Top News:


X added five-second delays, some now removed, on t.co links to Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Bluesky, Substack, the NYT, Reuters, and other sites Musk attacks — The site formerly known as Twitter has added a five-second delay when a user clicks on a shortened link to the New York Times …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Mediaite, Variety, Engadget, 9to5Mac, @minimaxir, @kenli729, @sheila_dang, @mmasnick.bsky.social, @ben@werd.social, @dsilverman@mastodon.social, @jimray@mastodon.social, @yair-rosenberg.bsky.social, @Claeshs@newsie.social, @adamserwer.bsky.social, @endeavorance@astral.camp, @drewharwell, @drewharwell@mastodon.social, @martinsfp.bsky.social, @mtsw.bsky.social, @mikeisaac, @billbrown, @mikeisaac, @mattsclancy, @minimaxir and news.ycombinator.com, more at Techmeme »


Nielsen: in July, linear TV made up less than 50% of all US TV usage, a first in over two years of tracking, and streaming hit a record 38.7% high of TV usage — Nielsen's monthly platform rankings show broadcast and cable making up less than half of all TV use.
Discussion:
Nielsen, The Desk, CNBC, The Streamable, TechCrunch, Cord Cutters News, Gizmodo, TVLine, Deadline, MediaPost, @digitalshields, WORLD SCREEN, Nielsen, Variety, Consequence, Next TV, Media Play News, Wall Street Journal and Collider, more at Techmeme »


ESPN sportscaster Sage Steele plans to leave the network after settling her lawsuit alleging ESPN violated her free speech rights; ESPN suspended Steele in 2021 — Sage Steele, the veteran ESPN sportscaster who became better known in recent years for her stances on hot topics like coronavirus vaccinations …
Discussion:
@sagesteele, The Hill, CNBC, CNN, Sportico.com, Decider, TVLine, New Jersey Online, For The Win, VIBE.com, Awful Announcing, Deadline, @ourand_sbj, Barrett Media, New York Post, The Hollywood Reporter and Fox News


YouTube starts mass removing videos promoting “cancer treatments proven to be harmful or ineffective” or discouraging “seeking professional medical treatment” — YouTube will remove content that promotes “cancer treatments proven to be harmful or ineffective” or which …


To comply with a state law requiring that school library books be “age appropriate”, an Iowa school district used ChatGPT to find books depicting “a sex act” — Faced with new legislation, Iowa's Mason City Community School District asked ChatGPT if certain books 'contain …
Discussion:
@bcmerchant.bsky.social, Mashable, Gizmodo, @dangillmor@mastodon.social, @emilymbender, @paisleycurrah, @drewharwell@mastodon.social, @andrewpaul.bsky.social, @bkreit, @Mer__edith@mastodon.world, @meredithmeredith.bsky.social, Shelly Palmer, @kiplet@social.tchncs.de, @dkbgeek@noc.social, Engadget and The Register, more at Techmeme »


Sources: Vice executives have repeatedly blocked the outlet's critical coverage of Saudi Arabia, citing concerns for the safety of staff in the country — Exclusive: Media company recently signed lucrative deal with Saudi government-controlled MBC Group — Vice has repeatedly blocked news stories …


TSG sues Twentieth Century Fox and parent Disney, claiming the studio withheld profits and cut deals to boost Hulu, Disney+, and its stock, at partners' expense — TSG's lawsuit, which also names Disney unit Twentieth Century Fox, is similar to Scarlett Johansson's 2021 suit against company
Discussion:
Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter


A lawsuit that threatens to bankrupt a Wisconsin local news website highlights a trend of wealthy and powerful people using defamation law for retribution — When a north-central Wisconsin news site reported that a businessman had uttered a homophobic slur, he sued, claiming defamation.
Discussion:
@sapna, @JaneRLaForge@mstdn.social and @persagen@mastodon.social


Telegraph Media Group says the outlet has reached its target of 1M subscriptions, 70%+ of them digital, and that 300K of its subscribers use its app every day — More than 70% of the subscriptions are digital. — Telegraph Media Group says it has hit its target of reaching one million subscriptions before the end of 2023.


Substack now lets users follow an individual writer without having to subscribe to their newsletter, a further expansion into social networking after Notes — Substack now lets you follow writers, offering a way for you to keep tabs on what a writer is doing without having to subscribe to their newsletter.
Discussion:
TechCrunch, @ryansingel@writing.exchange and On Substack, more at Techmeme »


A look at Pop Crave and Pop Base, two pop culture X accounts doing newsgathering and aggregation, and sharing headlines that eliminate the need to click through — Are Pop Crave and Pop Base the future of political journalism? — If you've spent any time on Instagram, Threads, or …
Discussion:
New York Times, MIT Technology Review, @studyhallxyz and @jazzmineabriana


Investigation: Russian journalists Elena Kostyuchenko and Irina Babloyan were most likely poisoned in Munich and in Tbilisi, respectively, in October 2022 — The independent outlet The Insider has published an investigation into a series of poisoning attacks targeting Russian journalists and activists in Europe.
Discussion:
Нов … and @kevinrothrock@infosec …