Mediagazer: Bad Robot launches a podcast division, to be led by former Audible and Spotify exec Christina Choi, and strikes a multiyear first-look deal with Spotify (Peter White/Deadline)

8:40 AM ET, November 18, 2021

Top News:

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:

Spotify expands real-time lyrics to all users globally in partnership with Musixmatch, after initially launching in 26 markets — After years of ignoring consumer demand for in-app lyrics, particularly in the U.S., Spotify announced today it will make a new Lyrics feature available to all global users …

Discussion: Spotify, CNET, Variety, @eldsjal, The Verge, Gizmodo, Engadget, @spotifynews and @richlightshed, more at Techmeme »

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:

As well-written obituaries of prominent figures attract large online readership, outlets are bolstering their pre-written obituaries, including 1,850 at NYT — When Rush Limbaugh died this year, the mainstream media he had so long railed against gave him the kind of immaculately choreographed send-off …

Discussion: @katierosman, @oknox, @dlippman, @john_p_carvalho, @richardjustice, @ironicsans, @davidmaraniss, @ashkan, @ktumulty, @dlippman, @alexvadukul, @paulschwartzman, @raju and @amyargetsinger

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:

Spotify expands Podcast Subscriptions globally with 20 price points from $0.50 to $150 and will let creators download subscribers' contact info — Just a few months after launching support for podcast subscriptions to U.S. creators, Spotify today is making the service available to creators in global markets.

Discussion: Fast Company, Variety, Music Ally, What's New in Publishing, XDA Developers and Waivly, more at Techmeme »

Reuters:

Rupert Murdoch accuses Google and Facebook of trying to silence conservative voices and cites a lawsuit claiming they colluded on digital ad market manipulation — Rupert Murdoch renewed his attacks on Google and Facebook during News Corp's annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday …

Discussion: The Guardian, Press Gazette, Newser, Vanity Fair, Axios, @martysilkhack, @thetowncrier, @jonkudelka, The Hill, New York Post, @mrkrudd, Bloomberg, Mumbrella, Mediaite and The Wrap

Peter White / Deadline:

Bad Robot launches a podcast division, to be led by former Audible and Spotify exec Christina Choi, and strikes a multiyear first-look deal with Spotify — JJ Abrams' Bad Robot is moving into the audio space. — The production company is launching its own podcast division …

Discussion: @baekdal, Tubefilter, Spotify, Engadget and Los Angeles Times

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Netflix expands its Top 10 lists to display the most-viewed shows and movies, for English and non-English titles, ranked by aggregate viewing hours — Netflix says it's heard the complaints about how it “cherry picks” the self-reported data it releases about content viewed on its platform.

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:

Daily Mail editor Geordie Greig steps down; Ted Verity will become Mail Newspapers editor overseeing Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, and You magazine — Daily Mail editor Geordie Greig is leaving his role this week, with the Mail on Sunday's Ted Verity stepping up to take charge of a new seven-day operation.

Discussion: The Guardian, The Guardian, Spectator, @domponsford, @jimwaterson, @johayeslibdem, @brexit_sham, @jolyonmaugham, Vanity Fair, @andrew_adonis, @hautepop, @warrenmorgan, @brokenbottleboy, @pressgazette, @jimwaterson and The Independent

The Hollywood Reporter:

Sources: Disney held talks with betting operators about an ESPN partnership, with BetMGM, Caesars, and DraftKings seen as frontrunners — Now that major leagues are getting on board with gambling, the family-friendly Hollywood giant is eyeing that revenue and may start with a splashy ESPN licensing deal.

Discussion: @erik_hayden, @news_maker, @stearnsseattle, @brianroemmele and @mediaevan

Agence France-Presse:

Google will begin paying Agence France-Presse for content in Europe as part of a five-year partnership, the first with a news agency under a 2019 EU directive — Under the agreement with Google, AFP will also offer fact-checking training on several continents (AFP/Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD)

Discussion: Bloomberg and Reuters

Josh Gerstein / Politico:

Russian tech exec Aleksej Gubarev drops his defamation lawsuit against BuzzFeed over its publication of Steele dossier — Aleksej Gubarev and BuzzFeed issued a joint statement on the status of the lawsuit. — A BuzzFeed News logo adorns a wall inside BuzzFeed headquarters in New York City.

Discussion: @joshgerstein and TK News

Antoinette Siu / The Wrap:

Substack expands its health insurance program to all US writers making over $5,000 in gross annualized revenue on the service — Substack on Tuesday expanded its health insurance program to all writers making $5,000 a year on its newsletter platform. — The health insurance program …

Discussion: Substack and @caseymlewis

Chrissy Towle / The Keyword:

Google selects 25 projects from local news outlets to receive a share of $3.2M+ in the North America Innovation Challenge to build ties to their communities — We can't write about our communities without understanding them and being part of them. We don't want to just parachute ourselves …

Discussion: @jkealing, Google News Initiative, @raju, @pennyriordan1, @ncnewsworks, @nicdawes, @localmediaassoc, @reillykneedler, @eugwklycamilla, @ncnewsworks, @localmediaassoc, Editor and Publisher and Local Media Association …

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More News:

Patrick Hipes / Deadline:
National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences says the Children's & Family Emmy Awards will be a standalone show starting in 2022

Discussion: Variety, nexttv.com, The Wrap and Hollywood Reporter

Micah Singleton / Billboard:
Tidal launches a free tier in the US and direct-to-artist payments with fan-centered royalties based on HiFi Plus subscribers' streaming activity

Discussion: @tidal, PR Newswire, CNET, @mqamusic, CelebrityAccess, @tidal, @tidal, Variety, @micahsingleton, @alex, @aaronesilvers, @jack, Gizmodo, Digital Trends, Engadget, 9to5Mac, Music Business Worldwide, Music Ally and The Verge

Steve Inskeep / @nprinskeep:
[Thread] Complaints that journalists should have published Trump info sooner rather than holding it for books is mistaken, as reporting with context takes time

Discussion: Columbia Journalism Review, @scarylawyerguy, @owillis, @norsemythnews, @dangillmor, @ericboehlert, @nprinskeep, @digiphile, @nprinskeep, @digiphile, @nprinskeep, @nprinskeep, @nprinskeep, @nprinskeep and @brianstelter

Giving Compass:
Institute for Nonprofit News Index finds 90%+ of ~400 nonprofit newsrooms tracked over the past 12 years are operating; ~70% have at least four revenue sources

Discussion: @michellemanafy

Rebecca Davis / Variety:
In a five-year plan, China wants domestic films to make up 55% of box office, encourages film companies to invest abroad, plans for 100K movie screens, and more

Discussion: Insider, @zeeshanaleem, @mattzeitlin, @comfortablysmug and Deadline

USAGM:
USAGM reports that it reached 394M people in 62 languages each week in 2021, up 42% since 2017, with top audiences in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Palestine

Earlier Picks:

Michael D. Shear / New York Times:
US agrees to provide renewable yearlong visas to Chinese journalists, while China lets WSJ, WaPo, and NYT reporters return

Steve Dent / Engadget:
Google partners with PBS Student Report Labs and other journalism organizations to create programs that promote media literacy

Discussion: American Press Institute, @googlenewsinit, The Keyword and The Keyword

Gene Maddaus / Variety:
Miramax sues Quentin Tarantino over copyright infringement for selling NFTs based on Pulp Fiction screenplay excerpts; Miramax says it owns screenplay rights

Diane Haithman / The Wrap:
The California Film Commission says the state's Film & TV Tax Credit Program is expected to generate $2.6B in in-state spending in its first fiscal year

Discussion: Variety

Axios:
Analysis: the top five most-followed accounts on TikTok do not rank in the top 50 on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, or Instagram

Discussion: Terms of Service w …, @nrothschild3, Beyond Search, @jimvandehei, @liahaberman, @sarafischer, @sarafischer, @sarafischer and Reuters Institute …

From Techmeme:

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple is working on a smart doorbell system with advanced facial recognition that can wirelessly connect and unlock third-party smart locks

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
Donald Trump announces that Sriram Krishnan, until recently a general partner at a16z, will serve as senior policy advisor for AI at the White House OSTP

Financial Times:
Sources: Palantir and Anduril are in talks with OpenAI, SpaceX, and more to form a consortium to bid for US defense contracts and plan to announce it in January

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