Top News:
Reuters:
Sources: Elon Musk has a new Twitter CEO lined up and offered monetizing ideas, like charging websites for quoting or embedding tweets from verified accounts — Elon Musk told banks that agreed to help fund his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) that he could crack down on executive …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, @reckless, Platformer, Washington Post, Engadget, @somebadideas, The Register, @mattyglesias, @clarajeffery, @scout_finch, @caseynewton, Fox News, The Verge, @ashtonpittman, @atrupar, CNBC, The Week, @carriecnh12, @danlesac, @electrotriple11, @ovtrvn, The US Sun, American Press Institute, @jefflabrecque, @paultassi, @toliro, Rolling Stone, @pbump, @kt_so_it_goes, New York Post, @robmanuel, @cmpriest, @kinsellawarren, @reckless, @nycsouthpaw, @nkulw, @bgrueskin, @cfidd, Protocol, @stitchmediamix, @themaxburns, @gregotto, @icehockeystick, @xoxogossipgita, @eriqgardner, TechCrunch, @fakeericverrone, @digiphile, @terrortola, @libshipwreck, @rxh_716, @parismarx, @nastyoldwomyn, @vogon, @chris_levesque_, @th1rt3en_tm, Gizmodo, @anthony, @upulie, CNET, @craigcalcaterra, @chx, Bulletin, @edmundlee, @hkesvani, @chrismaddern, @mat, @ioonaevis, @gorthan_sir, @grandmoffjoseph, @sharkhand, @alexhern, @tomwarren, @mrdespicable22, @alexeheath, @lopezlinette, Insider and Ad Age, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Casey Newton / Platformer: Inside Twitter's emotional Friday all-hands
Reed Albergotti / Washington Post: Who's the boss? At Musk's companies he is, but also young loyalists.
Karissa Bell / Engadget: Jack Dorsey: ‘Nothing that is said now matters’
Aaron Stewart-Ahn / @somebadideas: Musk's big plan to monetize twitter that got his absurd loan: charging a fee for quote / embedding tweets?? That's easier to defeat than right click saving an NFT? From https://www.reuters.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Katyanna Quach / The Register: Elon Musk flogs $8.4bn of Tesla shares amid Twitter offer drama
Matthew Yglesias / @mattyglesias: Wait did Jack Dorsey incept Elon Musk into paying a huge premium for his Twitter shares in order to reverse content moderation policies he created? https://twitter.com/...
Clara Jeffery / @clarajeffery: 1/ so much utterly gross and mutually reinforcing/aggrandizing behavior on display. Tl;dr: Brief Interviews with Hideous Men https://www.wsj.com/...
Jennifer Hayden / @scout_finch: Far more sinister than I thought https://twitter.com/...
Casey Newton / @caseynewton: It really is a shame Jack Dorsey never had any influence over Twitter's direction https://twitter.com/...
Richard Lawler / The Verge: Every ridiculous thing we learned today about Elon Musk's plan to take over Twitter
Ashton Pittman / @ashtonpittman: Of course he does. As I've said, Elon Musk's vision of a “free speech Twitter” is a place where disinformation runs rampant, rich politicians can incite violence and hateful people are given a free base to bully, harass and abuse marginalized people (such as trans people). https://twitter.com/...
Aaron Rupar / @atrupar: Elon Musk reportedly wants to restore the Twitter accounts of Trump and Holocaust denier Charles Johnson and make transphobia okay on the platform https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Brendan Morrow / The Week: Elon Musk reportedly eyes new ways to monetize tweets as he lines up next Twitter CEO
Carolyn Hinds / @carriecnh12: I already have sites like @BuzzFeedNews taking my tweets and making monetized content from them, for which I never get a red cent, and now that clown wants to do the same thing?! 😒 https://twitter.com/...
Danlesac.Oof / @danlesac: You don't become a billionaire by fixing things, you become a billionaire by exploiting the faults in systems. https://twitter.com/...
Samantha / @electrotriple11: tumblr if you got rid of that stupid ban then a quarter of the people on here would willingly leave https://twitter.com/...
@ovtrvn: [paying $3 to QT dunk on a NYT Opinion columnist resulting in an overdraft fee of $35] lol look at this dummy https://twitter.com/...
Tyler Baum / The US Sun: Elon Musk to slash costs at Twitter with crack down on executive pay and making money from your tweets
American Press Institute: Need to Know: April 29, 2022 — TOP NEWS THIS WEEK — On Monday, Elon Musk purchased Twitter for $44 billion.
Jeff Labrecque / @jefflabrecque: I am rooting for Twitter to charge fees! It's the only solution to make me quit. https://twitter.com/...
Paul Tassi / @paultassi: this is, no exaggeration, one of the dumbest ideas I've ever heard as someone who embeds tweets in articles now, to get around this you'd just...screenshot the tweet, or quote the text with a link to the tweet https://twitter.com/...
Victor Hernandez / @toliro: @mediagazer Charging a fee for quoting? Nobody will use Twitter anymore. That's the worst possible way for monetizing Twitter. Or... People will simply make screenshots and no money will be generated.
William Vaillancourt / Rolling Stone: Elon Musk Is Considering Charging a Fee to Embed or Quote Tweets
Philip Bump / @pbump: Free speech — but, hear me out, what if speech cost money? https://twitter.com/...
@kt_so_it_goes: this is one of the faster ways I can think of to kill twitter's cross-media dominance https://twitter.com/...
Ariel Zilber / New York Post: Twitter's ‘chief censor’ making $17M per year could be fired by Elon Musk
Rob Manuel / @robmanuel: He's talking about news publications paying to quote tweets in articles but almost every take dunking on this is taking it to mean “users paying to retweet”. Not saying I agree with the idea either but please at least argue about the right thing. https://twitter.com/...
Cherie Priest / @cmpriest: @mediagazer oh ffs ::dusts off blog::
Warren Kinsella / @kinsellawarren: He can't. The copyright over the content belongs to the author. All he owns is the presentation. https://twitter.com/...
Nilay Patel / @reckless: There isn't a celebrity in the world that's going to post *more* on Twitter, which is already toxic, if there's looser content moderation. They are all too smart and too savvy now, and want absolute control. Especially Taylor lol https://www.bloomberg.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Southpaw / @nycsouthpaw: The genius plan is you will write the tweet and then Elon Musk will charge Jeff Bezos $0.08 to embed it on the Washington Post's website. https://twitter.com/...
Bill Grueskin / @bgrueskin: Twitter revenue idea: Charge $5 to delete a tweet https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@cfidd: Is it weird that I actually feel a sense of relief, knowing that these changes would absolutely be the end of Twitter? We all know we'd be better off without it https://www.reuters.com/...
Veronica Irwin / Protocol: Elon Musk's Twitter plan: Slash executive pay and monetize tweets
@stitchmediamix: “Ideas he brought up included charging a fee when a third-party website wants to quote or embed a tweet from verified individuals or organizations.” He also supposedly wants to reduce dependence on ads so uh... I can imagine the tradeoff in content... https://twitter.com/...
Greg Otto / @gregotto: This is how you know he absolutely has Online Brain™️. He has read every shitposter that has tweeted “This website is free” and made that his business plan. https://twitter.com/...
Jashvina Shah / @icehockeystick: This is dumb and if anyone gets money from their tweets being embedded, IT SHOULD BE THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE THEM https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Italian Elon Musk / @xoxogossipgita: what's a screenshot https://twitter.com/...
Eriq Gardner / @eriqgardner: Maybe they should have ran Musk's acquisition of Twitter past a copyright lawyer. I'm skeptical of this idea, though as I said on @MattBelloni podcast, there may be other revenue-generating schemes like using the platform to serve legal papers on someone. https://www.reuters.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Aisha Malik / TechCrunch: Elon Musk has reportedly lined up a new Twitter CEO, shared ideas for monetizing tweets
@fakeericverrone: Burying to lead to me: he allegedly pitched cutting jobs. That aside, why would websites pay in embed Tweets when they could just copy the text and paste it with quotes? In that case, they wouldn't even link back to Twitter, which feels like it would just limit traffic? https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Alex Howard / @digiphile: Musk may plan to grow @Twitter revenue by monetizing viral tweets or those with key info, perhaps by charging to embed tweets by @verified users: https://www.reuters.com/... Paying influencers to tweet unlikely to change UX: https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ... 🔒@TwitterBlue subscriptions could. https://twitter.com/...
Andrew Tarantola / @terrortola: it's adorable that he thinks we'll pay to embed tweets instead of simply not embedding tweets anymore https://twitter.com/...
@libshipwreck: Making people pay for this site really would be a great way to stop people from using it... https://twitter.com/...
Paris Marx / @parismarx: If Musk turns Twitter into one of those web3 social media concepts where you pay every time you do anything, it'll die immediately. But he won't do that because he needs Twitter to feed the cult, keep the headlines flowing, and manipulate the stock market. https://www.reuters.com/...
@nastyoldwomyn: “Musk had to convince the banks that Twitter produced enough cash flow to service the debt he sought. In the end, he clinched $13 billion in loans secured against Twitter and a $12.5 billion margin loan tied to his Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) stock.” https://twitter.com/...
@vogon: every article that's just “here's 20 tweets about a topic” would dry up overnight if he did this, and those articles are in practice 100% lead generation for twitter because they get people onto the service and posting about topics du jour in the hope of becoming microfamous https://twitter.com/...
Chris Levesque / @chris_levesque_: Just another example of how he fundamentally doesn't understand social media. Even if you could get people to pay for Twitter use, they won't pay for these features. https://twitter.com/...
@th1rt3en_tm: Huh, so he's gonna make money off of content created by the users? Any revenue sharing planned? https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Jody Serrano / Gizmodo: Musk's Brilliant Idea to ‘Unlock’ Twitter's Potential: Charge for Embedded Tweets
Anthony DeRosa / @anthony: Friends of Elon Musk who disliked Twitter's direction—including Peter Thiel—secretly pushed him to launch a bid for the platform. Twitter executives say they became aware of his budding friendship with then-CEO Mr. Dorsey https://www.wsj.com/...
Craig Calcaterra / @craigcalcaterra: On the one hand this is stupid. On the other hand it will put an end to the practice of media companies publishing articles that are nothing but people's tweets and headlines like “Twitter reacts to [whatever event]” https://www.reuters.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@chx: This Musk idea reminds me of something... The screenshot (which of course would be totes doable with tweets too) is from @doctorow 's seminal DRM speech at Microsoft. https://craphound.com/... https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Bulletin: Friday, April 29, 2022 — Note to email readers: Some clients will cut off our rundown due to length.
Edmund Lee / @edmundlee: When Johnson (who was banned from Twitter for saying he was going to “take out” BLM activist @deray) saw @elonmusk would buy Twitter, he texted Musk's No. 2 (Jared Birchall) and asked: “When do I get my Twitter account back?” The reply: “Hopefully soon” https://www.wsj.com/...
@hkesvani: lol wouldn't this effectively tank the Daily Wire and other right wing news sites who love getting mad at tweets https://twitter.com/...
Chris Maddern / @chrismaddern: spoiler: I'm @elonmusk's pick for twitter ceo https://www.reuters.com/...
Mat Honan / @mat: Remember when tweets weren't embed-able and so nobody ever took screenshots of them and put them in their stories https://twitter.com/...
@ioonaevis: we'll all have ads that play right before u start reading a tweet https://twitter.com/...
@gorthan_sir: So this is how Twitter will turn into Tumblr, gone and forgotten 😭😭😭😭 https://twitter.com/...
@grandmoffjoseph: @cmpriest @mediagazer My wife: Dear, why are you rooting around in the storage racks in the garage? Me: Looking for my box of webrings and the floppy disk set with my old Geocities page. Might need it again here soon.
@sharkhand: @mediagazer Asking why do people use this thing, and then putting a toll in front of it is the only idea Silicon Valley techbros ever had. Expensive middlemen.
Apex Hern / @alexhern: It is extremely funny that musk's first big idea is so transparently based on his own incredibly weird experience of twitter. “Whenever I tweet, people write news articles about it. Therefore, there's value on charging newspapers to write about tweets” https://twitter.com/...
Tom Warren / @tomwarren: every website will just screenshot tweets instead of embedding them 🙃 https://twitter.com/...
Linette Lopez / @lopezlinette: He can fire all the content moderators he wants, but that still won't save this business if it's paying $1B of interest on debt from this deal every year. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
Max Tani / Politico:
Some White House correspondents complain that Biden Administration storylines, while important and substantive, are “boring” and don't create star journalists — Washington reporters have long considered the role of White House correspondent to be the crown jewel of American political journalism.
Discussion:
@jerrydunleavy, @hc_richardson, @mgerrydoyle, @donnabrazile, @alexandermccoy4, @mathewi, @reedfrich, @ericmgarcia, @connieschultz, @soledadobrien, Breitbart, @melaniesill, @karlbode, Fox News, @joelockhart, @jackshafer, @brianmackey, @adamblickstein, @heather_muse, @ktumulty, @lisatozzi, @corb_the_lesser, @jerrydunleavy, @nancylevine, @tanzinavega, @froomkin, @brianschatz, @elianayjohnson, @adamblickstein, @dankennedy_nu, @uticaeric, Insider, @curtishouck, @davidlarter, Press Watch, @elainejgodfrey, @andrewpdyer, @robertmaguire_, @mattdizwhitlock, Mediaite, @benlabolt and @bencjacobs
Discussion:
Jerry Dunleavy / @jerrydunleavy: This is the most pathetic thing I have ever read. https://www.politico.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Heather Cox Richardson / @hc_richardson: @froomkin This is infuriating. We finally have smart, well-informed officials who are producing reams of information. Reporters have the access to engage in serious discussions about huge questions, and instead they say they want cartoon drama?
Gerry Doyle / @mgerrydoyle: this seems like a media problem not a white house problem https://twitter.com/...
Donna Brazile / @donnabrazile: Amazing. This is what the #WHCD has come to — reliving the past and unconcerned about the future. Today's Journalists are on the front lines reporting on the border between democracy vs autocracy. Do your job reporting the news. Leave the punditry to opinionated partisans. https://twitter.com/...
Alexander McCoy / @alexandermccoy4: This is everything that has been wrong about the White House Press Corps https://twitter.com/...
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: I've seen a lot of pieces that make journalists look bad, but this one takes it to a new level. “I liked Trump better because covering the White House is boring now.” You should be ashamed of yourselves https://www.politico.com/...
Reed F. Richardson / @reedfrich: This Politico piece about how White House correspondents aren't cashing in anymore during the Biden era is truly execrable. And the anonymous quotes...oof...they speak to a whole other level of pathology about careerism undermining journalism's true purpose. https://www.politico.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Eric Michael Garcia / @ericmgarcia: “You guys are obsessed with Trump. Did you used to date him? Because you pretend like you hate him, but I think you love him. I think what no one in this room wants to admit is that Trump has helped all of you.”-@michelleisawolf https://twitter.com/...
Connie Schultz / @connieschultz: @HC_Richardson @froomkin This piece is an embarrassment.
Soledad O'Brien / @soledadobrien: This drives a lot of the coverage we see and read: https://twitter.com/...
Joel B. Pollak / Breitbart: White House Press Corps Finds Work a ‘Bore,’ Now That a Democrat is President
Melanie Sill / @melaniesill: If there ever was a piece that illustrates how broken the Washington press is, this is it. https://twitter.com/...
Karl Bode / @karlbode: the very broken U.S. political press (and the ad-based engagement economy that props up the whole mess) hates substance, nuance, and a lack of controversy. like, say, significant benefits coming from an historic infrastructure investment package. https://www.politico.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Gabriel Hays / Fox News: Reporter tells Politico they're afraid to battle Psaki: ‘Makes you look like an a—hole’
Joe Lockhart / @joelockhart: This is a must read story for anyone who wants to understand the broken culture of America's media. Substance, truth and integrity is “boring”. Give us Trump back so we can be the stars againThe Rise and Fall of the Star White House Reporter https://www.politico.com/... via @politico
Jack Shafer / @jackshafer: “There's no Maggie [Haberman]. Who's the Maggie of the Biden administration? It doesn't exist.” @maxwelltani on the journalistic vacancies at the White House. https://www.politico.com/...
Brian Mackey / @brianmackey: Reminded of a line from Val Kilmer's character in “Spartan” (2004): “That's not a cost, it's benefit.” https://www.politico.com/... by @maxwelltani/@politico:
Adam Blickstein / @adamblickstein: But seriously, if you're a DC based reporter and lamenting that after Trump you are no longer a central character in the political story then maybe you should rethink being a journalist in the first place
Heather Muse / @heather_muse: This should be required reading in intro journalism classes for what *not* to do. If “star” reporters can't find an interesting story in DC, they should question their “calling.” First-year reporters covering municipal meetings do this work every day. https://www.politico.com/...
Karen Tumulty / @ktumulty: This story makes a lot of interesting points, but one it leaves out (I'm saying this as a former WH reporter, albeit one from another century) is that the most valuable WH reporting takes place OUTSIDE the briefing room. Thread to come. https://www.politico.com/... via @politico
Lisa Tozzi / @lisatozzi: (I'm old, so I think the Clinton years really gave rise to this — and the most extra celebrity/politics/journalists thing I ever went to was a party during the 2000 Democratic National Convention)
@corb_the_lesser: @HC_Richardson @froomkin Cartoon drama is way easier than those serious discussions. Also very likely what their editors are assigning. Says a great deal about what so much of corporate media seems to think about the people who watch and read their stuff.
Jerry Dunleavy / @jerrydunleavy: BTW what possible good reason could there be for Politico to grant this reporter anonymity? also, it is Men's ***Wearhouse***, not Warehouse. excellent mix of snobbery & lack of attention to basic detail. https://twitter.com/...
Nancy Levine🇺🇦 / @nancylevine: Of course White House reporters are bored and frustrated. Drug withdrawal will do that to you. WH reporters were mainlining dopamine in Trump's pathological wake. Amirite @duty2warn? https://twitter.com/...
Tanzina Vega / @tanzinavega: I can't...journalism isn't supposed to be a cosplay fantasy. Its real life work with real life implications. This is why the industry is struggling. https://twitter.com/...
Dan Froomkin / @froomkin: They really do want Trump back, don't they? https://presswatchers.org/... 2/2
Brian Schatz / @brianschatz: This quote makes me nauseated. “Jen [Psaki] is very good at her job, which is unfortunate,” one reporter who has covered the past two administrations from the room said." https://www.politico.com/...
Eliana Johnson / @elianayjohnson: .@maxwelltani please unmask the identity of the idiot who told you this!-"And the work is a lot less rewarding, because you're no longer saving democracy from Sean Spicer and his Men's Wearhouse suit. Jawing with Jen just makes you look like an asshole" - https://www.politico.com/...
Adam Blickstein / @adamblickstein: Some reporters spent the four Trump years developing main character syndrome & now are sad normalcy has returned https://twitter.com/...
Dan Kennedy / @dankennedy_nu: Peak Politico. One damaging quote. One mildly embarrassing quote. Both unattributed. https://www.politico.com/...
Eric L. Robinson / @uticaeric: The TL;DR is a Kinsley gaffe: “Our ad revenue is directly correlated to chaos, therefore we choose chaos.” https://twitter.com/...
Grace Panetta / Insider: Fox News' Peter Doocy says he's having ‘too much fun’ on the White House beat to think about leaving to host a show
Curtis Houck / @curtishouck: The level of arrogance and self-centeredness in this piece about how “boring” it is to be a White House correspondent under Biden is almost too much. Yes, it's because their friends are in power and thus it's one massive circle jerk https://www.politico.com/...
David B. Larter / @davidlarter: I disagree with this conceit. The White House reporter job didn't die in the Biden Administration. It has been on life support for years and if all you plan to do is ask questions and get spin from the Press Secretary it's a worthless role. https://www.politico.com/...
Dan Froomkin / Press Watch: Whiny, “bored” White House reporters evoke no sympathy
Elaine Godfrey / @elainejgodfrey: Last tweet on this but: If you're complaining about how boring it is to cover Biden, who is the most powerful man in the world and whose first year has been...eventful, you should probably not do this job. https://www.politico.com/...
Andrew Dyer / @andrewpdyer: I'm sorry it was so exciting covering Trump and now you're bored but who is supposed to care?
Robert Maguire / @robertmaguire_: DC reporters are sad that covering the White House no longer feels like refereeing a cage match in an abandoned Waffle House https://www.politico.com/...
Matt Whitlock / @mattdizwhitlock: Washington news isn't boring .. the media is just less enthusiastic about the villains. https://twitter.com/...
Tommy Christopher / Mediaite: WH Reporters Complain Biden Era a ‘Bore’ and ‘Jawing’ with Psaki ‘Makes You Look Like An A**hole’ in Politico Whinefest
Amaris Castillo / Poynter:
A look at the American Mosaic Prize, which annually awards $100K each to two freelance journalists reporting on underrepresented and/or misrepresented US groups — The idea is, 'These are amazing leaders. These are people with incredible talent. Give them resources and let them decide what to do with them.'
Discussion:
@atompkins, @ifjglobal, @jcanales, @pndblog, @jcstearns, @nbj914, @spj_tweets and @amariscastillo
Discussion:
Al Tompkins / @atompkins: God bless journalism freelancers and the publishers and funders who keep them going. Journalism depends on freelancers all over the world. https://www.poynter.org/...
@ifjglobal: 📢We commend this family foundation's initiative to distribute $100,000 to selected #freelance #journalists: “Give them resources and let them decide what to do with them,” says @HSFdn's communications director, Brian Eule. We need independent reporting.👏 https://www.poynter.org/...
Jim Canales / @jcanales: Nice coverage of @HSFdn American Mosaic Prize for journalism. So proud of my friend and former colleague @BrianE_Fdn for his vision and leadership (he'll be mad I just wrote that 😉). https://www.poynter.org/...
PhilanTopic / @pndblog: “The idea...was that journalism is critical to a healthy democracy, and [how] could the foundation support that? And a big aspect of that portfolio...is about underrepresented voices and marginalized communities, and underrepresented content in journalism.” https://ow.ly/...
Josh Stearns / @jcstearns: “I love the idea of letting hardworking, dedicated journalists know, 'We see you. We appreciate your contribution to our understanding of the world. It's valuable, and here's one way to honor it.'” @HannahAllam on @HSFdn Mosaic Award https://www.poynter.org/...
Nicholas Jackson / @nbj914: A great look at a great program, the @HSFdn's American Mosaic Prize, a $100,000 grant awarded to two freelance journalists every year “for excellence in long-form, narrative or deep reporting about underrepresented and/or misrepresented groups.” https://www.poynter.org/...
@spj_tweets: “In selecting such a large dollar amount for the American Mosaic Prize...they were hoping to enable these journalists to do important work & give them a lot of freedom, while also shining a spotlight on them & the significance of this kind of journalism.” https://www.poynter.org/...
Amaris Castillo / @amariscastillo: Photojournalist @rcjonesphoto was at his family's home when he got an email from the @HSFdn. He didn't think much of it, until he found out he was a recipient of the American Mosaic Prize — $100,000 of unrestricted money to select freelance journalists: https://www.poynter.org/...
Dominic Patten / Deadline:
Geoff Morrell is out as Disney's chief corporate affairs officer after less than four months, replaced by Kristina Schake and General Counsel Horacio Gutierrez — After less than four months, there is another changing of the communications guard at the Walt Disney Company.
Discussion:
Variety, New York Times, PRWeek, CNBC, The Hollywood Reporter, The Wrap, @jbflint, @benjaminjs, @ethanwsj, @pkafka, @davidlarter and @anthony
Discussion:
Brooks Barnes / New York Times: Disney's top communications executive is out after less than four months.
Diana Bradley / PRWeek: Geoff Morrell exits Disney after 3 months amid company standoff with DeSantis
Alex Sherman / CNBC: Disney executive Geoff Morrell, who helped craft response to 'Don't Say Gay' law, leaves company after three months
Drew Taylor / The Wrap: Disney's Top Corporate Communications Exec Geoff Morrell Is Out After Florida Fiasco
Joe Flint / @jbflint: That was fast. https://twitter.com/...
Benjamin Siemon / @benjaminjs: I hope this is the beginning of a new and better direction. https://deadline.com/...
Ethan Smith / @ethanwsj: There's blaming the messenger—and then there's blaming *your own* messenger. https://twitter.com/...
Peter Kafka / @pkafka: Disney CEO hired a Republican as his comms man. Now trying a Democratic woman instead. https://twitter.com/...
David B. Larter / @davidlarter: Lol: Yes, it was Comms' fault. https://deadline.com/...
Natalie Oganesyan / The Wrap:
Source: Netflix lays off writers and editors from fan site Tudum, launched in December 2021, in a marketing reorganization that globally laid off 25 out of 500+ — Netflix's companion fan website Tudum — the streaming service's hub for news about its original content and additional marketing arm …
Discussion:
@k80way, Insider, @saraqdavid, The Daily Beast, NPR, @lisatozzi, @maryamshahlive, @marlownyc, @juwanthewriter, @judyberman, @dreid63, @violentlyepic, @karnythia, @stitchmediamix, @juwanthewriter, TechCrunch, Axios, @tnwhiskeywoman, @lpbradley, @soledadobrien, Next TV, @automaticzen, @elainelow, @esqueer_, @elainelow, @eleven8, @thetinavasquez, @elainelow, @miarsato, @hels, @freeblackgirl, @tnwhiskeywoman, Digital TV Europe, @exavierpope, The Verge, @hardin, @hardin, @xpangler, @xoxogossipgita, @xoxogossipgita, @xoxogossipgita, @kris10parisi, @drewjschwartz, @bobservo, @bex_long, @scottmendelson, @byalexzaragoza, @realfatapollo, @bfishbfish, @annaknicolaou, @elizabethminkel, @izzieramirez, @therealaaronk, @izzieramirez, @alicialutes, @ohheyjenna, @carolynmichelle, @hardin, @automaticzen, @pkafka, @kasey__moore, @kerrymflynn, Engadget, Variety, Observer, Rolling Stone, VICE, New York Post, Deadline, Gawker, Los Angeles Times and The Hollywood Reporter
Discussion:
Katie Way / @k80way: Intriguing Netflix editorial strategy to hire some of the best entertainment/culture minds in the biz, very specifically court a ton of non-white women with the offer of a truly life-changing amount of money, only to shitcan everyone mere months later... god damn
Elaine Low / Insider: Netflix lays off Tudum writers months after ‘aggressively’ recruiting them for new fan site: ‘So many people left full-time jobs for this’
Sara David / @saraqdavid: still processing that netflix recruited me from my union job of SIX YEARS (which had 18 weeks severance) with the promise of new opportunities and a diverse team, only to lay me off months later with TWO WEEKS severance. some people moved to CA for this gig! i'm devastated
Laura Bradley / The Daily Beast: Former Netflix Tudum staffers describe a chaotic workplace with few metrics to measure success, and little planning around the site's goals and brand identity
Mandalit del Barco / NPR: Netflix promised good jobs at Tudum. Now, one of its teams has been laid off
Lisa Tozzi / @lisatozzi: “If you start a publication and at four months after launch you have to start firing people, I think that's a pretty good indicator that you don't know what you're doing.” So much talent involved in this project. Everyone deserved better. https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
Maryam Shah / @maryamshahlive: ‘"How are we the assholes?" they asked. “Fucking capitalism is the asshole. These companies are the assholes.”’ https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
Marlow Stern / @marlownyc: Tudum writers cruelly laid off by Netflix speak out: “I felt like Adam Scott in ‘Severance’” https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
@juwanthewriter: “They all described feeling skeptical of the opportunity at first... But the unimaginable pay was an opportunity that was simply too good to pass up. The hourly pay ranges offered annualized to $124,800 to $176,800, according to an Insider report.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
Judy Berman / @judyberman: You have got to be kidding me https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Deborah Reid / @dreid63: “This was one of the most diverse teams that I have worked on in media...and...they put a Black woman in charge of something that they know they're not going to support—that they know they're going to sabotage—and then just let it fail.” @netflix https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
@violentlyepic: genuinely one of the nastiest things i've ever heard of. i've been at companies that offered six months of severance with layoffs. two weeks is an insult and so cruel. i rly hate the state of media. netflix can afford it, too. they're ensuring this is a dying industry tbh https://twitter.com/...
Mikki Kendall / @karnythia: I absolutely do not understand where Netflix thinks this ends well. https://twitter.com/...
@stitchmediamix: literally a nightmare like they didn't even give tudum and its writers a chance to thrive (again, no official handles?? really??) and took people from relatively stable positions only to drop them without notice and without significant severance? disgusting of them actually https://twitter.com/...
@juwanthewriter: “Three former Tudum staffers... described a chaotic work environment in which they had few metrics by which to measure their success... The higher-higher ups, one source said, are “PR people” who have no real clue how to build a newsroom.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Amanda Silberling / TechCrunch: Netflix layoffs hit Tudum, its editorial arm, just five months after launch
Tim Baysinger / Axios: Netflix lays off Tudum staffers
@tnwhiskeywoman: I don't have too much more to say right now other than I am definitely not talking to anyone from BF about what it means to have your team of mostly WOC laid off after dealing with poor transparency re: goals, a lack of support & marketing, and internal executive sabotage.
Laura Bradley / @lpbradley: Netflix hired a staff of journalists to create its fan site Tudum and axed at least 10 of them months later. Now they're fighting for better severance pay. Former staffers described a chaotic environment where metrics for success were very hard to pin down https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...
Soledad O'Brien / @soledadobrien: @SaraQDavid @karenkho Ugh. I am so sorry.
Daniel Frankel / Next TV: The Trouble with ‘Tudum’ - Netflix Lays Off 25 Editorial Staffers for Its Just-Launched Fan Site
M.H. Williams / @automaticzen: Ohhhhh, Netflix had no plan whatsoever. Just FLYING BLIND. https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Elaine Low / @elainelow: NEW: Layoffs are a grim reality in journalism. But for the writers who joined a Hollywood studio flush with tech money, stability finally seemed in reach. “We were sold this false fantasy,” said one staffer who was laid off from Netflix. “We got scammed.” https://www.businessinsider.com/ ...
Alejandra Caraballo / @esqueer_: This thread collects all the stories of people being screwed by Netflix. Please support these content creators in any way you can. https://twitter.com/...
Elaine Low / @elainelow: Of the writers who spoke with me, none saw the layoffs coming. Netflix had restructured the Tudum team just weeks ago, with staffers assured that the brand new site would not be impacted by any changes. Tudum was one of $NFLX's “big strategic bets.” https://www.businessinsider.com/ ...
@eleven8: To those affected by the Netflix Layoffs: Blavity brands are hiring in editorial. We obviously don't have Netflix money but it's some good/impactful part time work and it'll keep some income coming in. Inquire in my DMs. #netflix #tudum
Tina Vasquez / @thetinavasquez: @SaraQDavid You really, really do not fuck with people's livelihoods like this. I'm sorry.
Elaine Low / @elainelow: Despite being promised editorial freedom, certain topics — anything that courts controversy — were off limits for Tudum writers, such as the arrest of “Cheer” S1 star Jerry Harris, who pled guilty to sex crimes involving minors. 3/ https://www.businessinsider.com/ ...
Mia Sato / @miarsato: netflix is laying off staff at tudum, a fan site it just launched in December. many of the writers were experienced journalists lured away from other publications, and netflix staff says they had no prior warning layoffs were coming. https://www.theverge.com/...
Helen Rosner / @hels: This is brutal. So many good & brilliant people treated so disposably. https://twitter.com/...
Evette Dionne / @freeblackgirl: Thank you for all your kind words. I appreciate it. My inboxes are full, so it will take a few days for me to respond to people who are reaching out. In the meantime, my mom and my partner are making me sign off to rest. Still a heart failure patient over here. Thanks again. ✨
@tnwhiskeywoman: Evette was truly the best boss I've ever had my entire working life. https://twitter.com/...
Jonathan Easton / Digital TV Europe: Netflix makes lay-offs at Tudum
@exavierpope: “Tudum falls under the company's marketing division and includes people working on entertainment, news, lifestyle, and culture content. Most of the 10-person Tudum culture and trends team was let go” — These were talented and respected people too https://twitter.com/...
Brandon Hardin / @hardin: @netflix Attracting diverse talent and expertise and then fucking burying it. Maybe spend a little time and effort to promote the work you're paying for? https://twitter.com/...
Brandon Hardin / @hardin: All my sympathies to the @Netflix Tudum people. I'm looking at the egregious lack of social media support for your work, and Netflix should be ashamed. I'd tag the official Tudum account BUT THERE ISN'T ONE.
Todd Spangler / @xpangler: Netflix Reorganizes Marketing Team as Layoffs Hit Department —> it's pink-slipping 25 staffers, including several at Tudum, but Netflix says the fan site is not shutting down https://variety.com/... via @Variety
Italian Elon Musk / @xoxogossipgita: Solidarity to everyone laid off by Netflix today after barely six months of their publication even existing.
Italian Elon Musk / @xoxogossipgita: Honestly very gross to me to explicitly court non-white and non-men for these roles, some of the most underrepresented kinds of people in journalism who are habitually underpaid, and then pull the rug out from under them like this. If there's anything I can do, reach out.
Italian Elon Musk / @xoxogossipgita: Netflix told these writers that this would be a different, more stable kind of job than one in the world of journalism, where layoffs are very common. Five months later, Tudum is hit with layoffs. https://www.vice.com/...
@kris10parisi: It really bums me out when places like Tudum struggle, while content mills that pay writers next-to-nothing (ie: ScreenRant) keep thriving. The system is broken. https://techcrunch.com/...
Drew Schwartz / @drewjschwartz: So, so brutal. Katie helpfully threaded tweets from folks Netflix just laid off, many of whom—including @byalexzaragoza, @SaraQDavid, and @JoshhTerry—I can say from firsthand experience are excellent writers and editors, and lovely people. Hire them! https://twitter.com/...
Rebecca Long / @bex_long: I got an offer from Netflix to join this team last year, but I said no because I had just started another job. It was SO hard to walk away from this opportunity and from the amazing team I wish I had gotten to work with, but Netflix is telling on itself here. This is so cruel. https://twitter.com/...
Scott Mendelson / @scottmendelson: I whine a lot about Netflix but whatever my opinions and/or bias I make a point to emphasize that it's not a good/evil situation. That said, *this* may qualify as evil. https://twitter.com/...
@byalexzaragoza: Aggressively courting journalists (esp POC). Throwing money at us. Telling us this is gonna be different and stable. We'll be set up for success. Then months later pulling the rug out from underneath us. I should've known better than to trust anything with “doom” in its name
Fat Apollo / @realfatapollo: @bfishbfish We call that “hire to fire” Last time that happened to me, I had an inkling, so I asked for 12 mths severance in my contract
Rebecca Fishbein / @bfishbfish: This is the second media property to do this in two weeks. Either give the writers and producers you hired time and space to build their content, or don't bother starting a new venture.
Anna Nicolaou / @annaknicolaou: statement from a Netflix spokesperson just now: “Our fan website Tudum is an important priority for the company.” https://twitter.com/...
Elizabeth Minkel / @elizabethminkel: Congrats to Netflix, whose editorial output was the subject of this episode. You've really innovated here, making the “recruit journalists/editors, uproot their lives, fire them a few months later” cycle even tighter. 🙃 https://twitter.com/...
Izzie Ramirez / @izzieramirez: so many incredible journos and editors are getting fucked over bc higher ups literally cannot understand the digital media landscape and expect numbers that can't happen in a short period of time
@therealaaronk: Netflix seems to be for real circling the drain??? I mean, I'd be lying if I said I understood the full implications of today's news but it doesn't look good for them.
Izzie Ramirez / @izzieramirez: u cant be mad at ur staff's numbers when ur url buckets are tudum/articles, and u can't click on a staff writers name! similarly, u also cant be mad when u dont have enough subscribers when ur rollout depended on preexisting cable watchers!!!
Alicia Lutes / @alicialutes: i'm so sorry to everyone affected by the layoffs today. it is actually unhinged that a corporation would do all that they've done on the tudum front only to completely lay waste to their staff within 7 months.
Jenna Amatulli / @ohheyjenna: Solidarity with everyone laid off at Netflix/Tudum today. It's endlessly heartbreaking to see people in this industry constantly get the short end of the stick.
Carolyn Petit / @carolynmichelle: Terrible news about Tudum, and ruthless, short-sighted actions by Netflix. The instability of this business is terrifying and heartbreaking. Really hope everyone affected lands somewhere that recognizes their value.
Brandon Hardin / @hardin: @netflix I'm looking at past coverage on Tudum, and the stories you wrote should have done decent numbers on social. Your layoffs shouldn't have happened. Whoever decided to only tweet ONE STORY of yours from the main Netflix account SINCE LAUNCH should be forced to defend their job.
M.H. Williams / @automaticzen: Kind of odd to call it a fan website. You paid writers to write things? It's not even a website for fans, because you barely told anyone about it. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Peter Kafka / @pkafka: Fwiw - which is not very much for people who used to work at Netflix's “Tudum” marketing site and were laid off today - here's Netflix's statement: “Our fan website Tudum is an important priority for the company.” https://twitter.com/...
Kasey Moore / @kasey__moore: Like so many Netflix “side hustles” Tudum was set up to fail. Just enough outside the core expierence that it wouldn't hurt to pull. Very sorry for all the writers. Didn't deserve this.
Kerry Flynn / @kerrymflynn: Incredibly awful to see :( Netflix hired a bunch of super talented entertainment journalists who are now announcing they've been laid off — follows the company's brutal earnings report and news of cuts. See thread on great people newsrooms should look to hire: https://twitter.com/...
Bryan Menegus / Engadget: Netflix's Tudum lays off staff months after launch
Isabella Simonetti / Observer: Netflix's Fan Blog Tudum Lays Off Its Writers Just Months After Hiring Them
Althea Legaspi / Rolling Stone: Netflix Layoffs Strike ‘Tudum,’ Its Editorial Fan Site
Gita Jackson / VICE: Netflix Lays Off the Journalists It Just Hired
Alexandra Steigrad / New York Post: Angry Netflix employees take to Twitter after getting laid off from streaming giant
Patrick Hipes / Deadline: Netflix Makes Staff Cuts At Tudum Fan Site
Olivia Craighead / Gawker: Netflix Guts Editorial Arm “Tudum”
Corin Faife / The Verge:
Reuters parent company Thomson Reuters tells shareholders it is assessing the human rights impact of its software including Clear, used by US immigration agents — The announcement follows years of activism from the Canadian BCGEU, a minority shareholder in the company
Discussion:
Drew Harwell / Washington Post: Thomson Reuters to review contracts, including for database used to track immigrants
Stuart McGurk / New Statesman:
A deep dive into GB News as the British outlet nears its one-year anniversary: lack of production experience, competition from Murdoch's talkTV, and low ratings — When Angelos Frangopoulos addressed his newly assembled staff in early May last year, the atmosphere was jubilant, giddy even …
Discussion:
@hugorifkind, @jessicaelgot, @jessicaelgot, @adambienkov, @aljwhite, @hugorifkind, @rupertmyers, @otto_english, @direthoughts, @pressgazette and @hadleyfreeman
Discussion:
Hugo Rifkind / @hugorifkind: Weirdly, this exact same thing happened with @MattChorley at @TimesRadio. https://twitter.com/...
Jessica Elgot / @jessicaelgot: This is honestly every parents' dream if their child is in journalism https://twitter.com/...
Adam Bienkov / @adambienkov: Amazingly this is an actual profile of life inside GB News, rather than a parody. https://www.newstatesman.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Alan White / @aljwhite: When I say this @stuartmcgurk piece about GB News is incredible, I'm really, really understating it https://www.newstatesman.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Hugo Rifkind / @hugorifkind: Very much enjoying @stuartmcgurk's long investigation of GB News https://www.newstatesman.com/ ...
Rupert Myers / @rupertmyers: Great article - full of fascinating gems. Alex Phillips is bafflingly overpaid https://twitter.com/...
Otto English / @otto_english: An absolute gem this. A long read on GB News but all the better for it. Must read https://www.newstatesman.com/ ...
Henry Dyer / @direthoughts: 'One presenter told me that producers had taken to booking their own parents. As vox pops, I asked, for the person-on-the-street view? “No,” they said, “as guests. Someone will say, 'My mum's got a view on this.' ‘Has she? Is she free?’ That's happened at least twice."' https://twitter.com/...
@pressgazette: Can GB News survive the launch of TalkTV? The @NewStatesman today published an in-depth investigation documenting the ups and downs of GB News' first year. It features claims of a “toxic” workplace and producers booking their parents as on-air guests. https://www.newstatesman.com/ ...
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge:
Report finds Amazon and third parties collect data from interactions with Alexa through Echo speakers and share it with as many as 41 partners for ad targeting — Amazon and third parties use data from smart speakers to sell you stuff, says report — A report released last week contends …
Discussion:
@shonaghosh, @dtemkin, Today in Digital Marketing, @tekaldas, @emmamashford, @rikefranke, @grahamvsworld and MediaNama, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Shona Ghosh / @shonaghosh: Gross. Once you've handed over hard cash to a company for a device, it shouldn't continue to extract value from you in other ways. https://twitter.com/...
@dtemkin: Not one thing in this article is a surprise. Your $29 smart speaker cost a lot more than that to design and build.. like almost any other free or low cost item on the internet, YOU are the product for sale. https://twitter.com/...
Steph Gunn / Today in Digital Marketing: The Walls Have Monetizable Ears
Timothy E Kaldas / @tekaldas: I have refused to purchase a single electronic device that is Alexa enabled. It is the creepiest corporate invasion of privacy we have. I will continue to avoid Alexa and similar technologies as long as I can. https://twitter.com/...
Emma Ashford / @emmamashford: My most reactionary political view is that if you let one of these wiretaps into your house you deserve everything you get. https://twitter.com/...
Ulrike Franke / @rikefranke: This is my surprised face https://twitter.com/...
@grahamvsworld: Excuse me but I was specifically told that this was impossible https://www.theverge.com/...
Janko Roettgers / Protocol:
Deloitte: 33% of US consumers both canceled and added a paid video streaming service over the past six months; Gen Z and millennials had 50%+ churn rates — For subscription video services, signing up new customers is only half the battle. Keeping existing subscribers engaged, and making sure they don't cancel, is just as important.
Angelina Chapin / The Cut:
A look at the New York Post's cutthroat workplace culture given ex-editor Michelle Gotthelf's lawsuit; 20+ people have left the paper in the past six months — Michelle Gotthelf's final day at the New York Post started like any other: an hour-long commute from New Jersey …
Discussion:
@zielina, @rod3000, @angelinachapin, @kt_thomps, @pandemic_times, @angelinachapin, @thecut, @angelinachapin, @angelinachapin, @rachel_elson, @spiccoli, @thecut and @thecut
Discussion:
Anita Zielina / @zielina: We need to radically detox newsrooms. Period. https://www.thecut.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Rod McGuinness / @rod3000: Another News Corp success story https://www.thecut.com/...
Angelina Chapin / @angelinachapin: Current and ex-New York Post staffers told me they had been: sexually propositioned in exchange for a full time job, yelled at so loudly in a car they had to pull over, and forced to work 16 hour days to the point where they developed a drinking problem. https://www.thecut.com/...
Catherine Thompson / @kt_thomps: When the top woman at the New York Post filed a sexual harassment suit on her way out the door, it brought up a lot of complicated feelings for the people who'd worked with her. “If she hated you, she was a terrorist,” one reporter told @angelinachapin: https://www.thecut.com/...
Ed Day / @pandemic_times: Don't bother believing anybody who says 'But I didn't know working for the Murdochs could turn out bad for me!' in the 21st century. If you can't be bothered with basic research on the billionaire you're going to work for, you definitely should not be a journalist. https://twitter.com/...
Angelina Chapin / @angelinachapin: After the New York Post axed its top woman —and she sued them for discrimination—I did a deep dive into her divisive legacy. She had a pink office, mentored young women and was also described as “the horribly abused child that goes on to abuse others.” https://www.thecut.com/...
@thecut: Gotthelf was the Post's digital-editor-in chief, and had a bubblegum pink office with a boa and glass chandelier. “I was having fun, for fuck's sake,” she says of the decor, and relished in making the men “a little uncomfortable” https://www.thecut.com/...
Angelina Chapin / @angelinachapin: I had many convos with ppl about whether the New York Post workplace was “tough” or “toxic.” One former managing editor called the shouting and swearing in the newsroom “part of this orchestra...Everyone has their part in the symphony.”🎶 🎶 https://www.thecut.com/...
Angelina Chapin / @angelinachapin: Wrote about the toxic culture at the New York Post and the controversy over its recently ousted female EIC of digital. In sum: “If you wonder what it's like to work at the New York Post, read the fucking pages of the New York Post.” https://www.thecut.com/...
Rachel F. Elson / @rachel_elson: My first job in NYC was at the NY Post. When I've told people in the years since that I left because it was the kind of place where people threw phones, they think I mean cell phones. No: Desk phones. Ripped right off their cords ... https://www.thecut.com/...
Sean Piccoli / @spiccoli: I lasted 7 months doing rewrite in '13-'14 and don't regret the experience. Tabloid writing is a particular skill, and they gave me a shot. But yep some editors (not all) were harsh and along with minor bragging rights I have a few psychic scars 😬 https://www.thecut.com/...
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Epic Games, which acquired Bandcamp in March, asks a US court to bar Google from removing its app from the Play Store if it doesn't implement its IAP by June 1 — Epic opens a new line of assault against Google payments — Epic Games has filed a motion for a preliminary injunction …
Discussion:
@chaddickerson, 9to5Google, @sentinelcentral, FOSS Patents, PYMNTS.com, Engadget, MediaPost, WRAL TechWire, Billboard, @dada_drummer, @ronmknox and Music Ally, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Chad Dickerson / @chaddickerson: Love that Epic Games is standing up to Google on behalf of Bandcamp in part to make sure independent musicians make more $$. ✊ https://www.theverge.com/...
Ben Schoon / 9to5Google: As Google cracks down on Android app billing, Epic Games may head to court again over Bandcamp
@sentinelcentral: Epic Games has taken legal action against Google to prevent them from removing the Bandcamp app from the Play Store. They've claimed that beginning on June 1st, they would need to turn off any sales on Android, and be unable to pay artists quickly.
Florian Mueller / FOSS Patents: Epic Games requests preliminary injunction against Google that would prohibit enforcement of Google Play policy change with respect to music marketplace Bandcamp
Jon Fingas / Engadget: Epic asks court to stop Google's removal of Bandcamp from the Play Store (updated)
WRAL TechWire: Epic Games files lawsuit against Google to protect new acquisition Bandcamp from Play Store removal
Damon K / @dada_drummer: Not bad news - but the feeling of music being a pawn in the game is too familiar from Spotify Apple and Amazon... We are everyone's loss leader now https://twitter.com/...
Ron Knox / @ronmknox: When Epic bought Bandcamp, I talked a lot about Epic leveraging Bandcamp's fight with the dominant app stores in its own battle with Google and Apple. Well, here's Epics first shot - an injunction against Google's plan to pull Bandcamp from Google Play. https://www.theverge.com/...
Stuart Dredge / Music Ally: Bandcamp at centre of dispute between Epic Games and Google
Bloomberg:
A Turkish court acquits two Bloomberg reporters, indicted for allegedly trying to undermine economic stability in a 2018 article about Turkey's financial policy — A Turkish court on Friday acquitted two Bloomberg reporters along with dozens of other defendants facing jail terms on charges …
Discussion:
Fercan / @fercany: My heart goes out to all journalists and human rights advocates everywhere who had been wrongfully accused, jailed, or under constant threat. https://twitter.com/...
Reto Gregori / @retogregori: Sanity prevailed: A Turkish court acquits our reporters on charges of trying to undermine the country's economy. Bloomberg EIC John Micklethwait says “we are pleased that the Court has recognized the baselessness of the charges.” https://www.bloomberg.com/... via @markets