Top News:
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Sources: Warner Bros. Discovery is close to a deal for a Harry Potter TV show with one season based on each book, a cornerstone of HBO's new streaming strategy — Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. is close to a deal for a new online TV series based on Harry Potter, the best-selling young adult books …
Discussion:
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Kim Masters / The Hollywood Reporter:
Many current and former Amazon executives, showrunners, and agents say Amazon Studios is confusing and frustrating; one showrunner says Studios has “no vision” — Despite ambitious bets like ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ and the upcoming ‘Citadel,’ insiders complain that there's still …
Discussion:
@kimmasters, Insider, @waves_aloto, @alotokait, @klendathucap, The Week, @hradzka, @kendrawrites, @richlightshed, @parismarx, Forbes, @sherman4949, The A.V. Club, Numlock News, @gpingersoll, @carnage4life, SlashFilm, The Daily Dot, @nreviewed, @techwontsaveus, @thesarahkelly, @lucas_shaw, @jaxelburgh, @azalben, @bendreyfuss, @sepinwall, @kaludiasays, Decider, @pkafka, Gizmodo and TVLine, more at Techmeme »
Brian Schwartz / CNBC:
Court doc: David Pecker, then-CEO of National Enquirer's owner, agreed to help Trump's campaign in a 2015 meeting; Pecker later helped suppress negative stories — - Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg unveiled new details Tuesday about the role the National Enquirer's then-publisher played …
Pew Research Center:
A survey finds men make up 83% of US journalists covering sports and 60% of those covering government and politics, while 64% of those covering health are women — The beats American journalists cover vary widely by gender and other factors, according to a new analysis of a Pew Research Center survey …
Laura Hazard Owen / Nieman Lab:
Tom Krazit, a former editor at now-defunct Protocol, bought Protocol's enterprise newsletter list of 20K+ emails to help launch Runtime, his newsletter on Ghost — A news organization shuts down, and its writers move to Substack while they're trying to decide what to do next: We've seen that before.
Discussion:
Runtime, Mostly Cloudy, @laurahazardowen and Protocol
Remy Tumin / New York Times:
Nielsen: the 2023 NCAA women's basketball tournament final averaged 9.9M viewers, up 103% YoY; ESPN: the game was the most viewed college event ever on ESPN+ — The average 9.9 million viewers for Louisiana State topping Iowa was significantly more than the previous record of 5.7 million …
Discussion:
@espnpr, The Athletic, Awful Announcing, Axios, Sports Media Watch, @rcb05, Deadline, @rodger, @kimelchlepp, @goiowa, @frank_seravalli, @billiejeanking, @sarahspain, @a_g_haubner, @walsha, @deadline, @corahalll, @hannahstormespn, @richarddeitsch, The Ringer, @ktrain_11, @richarddeitsch, @richarddeitsch, @janesports, @sportsiren, @richarddeitsch, Barrett Media, The Comeback, ClutchPoints, Sports Media Watch, Awful Announcing, Deadline, Sportico and Awful Announcing
Dade Hayes / Deadline:
Bob Iger says Disney is “not looking to license core Marvel, Disney, Pixar, or Star Wars” content to third parties but may “on occasion” license other content — Disney CEO Bob Iger said the company has reached a new stage of its evolution in streaming and will consider …
Discussion:
The Streamable and Miami Herald
Lydia DePillis / New York Times:
How the FTC's efforts to severely limit noncompete clauses could help reporters, anchors, sportscasters, meteorologists, producers, editors, and others in media — Job-switching barriers are routine at TV stations, even for workers not on the air. A proposed federal rule would curb the practice across all fields.
Discussion:
American Press Institute, @kristenbarbar, @pmathew814, @danielmwoodruff, @serwer, @drjmarine, The Information, @normative and @lydiadepillis
Craig Lord / Global News:
Rogers Communications, Canada's largest cable provider, closed its ~$15B merger with rival Shaw on April 3, 2023, after announcing the deal in March 2021 — Rogers must fulfill list of conditions in Shaw merger or face stiff financial penalties — Rogers Communications Inc. has closed …
Discussion:
@globalleth, Bloomberg and Reuters
Maya Salam / New York Times:
A profile of Hot Ones, a YouTube show with millions of views from its nearly 300 episodes where stars eat 10 increasingly fiery wings while answering questions — This YouTube talk show's premise is simple: Disarm celebrities with deep-cut questions and scorchingly spicy wings.
Discussion:
@joelleeman, @firstwefeast, @dealbook, @kimseverson, @shwinyo, @maya__salam, @richantoniello and @kerrymflynn
Al Jazeera:
An Algerian court sentences prominent journalist Ihsane El Kadi to five years for “foreign financing of his business” and shuts down his two independent outlets — El Kadi has to serve three years of his sentence in prison. His media company has been shuttered and heavily fined.
Amy Thomson / Bloomberg:
Endeavor acquires the WWE in a deal that values Vince McMahon's company at $9.3B including debt; Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel will lead the combined $21B+ company — Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. has agreed to buy World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. in a deal that values the company at $9.3 billion including debt.
Discussion:
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Stuart Dredge / Music Ally:
Spotify shuts down its Clubhouse-style audio app Spotify Live, previously called Locker Room, acquired as part of its €57M Betty Labs deal in March 2021 — Spotify is shutting down its live-audio app Spotify Live, but says it will continue experimenting with live features in its main service.