Mediagazer: Investigation: Dan Wootton was the subject of at least six bullying claims from Sun colleagues, but was promoted while they were silenced with payoffs and NDAs (Byline Times)

5:55 PM ET, July 21, 2023

Top News:

Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:

News reporters shouldn't write off AI assistance for first drafts of stories; often, those drafts aren't publishable but can be useful to human journalists — Dystopian, yes — but tools don't have to be perfect to be useful to journalists. — Every other semester, I teach …

Discussion: @niemanlab@mastodon.social, @mmasnick.bsky.social, MediaNama, The Information, The San Diego Union-Tribune, CNN, Gizmodo, MediaPost and New York Times

Max Tani / @maxwelltani:

Memo: an Insider executive editor updates staffers on AI experiments and recommends AI not be used for quoting facts, data analysis, or getting up-to-date info — Insider's executive editor sent a note to staff today addressing how the newsroom's pilot group is using AI [image]

Discussion: @journalist_guy, @thenewsan, @scottnover, @kaylaepstein and @scottnover

Mathew Ingram / Columbia Journalism Review:
News organizations' deals with OpenAI and its rivals echo past Google and Meta “partnerships” and could ultimately help companies put journalists out of work

Discussion: New York Post, The Verge, @espiers, @mathewi, @cjr, @jayrosen_nyu, Platformer, The Information, @sarahposner.bsky.social and Vanity Fair, more at Techmeme »

Alex Sherman / CNBC:

Sources: Disney CEO Bob Iger and ESPN head Jimmy Pitaro have held early talks with the NFL, NBA, and MLB about adding them as minority investors in ESPN — - ESPN has held early talks about strategic partnerships with the NBA, NFL and MLB that could include the leagues taking an equity stake in the business, sources told CNBC.

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Desk, Awful Announcing, The Streamable, The Information, @susanlitv, Front Office Sports, @sherman4949, Barrett Media, The Verge, @sherman4949, @sherman4949 and Cord Cutters News

Anne Steele / Wall Street Journal:

Sources: Spotify plans to raise its US ad-free premium tier's price for the first time, by $1 to $10.99/month, and increase prices globally in the coming months — Audio company had avoided raising prices, but faces investor pressure to increase profitability

Discussion: Variety, Bloomberg, The Information, @carnage4life@mas.to, @liquor_american …, @CStamp@mastodon.social, Music Business Worldwide, 9to5Mac and The Verge, more at Techmeme »

Marie Woolf / Globe and Mail:

Some Quebec radio stations and news pubs are refusing to run Meta ads that inform Canadians of the company's plan to block news links on Facebook and Instagram — Meta has started to run ads to inform Canadians of its plan to block the viewing and sharing of news content on Facebook …

Discussion: CBC News, @fancrtcprofling, @pagmenzies, @dylanlindgren, @mgeist and @freemangrist

Ted Johnson / Deadline:

Former White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield joins CNN as an on-air political commentator; she left her White House post in February 2023 — Former White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield has joined CNN as an on-air political commentator.

Discussion: Mediaite, CNN, The Hill, The Wrap and Politico

Noam Scheiber / New York Times:

How TV writing became a dead-end job with dwindling weekly pay as studios break down the job of making TV shows into simpler, lower-paid tasks — The writers say Hollywood studios are increasingly limiting their roles in television productions, highlighting a trend for white-collar workers.

Discussion: @noamscheiber, @wajahatali, @tylerdinucci, @wgawest, @brucebartlett, @hiattb, @bigmeaninternet, @alexnpress, @leavittalone, @shawnryantv, @whet.bsky.social and @aworkinglibrary@mstdn.social

Adam Sherwin / The i Paper:

UK's Global radio, which owns the LBC, Capital, and Heart brands, plans to restructure 11 newsrooms across the country, which could mean up to 40 job cuts — Journalists warn Global radio plans could ‘decimate local news’ with 40 jobs under threat at the home to Capital, Smooth, LBC and Heart

Discussion: Talking Biz News

Corbin Bolies / The Daily Beast:

Former ABC News producer James Gordon Meek pleads guilty to transportation and possession of CSAM; the US DOJ arrested him in February 2023 — The harrowing legal saga—the type of story that could've appeared on Meek's former network— has reached its conclusion.

Discussion: Variety, The Desk, Insider, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Boing Boing, The San Diego Union-Tribune and Rolling Stone

Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:

TikTok launches Commercial Content Library, giving access to ad data, including targeting parameters, but only ad data from Europe is available — TikTok has finally launched an ads transparency library — starting with data on ads and other commercial content running in Europe but with plans to expand that.

Discussion: @tiktokcomms, @carolinegreer, @jadenester, @parkerjbach, Search Engine Land, TikTok and Gadgets 360

Nora Neus / Poynter:

A look at the ethics policy of not paying sources for stories or information, and how compensating people for their time could enable broader, deeper reporting — Amid industrywide conversations about whose stories get told and who profits, it's worth revisiting this blanket rule with some more nuance.

Discussion: @poynter

Natalie Korach / The Wrap:

Hearst Magazines Media Union says 41 of its members were laid off over “company restructuring”; impacted publications include Elle, Seventeen, and Men's Health — Hearst Magazines Media Union, which announced the news Thursday, says, “We are losing talented people whose creativity …

Discussion: @hearstunion, Daily Front Row, @fsp_nwu, @katie_robertson, @alisonbrower, @hannahorens, @eschumer, @emmaspecter, @kath_krueger, @bdwilliams910, @stacey_grant91, @tamara_fuentes, Insider, Business of Fashion and WWD

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Ken Stone / Times of San Diego:
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Byline Times:
Investigation: Dan Wootton was the subject of at least six bullying claims from Sun colleagues, but was promoted while they were silenced with payoffs and NDAs

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Ben Strauss / Washington Post:
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Earlier Picks:

Katie Kilkenny / The Hollywood Reporter:
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Sarah Scire / Nieman Lab:
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Sources: a syndicate of investors led by Matthew Roszak of Tally Capital and Peter Vessenes of Capital6 is close to acquiring CoinDesk in a deal worth ~$125M

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Makena Kelly / The Verge:
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Thomas Buckley / Bloomberg:
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From Techmeme:

Richard Lawler / The Verge:
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Stephen Groves / Associated Press:
US House Speaker Mike Johnson says the GOP “probably will” try to repeal the CHIPS Act, but then walks it back, saying the GOP may “further streamline” the bill

Jeffrey Dastin / Reuters:
Intel's CEO scraps forecast of selling $500M+ worth of Gaudi AI chips in 2024, blaming slower uptake on Gaudi 2 to Gaudi 3 transition and software ease of use

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