Top News:
Oliver Darcy / CNN:
Memo: T&R Productions, the production company behind RT America, the US version of Russia's state-funded RT, will lay off most of its staff and cease production — New York (CNN Business)The production company behind the American version of the Russian state-funded network RT laid off …
Discussion:
TALKERS magazine, The Daily Beast, Protocol, Fox News, CNBC, TVNewser, Mediaite, Variety, The Hill, Insider, @ericowensdc, @mmasnick, Deadline, The Wrap, TheBlaze, Newsbusters, @hopeseck, @therickwilson, @tonyajoriley, The Kyiv Independent, @glemgreenwald, @exumam, @eliothiggins, @bendreyfuss, Hollywood Reporter, Axios, @billprady, @karlbode, @sarafischer and @jkarsh
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Sheila Dang / Reuters:
RT says it will begin broadcasting on Rumble, a video platform popular with right-wing users, after tech companies restricted Russian state-controlled media — Russian state-controlled news network RT said on Thursday it will begin broadcasting on Rumble, a YouTube-like video site …
Discussion:
Engadget, @amandacarpenter, @therickwilson, @rumblevideo, @gpingersoll and @mattpalumbo12
BBC:
Russia-backed RT disappears from all UK TV broadcast platforms, due to a ban imposed by the EU that stops companies in Luxembourg and France from offering feeds — Russian-backed news channel RT has disappeared from all broadcast platforms in the UK. — UK access to the TV network …
Discussion:
@toadmeister, Reuters, FIPP, Techdirt, Digital TV Europe, The Guardian and Press Gazette
Gene Maddaus / Variety:
The DOJ unseals an indictment charging ex-Fox News producer Jack Hanick with working for a sanctioned Russian oligarch to build TV networks in Russia and Europe — Jack Hanick, a onetime producer at Fox News, has been indicted on charges of working for a sanctioned Russian oligarch …
Variety:
Netflix promotes Marian Lee to CMO, replacing Bozoma Saint John, who joined the company in August 2020 after senior roles at Uber, Apple, and Endeavor — She replaces Bozoma Saint John, who boarded the streaming giant in 2020 after serving in senior executive roles at Uber and Apple.
The Moscow Times:
After Russia takes Ekho Moskvy off the air for spreading “deliberately false information”, the board of directors votes to liquidate the liberal radio station — Russia's iconic liberal radio station Ekho Moskvy (Echo of Moscow) has been wound up after falling afoul of Russia's censorship of coverage of the war in Ukraine.
Discussion:
@kevinrothrock, Vanity Fair, @juliaioffe, @katyayushchenko, @cliffordlevy, @antontroian, Al Jazeera, @sbg1, @orlovakarine, @murphymike, Committee to Protect … and CNN
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New York Times:
Russian journalists from independent outlets describe Kremlin pressure that shut them down, or soon will: “Everything that's not propaganda is being eliminated” — “Everything that's not propaganda is being eliminated,” a Nobel Prize winning editor said as Russian authorities moved …
Discussion:
@anthony, @nickpearce_3, Deadline, @bykenarmstrong, @alanmillernlp, @sensanders, Just Security, @damomac, @jimrutenberg, @penamerica, @clarajeffery and New York Post
Angela Fu / Poynter:
The New York Times' tech workers vote 404-88 to unionize as the New York Times Tech Guild, becoming the largest US unit of tech workers with bargaining rights — The new unit, which is organized by the NewsGuild, is now the largest unit of tech workers with bargaining rights in the country.
Discussion:
HuffPost, New York Times, @katie_robertson, @greenhousenyt, The NewsGuild, @nytguildtech, @katie_robertson, @greenhousenyt and @greenhousenyt
Jessica Toonkel / The Information:
Source: Disney is discussing launching a cheaper, ad-supported Disney+ tier in the US to fire up slowing subscriber growth and hit its 2024 profitability goal — Disney is discussing launching a cheaper, ad-supported tier of its Disney+ streaming service in the U.S., according to a person involved in the discussions.
MIT Technology Review:
An investigation details Operation Safety Net, a sprawling surveillance program in Minnesota to track protesters and journalists after George Floyd's murder — An investigation by MIT Technology Review reveals a sprawling, technologically sophisticated system in Minnesota designed for closely monitoring protesters.
Discussion:
@ziibiing, @aoc, @reillymj, @haymarketbooks, @taterymo, @ilhanmn, @breenewsome and @mat, more at Techmeme »
K.J. Yossman / Variety:
ITV buys out the BBC's share of BritBox UK ahead of streaming service ITVX's launch; BritBox International will remain a 50/50 venture between ITV and the BBC — ITVX will integrate BritBox U.K. although the latter best-of-British offering will remain a “separate entity” within the app and require a paid subscription.
Discussion:
Radio Times and The Streamable
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Thomas Seal / Bloomberg:
ITV announces ITVX, a free streaming service with ads or paid without ads, to replace its Hub service later in 2022; ITV will invest £1.35B in content by 2023
ITV announces ITVX, a free streaming service with ads or paid without ads, to replace its Hub service later in 2022; ITV will invest £1.35B in content by 2023
Discussion:
The Guardian, The Drum, Press Centre, Deadline, Junghoon's Direct Media …, Financial Times and London Evening Standard
Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times:
A look at plans for CNN+, scheduled to launch the last week of March despite the turmoil at CNN, initially for $2.99 per month; a bundle with HBO Max is planned — The show must go on, even in streaming video. — Employees at CNN are keeping that adage in mind as they prepare to launch …
Eduardo Suárez / Reuters Institute for the Study …:
Q&A with Guardian Head of Editorial Innovation Chris Moran on covering breaking news on Ukraine and fine-tuning the newspaper's live blogs to meet users' needs — Head of Editorial Innovation Chris Moran explains how he and his team have shaped the newspaper's live blog to meet users' needs
Discussion:
@anthony, @chrismoranuk, @badams, @niemanlab, @risj_oxford and @risj_oxford