” privacy settings that restricts certain features for younger teens and changes …
Discussion:
Fast Company, TikTok, Associated Press, 9to5Mac and The Verge


Nielsen releases lists of 2020's most popular streaming content in the US, based on minutes watched: Netflix dominates TV series and Disney+ does well in movies — Because streaming services only release viewership numbers selectively, and because each one uses its own methodology …
Discussion:
nielsen.com, Los Angeles Times, Variety, /Film, Forbes, The Wrap, Adweek, Business Insider and MediaPost