Top News:
Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
Sources: NYT told Lauren Wolfe, who had a temporary position, that her name and NYT's name were in headlines after her “chills” tweet, and “we can't have that” — The paper of record's treatment of a freelance editor getting “chills” on Twitter drew accusations …
Discussion:
Washington Post, @wolfe321, @joepompeo, @yashar, The Hill, @jshahryar, @miriamelder, The Guardian, @weareyourfek, Vox, @mikeloukides, @b52malmet, @fawfulfan, @arusbridger, Today in Tabs, @kendrawrites, @jeremyhobson, @joshgerstein, @miriamelder, @jayrosen_nyu, @tvietor08, @markhalperin, @mlcalderone, @meredthsalenger, @brianstelter and @froomkin
Lukas I. Alpert / Wall Street Journal:
Insider Inc. says it was profitable in 2020 and added 200 jobs as revenue grew 30% YoY; sources: it generated $150M+ in revenue as subscribers doubled to 100K+ — Business-news site generated 30% revenue growth in 2020 despite Covid-19 crisis thanks to subscriptions, automated ads
Joe Flint / Wall Street Journal:
NBC's Peacock signs a deal for exclusive streaming rights for WWE Network content in the US from March; source says the deal runs five years and is worth $1B+ — World Wrestling Entertainment content will move to Peacock starting March 18 in deal worth more than $1 billion
Discussion:
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Margit Wennmachers / Andreessen Horowitz:
a16z plans to launch a “new and separate media property” later this year focused on “the future” and names ex-CNN editor Maggie Leung executive editor — We embraced speaking directly to our audience — from the builders of the future to the tech-curious — right as the firm was started in 2009.
Discussion:
Business Insider, @smc90, @panzer, @wennmachers, Bloomberg, @panzer, @kantrowitz, @asalyers3, @chaykak, @ricmac, @a16z, @julesyoo, @jessicalessin, @cityofthetown, @naithanjones, @saschasegan, @jessicalessin, @thekenyeung, @andrewchen, @bhorowitz, @vijaypande, @taylorlorenz, @obrien, @panzer, @sarthakgh and Talking Biz News, more at Techmeme »
Archie Bland / The Guardian:
Forbes drops plans for a trip to Bermuda for 75 people on its “30 under 30” list, meant to provide an escape from pandemic “gloom”, after facing criticism — Invitation for people on magazine's ‘30 under 30’ list is dropped hours after Guardian inquiry
Katie Robertson / New York Times:
Rupert Murdoch says free speech is being suppressed by an “awful woke orthodoxy” and says he is “far from done” — Mr. Murdoch of News Corp, who spoke in a video, has been relatively quiet publicly in recent years. He called conformity on social media “a straitjacket on sensibility.”
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, Mediaite, Vanity Fair, The Hill, Rolling Stone, @dylanbyers, @caslernoel, @edmundlee, @mattgertz, @peterjukes, @benyt, @scout_finch, @billbarnwell, @oliverdarcy, @markberman, @slpng_giants, @safimichael, @dylanbyers, @lukeoneil47, @mariskreizman, @mattgertz, @jasonhirschhorn, @richardhanania, @parkermolloy, @katie_robertson, @rschooley and @edmundlee
Russell Contreras / Axios:
Ex-CNN exec S. Mitra Kalita and PA radio exec Sara Lomax-Reese launch URL Media, a newsletter seeking to expand local news on Black and brown communities — Former CNN executive S. Mitra Kalita and Philadelphia radio executive Sara Lomax-Reese have launched a newsletter seeking to expand local news …
Discussion:
@mitrakalita, @russcontreras, @gregabedard, @dawnc331, @ampalm, @ccmnewmarkj, @eramshaw, @sashak, @schmalie, @elizatalks, @rosental, @cande313, @raju, @amlwhere and @kainazamaria
Alexander Gladstone / Wall Street Journal:
AMC Entertainment says it signed deals for $917M in funding to survive the COVID-19 pandemic for months and avoid bankruptcy — World's largest movie theater chain buys time with debt and equity deals as it continues to burn cash during the Covid-19 pandemic
Discussion:
Variety, Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, Business Wire, The A.V. Club, /Film, @nicsperling, Bloomberg, The Playlist, @richlightshed, @mjsamps, @firstshowing, The Week, The Wrap and Business Insider
Robert P. Baird / Columbia Journalism Review:
An in-depth look at Laurene Powell Jobs' Emerson Collective, which a source says has spent $250M on journalism, buying stakes in The Atlantic, Axios, and others — With the Emerson Collective, Laurene Powell Jobs is becoming a force in American media. What is she trying to achieve?
Discussion:
@cjr, @jackshafer, @zunguzungu, @cjr, @_meher, @teddyschleifer, @pennyriordan1, @raju and @mathewi
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Facebook News launches in the UK, partners with Axel Springer and Samsung owned Upday for curation; announces new partnerships and payments for some publishers — As the United Kingdom prepares to sharpen its focus on how it regulates big tech companies, Facebook is taking a big step …
Discussion:
Telegraph, The Guardian, inews.co.uk, The Verge, HoldtheFrontPage, Behind Local News UK, About Facebook and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Issie Lapowsky / Protocol:
Facebook says it will give researchers targeting data on 1.3M social issue, electoral, and political ads from August 3 through November 3, 2020 — Facebook announced the news in a blog post Monday, following years of requests from academics. Until now, Facebook has only publicly shared data …
Alex Sherman / CNBC:
Sources: Group Nine's SPAC is eyeing ~20 targets, including BuzzFeed with its ~$300M in annual revenue, for an acquisition, as it wants $500M+ in annual revenue — - Bustle Digital Group, Vice Media, Vox Media, Group Nine and Buzzfeed have had recent talks about going public via a SPAC …
Discussion:
Forbes, @sherman4949, @sherman4949, @megancgraham, @sherman4949 and @sherman4949