Top News:
Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:
Lee Enterprises' board approves a shareholder rights plan, called a poison pill, to prevent Alden Global Capital from acquiring more than 10% of Lee for a year — Shareholder rights plan will be in effect for a year, giving Lee time to assess hedge fund's acquisition proposal
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, Nieman Lab, @hblodget, @farhip and bookforum.com
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Steve Waldman / Washington Monthly:
DOJ blocking the S&S and Penguin mega-merger because it would reduce diversity of voices suggests it could take a similar approach to Alden's acquisition of Lee — How stronger antitrust enforcement and the Build Back Better bill can help to save the newspaper business.
Choire Sicha / New York Magazine:
Former NYT exec says Wirecutter employees were treated as second-class citizens at NYT, with a lower pay scale and some NYT staff openly sneering at their work — In October 2016, Wirecutter, a scrappy website that uses journalism to help people make purchases, was five years old.
Discussion:
@choire, @joemullin, The Daily Beast, @thedailybeast, Des Moines Register, @salgentile, USA Today, @rsingel, @danfrakes, @discourse_blog, @mattdpearce, @titonka, discourseblog.com, @mathowie, @lemonsand, @kait_tiffany, @arieldumas, @kathyvsinternet, @johnkunza, @tomcoates, @caseyjohnston, @chrislhayes, @brandonetc, @janefriedman, @kingthor, @oliverdarcy, @qhardy, @francesrobles, @alexkoppelman, @mccarthyryanj, @shiraovide, @lisatozzi, @maxjrosenthal, @adriana_lacy, @caseyjohnston, @zoegberg, @stanhoraczek, @pkafka, @leighjkboerner, @intelligencer, @clancynewyork and @wirecutterunion
Alex Weprin / Hollywood Reporter:
Disney, ViacomCBS, and others are offering steep discounts this week amid slowing subscriber growth, with one year of Hulu available for 99 cents per month — Hulu, Peacock, Paramount+ and Discovery+ are among the services offering steep discounts this week to entice new subscribers.
Discussion:
Decider, @alexweprin, CNET News, @sherman4949, The Streamable, Billboard and Variety
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Since last year, Stat's revenue is up 40%, with subscription revenue up 24%, ad revenue up 51%, and events up 79%, and its headcount is up from ~50 to ~80 — STAT had a banner year in 2020, and executives say they expect continued growth for the foreseeable future.
Discussion:
Talking Biz News, @rickberke, @fpmarconi, @mariojoze, @dankennedy_nu and @bhrenton
Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Reporting on security lapses carries legal risks, like threats from the Missouri governor against the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, stifling research and journalism — In August 2020, two FBI agents were standing on my doorstep, unannounced, wanting to ask me questions about a TechCrunch story we had published the year before.
Discussion:
@martinsfp, @freedomofpress, @ron_miller, @freedomofpress, @zackwhittaker, @gazthejourno, @kennwhite, @josephfcox, @freedomofpress, @kimzetter and Talking Biz News
Tessa Stuart / Rolling Stone:
Reality Winner criticizes The Intercept for poor protection of sources and accuses its parent company of reneging on a promise to pay legal bills — After years locked away for leaking classified information on Russian interference, the former NSA contractor has a lot to say about how she got there
Discussion:
@daviddark, @wendymeer11, @eoinhiggins_, @szhang_ds, @kevincollier, @noahshachtman, @imposecost, @im_pulse and @justin_ling
Todd Spangler / Variety:
HBO Max will share the rights to half of 20th Century Studios' films with Disney+ and Hulu in 2022, after which they will be exclusive to Disney — HBO Max will get its hands on Fox's film slate for one final year — under an unusual deal to share streaming windows with Disney Plus and Hulu …
Discussion:
Cord Cutters News
Alan Leveritt / New York Times:
Arkansas Times' publisher explains why his paper sued Arkansas for violating the First Amendment with a law forcing contractors to sign a pledge favoring Israel — Mr. Leveritt is the founder and publisher of The Arkansas Times. His lawsuit against Arkansas's anti-boycott law is being reviewed …
Discussion:
@jameeljaffer, @rabbijilljacobs, @jzarif, @mtracey, @ryanchittum, @elivalley and @jeffjarvis
Mimi Billing / Sifted:
Denmark-based podcasting and audio tech startup Podimo raises a $78M Series B led by 83North and Highland Europe — A large library of proprietary content and local focus attracts venture capital — Two-year-old audio platform Podimo raises $78m from London VCs
Discussion:
Variety, Tubefilter, @mimibilling and Tech.eu, more at Techmeme »
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
BBC says its international News services now reach 456M people weekly, up 4% YoY; BBC World Service reaches 364M people, up 13M in a year — International BBC News services now reach 456m people every week, the corporation said on Wednesday. — This is an increase of 18m, or 4%, from 2019/20.
Casey Newton / Platformer:
Startups like Royal, which helps musicians create and sell NFTs, could potentially upend predatory record deals and further shift power to artists and fans — Royal's Justin Blau and Paradigm's Fred Ehrsam on how selling royalties directly to fans could end predatory record deals
Discussion:
@cindygallop, @ccatalini, @hkanji, @espiers, @caseynewton and Music Business Worldwide
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