Mediagazer: Sports-focused FuboTV, which went public in October, reports 548K subscribers at Q4 end, up 73% YoY, and net loss for 2020 of $570.5M, compared to $35M in 2019 (Todd Spangler/Variety)

12:25 AM ET, March 3, 2021

Top News:

Dustin Jones / NPR:

Six journalists in Myanmar including AP reporter Thein Zaw have been charged under a public order law for covering protests and could face three years in prison — At least eight journalists in Myanmar have been detained by authorities while covering protests against a coup that took place last month.

Discussion: Associated Press, The Wrap, Committee to Protect … and Voice of America

Dylan Byers / NBC News:

Fox News says former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany will join the network as a contributor — Former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany will officially join Fox News, the network announced Tuesday. — The news, which was announced by Fox News host Harris Faulkner …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Variety, Fox News, The Wrap, CNN, The Week, @brianstelter, The Atlanta Voice, UPROXX, @alexweprin, @yashar, Media Matters for America, @exavierpope, @billpascrell, @billkristol, Newser, Insider, TVNewser, Mediaite, nexttv.com and Hollywood Reporter

Democracy Fund:

Democracy Fund, which gives grants to support newsrooms and press freedom, commits to confront systemic racism and to expand support for marginalized groups — Independent journalism is an essential instrument of accountability and critical to the health of our republic.

Discussion: @democracyfund, @jcstearns, @lmariahtrusty, @thedas, @thensim0nsaid, @mollydeaguiar, @jsamditis, @gteresa, @gteresa, @froomkin, @hdbacklund, @sarahaudelo, @carlamurphy, @abbyik, @thedas, @ckrewson and American Press Institute

Emily Atkin / HEATED:

Q&A with Emily Holden, whose just-launched climate news organization, Floodlight, partners with local outlets to cover corporate influence on the climate agenda — A little over a year ago, a few months after I launched HEATED, I got invited to speak at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard.

Discussion: Floodlight, @akshatrathi, @sarahscire, @sarahkaplan48, @michellemanafy, @emilyhholden, @sarahkaplan48, @sammy_roth, @kerrymflynn, @scottdetrow, @stopmoneypipe, @raju, @emorwee and The Guardian

Elaine Low / Variety:

Disney CEO says the company will let consumer behavior guide its decisions on theatrical windowing and that 50%+ of the Disney+ subscribers don't have kids — Speaking at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecommunications Conference on Monday, Walt Disney Company chief exec Bob Chapek said he's …

Discussion: The Wrap, Axios, ScreenRant, The A.V. Club, Forbes, The Streamable, Too Much TV Newsletter, Ad Age, Reuters, @great_katzby, Observer, Deseret News, Quartz and MediaPost

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Sports-focused FuboTV, which went public in October, reports 548K subscribers at Q4 end, up 73% YoY, and net loss for 2020 of $570.5M, compared to $35M in 2019 — FuboTV grew its internet pay-TV subscriber rolls at a rapid clip last year — and it sustained heavy losses to get there.

Discussion: The Streamable, MediaPost, Deadline and Business Wire

Elahe Izadi / Washington Post:

Filipino distributors wouldn't air A Thousand Cuts, a documentary on press freedom, so PBS Frontline bought distribution rights and is offering it free online — On the evening before Valentine's Day in 2019, journalist Maria Ressa was arrested by the Philippine government and charged with “cyber-libel.”

Discussion: @elaheizadi, @priyankaboghani, @elaheizadi, @elaheizadi, @akbarth3great, @cleggthis, @elaheizadi, @frontlinepbs and @raneyaronson

Kerry Flynn / CNN:

Wired names Gideon Lichfield of MIT Technology Review as global editorial director, replacing Nicholas Thompson, recently appointed CEO of The Atlantic — New York (CNN Business)Wired, the preeminent tech magazine, has its new leader: Gideon Lichfield of MIT Technology Review is coming on as its global editorial director.

Jacob Lorinc / Toronto Star:

Major Canadian publisher Torstar is launching an online gambling site to fund its journalism, pending government approval — Torstar is entering the online gaming market. The corporation announced Monday it intends to launch an online casino betting brand in 2021 pending approval from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.

Discussion: Globe and Mail, The Guardian, @jenwsheehan, CBC News, NPR, @wearecanproud, @johnocap, @thetowncrier, @tommytomlinson, @jrhennessy, @gramiq, @harryslaststand, @goldsbie and @standingthegaff

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Sony says the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals on Aug. 31, citing users' preference for video streaming services — As of Aug. 31, 2021, the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals.

Discussion: PlayStation.Blog, Gematsu, Kotaku, Engadget, Fortune, ScreenRant, BetaNews, /Film, Gizmodo, @ajci282002, Polygon, CNET, The Verge and Media Play News, more at Techmeme »

Christopher Zara / Fast Company:

MoffettNathanson: cable and satellite TV companies shed 6M subscribing US households in 2020; penetration was around 60% of households vs. ~90% in 2010 — Crank up the Weezer and throw yourself a My So-Called Life watch party tonight, because the cable-TV industry just hit a totally retro milestone.

Discussion: @trumwill and MediaPost

Sophia June / The Daily Beast:

How four alt-weeklies, Cleveland Scene, Seven Days, The Stranger, and The Austin Chronicle, have been surviving the pandemic after it crippled events revenue — ‘A WAY FORWARD’ — One year ago, the consensus was that alt-weeklies faced certain extinction amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Discussion: Media Nation, @coreyhutchins, @thedailybeast, @sophianjune, @eddy_sarah and @shaboom

Tim Ingham / Music Business Worldwide:

Soundcloud to launch “fan-powered royalties” April 1; revenue from listeners' subscriptions or consumed ads is divided among artists they listen to, not pooled — This model sees streaming royalties paid out based on individual subscriber behavior - with a percentage …

Discussion: Variety, SoundCloud press releases, Engadget, @future_of_music, @opiumhum, @tankcrimes, @sharkyl, @tankcrimes, @ivorsacademy, @jetfury, TechCrunch and The Verge

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 12:25 AM ET, March 3, 2021.

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Who's Hiring in Media?

Output Producer, CA — AP

China Markets Correspondent, Shanghai — Reuters

Senior Assignment Editor, DC — WaPo

Breaking News Editor, Tokyo — Bloomberg

Senior Correspondent - Wealth, NY — WSJ

Reporter - Ottawa Bureau — Globe & Mail

Local Government Reporter, IA — The Gazette

Research Director, CA — OCBJ

Immigration Enforcement Reporter — Documented

Presque Island Reporter, ME — Bangor Daily News

Contributing Parks Ed. - SW, CA — SFGATE

AI Content Editor, WA — Outlier

Legislative Reporter, TN — Daily Memphian

Editorial Assistant, Remote US — Launch Potato

Elon Musk Reporter, NY or CA — The Information

Government & Politics Editor, WA — Seattle Times

Business & GA Reporter. VT — VTDigger

Sports Reporter, WA — Everett Herald

Energy Reporter, TX — Houston Chronicle

Senior Reporter, SC — Island Packet

Trade & Climate Correspondent, DC — FT

Reporter, WI — Racine County Eye

Political Newsletter Writer, CO — The Lever

Jackson Reporter, MS — Verite

Music Editor, AZ — Phoenix New Times

Breaking News Reporter, NV — Las Vegas Sun

Fearless Reporter/Producer, IA — BPC

Reporter II - Technology, Remote — NPR

Editor, Remote US — Daily Kos

City Reporter, WA — Tacoma News Tribune

Executive Editor, OR — Lookout Local

Education & Budget Reporter, CA — Politico

Senior Writer/Editor, FL — Gulfshore Business

Media Editor, Remote — Axios

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More News:

The Hindu:
India's new digital news media ethics rules give the government leverage via a cumbersome regulatory mechanism that could have a chilling effect on free speech

Discussion: @yusufdfi, @nramind, @rasmus_kleis, @rasmus_kleis, @1br0wn, @nambath, @rkradhakrishn, @happymonjacob and @jeffjarvis

Josef Adalian / Vulture:
Nielsen: Golden Globes drew an average audience of just 6.9M people this year, compared to 18.3M in 2020

Discussion: @megjameslat, The Atlantic, @tvmojoe, @thewendyburch, theplaylist.net, The Week, Axios, @blackamazon, @mattbelloni and Vanity Fair

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
eMarketer: Spotify is on track to reach US monthly podcast listenership of 28.2M by the end of this year and surpass Apple's Podcasts for the first time

Discussion: @ashleyrcarman, MacRumors, @blackamazon, 9to5Mac and eMarketer, more at Techmeme »

Lindsey Ellefson / The Wrap:
BBC apologizes and says it fell for a “deliberate hoax” after broadcasting a radio interview with a man claiming to be Sen. Cory Booker last week

Discussion: Breitbart, @psawers, @dav_and_a_doge, @brianstelter, @amywilson, The Hill and Fox News

Naman Ramachandran / Variety:
Amazon Prime Video apologizes for its Indian original series Tandav, some parts of which offended Hindu nationalists, as India sets a strict content code

Discussion: The Wrap

Harry McCracken / Fast Company:
Flipboard expands its local news coverage to more than 1,000 cities and towns in the US and Canada

Discussion: TechCrunch, @kerrymflynn and Adweek, more at Techmeme »

Archie Bland / The Guardian:
BBC says youth-oriented channel BBC Three will return as a broadcast channel in January 2022, five years after it was taken online-only

Discussion: Variety, @martinsfp, @markmdownie, @raymondsnoddy, @adamadzp, @furquan, @archiebland, @greg_jenner, Forbes, Broadband TV News, The Wrap and Hollywood Reporter

Washington Post:
Reporters Without Borders files criminal complaint in Germany against MbS and top aides alleging crimes against humanity for the killing of Jamal Khashoggi

Discussion: @ninaburleigh, Voice of America, CNN, The Hill, Al Jazeera, Axios and The Guardian

Earlier Picks:

Reuters:
A BBC reporter and two translators working with journalists from the FT and AFP have been detained in Ethiopia, according to their employers

Discussion: Voice of America, Al Jazeera, Committee to Protect … and Financial Times

Jemele Hill / The Atlantic:
Major sporting events experienced significant falls in ratings in 2020, with the NBA Finals down 51% YoY, the NHL Finals down 61% YoY, and US Open down 45% YoY

Discussion: Insider, @escrimshaw, @ericaisbusy, @andygrewal, @thekendallbaker, @janesports, @nxthompson, @jamilsmith and @jemelehill

Marc Tracy / New York Times:
Profile of Democracy, a 15-year-old quarterly with 500 subscribers that incubated many of Biden team's policy ideas, publishing essays by six Cabinet officials

Discussion: Politico, @billkristol, @uchicagolaw, @mollyjongfast, @rafat, @michaelpollan, @karenkornbluh, @tomperriello and @ddiamond

Alex Sherman / CNBC:
Altice USA CEO says cable TV providers shouldn't be held accountable for misinfo on networks like Fox News, and cable TV will die as OTT platforms get better

Discussion: @sherman4949, @mattrosoff, @cnbc, Light Reading, @richlightshed, Forbes, @richlightshed, @sherman4949 and @sherman4949

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
Fox News allowed host Pete Hegseth and contributor Dan Bongino to address CPAC this week, after it banned its hosts from speaking at partisan events last year

Discussion: @rightwingwatch, @jmartnyt, @thedailybeast, @b52malmet, The Daily Beast, Fox News and Mediaite

Brian Stelter / CNN:
Sources: George Stephanopoulos and David Muir to split leading breaking news at ABC News, after tensions over “chief anchor” title, which will no longer be used

Discussion: The Wrap, @brianstelter, @brianstelter, @benyt, TVNewser, Variety, @tvmojoe, @krolljvar, @jbarro, @hshaban, @thebenbergman, @bobbierman, @bryancurtis, @hshaban, @realjoeypoirier, @jbflint and @oliverdarcy

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Roku says it's acquiring Nielsen's Advanced Video Advertising business, positioning itself to offer a fully addressable advertising solution for TV programmers

Discussion: The Drum, Digital TV Europe, Ad Age, @xpangler, @xpangler, Broadband TV News, Adweek, Axios, Beet.TV, The Verge, AdExchanger, The Wrap, MediaPost, Radio & Television …, Cord Cutters News and Media Play News

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Instagram launches Live Rooms for live broadcasts with up to four creators, up from two, and says it will roll out new audio features in coming months

From Techmeme:

Wall Street Journal:
Gina Raimondo says holding back China in the chips race is a “fool's errand”, and investment, more than export controls, will keep US ahead of Beijing

Timothy B. Lee / Ars Technica:
Exploring the scaling challenges of transformer-based LLMs in efficiently processing large amounts of text, as well as potential solutions, such as RAG systems

Reuters:
Albania bans TikTok for a year from January 2025, part of a broader plan to make schools safer following the killing of a 14-year-old near a school in November

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