Top News:
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Vox Media is buying Hot Pod to make it The Verge's first paid subscription product; Ashley Carman will replace Nick Quah, who launched the podcasting newsletter — Vox Media is acquiring Hot Pod, the independent news outlet focused on the podcasting industry, as part of a bid to expand offerings from its technology site, The Verge.
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, @markstenberg3, @bristei, New York Magazine, Hot Pod News, @nwquah, @ashleyrcarman, @austin_rief, Axios, @nwquah, RAIN News, @xpangler, @jamescridland, @ashleyrcarman, @reckless, @caleweissman and @lucas_shaw
Amanda Meade / The Guardian:
At a Senate hearing, Sky News Australia CEO says it “self-censored” 18 videos about COVID-19 to avoid a permanent YouTube ban, denies broadcasting Covid misinfo — CEO Paul Whittaker also tells media diversity inquiry Sky News Australia does not deny climate change, and accepts it is happening
Discussion:
New York Times, Sydney Morning Herald, Media Matters for America, Insider, Vanity Fair, @ketanj0, @michaelemann, @wendy_harmer, @lesstonehouse, @jayrosen_nyu, @nytmedia, @turnbullmalcolm, @pt, @jftaveira1993, @mikecarlton01, @markdistef, @murpharoo, @davidfolkenflik, @zerowastechef, @natecochrane, @mrkrudd, @rmac18, @rasmus_kleis, @jayrosen_nyu, @edmundlee, @dana1981, @damiencave, @mikecarlton01, @summersanne, @stephenjonesmp, @danawollman, @leohickman, SBS News, Brisbane Times, Sky News Australia and Mumbrella
Tom Ley / Defector:
One year in, Defector has 40K+ paying subscribers, 23 full-time employees, and about $3.2M in revenue, roughly 95% of which comes from subscribers — This week marks one year since the lights here at Defector flickered on and we began publishing blogs. The question that you were probably asking during …
Ben Smith / New York Times:
As Gawker reboots, with its former features editor Leah Finnegan at the helm, it promises to no longer seek out articles that are “sanctimonious” or “cruel” — “I'm not interested in ruining people's lives,” says its top editor, Leah Finnegan, who once insulted a baby in a headline.
Discussion:
@dankennedy_nu, @imjasondiamond, @benyt, @juwanthewriter, @leahfinnegan, Conquest of the Useless, @jmrivera02, @jswatz, @film_girl, @bananapeele, @ourand_sbj, @kebrightbill, @bradesposito, @nwalks, @seamushughes, @ranjanxroy, @espiers, @nytimes, @joshuatopolsky, @leahfinnegan, @tripgabriel and @jamesrbuk
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Hulu is raising the prices of its two on-demand plans by $1/month on October 8; Hulu with ads will now cost $6.99/month and Hulu without ads will cost $12.99 — On Tuesday, Hulu began notifying subscribers that as of Oct. 8, the price of Hulu's two on-demand plans — with ads and without commercials …
Discussion:
Ad Age, SlashFilm, MediaPost, Insider, Hollywood Reporter, TechCrunch, The Wrap, The Streamable, CNBC, The Desk, 9to5Mac, Decider, FierceVideo, @alneuhauser and Cord Cutters News, more at Techmeme »
Kate Kaye / Digiday:
Salon turns off comments after finding less than 0.5% of its ~10M MAUs used them, and says its newsletter open rate rose from 16% to 32% over the last 6 months — It was especially notable when one post this week on Salon, the site named after the practice of gathering for intellectual discussion, had no comments.
Discussion:
Salon, @katekayereports and @kimekom
Lorenzo Reyes / USA Today:
Gannett launches USA Today Sports+, a digital subscription product with reporting, interactive features, and sports betting content, in seven markets — Gannett Co., the parent company of USA TODAY, announced the launch of USA TODAY Sports+, a new, premium digital subscription product …
Discussion:
The Hill, The Wrap, @osaliciad, Editor and Publisher, @gannett, @elgazzarblvd, @golfweek, @chrismsutcliffe, @injuryexpert, @usatodaysports and @raysototech
Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
Fran Unsworth, BBC veteran and director of news since 2018, will leave amid worsening relations with the government and internal fights over a staff reorg — Exit likely to set off competitive and politicised recruitment process to find replacement at corporation
Discussion:
Variety, The Guardian, @jimwaterson, @dafydd_62, @shivanidave, The Independent, BBC, Press Gazette, @ian_fraser, @sophiasgaler, BBC, Guido Fawkes, @stewartcadman, @cden128, @dannyshawnews, @nick_miles_, @jimwaterson and City A.M.
ProPublica:
WhatsApp data helped prosecutors build a case against whistleblower May Edwards that cited hundreds of “encrypted” messages between her and a BuzzFeed reporter — When Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a new “privacy-focused vision” for Facebook in March 2019, he cited the company's global messaging service, WhatsApp, as a model.
Discussion:
@janelytv, Gizmodo, New York Post, @brendannyhan, @knowtheory, @evacide, Insider, @davidfolkenflik, @danielschuman, @rmac18, @tomgara, @propublica and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »
New York Times:
Comscore data shows North American theaters sold about $2.2B in tickets so far in 2021, compared with $7.8B for the same period in 2019 — With box office numbers way down in the pandemic and streaming numbers hard to come by, the film industry is often unable to determine whether a movie is a hit or a miss.
Discussion:
@nytimesbusiness, @hamrahrama, The A.V. Club, @johannadc, @ennisnyt, @michellemanafy and @goldman
Douglas Busvine / Reuters:
Roku is launching its streaming devices in Germany, its second big European rollout after the UK, where it was a software partner to smart TV maker Hisense — BERLIN, Sept 6 (Reuters) - (This Sept. 6 story corrects final paragraph on UK pricing of Roku player)
Discussion:
Digital TV Europe and Light Reading
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Microsoft launches Microsoft Start, a personalized news product via MicrosoftStart.com, Windows integrations, new mobile apps, and its Edge browser new tab page — Microsoft today is introducing its own personalized news reading experience called Microsoft Start, available as both a website and mobile app …
Discussion:
ZDNet, Windows Experience Blog, PCWorld, @davidclinchnews and The Verge, more at Techmeme »