Top News:
A.J. Perez / Front Office Sports:
The Arena Group tells Sports Illustrated staff that it will be “laying off staff that work on the SI brand” since Authentic Brands revoked the SI license — Staffers at Sports Illustrated were notified on Friday of massive layoffs—some immediately, others in short time.
Discussion:
@si_union, Business Wire, Awful Announcing, Washington Post, Axios, @anthony, @vtuss, @pkafka@threads.net, @paularzooman@threads.net, @thepatriciaclark@threads.net, Dan Kahn on LinkedIn, Louanne Welgoss on LinkedIn, @morgan_sung, @trengriffin, CNN, @mattdpearce, @benmullin, @mitchgoldich, @henderson_mark, @adamduerson, @jemelehill, @lindseyadler, @lindseyadler, @broderick, @bgrueskin, @greg_price11, @centraloregonng, @sherman4949, @ashleyrgold, @ethangach, @sarahspain, @chrisvannini, @kyle_feldscher, @originalspinstr, @bostonjerry, @rwesthead, @kysportsradio, @mediaevan, @byajperez, @justinbaragona, @danprimack, @leanderalphabet, @adamschefter, @ben_alterman, @joepompliano, @benaxelrod, @jjones9, @barry, @scottnover, @lppny, @davidfolkenflik, Aaron Eisman on LinkedIn, Mike Fazioli on LinkedIn, @mbrauchli@threads.net, @reckless1280@threads.net, Cory R. Cox on LinkedIn, Rodrigo Brancatelli on LinkedIn, UPROXX, HuffPost, New York Post, @lukethomasnews@threads.net, Business Insider, Josh Spiegelman on LinkedIn, Newser, Page Six, Los Angeles Times, @obrien_kat@mastodon.world, @tomjackman111@threads.net, @mattlombardonfl@threads.net, @oneunderscore__@threads.net, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Sports Media Watch, Defector, New Jersey Online, @miasato.2@threads.net, @JosephMenn@infosec.exchange, New York Times, Vibe, The Hill, CTV News, Benzinga, ABC News, The Athletic, New York Post, @david_ingram@threads.net, @seth_w_emerson@threads.net, Mediaite, @edmundlee@threads.net, The Messenger, Barrett Media, nyguild.org, MediaPost, CBS News, KNSD-TV and Media Nation
RELATED:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Filing: the Arena Group “failed to make a quarterly payment” of ~$3.75M on January 2 to Authentic Brands, the license holder of Sports Illustrated — Sports Illustrated has been hit with mass layoffs — which will potentially eliminate the entire editorial team of the nearly 70-year-old sports media brand.
Hollywood Reporter:
Authentic Brands says it will ensure that Sports Illustrated and its editorial arm “continues to thrive”; Arena Group says it is still in talks with Authentic
Discussion:
@xpangler, New York Post, Awful Announcing, Associated Press and Bloomberg
Joe Lucia / Awful Announcing:
Ex-Arena Group CEO Ross Levinsohn resigns from the company's board, calling “the destruction of Sports Illustrated's storied brand and newsroom” the final straw
Discussion:
@howardbeck, @rohannadkarni, @jerrybeach73, @cujorulesdtown9, @blakeruane, @rj_cfb, Ross Levinsohn on LinkedIn and Barrett Media
Michael Schaffer / Politico:
Reuters' worldwide deletion of an article due to an Indian court order raises the issue of “forum shopping” by libel plaintiffs in a globalized news environment — Free speech on the internet took a huge hit when the news agency Reuters took down an important hacking investigation …
Sam Potter / Bloomberg:
An interview with crypto skeptic James Block, whose damning critique of Signature Bank on his newsletter, Dirty Bubble Media, became the best short call of 2023 — - Doctor whose hobby is debunking crypto made top bearish call — Report on Signature Bank appeared two months before collapse
Discussion:
@mcelarier
Katie Robertson / New York Times:
After concerns about Trump ally David Smith's purchase of The Baltimore Sun, a partner in the deal says personal politics would not affect The Sun's journalism — The news that David D. Smith, the executive chairman of the conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group, had bought The Sun has generated alarm inside and outside the newsroom.
Discussion:
@katie_robertson, Baltimore Sun, @byjsong, NewscastStudio, @dshameer, Wall Street Journal, New Republic and WNYC Studios
Sarah Scire / Nieman Lab:
An interview with The Guardian US director of consumer revenue about how the publisher raised a record $2.2M in its 2023 year-end fundraiser — Roughly one-third of all digital reader revenue at The Guardian now comes from the United States. — Earlier this month, The Guardian U.S. announced …
Carl Franzen / VentureBeat:
Nightshade, a free tool letting artists “poison” AI models that attempt to train on their artwork without permission, is now available to download on Mac and PC — It's here: months after it was first announced, Nightshade, a new, free software tool allowing artists to “poison” …
Discussion:
Nightshade, @jadel4w, @theglazeproject, @kellyannerodak, @theglazeproject, @theglazeproject, @theglazeproject, @theglazeproject, @theglazeproject, @signbeetle, @sini4ka111, @theglazeproject, The Decoder, IGN, @indianshrekt, @the_row_house, @eballai, @theglazeproject, @rahll, @alexjc, @grammargirl@zirk.us, @seanb@mstdn.ca, @kat_loveland, The Register, AI Agenda, @theglazeproject, Glaze and @palomamcclain, more at Techmeme »
Mathew Ingram / Columbia Journalism Review:
An interview with DDoSecrets' Emma Best, on the site's funding, handling potential lawsuits, and the Greenhouse Project, which distributes censored news — In November, Reuters published a special investigative feature headlined, “How an Indian startup hacked the world.”
Discussion:
@howelloneill@infosec.exchange, mathewingram.com/work and Freedom of the Press …
Julia Jacobs / New York Times:
A grand jury in New Mexico indicts Alec Baldwin on a charge of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting of a cinematographer on the set of “Rust” in 2021 — A grand jury in New Mexico indicted the actor in the shooting death of the cinematographer on the film “Rust,” …
Discussion:
Variety, Los Angeles Times, @neilnevins, @sussexhenryviii, @yashar, @ragland1836, @steveweatherman, CBS News, James P. Crowley on LinkedIn, The Hollywood Reporter, Vanity Fair, NME, Boing Boing, SlashFilm, E! Online, The Hill, The Wrap, The A.V. Club, CNN, Reuters, Hollywood Life, Washington Post, ComingSoon.net, MyStateline.com, New York Daily News, The Messenger, Sky News, ABC News, Fox News, TMZ.com, Associated Press, Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone, New York Post and Mediaite
Christopher Miller / Financial Times:
Ukrainian media association Mediarukh urges President Zelenskyy to “resolutely condemn” attacks and smear campaigns targeting prominent Ukrainian journalists — Online and physical attacks on journalists cast shadow on president's rule — A series of attacks …
Christine Zhu / Politico:
The Los Angeles Times Guild staged the paper's first newsroom union work stoppage on January 19 to protest planned job cuts, with 300+ members participating — It's the first newsroom union work stoppage for the publication in its 142-year history. — Over 300 members of the Los Angeles …
Discussion:
@jservantez, @ctguild, @erinblogan, @apnewsguild, @benmullin, @katieporteroc, @erinblogan, @repjimmygomez, @austinnewsguild, @soudijimenez, @eleniforca, @alexpadilla4ca, @byalexzaragoza, @rokhanna, @kierafeldman, @barbaraleeforca, @repadamschiff, @smasunaga, @jason_koebler, The Wrap, @mattdpearce, @angiejaime, @nafeesasyeed, @joshpcain, @corbinbolies, @gerrickkennedy, @cassiermartin, @latguild, @cmonstah, SAG-AFTRA, Washington Post, LAmag, Associated Press, LAist, Courthouse News Service, The Wrap, The NewsGuild, The NewsGuild, Deadline, @imleor.bsky.social, The Messenger, Talking Biz News, New York Post, Poynter, Axios, The Hollywood Reporter, The Hill and CNN
Rick Reger / Local News Initiative:
The bipartisan Illinois Local Journalism Task Force recommends tax credits, exemptions, and more to boost local media; the state lost 232 newspapers since 2005 — Illinois task force suggests tax credits, incentives, other steps to boost local journalism — The bipartisan Illinois Local …
Discussion:
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MyStateline.com, Chicago Tribune and ISDC
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