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A look at the practice of guests paying podcasters to appear on their shows; Guestio, a marketplace for brokering paid guest appearances, has raised $1M+ — People will confess all sorts of things to podcasters, from their unpopular political beliefs or embarrassing romantic mishaps to their worst fears.


Alex Jones trial reveals that Infowars made as much as $800K per day in 2018, and Jones says the outlet had $70M in revenue in its most recent fiscal year — - An attorney for Sandy parents said Alex Jones' defense attorney “messed up” and sent him a digital copy of Jones' cell phone.


Warner Bros. Discovery will not release Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt on HBO Max nor in theaters; Batgirl had a budget of $90M; sources: Scoob! cost $40M — “Batgirl,” the feature film adaptation of the DC Comics character, has been killed at Warner Bros., Variety has confirmed.
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Deadline, IndieWire, The Wrap, ScreenRant, SlashFilm, CNET, Associated Press, Animation Magazine, Looper, Well, Isn't This Great? …, Forbes, NPR, Mashable, Us Weekly, Vanity Fair, @xzyliac, @krolljvar, The Week, Desafiador do Desconhecido, @markharrisnyc, Boing Boing, @seitz_unseen, @bearmccreary, @somebadideas, @greg_jenner, @becketadams, @variety, @xpangler, Den of Geek, The Comeback, al.com, Inverse, Gizmodo, The Playlist and New York Post
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S&P Global Market Intelligence projects CNN's 2022 profit falling to $956.8M, which sources say would be the first time since 2016 that its profit was below $1B
Discussion:
Mediaite, Breitbart, @ericrweinstein, FTVLive, @ggreenwald, @harthanson, @richardgrenell, @anthony, @edmundlee, @chris_maag, @tvgrimreaper, @joshsternberg, @mylesudland and New York Post


Apple job posting indicates it is looking to build a “privacy-forward” demand-side ad platform — Apple may have blown up the digital ads business but it left enough fertile ground to build its own, more focused play for media dollars. The company is building a demand-side platform …
Discussion:
@digiday, @alextcone, AppleInsider, @timhwang, @martyswant, @blackamazon, @damianburns and @tatarynovich


Interviews with two dozen Triller creators and others show that the TikTok rival missed payments after promising Black creators $4K monthly, with half in equity — Triller made its name recruiting talent with lavish perks. Now, dozens of influencers are struggling to get paid.
Discussion:
@caseynewton, @washingtonpost, @alexrkonrad, @robnashville, @taylorlorenz, @dwhate, @sneakerphetish, @taylorlorenz, @andrejgee and @moisesfenty


NYT reports Q2 revenue up 11.5% YoY to $555.7M, adjusted operating profit down 18% YoY to $76M, and 180K net new digital subs; The Athletic had a $12.6M loss — Revenue from digital advertising fell slightly in the second quarter, but subscription revenue continued to rise sharply, the company said.
Discussion:
MediaPost, The Wrap, Press Gazette, Poynter, @tvgrimreaper, @jasonkilar, Reuters, @benryanwriter, @mccanner, @davidshepardson and @cliffordlevy


Q&A with Sisi Wei, the OpenNews co-executive director who The Markup named its new editor-in-chief, on her coverage plans, work experience, challenges, and more — “What we often don't think about is how tech accountability is also so many other types of coverage.
Discussion:
@themarkup, @sisiwei, @webjournalist, @nicolewong, @objectivejrn, @juliachanb, @pilhofer, @versharma, @benwerd, @msanchezmia, @mattderienzo, @ryanpitts, @pkerkstra, @vivian, @mtdukes, @mitrakalita, @gingerthomp1, @wendi_c_thomas, @pcheung630, @iwmf, @mharrisperry, @nabihasyed, @blackamazon, @s_m_i, @nabihasyed, The Markup and OpenNews


Textbook publisher Pearson plans to turn its e-books into NFTs to take a cut from secondhand sales and has a team exploring “the implications of the metaverse” — The chief executive officer of Pearson Plc, one of the world's largest textbook publishers, said he hopes technology …
Discussion:
The Guardian, @timduy, @mrjoemilliano, @mjasay, The Verge, @patricksmcmahon, @rozebian, @iancutress, @joshelman, @carnage4life, @hypervisible, @meyerweb, @richardred0x, @bradydale, @mor10, @samoore_, @jasonhitchcock, @bradydale, @benhammersley, @jonippolito and InvestEgate, more at Techmeme »


Sources: over 1M people signed up for free newsletters on Meta's Bulletin service and the company was planning on expanding its roster earlier in 2022 — The Substack frenzy seems like a thing of the past, but lots of publishers are still leaning into newsletters. “They're a great minimally viable product.”
Discussion:
@seangriffey, @rmc031, @emilystewartm, @pkafka, @bigmeaninternet and @elanazak


Q&A with YouTube star Hank Green on YouTube's revenue value, TikTok's promotional value, how Complexly is structured, selling Subbable and VidCon, and more — In October 2006, Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion. On January 1st, 2007, the brothers Hank and John Green started making videos …
Discussion:
Podcast Movement, @slatchison and @12tonevideos


Fox renews its distribution agreement with Verizon for its FiOS TV platform, which will now also carry Fox Weather and Tubi — Fox has completed a multi-year renewal of its distribution agreement with Verizon for its Fios TV platform. — The deal encompasses the full portfolio of Fox brands …
Discussion:
The Streamable, Variety, Media Play News and Next TV


Roku will add Paramount+ to the premium subscriptions available on the Roku Channel later in August — Paramount+ will launch as a premium subscription within The Roku Channel later this month, Roku Inc. announced Wednesday. The partnership will provide The Roku Channel users with direct access …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Roku, The Streamable, Deadline, Next TV, Media Play News and The Hollywood Reporter