Top News:
Chris Thompson / Defector:
Vice leadership failed to act as responsible stewards of a good product, and instead paid themselves lavish salaries and burned through hundreds of millions — Vice was a good website. On Thursday it was killed by its private equity owners, in a characteristically cruel and sudden maneuver …
Discussion:
@jeremymbarr, @davidclinchnews, @tvgrimreaper, Slate, @ninastarner, @mjgault, @quillmatiq@threads.net, @sarahscire, Gail J. Cohen on LinkedIn, @defectormedia, @KarlBode@masto.ai, WWD, 404 Media, @sharonwaxman, MobileSyrup, @adamjkovac, @nick_kapur, Ian Greenleigh on LinkedIn, @nina_metz, @juliaccarpenter, @jswatz.bsky.social and Deadline
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Wall Street Journal:
Internal memo: Vice Media “will no longer publish content on vice.com” and may partner with established media companies to distribute its content
Discussion:
One Man & His Blog, @janusrose, CNN, Slate, Dylan Harari on LinkedIn, @maxwelltani@threads.net, @broderick, @felixsalmon, Nicholas Yanes on LinkedIn, @maxwelltani, TVNewsCheck, @neuwaves, @annamerlan, Nieman Lab, Press Gazette, OrissaPOST, @tati_wm, @scottnover, @elaheizadi, @ameliargh, @lorenzofb, @bcmerchant, @katiedrumm, @katiedrumm, @bcmerchant, @motherboard, @benmullin, @maxwelltani, @timmarchman, @rumpfshaker, @theloniusly, @leximcmenamin, Variety, Awful Announcing, The Guardian, @stefthepef@mastodon.social, Rolling Stone, Deadline, @karlbode.bsky.social, Talking Biz News, @BenjaminHCCarr@hachyderm.io, Bloomberg and Mediaite
Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
Internal memo: Vice Media executives plan to lay off hundreds of its 900+ employees over the next week, and the company is in advanced talks to sell Refinery29
Discussion:
The Verge, CNN, @chronotope, CBS News, @megreenwell, @jason_koebler, CMU, @scottnover, @adamm0rgan, @karenkho, Raw Story, @misstessowen, @daithaigilbert, Newser, @maxwellstrachan, Media Voices, UPI, Washington Post, hellgatenyc, Sydney Morning Herald, Rachel White on LinkedIn, HuffPost, Advanced Television, The Desk, @emilybellnyc@threads.net, @soupsoup@threads.net, @dkiesow@threads.net, @emilybellnyc@threads.net, New York Daily News, The Hill, The Information, @blogdiva@mastodon.social, The Wrap, @skullwizard.bsky.social, MediaPost and Hollywood Reporter
Sara Fischer / Axios:
NPR affiliate WAMU is shutting down local news site Dcist and laying off 15 employees to focus on audio and plans to add 10 new positions — - “We're making the choice to invest in what we're better at than anyone else in this town, and that's audio,” Pulley-Hayes said.
Discussion:
Washington Post, @wemakewamu, @jwhitepubradio, @floorcharts, @tamarakeithnpr, @robertwhite_dc, The Hill, Current, @jasonshevrin, @jenhoward.bsky.social, @ckrewson, @jeffjarvis@threads.net, @jbenton, @jfkucinich, @digiphile, @emma_a_whitford, Sara Fischer on LinkedIn, @abeaujon@threads.net, @nicdawes, @maustermuhle, Andi McDaniel on LinkedIn, Benjamin Freed on LinkedIn, @maustermuhle, @digiphile, @emmasarappo, @maustermuhle, @wemakewamu, @elaheizadi, @elaheizadi, Inside Radio and The Wrap
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
WBD reports Q4 revenue down 7% YoY to $10.3B, adjusted EBITDA down 5% YoY to $2.5B, 97.7M global streaming subscribers, and a $103M streaming profit for 2023 — The owner of the TNT and TBS cable networks,. the Warner Bros. studio and the Max streaming service reported a loss of $400 million …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Forbes, The Hollywood Reporter, The Desk, CNBC, @royprice, @jbflint, @lmoses, @lucas_shaw, The Streamable, @richlightshed, @jbflint, @picklemaddierix and Warner Bros. Discovery
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Eileen AJ Connelly / The Wrap:
WBD's David Zaslav says the joint venture sports app in development with Fox and Disney will include the ability to bundle with Max — Warner Bros. Discovery CEO confirms that joint venture app with Fox and Disney will access non-sports content — Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav confirmed Friday …
Discussion:
Awful Announcing, The Streamable, Deadline and Front Office Sports
Jonathan Vanian / CNBC:
Reddit files to list its IPO on the NYSE, reporting revenue up 20% YoY to $804M in 2023, net loss down 43% YoY to $90.8M, 73M DAUs, and a $3.42 global ARPU — - Reddit on Thursday filed to go public. — Its market debut will mark the first major tech initial public offering of the year …
Discussion:
Securities and Exchange Commission, @bkoo, AdExchanger, The Verge, KNSD-TV, Observer, Daily Bulletin, Fast Company, TechStartups, Quartz, MobileSyrup, Raw Story, Tubefilter, 9to5Mac, Mashable India, City A.M., @alexeheath, The Guardian, @mikeisaac, MediaPost, TweakTown, New York Times, The Information, NBC Bay Area, Wired, Deadline, NPR, @carnage4life@mas.to, Variety, TechCrunch, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal and Reuters, more at Techmeme »
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Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google strikes a deal with Reddit, reportedly for $60M/year, giving Google access to the Reddit Data API to surface more Reddit content and train AI models
Discussion:
The Hill, @edmundlee@threads.net, CBS News, @jonbjohns.bsky.social, The Verge, @rustybrick, @glenngabe, @mmitchell_ai, @cherthedev, WinBuzzer, Wall Street Journal, CNET, @reuters, @toddlombardo, @mrjnowlin, @basedtorba, @annatonger, @reuters, @chirag_mehta, @brij, Reddit Upvoted, 404 Media, @mattnavarra@threads.net, @documentingmeta@threads.net, MobileSyrup, Benzinga, The Decoder, Emil Protalinski on LinkedIn, KnowYourMobile, TechStartups, @crumbler@threads.net, MSPoweruser, Quartz, CoinXposure, The Keyword, David Callahan on LinkedIn, The Wrap, Search Engine Land, New York Post, One Man & His Blog, @carnage4life@mas.to, Gizmodo, The Verge, Reuters, r/news, r/privacy, r/singularity and r/google, more at Techmeme »
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
S-1: the Newhouse family's Advance owns 30.1% of Reddit, Tencent owns 11%, and Sam Altman owns 8.7%; post-IPO, the Newhouse family will hold two board seats
Discussion:
Business Today, Fast Company, WinBuzzer, CNBC, Business Insider, The Information, @kevinrns@mstdn.social and Bloomberg
Rani Molla / Sherwood Media:
In response to a query for news stories about Putin's comments on Navalny's death, Microsoft's AI-assisted search Copilot invented Putin quotes — Microsoft really wants you to use its new Copilot AI-assisted search. Not only was the service featured in an expensive Super Bowl spot …
Discussion:
@ranimolla, @nothingsmonstrd.bsky.social and @joshuatopolsky@mastodon …
Check My Ads Institute:
Paste co-founder and EIC Josh Jackson, whose company bought Jezebel in November 2023, says that overly broad brand safety efforts are hurting journalism — Josh Jackson was shocked when he found out what term, if used in the music publication he co-founded, could automatically strip an article of ad revenue.
Katie Kilkenny / The Hollywood Reporter:
An interview with studio owner Tyler Perry, who says he's putting an $800M studio expansion in Atlanta on hold after seeing the capabilities of OpenAI's Sora — The actor, filmmaker and studio owner is raising the alarm about the impact of the tech, saying, “I feel like everybody in the industry …
Discussion:
Variety, Eric Wagliardo on LinkedIn, Phillip Covell on LinkedIn, Ars Technica, Peter Csathy on LinkedIn, Tambay Obenson on LinkedIn, Duane Than on LinkedIn, TMZ.com, Arturo Bermúdez on LinkedIn, Conrad Curtis on LinkedIn, Colin McAuliffe on LinkedIn, Aaron Wilkerson on LinkedIn, The Ankler, Paul O'Brien on LinkedIn, @jonbjohns.bsky.social, The Guardian, Advanced Television, IndieWire, Vibe, @katiekilkenny7, @discussingfilm, @thr, @saverio825, The A.V. Club, @jessefuchs.bsky.social, @scumbelievable.bsky.social, @oldmatecans.bsky.social, @cousins.bsky.social, @hypercubexl.bsky.social, @stopsatgreen@threads.net, @talentagencyguide@threads.net, @lkimmasters@threads.net, Deadline and The Wrap
Amie Parnes / Vanity Fair:
A journalist tells how Jimmy Finkelstein wooed her to The Messenger, reassured staff two months before closure, and left her without a promised severance — I have yet to receive a promised severance following the media start-up's abrupt collapse, which left hundreds of us without jobs.
Discussion:
@carrasquillo, @jonallendc, @mkady, @benmullin and @amieparnes
Bloomberg:
Bill Ackman hires a law firm, which demands “immediate retractions and corrections” from Business Insider in a “final attempt to avoid litigation” — - Law firm issues demand letter on behalf of Ackman's wife — News outlet published stories saying wife committed plagiarism
Discussion:
@billackman, @maxwelltani, @aidnmclaughlin, New York Post, @dylanbyers, The Wrap, Talking Biz News and Observer
Nicholas Quah / Vulture:
A look at Matthew Belloni's What I'm Hearing newsletter, which covers the structures of Hollywood's business and has become a must-read among the power elite — How Matthew Belloni became the must-read columnist for Hollywood's executive class. — The Hollywood journalist Matthew Belloni …
Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
Editor of Vogue China to leave in latest senior Condé Nast exit — Rising star Margaret Zhang targeted by ‘toxic’ online campaign for ‘not being Chinese enough’ — The editor in chief of Vogue China, Margaret Zhang, has left the publishing group in the latest senior departure …
Discussion:
Vogue
Sarah Scire / Nieman Lab:
Google says there are no plans to remove the News tab on search results pages, after testing temporarily removing the filter for “a small subset of users” — News publishers are worried — with good reason — about changes coming to Google Search.
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