Mediagazer: A look at blue-collar influencers, including a trucker, a shepherd, and a fisherman, who have amassed large audiences by posting short videos of their workday (Steven Kurutz/New York Times)

12:15 PM ET, October 30, 2023

Top News:

RSF investigation into the death of Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah in Lebanon: one car had clear “press” markings and two strikes occurred ~30 seconds apart — Organisation: — RSF_en — Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has released a video reconstruction of the tragedy …

Discussion: @rsf_inter, @pressgazette, @guinnesskebab, @malonebarry, @ionacraig, @mehdirhasan, @rsf_inter, @malonebarry, Agence France-Presse, @antoinette_news, @mehdirhasan@threads.net and Reuters

Mark Bendeich / Reuters:

The Israel Defense Forces tells Reuters and the AFP that the safety of their journalists in Gaza cannot be guaranteed, after the outlets sought assurances — Israel's military has told international news organisations Reuters and Agence France Presse that it cannot guarantee the safety …

Discussion: @kevincollier.bsky.social, @angelcomrade.bsky.social, @punksoda.bsky.social, @vegetablegremlin.bsky.social, @blackamazon.bsky.social, Digital Journal, Caitlin Johnstone and The Hill

Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath / Axios:

Some reporters in Gaza have been able to give intermittent updates via satellite connections, as a communications blackout since October 27 cuts off the Strip — - “If we all got killed in Gaza ... no one will know,” Palestinian journalist Plestia Alaqad said in a post she was able to upload …

Discussion: Committee to Protect …, NPR, The Guardian, @naomizeveloff, @pressfreedom, @middleeasteye, @joyce_karam, Washington Post, Middle East Eye, Associated Press, The Guardian, Politico, TIME, Rolling Stone and ABC7

Jillian Deutsch / Bloomberg:

Meta plans to offer Instagram and Facebook users in the EU, EEA, and Switzerland an ad-free option for €9.99 or €12.99 per month, alongside free with ads — - Plans cost €9.99 per month on the web, €12.99 on mobile — The model follows increasing EU regulations on data access

Discussion: CNN, New York Times, TechCrunch, Meta, The Verge, Engadget, @arrington, BGR, Politico, @sarthakgh and @jason_kint, more at Techmeme »

Sam Schechner / Wall Street Journal:

Meta plans to temporarily suspend showing ads to all users under 18 in the EU and parts of Europe starting on November 6, to comply with EU regulations — Ad changes for Instagram and Facebook owner are aimed at navigating EU rules about targeted ads — Meta Platforms will stop showing adverts …

Discussion: Associated Press, @samschech, @hoofnagle and 9to5Mac, more at Techmeme »

Josh Eidelson / Bloomberg:

Most of the 700 NYT tech staff plan a half-day work stoppage today, accusing the outlet of unilaterally implementing a return-to-office plan without negotiating — - News giant's Tech Guild plans half-day work stoppage Monday — Workers include software engineers and product managers

Discussion: Reuters, @anastasiakeeley, @josheidelson, @josheidelson and @beep@follow.ethanmarcotte.com

David Montgomery / YouGov:

YouGov survey of 29,397 Americans: 85% own at least one physical book, 20% own one to 10, 14% own 11 to 25, and 13% own 26 to 50; 9% say they own 100+ e-books — Whether you sort your books by genre, author's name, the Dewey Decimal System, or the color of the spine, you're in the minority.

Discussion: @yougovamerica, @dhmontgomery, @michellemanafy@journa.host, @dhmontgomery, @markwgilson, @zjayres and @dhmontgomery

Max Tani / Semafor:

Sources: at a private meeting with bank executives last week, Biden fumed at the NYT for saying that an Israeli airstrike was behind the Gaza hospital explosion — The Scoop — President Joe Biden raged against The New York Times in a private White House meeting early last week …

Discussion: Mediaite, New York Post, @danielyrubin, @brianstelter and Politico

Reuters:

Graphic pro-Israel ads are appearing in kids' video games, including Angry Birds, in the UK and elsewhere; Israel has spent $1.5M on online ads since October 7 — Maria Julia Cassis was sitting down to a meal in her terraced home in north London when her 6-year-old son ran into the dining room, his face pale.

Discussion: @xzherron, @samiranadkarni and @leenavand, more at Techmeme »

Digiday:

GroupM North America CEO Kirk McDonald plans to leave at the end of 2023 after three years, replaced by Mindshare CEO Adam Gerhart on an interim basis — Kirk McDonald, who has served as the CEO of GroupM North America for the past three years, is leaving his position.

Discussion: Ad Age, Variety, MediaPost, @michaelburgi and Insider

Steven Kurutz / New York Times:

A look at blue-collar influencers, including a trucker, a shepherd, and a fisherman, who have amassed large audiences by posting short videos of their workday — A new crop of popular social media personalities includes a trucker, a shepherd and a commercial fisherman.

Discussion: @jamesafmorse, @gw_gallery and @seangraf, more at Techmeme »

Megan Graham / Wall Street Journal:

Ad holding company Omnicom agrees to acquire Flywheel, the digital commerce arm of UK-based B2B media company Ascential, for a net cash purchase price of ~$835M — Flywheel, part of Cannes Lions owner Ascential, aims to help brands sell on digital marketplaces such as Amazon

Discussion: MediaPost, @bd2k, @megancgraham, Adweek, PR Newswire and Reuters, more at Techmeme »

Archived Page Info:

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Output Producer, CA — AP

China Markets Correspondent, Shanghai — Reuters

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Immigration Enforcement Reporter — Documented

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Senior Reporter, SC — Island Packet

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Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
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AI fakes related to the Israel-Hamas war have been limited and unconvincing, but the possibility of such fakes circulating leads some to dismiss genuine content

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Kristin Robinson / Billboard:
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Discussion: CMU and @meetmusiclovers

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
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Earlier Picks:

David Zweig / Silent Lunch, The David Zweig Newsletter:
How a mistranslation and copying bad reporting may have led to wide coverage that 500+ people died in the Gaza hospital blast; no outlet quoted a primary source

Daniel Frankel / Next TV:
Morgan Stanley projects that Google will lose $1.204B in the 2023 season of YouTube TV's NFL Sunday Ticket, and $1.409B annually by the 2029 season

Discussion: The Streamable, @tvgrimreaper, New York Post, Awful Announcing, @minddestroyedx, The Verge, The Desk, @mikeozanian, @tuxedokirby, @burt_mo, @bsmstaff, @mediafinance, @badgerhugh, Sportico, The Streamable and Cord Cutters News

Todd Spangler / Variety:
A360Media-owned Soap Opera Digest discontinues its weekly print run; the daytime drama magazine launched in 1975 and saw its circulation peak at 1.5M in 1991

Discussion: MediaPost, @lauren_a2000, @metsfaninphilly, @mstracymartin, @writerguy5, @donaldjrpeebles, @berrymichael, @mattfarris, Soap Hub and Soaps.com

Gene Maddaus / Variety:
SAG-AFTRA and studios plan to keep talking over the weekend; thousands of union members signed a letter saying they'd rather keep striking than take a bad deal

Discussion: The Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, Deadline, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, @sagaftra, @feliciaday, @therati, @aysrick, AllYourScreens.com, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, NBC News, Reuters and Deadline

Emma Roth / The Verge:
X adds a $16/mo. Premium+ plan with no ads in For You or Following and the “largest reply boost”, and a $3/mo. Basic plan with a “small boost” but no checkmark

Discussion: @premium, @david_leavitt, @lindayax, @tomwarren, @tailosivetech, @harrymccracken, @wazzcrypto, @premium, @minimaxir, MediaPost, @sfdb@mastodon.social, The Information, @BrendanSinclair …, TechCrunch, @ernie@writing.exchange, @2xaught7.bsky.social and Engadget

From Techmeme:

Foo Yun Chee / Reuters:
Apple says Meta has made 15 interoperability requests under the EU's DMA, more than any other company, and that these could affect users' privacy and security

Hayden Field / CNBC:
OpenAI debuts a way to talk to ChatGPT by dialing 1-800-CHATGPT for 15 minutes of free access per month in the US or messaging the number via WhatsApp globally

Wall Street Journal:
Sources: the US is investigating Chinese router maker TP-Link, which has a ~65% US market share in homes and SMBs, and could ban the sale of its routers in 2025

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