Top News:
Sara Fischer / Axios:
CNN CEO Chris Licht confirms he plans to step down, replaced by Amy Entelis in the interim, after a damaging Atlantic profile and Donald Trump town hall — Chris Licht, the embattled CEO of CNN, plans to step down, he confirmed to Axios on Wednesday. Licht has been on the job for 13 months.
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RELATED:
Semafor:
Chris Licht managed talent poorly and the push to shift CNN to the center politically failed, but the fundamental issue is that cable news is in secular decline — Chris Licht will be stepping down as the CEO and Chairman of CNN. His departure was first reported by Puck News early Wednesday.
Discussion:
Mediaite, @benjysarlin, @benjysarlin, Media Matters for America, @lucysonit, @buddaprotocol, @madge1428, @oneunderscore__, @richburroughs.dev, @mollyknight.bsky.social, @katie_robertson, @amlwhere, @susanbordson, @azi, @moorehn, @bryancurtis, @evanhandler, @darthbluesky.bsky.social and @jbillinson
Trisha Gopal / Insider:
Amy Entelis, CNN's interim CEO, joined in 2012, headed the original series and documentary unit, and served on the interim leadership team after Jeff Zucker — - Chris Licht is out as CNN's CEO. Longtime executive Amy Entelis is among those taking over in the interim.
Discussion:
Variety, Mediaite, Observer, @raminsetoodeh, New York Post, Al Jazeera, @bristei and IndieWire
Alex Griffing / Mediaite:
CNN has also let go Chris Licht's top lieutenants, including comms chief Kris Coratti, strategic comms head Matt Dornic, and chief of staff Devan Cayea
CNN has also let go Chris Licht's top lieutenants, including comms chief Kris Coratti, strategic comms head Matt Dornic, and chief of staff Devan Cayea
Discussion:
Insider, Adweek, Politico, @sarafischer and Axios
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
WBD CEO David Zaslav has a history of tearing down and renovating what he considers to be underperforming cable assets, but this strategy might not work for CNN
WBD CEO David Zaslav has a history of tearing down and renovating what he considers to be underperforming cable assets, but this strategy might not work for CNN
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Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:
Internal memo: WBD CEO David Zaslav addressed Chris Licht's departure, saying “I take responsibility” and “things did not work out the way we had hoped”
Internal memo: WBD CEO David Zaslav addressed Chris Licht's departure, saying “I take responsibility” and “things did not work out the way we had hoped”
Discussion:
HuffPost, Mediaite, Financial Times, New York Post, The Hill, National Review, @thewrap, Deadline, RADAR, Fox News, Broadband TV News, Insider and Page Six
Casey Newton / Platformer:
How Twitter, YouTube, and Meta gave up on removing lies about the 2020 US presidential elections, after having briefly banded together to do the right thing — For a time, they fought the good fight — but not any more — I. — On tech platforms these days you can get away with just about anything …
Meg James / Los Angeles Times:
The LA Times is cutting 74 newsroom jobs, representing 13% of total staff; layoffs will affect some editors, audio producers, and the audience engagement team — The Los Angeles Times is cutting its newsroom staff, becoming the latest news organization to contract amid economic pressures brought …
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Jessica Toonkel / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Amazon plans to launch an ad-supported Prime Video tier and is talking with WBD and Paramount about adding their ad-based tiers to Prime Video Channels — Discussions come as ad buyers have been pushing for more access to premium shows and movies — Amazon is planning to launch …
Discussion:
The Verge, Screen Rant, CNET, Insider, TechCrunch, The Wrap, The Streamable, Reuters, Axios, Los Angeles Times, Comic Book and The Information, more at Techmeme »
Financial Times:
Sources: Lloyds puts B.UK, a holding company that controls the Telegraph titles and The Spectator, into receivership over ~£1B debts owed by the Barclay family — UK bank to seek sale of media group over almost £1bn in debts owed by Barclay family
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Amrita Khalid / The Verge:
Spotify combining Gimlet and Parcast into a single unit signals a move from pricey originals to amateur podcasters and creator partnerships — When Spotify announced yesterday that it would lay off 200 employees from its podcast unit and combine Gimlet and Parcast into a single operation, it came as a shock to outside observers.
Discussion:
@intelinsider, New York Times, @askhalid, @askhalid, @tiagodf and TechCrunch
Sahil Patel / The Information:
Sources: BuzzFeed is exploring a potential sale of Complex Networks, which it acquired when going public in late 2021 for nearly $300M — BuzzFeed is exploring a potential sale of Complex Networks, a digital media firm it acquired when going public in late 2021 for nearly $300 million, according to people familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
The Wrap and @theinformation
The Athletic:
Sources: MLS and Apple discussed sharing new Season Pass subscriber revenue with Lionel Messi; on June 6, Apple unveiled a four-part Messi docuseries on TV+ — Major League Soccer and Inter Miami are solidifying details around the potential signing of Argentine superstar Lionel Messi.
Discussion:
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Nilay Patel / The Verge:
Q&A with SiriusXM CEO Jennifer Witz on operating a satellite business, being hardware dependent, online content delivery, podcasts, company structure, and more — SiriusXM scooped up Stitcher, Pandora, and Team Coco in recent years, but satellite radio in cars still drives the business.
Discussion:
@siriusxmlife
Alyssa Mercante / Kotaku:
A look at Twitch's new ad rules for branded content, a crucial source of income for creators; after an outcry, Twitch says the initial update was “overly broad” — 'The top 100 streamers on Twitch just got told they're not allowed to make 80 percent of their revenue the way they're used to making it.'
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