Top News:
Charlotte Klein / Vanity Fair:
The NYT launches New York Times Audio on iOS after ~1.5 years in private beta, with short-form stories, a daily news show called The Headlines, and more — While the rest of the audio industry craters, the Gray Lady debuts a one-stop app for subscribers, with new short-form stories and an even shorter daily morning podcast.
Discussion:
The New York Times Company, Engadget, TechCrunch, @nytimespr, @abebrown716, @vanityfair, @pkafka, Adweek and @sarthakgh
Bron Maher / Press Gazette:
BBC News announces BBC Verify to “pull back the curtain” and offer “radical transparency” on its journalists' work, with a team of 60 from OSINT and elsewhere — BBC News chief executive Deborah Turness said BBC Verify would “pull back the curtain”.
Discussion:
BBC, @alistaircoleman, @pressgazette and @marcusryder
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
CNN selects Kaitlan Collins, who hosted the Trump town hall, to host a new weeknight show at 9pm ET, elevating her to one of the most coveted time slots — The appointment caps a fast rise at the network by Ms. Collins, 31, who previously covered the Trump and Biden administrations.
Discussion:
Adweek, The Wrap, @nytimesbusiness, @davidaxelrod, TVLine, @stevekrak, @bobbybigwheel, @russbengtson, @sarafischer, @felixsalmon, @grynbaum, @jeremymbarr, @gregpinelo, @tanzinavega, @brianstelter, @benmullin, @owillis and @djrothkopf
Wall Street Journal:
Antenna: Netflix's $6.99 ad tier had 937,616 US subscribers in March, out of ~55M total, and Disney+'s ad tier, launched a few weeks after Netflix, had 863,791 — Streaming leader had fewer than one million U.S. subscribers on its ad-supported plan as of March
Discussion:
Variety, The Streamable, @rwhelanwsj, @bysarahkrouse, @jbflint, MediaPost and Insider
Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:
A quick analysis of The Messenger's content shows an outlet with stories that resemble those from a British tabloid and bylines apparently overwhelmingly male — The new site from the former owner of The Hill — backed by $50 million — feels like a remnant of an earlier age. — command-f, c, a, r, r, o, l, l.
Discussion:
@jbenton, @swodinsky, @_cingraham, @tomgara, @aidnmclaughlin, @grahamstarr, @jbenton, @chrisgeidner, @karenkho, @lmoses, @jayrosen_nyu, @jon_christian, @swodinsky, @samjmintz, @froomkin, @mwatkinstrib, @niemanlab, @hilella, @alexkoppelman, @stevemullis, @meghnawbur, @katzish, @digiphile, @ckrewson, @dbernstein, @jayrosen_nyu, @joshtpm, @cwarzel, @gabrieljr and @laurahazardowen
CNBC:
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts says Disney is more likely to buy Comcast's 33% stake in Hulu than sell its 66% stake — - Disney is more likely to buy Comcast's 33% stake in Hulu than sell its 66% stake, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said. — A deal will likely value Hulu at more than the $27 …
Reuters:
Since April 6, the Cyberspace Administration of China closed 107K online accounts of counterfeit news outlets and anchors and removed 835K pieces of content — China has intensified efforts to clean up the internet from false news and rumours, closing more than 100,000 online accounts …
Discussion:
The Register
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions, which is producing shows for ESPN, Netflix, and others, raised ~$10M from Peter Chernin's North Road at a $400M+ valuation — Josh Pyatt and Jamie Horowitz flew to Denver in September 2020 armed with a pitch deck and a prayer.
Tech Transparency Project:
Researchers find that YouTube recommends videos on guns and school shootings to young gamers, despite the platform's policies against “violent or gory content” — YouTube says it delivers ‘responsible’ video recommendations. But its algorithms steered accounts …
Joann Muller / Axios:
A bipartisan group of Senators plans to introduce legislation preventing carmakers from removing AM radio from EVs, arguing public safety is at risk — A bipartisan group of lawmakers wants to make it illegal for carmakers to eliminate AM radio from their cars, arguing public safety is at risk, Axios is first to report.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Curio, which offers professionally narrated content from The Guardian, WSJ, and others, launches an AI helper that answers questions with bespoke audio episodes — Curio, a startup building a platform that turns expert journalism into professionally narrated content, is embracing AI technology …
Jennifer Schuessler / New York Times:
Masha Gessen resigns from the board of free expression group PEN America after a panel with Russian writers was canceled due to objections by Ukrainian writers — Masha Gessen stepped down following the free expression group's decision to cancel an event at its World Voices Festival after Ukrainian writers threatened to boycott.
Discussion:
@phschlenker_ac, @wbearpjr, @adamshatz, @mkimmage, @mironov_fm, Associated Press, Reason and The Atlantic