Mediagazer: Senator Elizabeth Warren urges the FCC to block Standard General's Tegna acquisition, saying the merger may lead to higher prices, layoffs, and easier collusion (U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts)

Tony Stubblebine / The Official Medium Blog:

Medium launches a Mastodon instance on me.dm, promising members a service with reliable moderation, smoother onboarding, an interesting local feed, and more — The fediverse is a breath of fresh air for writers and social media — Today, Medium is launching a Mastodon instance at me.dm …

Discussion: @jlori, @medium, @asmartbear, @tmcw, @chrismessina, @brittanyjezouit, @kissane@mstdn.social, @kissane@mstdn.social, @kissane@mstdn.social, @coachtony@me.dm, @dansinker@omfg.town, @coachtony@me.dm and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Elsa Keslassy / Variety:

WBD signs a deal with Amazon to offer a “Warner Pass” on Prime Video Channels in France with all HBO programs and 12 other channels, including CNN and Eurosport — The offer will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video Channels in France, and will boast all of HBO programs …

Discussion: The Wrap, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Broadband TV News and Media Play News

Max Goldbart / Deadline:

Tim Davie says the BBC is “not proactively putting a date on a digital switchover” and the aggressive plan won't “remove things used by lots of people too soon” — The BBC is “not proactively putting a date on a digital switchover or anything stupid like that,” …

Reed Albergotti / Semafor:

Sources: Coinbase's internal “sentiment” tracker showed Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX was consistently viewed more favorably by the media right up until its collapse — Crypto exchange Coinbase has for years tracked how the company is portrayed in the press and online, and that …

Inae Oh / Mother Jones:

Letting C-SPAN choose what to film could increase transparency but would also play to some of politicians' worst instincts of grandstanding and viral content — Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.

Discussion: @motherjones, @abigailweinberg, @motherjones, @motherjones, @alibreland, @nhbaptiste, @eenayo, @timothypmurphy, Newser and New York Daily News

Brian Veseling / WAN-IFRA:

After enabling online subscription cancellation, Minnesota Star Tribune finds the new process retains 18.5% of customers canceling vs. 8.8% via a call center — 2023-01-12. “Our goal is to discuss retention as often as we discuss acquisition,” says Toby Collodora, Senior Manager of Retention …

Discussion: Nieman Lab

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts:

Senator Elizabeth Warren urges the FCC to block Standard General's Tegna acquisition, saying the merger may lead to higher prices, layoffs, and easier collusion — “FCC should block any transaction that it knows is likely to harm competition or the public interest such as Standard General's proposed acquisition of Tegna”

Discussion: Next TV, @newsguild, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and @gaufre

Saksha Menezes / Bloomberg:

Research: UK vinyl sales reached £150.5M in 2022, surpassing CD sales, which fell 17.4% YoY to £124M, the first time vinyl outsold CDs since 1987 — Vinyl Outsold CDs in the UK Last Year — Sales from 2018 to 2022 — Source: The Digital Entertainment and Retail Association

Discussion: ERA Ltd

New York Times:

Prince Harry's memoir, Spare, sold 1.43M copies on its first day, including pre-orders, a record for any nonfiction book ever published by Penguin Random House — The steady drumbeat of revelations that preceded the book's release helped push early orders and initial sales, making “Spare …

Discussion: The Guardian, The Hill, Vanity Fair, UPI, Variety, Insider and The Hollywood Reporter

Sam Kille / The GroundTruth Project:

The GroundTruth Project, home of Report for America and Report for the World, names Rob Zeaske as its new CEO, starting January 23 — The GroundTruth Project, home of Report for America and Report for the World, is pleased to announce the selection of Rob Zeaske as its CEO and president …

Discussion: @stevenwaldman

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Warner Bros. Discovery announces the first price hike for HBO Max, with the ad-free monthly subscription in the US increasing from $14.99 to $15.99 — Effective Thursday, Jan. 12, the price of a new HBO Max no-ads monthly subscription in the U.S. will increase from $14.99 to $15.99 (plus applicable taxes).

Jeremy Barr / Washington Post:

A look at ratings growth for Fox News' The Five, surpassing shows from Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity, and second only to Yellowstone in 2022 cable ratings — How ‘The Five’ surpassed Tucker Carlson in the ratings: It's the ‘Avengers of Fox News’ — but at an hour that reflects the increasing dominance of older viewers.

Discussion: @amyargetsinger