Top News:
Meg James / Los Angeles Times:
In a memo to staff, Los Angeles Times Executive Editor Kevin Merida announces he is stepping down on January 12, two-and-a-half years after joining the newsroom — Los Angeles Times Executive Editor Kevin Merida announced Tuesday that he was stepping down 2½ years after joining …
Discussion:
Talking Biz News, Mediaite, @benmullin, Variety, The Wrap, @jonnypeltz, @simonesnews, @benmullin, Deadline, @raineytime, The Hollywood Reporter, @megjameslat and @maxwelltani
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Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
Sources: Kevin Merida and the Soon-Shiong family clashed over his decision to ban journalists who condemned Israel's bombing of Gaza, 2024 budgeting, and more — Kevin Merida, who took over the job in 2021, said in an internal note that his last day would be on Friday.
Discussion:
Axios, Bloomberg and @benmullin
Thomas Germain / Gizmodo:
X suspended several podcasters and journalists, including The Intercept's Ken Klippenstein and Texas Observer's Steven Monacelli, with little to no explanation — Elon Musk's “free speech” social media platform banned a number of accounts recently critical of Israel.
Discussion:
VICE, Mediaite, @lucas_shaw, Futurism, @stevanzetti, New Republic, @kenklippenstein, @texasobserver.org, @skippyosint, @stevanzetti.bsky.social, @esqueer_, @marionumber4, @brendelbored.bsky.social, @32mbit.bsky.social, @esqueer_@threads.net, @erininthemorn, @thelincoln, @markamesexiled, The Daily Beast, @wolfiesmiffed.bsky.social, @tvscarlkinsella, @elizabethbrossa, @whstancil and @themaxburns, more at Techmeme »
Kashish Tandon / Reuters:
India's Zee Entertainment remains committed to its $10B Sony India merger, calling media reports of the deal falling through “baseless and factually incorrect” — India's Zee Entertainment (ZEE.NS) on Tuesday said it was committed to its merger with Sony's (6758.T) local arm …
Discussion:
Advanced Television, Financial Times, Anto Antony on LinkedIn and Bloomberg
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Julie Jargon / Wall Street Journal:
Meta plans to start automatically restricting teen Instagram and Facebook accounts from harmful content, including posts about self-harm, in the coming weeks — Efforts to curb harmful material and reduce unwanted interactions with teen social-media accounts come as states sue parent company Meta
Discussion:
Meta, Reuters, Gizmodo, CNN, @andymstone, Ricardo Dalmaso Marques on LinkedIn, TechCrunch, The Hill, The Verge, 9to5Mac and NPR, more at Techmeme »
@hou_landing:
Houston Landing, a nonprofit, digital-only news outlet, is parting ways with its EIC Mizanur Rahman; Rahman says he was fired and was not given a clear reason — We have come a long way since we launched last year. With growth comes change. Today we part ways with our editor-in-chief Mizanur Rahman. We are thankful to Mizanur for putting his talent and heart into this organization and ensuring we have everything we need to serve Houston. [image]
Discussion:
@teddyschleifer, @monicarhor, @tracidonatto, @dtohl, @alexdstuckey, @jbenton, @jbenton, @mizanur_tx, @mizanur_tx, @mizanur_tx, @mizanur_tx, @lomikriel and @jbenton
Josh Kosman / New York Post:
Source: MLB rejected a ~$150M investment by Amazon to bail out bankrupt Diamond Sports because Amazon wanted a streaming deal for more than one year — Major League Baseball rejected a proposed roughly $150 million lifeline extended by Amazon to the nation's largest regional sports network …
Sara Fischer / Axios:
On Wednesday, CNBC plans to launch a $99 paid course on job interviewing, its first, part of a new educational venture developed by its “Make It” franchise — CNBC on Wednesday will debut its first paid course as part of a new educational venture developed by the editorial team behind CNBC's …
Discussion:
Talking Biz News
New York Times:
Elections and disinfo are colliding like never before in 2024, as social networks reduce protections and state influence campaigns and AI-fueled disinfo ramp up — A wave of elections coincides with state influence operations, a surge of extremism, A.I. advances and a pullback in social media protections.
Discussion:
@brennancenter, more at Techmeme »
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Fox Corp. debuts Verify, a blockchain protocol developed with Polygon Labs for media companies to register content and grant usage rights to AI companies — Fox Corp., one of the largest media companies in the U.S., has publicly debuted a new blockchain platform called Verify …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Variety, The Information, @ryansingel@writing.exchange, CoinDesk, TechCrunch, TVNewsCheck and @bgrueskin
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
X announces exclusive original programming and content deals, including shows hosted by Don Lemon, former Fox Sports host Jim Rome, and Tulsi Gabbard — The tech company also announced a 10-show deal with Range Media Partners, and a deal with Tulsi Gabbard.
Discussion:
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Nic Newman / Reuters Institute:
Survey of 314 news leaders from 56 countries: just 47% say they are confident about journalism's 2024 prospects; 63% worry about declining social media traffic — The disruptive power of artificial intelligence (AI) will sweep through the information space this year at a time of intense political …
Gene Maddaus / Variety:
SAG-AFTRA signs a deal with AI voiceover company Replica Studios, requiring consent to create voice replicas for use in video games and safe storage of assets — The union announced the deal with Replica Studios on Tuesday at CES in Las Vegas. Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union's executive director …
Discussion:
SAG-AFTRA, @GreenFire@mstdn.social, Bloomberg and The Hollywood Reporter
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