Top News:
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Stewart Bainum and Hansjörg Wyss say they can personally contribute $600M+ total toward their $680M bid, up from $200M, as Alden's bid loses favor — Tribune likely to deem new bid superior to agreement with Alden, according to sources — A Maryland hotel magnate …
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, Axios, Tribune Publishing Company, @royalpratt, Columbia Journalism Review, @blairkamin, Poynter, @mattgertz, @kerrymflynn, @robpegoraro, @jbenton, @kerrymflynn, Vanity Fair, @jimfriedlich, @sarah_m_wojcik, @ckrewson, @margotroosevelt, @niemanlab, American Press Institute, New York Post, The Week, @jayrosen_nyu, @tomwarren, @ourmaninchicago, @nestruck, @ryanhanrahan, @noah__goldberg, @samontv, @brynstole, @wsj, Media Nation, @harrysiegel, @petersagal, @jessbravin, @benmullin, @anthony, @cararlombardo, @hotlinejosh, @brianstelter, @jbenton, @lalpert1, Chicago Sun-Times and Robert Feder
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Katie Robertson / New York Times:
Tribune says it has begun discussions about a sale to Bainum and Wyss' company Newslight, but won't terminate the Alden merger agreement for now — Two months after agreeing to sell itself to Alden Global Capital, a New York hedge fund, the company behind The Chicago Tribune and The Baltimore Sun may shift course.
Washington Post:
How a campaign by reporters in Baltimore inspired a national effort to keep nearly a dozen Tribune newspapers from being bought by Alden Global Capital — Last year, as a group of Baltimore Sun reporters embarked on long-shot endeavor to find a new owner that could save their paper …
Discussion:
Media Nation, @lillianereed, @jayrosen_nyu, @baltsunguild, @pwoodreporter, @bgrueskin, @sulliview, @elaheizadi, @elaheizadi, @ssdance, @larryryckman and @jonmurray
Shawna Chen / Axios:
SCOTUS vacates a lower court ruling that Trump's Twitter blocks violate the First Amendment — The Supreme Court vacated a lower court ruling that found former President Trump violated the First Amendment by blocking followers on Twitter, ordering the case to be dismissed as moot now that he is no longer in office.
Discussion:
@mjs_dc, Supreme Court of the United States, The Wrap, @mjs_dc, NPR, @mjs_dc, @mjs_dc, Protocol, Slate, CNBC, @mmasnick, Politico, Variety, Reason, TechCrunch, MediaPost, @randyebarnett, New York Post, Law & Crime, @sodangfancy100, AppleInsider, Hollywood Reporter, Insider, KEYT-TV and New York Times, more at Techmeme »
Brandy Zadrozny / NBC News:
A look at The News Alerts of Beaver County, a 43,000-member Facebook Group in PA that fills the local news void but often hosts exaggerations and falsehoods — The day after Thanksgiving 2019, residents of Chippewa Township, Pennsylvania, watched from their windows as state …
Discussion:
@brandyzadrozny, @oneunderscore__, @katyturnbc, @howardfineman, @jayrosen_nyu, @ddale8, @mattgalkafox10, @maurabarrettnbc, @emilybell, @northsidechad, @ryanjreilly, @timothyjgraham, @anthonyblsmith, @robtornoe, @oneunderscore__, @matthewkeyslive, @nicdawes, @fredbenenson, @firstdraftnews, @mrdanzak, @jason_kint, @kerrymflynn, @michaeldtubbs, @lukeobrien, @anton612, @clearing_fog, @loganjaffe, @mike_hixenbaugh, Gav's Newsletter, @blackamazon, @kerrymflynn and Substack, more at Techmeme »
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Audible hires Zola Mashariki, former senior exec at Fox Searchlight and BET, to oversee original content as the new head of Audible Studios — Zola Mashariki, former senior exec at Fox Searchlight and BET, is the new head of Audible Studios. — In the role at the Amazon-owned audio content platform …
Discussion:
The Wrap, @lucas_shaw, Hollywood Reporter and Publishers Weekly
Jill Goldsmith / Deadline:
ViacomCBS Networks International to acquire Chilevisión from WarnerMedia, expanding its Latin America footprint and Spanish content library — ViacomCBS Networks International has agreed to acquire Chilevisión from AT&T's WarnerMedia for an undisclosed sum, expanding its footprint in Latin America.
Discussion:
Variety, The Desk, Digital TV Europe, Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, C21Media, FierceVideo and nexttv.com
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
As the pandemic drags on, new shows are harder to come by for streaming services; report: the number of originals Netflix released so far in '21 is down 12% YoY — Streaming Services Have Finally Run Out of New Shows. Kind of. — Every couple weeks during the pandemic …
Discussion:
@raju, @patrickvons, @lucas_shaw, Insider, @lucas_shaw, The Streamable and ScreenRant, more at Techmeme »
Katie Robertson / New York Times:
NYT names Jim Dao, a deputy editor on the national desk, as its new Metro editor; Dao has worked in a wide range of roles at the paper since 1992 — A veteran of the paper is appointed to lead its local coverage as candidates line up to succeed Mayor Bill de Blasio, and New York City looks beyond the pandemic.
Discussion:
@jswatz, @cliffordlevy, @alexanderrusso, @palafo, @cliffordlevy, @froomkin, @scottdodd, @perezpena and The New York Times Company
Sarah Ellison / Washington Post:
How Condé Nast's rushed push for diversity, alongside Anna Wintour's hazy understanding of Teen Vogue, left its staff blindsided after the McCammond hiring mess — From the start, Alexi McCammond seemed an unlikely candidate to become a top boss within the storied Vogue empire — at least on paper.
Discussion:
@sarahellison, @raju, @ursulaperano, @notdanhastings, @hctrudo, @adamgreen, @thelilynews, @zoddies, Poynter, @jbarro, @sulliview and @ericmgarcia, Thanks:@heidilegg
Ben Smith / New York Times:
Profile of Viet Dinh, Fox's chief legal officer, who has been seen internally as the company's power center since before Lachlan Murdoch moved to Australia — Even before the company's C.E.O., Lachlan Murdoch, moved to Australia, Viet Dinh was seen as Fox's power center.
Discussion:
@jameeljaffer, @dylanbyers, @miketatarski, @rmac18, @avtrask, @jacketpotato, @jeremymbarr and Mediaite
Josh Marshall / The Atlantic:
Many digital news outlets are just not financially viable, and those that sought scale lost to platforms; survivors nurture durable ties to specific customers — On March 9, management at HuffPost notified 47 employees that they were being laid off as part of a cost-cutting effort following …