Top News:
New York Times:
People, The Washington Times, MarketWatch, and others fell for an elaborate hoax that claimed Barbie dolls would be plastic free by 2030; most removed the posts — The false campaign by environmental activists claimed that the toy giant was launching a new line of decomposable Barbies and would stop using plastic by 2030.
Discussion:
The Wrap, Washington Times, The Hill, @corbinhiar, @therockfather, @weareyellowdot, Yahoo Entertainment, @dhlovelife, New York Post and The Toy Book
Emily Longeretta / Variety:
Digital media company Factz acquires celebrity entertainment news site Hollywood Life; founder and EIC Bonnie Fuller leaves the company — Factz, a digital media company, acquired the celebrity entertainment news site HollywoodLife.com on Tuesday. Founder, president and editor-in-chief Bonnie Fuller is no longer part of the company.
Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
PBS announces that The Atlantic EIC Jeffrey Goldberg will be the next moderator of Washington Week, which will be renamed Washington Week With The Atlantic — The Atlantic will co-produce the show, which will be renamed “Washington Week With The Atlantic.” The publication will cover some of the costs and help sell sponsorships.
Discussion:
The Hill, Variety, The Atlantic, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, @peterlattman, @benmullin and Semafor
John Koblin / New York Times:
The Writers Guild of America told screenwriters in an email that it agreed to restart talks with Carol Lombardini, the studio negotiator, on Friday, August 4 — A strike by writers and actors has caused nearly a complete production shutdown of scripted entertainment.
Discussion:
Screen Rant, CBS News, Deadline, Next TV, @wgaeast, @alexblagg, @ddayen, Los Angeles Times, The A.V. Club, The Hollywood Reporter, Screen Rant and Vanity Fair
John Herrman / New York Magazine:
Three theories about how AI will change the news: replace some outlets entirely, be a helpful tool, or turn news organizations into wire services — Here are three theories of the case. — In early July, the Associated Press made a deal with OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT, to license …
Discussion:
Poynter, @omkar_raii, @mediaevan, @cyrilsam, New York Post and What's New in Publishing
Charley Piringi / The Guardian:
The Solomon Star and other newspapers in the Solomon Islands face criticism after accepting funding from China in exchange for positive coverage — The Solomon Star denies accusations of ‘giving away’ its independence by accepting thousands of dollars' worth of equipment
Mark Caro / Local News Initiative:
Q&A with ex-Washington Post chief Marty Baron on the need for outlets to figure out a commercially successful model by themselves, the role of owners, and more — In Pt. 1 of interview, Marty Baron calls on journalists to stop the nostalgia and doom-and-gloom and to focus on solving problems and making tough choices
Discussion:
Poynter, @dicktofel, @palewire, @markcaro, @mollybeck, @petercanellos, @tvgrimreaper, @dicktofel, @timafranklin, @timafranklin, @sarahscire and @ssuttell
Liz Shackleton / Deadline:
MPA: Southeast Asia added only 7K net new streaming subscribers in H1 2023, down from 7M in H2 2022, for 47.6M total; TikTok had 42% of video streaming minutes — Southeast Asia only added 7,000 net new SVOD subscriptions in the first half of 2023, a big slowdown from 7 million new subscribers …
Discussion:
WORLD SCREEN and Variety
Patrick Frater / Variety:
Pluto TV plans to launch in Australia on August 31 with over 50 FAST channels, as a branded area within Paramount Australian and New Zealand's 10 Play — Comprising more than 50 free ad-supported TV (FAST) channels, Pluto TV will be sold as a dedicated branded area within Paramount Australian …
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter, The Desk, WORLD SCREEN, Paramount ANZ, Mumbrella and Cord Cutters News
Emilia David / The Verge:
Meta releases AudioCraft, a new open-source AI model that lets users create music and sounds via prompts, consisting of MusicGen, AudioGen, and EnCodec models — It consists of three AI models, all tackling different areas of sound generation. MusicGen takes text inputs to generate music.
Discussion:
Fast Company, Variety, TechCrunch, Quartz, Meta, Engadget and @stockmktnewz, more at Techmeme »
Richard Ruelas / Arizona Republic:
James Larkin, one of two Backpage.com owners and former publisher of New Times, dies at 74 by suicide, days before his trial on charges of aiding prostitution — James Larkin, who helped turn the Phoenix alternative weekly New Times into a chain that took over the venerated Village Voice in New York …
Discussion:
@msmaggiemayhem, @jrgzztx, @gabrielle_qld and @jackshafer
Helen Coster / Reuters:
Thomson Reuters reports Q2 operating profit up 111% YoY to $825M and revenue up 2% YoY to $1.6B; News revenue grew 1% to $194M — Thomson Reuters Corp (TRI.TO), on Wednesday reported higher sales and operating profit in the second quarter, helped by strong performance at its “Big 3” segments …
Discussion:
Thomson Reuters and @jonchevreau
Senior Data Journalist, NY — 
Manager - Publishing Editorial, Manila — 
Oil Reporter, Singapore — 
Newsperson - State Govt. & Politics, CA — 
Business Reporter, SC — 
State Government Reporter, WA — 
Climate Crisis Columnist — 
Multimedia Journalist, CA — 
Community Engagement Mgr., DC — 
Senior California Politics Reporter, CA — 
Staff Writer - Business, NY — 
Team Editor - Opinion, ON — 
Assistant Correspondent, DC — 
Climate & Weather Reporter, MN — 
Senior Tech Editor, Remote US — 
Lead Business Reporter, TN — 
Managing Editor, WA — 
Private Credit Reporter, NY — 
Trending News Reporter, TX — 
City Correspondent, London — 
Legislative Reporter, CA — 
Reporter, PA — 
Visual Editor, Remote — 
Staff Writer, MI — 
Senior Political Reporter, DC — 
California Playbook Writer, CA — 
National Investigative Reporter, NY — 
Business & Gaming Reporter, NV — 
Coastal Climate Reporter, SC — 
Environment & Energy Reporter, CT — 
Coordinating Editor, OR — 
Editor, Remote US — 
Business Reporter, WA — 
Editor-in-Chief, AZ — 
