Top News:
CNN:
The White House says Biden offered a pre-Super Bowl interview to streaming service Fox Soul, but Fox Corp declined as it wanted an interview with Fox News hosts — A last-ditch effort to salvage a Fox interview with President Joe Biden before the Super Bowl has fallen through.
Discussion:
@presssec, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, Mediaite, The Daily Beast, Bloomberg, Insider, The Wrap, The Hill, @oliverdarcy, Forbes, New York Post, IndieWire, @nycsouthpaw, @tommyxtopher, @isaiah_bb, @claytravis, @tommyxtopher, @oliverdarcy, @oliverdarcy, @geoffpilkington, @blanchardjrb, TVNewsCheck, The Comeback, @ltthompso, Awful Announcing, @pettylupone, @rossalincoln, @variety and Deadline
New York Times:
After a three-month strike, the HarperCollins union and the company reach a tentative deal that includes increasing minimum salaries and a one-time $1,500 bonus — After a three-month strike, the two parties reached a tentative deal that includes wage increases and a one-time bonus.
Discussion:
Vox, Publishers Weekly, @mclendaniel, @hcpunion, @bonesleopard, @liz_a_harris, @maureenjohnson, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal and The Bookseller
Taylor Lorenz / Washington Post:
Report: ads appearing next to tweets posted by 10 extremist accounts that were restored by Elon Musk under an amnesty likely generated $19M in annual revenue — Ads from major brands are running alongside hateful content and dangerous conspiracy theories from far right Twitter users, group claims
Christopher Palmeri / Bloomberg:
Sources: Fox turned down unsolicited offers of more than $2B for Tubi, which it bought for $440M; Tubi lost ~$50M in Q4 and sales grew 25% YoY to $200M+ — Fox Corp. has turned down unsolicited offers of more than $2 billion for its Tubi streaming service, over four times what the company paid …
Discussion:
Insider, The Wrap, @tsoh_investing, @tvgrimreaper and Media Play News
Manish Singh / TechCrunch:
Sources: Amazon is in talks with Times Internet to acquire MX Player, a top VOD streaming service in India; Times Internet acquired MX Player for $140M in 2018 — Amazon is engaging with Times Internet to explore the acquisition of MX Player, one of the largest on-demand video streaming services in India …
Discussion:
The Information and Cord Cutters News, more at Techmeme »
Jenna Burrell / Poynter:
Journalists must challenge the notion that AI tools like ChatGPT will replace humans, as finding the truth is trickier than having data and the right algorithm — Don't let these tools dazzle you beyond reason. Don't anthropomorphize them. Ask hard questions about what they're purported to do.
Discussion:
MediaPost, @jennaburrell, Boing Boing, Search Engine Land, @mike_salter, @spj_tweets, @poynter, @datasociety and Insider
New York Times:
Excerpt from an upcoming book on the Redstone family and its media empire looks at how Shari Redstone asserted control of what has become Paramount Global — Her father doubted her much of her career. Les Moonves launched a bid at CBS to overrule her. That was before sexual misconduct allegations came to light.
Discussion:
Bloomberg
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
News Corp plans to cut its headcount by ~5%, or ~1,250 positions, by the end of 2023 and says the company is still in talks to sell its digital real estate unit — The owner of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones was impacted by a difficult economic environment.
RELATED:
Harry Lambert / New Statesman:
A look at the UK's Evening Standard and Independent under owner Evgeny Lebedev: despite the Indy's profitability, the media outlets have lost £150M in 11 years — Buying British newspapers gave the Lebedevs clout in Tory high politics. Over a decade on, it remains unclear what they hope to achieve.
Discussion:
@harrytlambert, @newstatesman, @newstatesman and @newstatesman
NBC News:
White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield is stepping down at the end of February and will be succeeded by Ben LaBolt — Another core Biden veteran is leaving the administration but the communications director is expected to consult a re-elect campaign.
Discussion:
The White House, Mediaite, PRWeek, The Hollywood Reporter, The Hill, The Wrap, Axios, CNN, New York Post, CBS News, Fox News, Deadline, @paniskoff, @steveschale and Politico
Donie O'Sullivan / @donie:
Tamar Sarai / Nieman Lab:
Q&A with Media 2070's founding director Alicia Bell and campaign manager Venneikia Williams on the project's origins, media reparations for racism, and more — It's said that journalism is the first rough draft of history, but journalists also shape present-day realities.
Discussion:
@spj_tweets
Bron Maher / Press Gazette:
Analysis: 27 of the highest earning Substack newsletters generate at least $22M in annual revenue together; at least five of them make $1M annually each — The figures reveal that at least five Substacks draw in $1m annually. — The 27 highest-earning email newsletters on the platform Substack generate …
Discussion:
One Man & His Blog, @mikeorren, Media Voices, @pressgazette, @jackmarshall, Quillie's Substack, @robinwigg, Empowered Way and Hassan's Substack
Scott Mendelson / The Wrap:
Lionsgate reports Q3 revenue up 13% YoY to $1B and $16.6M net income, vs. a $45.6M net loss YoY, and 35.1M Starz subscribers, or 33M without Starzplay Arabia — Lionsgate, the Santa Monica studio and owner of the Starz cable network, came in well above market expectations as it reported results for its third quarter Thursday.
Discussion:
SlashFilm, Variety, Advanced Television, @danrayburn, Media Play News and Lionsgate
NewsNation:
NewsNation reporter Evan Lambert was freed from jail late February 8 after being arrested giving a live report at Ohio Governor Mike DeWine's press conference — EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (NewsNation) — A NewsNation reporter was released from jail late Wednesday after being arrested earlier …
Discussion:
Fast Company, @kelliemeyernews, CNN, @axios, @ktla, @kelliemeyernews, @ashagony, @isaacdovere, @newsnation, USA Today, @newsnation, @newsnation, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, @pressfreedom, SPJ News, Washington Post, @newsnationpr, New York Times, Fox News, @kimberlyeatkins, @newsnation, ABC News, The Desk, Mediaite, Boing Boing, TVNewser, @sarasidnercnn, @statter911, @joshtpm, @matthewkeyslive, Committee to Protect …, The Wrap, @axios, @richmchugh, @joshtpm, @4lisaguerrero, @annalysagayle, WKBN-TV, @jatara_, @theredrummedia, @newsnation, @allthingsnatsec, @brianstelter, @kaitlancollins, @davidpepper, @taylorpopielarz, @walterreports, Newser, UPI, Associated Press and HuffPost