Mediagazer: Marshall Project founder Neil Barsky is stepping down as board chair but will remain an adviser to the organization; Liz Simons will be the new board chair (The Marshall Project)

7:50 PM ET, October 7, 2021

Top News:

CNBC:

Ozy received $5.7M in PPP loans, most of which was specifically earmarked for payroll, but former employees whose pay was cut say they didn't see the money — - Ozy Media, which is under fire after several reports detailed questionable business practices at the company, took two separate PPP loans for a total of $5.7 million.

Discussion: New York Times, Fortune, Financial Times, The Week, @michael_calia, @eugenesrobinson, @sherman4949, The Root, @stevekovach, @sherman4949, @craigsilverman, @schwartzbcnbc, @niemanlab and @nymag

Dan Primack / Axios:

Sources: Ozy solicited investors this year by claiming GV, formerly Google Ventures, was going to lead a new funding round, though no such offer was made — Ozy Media might have a securities fraud situation that has nothing to do with its infamous conference call.

Discussion: @bmorrissey, @joshtpm, Fortune, @joshtpm, @kerrymflynn, @danprimack, @tombevanrcp, @joshtpm, @alexweprin, @danprimack and @lachlan

Sara Fischer / Axios:

Google and YouTube say they will prohibit ads and monetization on content that denies climate change, starting next month — Google and YouTube on Thursday announced a new policy that prohibits climate deniers from being able to monetize their content on its platforms via ads or creator payments.

The Marshall Project:

Marshall Project founder Neil Barsky is stepping down as board chair but will remain an adviser to the organization; Liz Simons will be the new board chair — Neil Barsky, founder of The Marshall Project, is stepping down as the organization's board chair after seven years.

Discussion: New York Times, The Hill, @marshallproj, @marshallproj, @sulliview, @marshallproj, @jbenton and @marclacey

Megan Brenan / Gallup:

Survey: 36% of Americans have a great or fair deal of trust in mass media, the second lowest on record, while 34% have no trust at all — WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' trust in the media to report the news fully, accurately and fairly has edged down four percentage points since last year to 36% …

Twitch Blog:

Twitch says a server configuration change left data exposed on the internet and let a third-party access its data — [10:30PM PT] We have learned that some data was exposed to the internet due to an error in a Twitch server configuration change that was subsequently accessed by a malicious third party.

Discussion: Wired, ScreenRant, @twitch, @kellen_browning, @krisabetha, @gossithedog, @zachbussey, @vahn16, @twitch, Tubefilter, Light Reading, 9to5Mac, PC Gamer, Variety, The Record, Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Reuters, Engadget, NME, Video Games Chronicle, Insider, Protocol, CNET and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »

Chris Scullion / Video Games Chronicle:
Twitch acknowledges a “breach” after a 4chan user leaks its source code, creator payouts from 2019-2021, proprietary SDKs, internal AWS services, and more

Discussion: @twitch, @knows0mething, Insider, TechCrunch, Input, NME, SuperJoost Playlist, musically.com, @bigjon06, MediaNama, @aliceavizandum, @adrianachechik, @cahlaflour, @toadsanime, Variety, CNN, @tolariancollege, @sinoc229, Techdirt, @rimmy_downunder, @tehmorag, @protocol, Weekly Innovation Review, The Wrap, @tomwarren, @jamesliamcook, The Daily Beast, @vgc_news, @campuscodi, @scully1888, @mikko, @sinoc229, @vgc_news, @knows0mething, @sinoc229, The Creator Eye, New World Same Humans, PC Gamer, New York Times, ScreenRant, VICE, Tubefilter, Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, VICE, BBC, Mediaite, UPI, NPR, Hit Points, Wired, Ad Age, CNET, The Verge, New York Post, Metacurity, Game World Observer, Rock, Paper, Shotgun, 9to5Mac, Fast Company, AppleInsider, Protocol, Eurogamer.net, The Record and GamesIndustry.biz, more at Techmeme »

Oriana Gonzalez / Axios:

In a letter, over 100 prominent Latin American figures urge NYT's publisher to keep producing Spanish-written opinion journalism for its NYT en Español division — Over 100 prominent figures in Latin America are urging The New York Times' publisher to not stop publishing Spanish …

Discussion: @caidadelatorre, Editor and Publisher, @aaronsguerra, @andresdcmtz and @elopezgross

Steve Anderson / The Streamable:

Kantar: paid streaming service churn was at 6% in Q2 2021, down from Q1's 8%; Netflix and Amazon Prime Video were lowest at 4%, while Peacock was at 13% — Churn is pretty much inevitable for streaming services. As viewers consume new content and find themselves less than enthralled …

Discussion: MediaPost

Reuters:

YouTube says it has removed R. Kelly's official channels following his conviction for sex trafficking, though his music catalog will remain on YouTube Music — Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) YouTube said it has removed R&B singer R. Kelly's channels from its video platform, distancing itself …

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Root, @pennylebyane, NBC News, @lucas_shaw, ciobulletin's Newsletter, Engadget and Forbes

Bloomberg:

Sources: Blackstone is in talks with Merck Mercuriadis, a former Beyoncé manager who runs UK-based Hipgnosis, to create a ~$1B fund to buy music copyrights — - Buyout firm may give $1 billion in firepower to buy copyrights — Former Beyoncé manager behind booming market for song catalogs

Discussion: Hits Daily Double and @lucas_shaw

Steven Perlberg / Insider:

Recurrent Ventures, owner of Popular Science and MEL, raises $75M from North Equity and expects to make 2-4 acquisitions in 2021 and nearly a 30% profit margin — - Recurrent Ventures, which owns MEL and Popular Science, has raised a total of $100 million to date.

Discussion: @perlberg

Mike Butcher / TechCrunch:

Webrazzi, a Turkish outlet that covers tech startups, acquires Tech.eu, a tech startup site founded in 2013 by a TechCrunch alum — Webrazzi, the main tech startup media title in Turkey, has acquired Tech.eu, the long-time tech startup site in Europe. The pooled entity of Webrazzi and Tech.eu …

Discussion: @ardakutsal, @robinwauters, @robinwauters, @eu_startups and Tech.eu

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More News:

Ben Hunte / VICE:
Sources: BBC won't renew membership in a diversity program run by LGBTQ charity Stonewall, which provides advice on creating an inclusive environment

Discussion: @amy_hoggart, @thomaspeachlib, @beninldn, @oneofthosefaces, @laelaps, @katesang, @shahmiruk, @robburl, @benjamincohen, @tfirstelizabeth and @1983jackhancock

Tom Warren / The Verge:
UK's Sky unveils Sky Glass, a 4K TV in 43", 55", or 65" that uses Wi-Fi instead of satellite dishes, available as a standalone or as part of Sky Ultimate TV

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Eric Berger / Ars Technica:
A new Russian law essentially bans a variety of space topics for reporters and bloggers, likely reducing coverage of Roscosmos within the country

Discussion: @center4inquiry, @sciguyspace, @katlinegrey, @katlinegrey, @katlinegrey and Gizmodo

Yashraj Sharma / Rest of World:
Instagram usage exploded in India after the TikTok ban, but the creator economy is still devastated, and critics say Reels content is comparatively bland

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Earlier Picks:

Todd Spangler / Variety:
IAC's digital publishing arm Dotdash acquires Meredith, publisher of People and other magazines, in a $2.7B all-cash deal

Reuters:
Twitter is selling mobile ad subsidiary MoPub to AppLovin for $1.05B, after acquiring it for nearly $350M in 2013

Discussion: PR Newswire, @nedsegal, Adweek, TechCrunch, Marketing Dive, @boo, @swodinsky, @lamonicabuzz, @applovin, @sotoventures, Axios, VentureBeat, 9to5Mac, Forbes, MediaPost, Wall Street Journal, AdExchanger, Variety and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Alex Heath / The Verge:
Brandon Silverman, the founder and CEO of the Facebook-owned analytics tool CrowdTangle, is leaving the company; team members were reassigned several months ago

Discussion: @kevinroose, Columbia Journalism Review, American Press Institute, @arctictony, @brianwhelanhack, @jason_kint, @timothyjgraham, @brandyzadrozny, @janelytv, @sofiadmateus, @janelytv, @janelytv, @cameronwilson, @donie, @daveyalba, @blackamazon and @alexeheath

John Shiffman / Reuters:
Review of court records details AT&T's role in creating and funding OANN; 90% of OANN's revenue comes from contracts with DirecTV and other AT&T services

Discussion: @bradheath, CNN, @bradheath, @jeremymbarr, Popular Information, @jayrosen_nyu, Techdirt, @chuckmodi1, Mediaite, @jeremymbarr, The Guardian, @sulliview, nexttv.com, @isaiah_bb, @mmasnick, Poynter, @nycsouthpaw, Engadget, @craigsilverman, @existentialfish, @bradheath, @daphnehk, @danpriceseattle, @7veritas4, CNN, @karlbode, @kevincollier, @attnews, @karlbode, @brooklynmarie, @peterme, @karlbode, @mmasnick, @trekonomics, @zaleskiluke, @ph_holland, @mollyjongfast, @clairecmc, @nahmias, @ziggy_daddy, @shannoncurtis, @paulbradleycarr, @jeremymbarr, @jeremymbarr, @cenkuygur, @andymoney69, @keitholbermann, Boing Boing, @stevejohnsontfp, @jessadler8, @jeremymbarr, @j_a_goodwin, @jordanchariton, Tugboat for Twitter, @brooklynmarie, @davelack, @earth_media_, @justinhendrix, @bubbaprog, @ericgarland, @meidastouch, @josepopinion, @jesseltaylor, @darth, @jayrosen_nyu, @ryanlcooper, @ryanlcooper, @drewharwell, @danielschuman, @tracytran, @lachlan, @lispower1, @bradheath, @tonyromm, @karlbode, @karlbode, @loudmouthjulia, @daviddark, @chadstanton, @jannwolfe, @bradheath, The Verge, The Hill, Vanity Fair, Newser, Deadline, Media Matters for America, Insider, Gizmodo, Rolling Stone, TVNewser, Talking Points Memo, The Wrap and The New Civil Rights Movement

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