Top News:
Jessica Toonkel / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Paramount drops its plans to sell a majority stake in BET Media, concluding that a sale wouldn't lead to a meaningful deleveraging of its balance sheet — The entertainment conglomerate concluded a sale wouldn't result in any meaningful deleveraging of its balance sheet.
Brian X. Chen / New York Times:
Surveys: over 50% of Americans watch TV with subtitles on most of the time, as sound quality deteriorates due to compressed audio and TV speaker placement — Many of us stream shows and movies with the subtitles on all the time — and not because it's cool.
Discussion:
@voron@mstdn.party
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Apple says The Glenn Beck Program was removed from Apple Podcasts because of a trademark dispute that has since been resolved — Reached for comment, an Apple spokesman told Variety that “The Glenn Beck Program” was removed from Apple Podcasts because of a trademark dispute involving Beck's podcast …
Discussion:
TheBlaze, more at Techmeme »
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Steven McIntosh / BBC:
UK broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson has died at the age of 88; his TV career spanned seven decades, and he interviewed the world's biggest stars on his show — Broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson has died at the age of 88, his family has confirmed. — His TV career spanned seven decades …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Press Association, Press Gazette, Variety, Reuters, The Independent, @bbcpress, @bbcnickrobinson, @bbcsport, @evan_m_g, @lewispringle, @crowleyonair, @jayrayner1, @gatty54, @bondchris73, @ollymann, @gamesetandmatt, @nrdbrennan, @jontrevithick, @pamayres, @mattyduggan, BBC, @dannews, @scottygb, @ericidle, @therandomswill, @scottygb, @margaretthrosby and @ukads3
Jessica McMaster / KSHB-TV:
The Marion County attorney withdraws the search warrant that served as the basis for the raid on the Marion County Record; all seized items have been returned — MARION, Kan. — A search warrant that cleared the way for the raid of a Kansas newspaper last Friday has been withdrawn …
Discussion:
American Press Institute, Kansas Reflector, CNN, Poynter, Washington Post, @sulliview, @arictoler, NewsNation, @jbenton, KSHB-TV, @benmullin, @sdkstl, @jessmcmasterkc, @jessmcmasterkc, @brianstelter, The Rural Blog, Newser, The Wichita Eagle, The Daily Beast, @dangillmor@mastodon.social, Kansas City Star, Freedom of the Press …, Reporters Without Borders, New York Times, @BatsInLavender@hcommons …, @zakalwe@plasmatrap.com, New York Post, @LorrieW@mstdn.social, @johnmcquaid@journa.host, @bluebookvalue.bsky.social, @MylesRyden@social.vivaldi.net, Daily Mail and It seemed like a good idea …
Bobby Allyn / NPR:
Sources: The New York Times' lawyers are exploring suing OpenAI to protect the news outlet's IP rights, after tense negotiations over a potential licensing deal — The New York Times and OpenAI could end up in court. — Lawyers for the newspaper are exploring whether to sue OpenAI …
Discussion:
New York Post, Insider, The Drum, @npr_bot@m.ai6yr.org and Vanity Fair
Vitalik Buterin / Vitalik Buterin's website:
A deep dive into X's Community Notes, including how the algorithm works, whether the feature actually fights polarization, and its use in high-stakes situations — Special thanks to Dennis Pourteaux and Jay Baxter for feedback and review. — The last two years of Twitter X have been tumultuous, to say the least.
Calum Marsh / New York Times:
Documentaries about the annual CrossFit Games from CrossFit's media team have become consistent streaming hits due to their niche fitness community audience — A series of films about the annual CrossFit Games, enthusiastically embraced by the niche fitness community, have become surprise hits on streaming platforms.
Reggie Ugwu / New York Times:
A look at “MovieTok” influencers like Maddi Moo and Straw Hat Goofy, who reach millions of people on TikTok by reviewing, analyzing, or promoting movies — On MovieTok, reviewers can reach an audience of millions and earn tens of thousands of dollars per post. “Critics,” they say, are old news.
Discussion:
@rpbradley1, @sonnybunch, @ezwrites, @uugwuu, @markharrisnyc, @projectseestra, @samfbiddle and New York Times
Matthew Keys / The Desk:
Struum, an aggregator that used a ClassPass model for streaming content and was backed by Michael Eisner's investment firm, quietly shut down in June 2022 — The service ran out of cash in June 2022, and quietly dismantled from that point on. — The service ran out of cash in June 2022, and quietly dismantled from that point on.
Eric Hananoki / Media Matters for America:
Six days after making brand safety assurances, X placed ads for The Athletic, MLB, USA Today, and others on a pro-Hitler account, before suspending the account — Following Media Matters' report, X finally suspended the account — Update 2 (8/16/23, 8:15 p.m.): CNN's Clare Duffy …
The Hollywood Reporter:
Hasbro names three former eOne execs to lead Hasbro Entertainment: Olivier Dumont as president, Zev Foreman as head of film, and Gabriel Marano as head of TV — Olivier Dumont becomes president of Hasbro Entertainment, while Zev Foreman and Gabriel Marano will head up film and TV divisions, respectively.
Discussion:
Variety, Media Play News, WORLD SCREEN, Deadline and The Wrap