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The Republican National Committee says it will require candidates to pledge to not participate in debates run by the Commission on Presidential Debates — The Republican National Committee says it will require candidates to pledge to not participate in debates run by the Commission on Presidential Debates.
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Politico, GOP.com, @jayrosen_nyu, CNN, Mediaite, New York Post, @williamlegate, @pbump, Forbes, MediaPost, The Guardian, @drkarlynb, @sewellchan, The Federalist, Vanity Fair, @kbandersen, @sykescharlie, Insider, Washington Post, Rolling Stone, Deadline, The Week, Fox News, NewsNation Now, NPR and Boing Boing


One year in, Biden's relationship with the press stands in stark contrast to Trump's, but press freedom advocates have concerns over FOIA, Assange, and more — President Joe Biden's approach to U.S. media is a stark contrast to Donald Trump's vicious rhetoric.


Paul Tash, Tampa Bay Times' longest-serving CEO and chairman, is retiring and will be succeeded by company president Conan Gallaty — Conan Gallaty takes over as chief executive officer and will be the fourth chairman since Nelson Poynter when Tash departs this summer. — Published Just now
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@amlwhere, @geostanley, @anitakumar01, @markpuente, @matt_cohen_, @amy_hollyfield, @billadairduke, Poynter, @jaycridlin, @bobbuckhorn and @carolynpfox


NBCUniversal and RTL partner to cross-sell TV ad inventory in the US, Europe, and Asia — The arrangement will create opportunities for marketers across the U.S., Europe and Asia, the companies say.
Discussion:
The Drum, Variety, Digital TV Europe and Beet.TV


NBCUniversal plans to use audience data from iSpot.tv to track the Olympics and the Super Bowl next month, in addition to Nielsen, in a new multiyear agreement — NBCUniversal, the media company most critical of the audience measurement data it receives from Nielsen, is testing …
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Variety, Adweek, Wall Street Journal, Ad Age, Media Play News, Awful Announcing, Marketing Dive, @ourand_sbj, Radio & Television …, @bristei, Beet.TV and Deadline


NSO Group spyware was found on devices owned by 35 journalists and activists in El Salvador; 23 devices belong to journalists linked to the El Faro news site — The newly disclosed campaign shows how little the company has done to curb abuses of its powerful surveillance tools.
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The Citizen Lab, Access Now, @nramind, Washington Post, Nieman Lab, @aaschapiro, @jsrailton, @leomschwartz, The Guardian, Gizmodo, @leomschwartz, @leomschwartz, LatAm Journalism Review, @mcandrew, @hilarygoodfrien, @mcandrew, @ruthbenghiat, Committee to Protect …, iMore, @jsrailton, @jsrailton, @jsrailton, @jsrailton, @citizenlab, 9to5Mac, @frontlinehrd, @accessnow, @accessnow, @accessnow, @accessnow, @cpjamericas, @cpjamericas, @accessnow, @lilyhnewman, @mvzelenks, @munkschool, @cpjamericas, @accessnow, @cpjamericas, @cpjamericas, @cpjamericas, @cpjamericas, @hipsterelectron, @evacide, Rest of World, Wall Street Journal, Reuters and New York Times


New York Magazine's Olivia Nuzzi is writing and producing a satirical drama for AMC set in Washington, DC, teaming up with executive producer Gina Mingacci — EXCLUSIVE: Olivia Nuzzi, the Washington correspondent for New York magazine who wrote some of the wildest stories …
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@oliverdarcy, @paulbradleycarr, @raesanni, bookforum.com, @bartleby_kamoi, @eoinhiggins_, @kantrowitz, @karaswisher and @olivianuzzi


260+ health professionals ask Spotify to create a misinformation policy, after a discredited scientist spread COVID-19 misinformation on Joe Rogan's podcast — More than 260 doctors, nurses, scientists, health professionals and others have signed an open letter calling on the streaming media platform Spotify …
Discussion:
An Open Letter to Spotify, Rolling Stone, insideradio.com, Mediaite, ScreenRant, Being Libertarian's Newsletter, Newser, The Week, TheStreet, American Press Institute, Insider, The A.V. Club, Variety, @drjengunter, The Wrap, @bernstein, @samadlerbell, Boing Boing, Beyond Search, Supercreator, @emswami, Deadline, @pharmacistmama, @tnicholsmd, @slpng_giants, @blackamazon, @justinhendrix, @benprunty, @craigsilverman, CNET and UPROXX, more at Techmeme »


In a first, BET+ will be included on Xfinity TV in a deal between ViacomCBS and Comcast, which also extends carriage of Paramount+, Pluto TV, and Showtime OTT — ViacomCBS and Comcast have reached a distribution renewal that continues carriage of CBS and a roster of cable networks …
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Variety, @aagave, @aagave, @fidmart85, @aagave, Light Reading and Hollywood Reporter

Researchers use simulations to show that focusing on increasing trust in reliable information and news works better than focusing on debunking misinformation — Misinformation makes up a teeny-tiny share of what most people read, and we might want to worry a little less about debunking …
Discussion:
@sacha_altay, HKS Misinformation Review, @michellemanafy, @journoresource and @rasmus_kleis


Sinclair renews its digital rights NBA deal, after signing a similar deal with the NHL in December, as it secures $600M in debt to develop its streaming service — Diamond Sports, the largest owner of regional sports networks, also renewed its digital-rights agreement with NBA, securing ability to stream games


Telemundo is launching content brand Tplus on Peacock's premium tier in the fall, with scripted, unscripted, and documentary content in English and Spanish — NBCUniversal's Telemundo Enterprises is launching content brand Tplus on Peacock this fall in sync with the company's exclusive …
Discussion:
Axios, The Streamable, Los Angeles Times, Forbes, The Wrap and Hollywood Reporter