Top News:
Financial Times:
How the UK Conservative party establishment fought to frustrate RedBird's UAE-backed Telegraph bid; sources say Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch had a key role — Rishi Sunak's ‘hand was forced’ as PM acts to change law to stop foreign states from buying media groups
Discussion:
The Wrap, New York Times, @sarahleah1, Reuters, Mediaite, The Media Leader and The Guardian
The Information:
ByteDance investors, reassessing what the company's value would be without TikTok, estimate that TikTok lost several billion dollars in 2023 on revenue of ~$20B — TikTok, facing a growing threat of a U.S. ban, has been a global juggernaut over the past few years, drawing more than a billion monthly users …
Discussion:
Contxto, @zitron.bsky.social and Los Angeles Times, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Cristiano Lima-Strong / Washington Post:
The US House passes a bipartisan TikTok bill that forces a sale or ban of the app; the legislation faces an uncertain Senate path without a companion measure
The US House passes a bipartisan TikTok bill that forces a sale or ban of the app; the legislation faces an uncertain Senate path without a companion measure
Discussion:
@tiktokpolicy, Associated Press, The Verge, Rolling Stone, The Daily Dot, New York Post, 9to5Google, @tiktokpolicy, The Information, CBS News, @business, @reuters, Adam Goldberg on LinkedIn, Music Ally, @kateclarktweets, New York Times, @emilybell, @axiospro, MediaPost, @bostonjoan, The Hill, Semafor, @howardmortman, @sachalouise, @mattdizwhitlock, @jacobhelberg, @jingjing_li, @boblatta, @conorsen, @ally_sammarco, @mtracey, @reppfluger, @adamkovac, @govgianforte, @jonhaidt, @cspan, @jwherrman, @jakesherman, @tomselliott, @repthomasmassie, @atrupar, @committeeonccp, @davetroy, @jakesherman, @matthewstoller, @jakesherman, @alexbarinka, @jason_kint, @matthewstoller, @mikeisaac, @senmarkey, @carnage4life, @senmarcorubio, @repspanberger, @igorbobic, @sahilkapur, @repmtg, Engadget, @willoremus, @sahilkapur, @mkraju, @carnage4life, @mikeisaac, @repjeffduncan, @repmcgovern, @randpaul, @stephenkentx, @repjames, @aoc, @repdanbishop, Mediaite, Digital Music News, Business Insider, @parismarx@mastodon.online, The Drum, WSPA-TV, Cherie Thacker on LinkedIn, Forbes, NPR, Fox News, W Media Research, The Hill, CNN, TMZ.com, GSMArena.com, Across Illinois, IL Patch, NBC News, Yahoo News, The Independent, The Information, USA Today, PCMag, Music Business Worldwide, Ars Technica, 9to5Mac, Washington Post, Rolling Stone, The Verge, The Wrap, Engadget, Polygon, @darnell@one.darnell.one, @willoremus@mastodon.social, Digiday, Axios, Financial Times, TechCrunch, Variety, UPI, iMore, The Daily Beast, Reuters, Chico Enterprise-Record and Ars OpenForum, more at Techmeme »
Jeff Horwitz / Wall Street Journal:
Meta plans to shut down CrowdTangle in August 2024, to be replaced by Meta Content Library for academic and nonprofit researchers, but not most news outlets — CrowdTangle, a source for embarrassing articles about Facebook and Instagram, has been used to track conspiracy theories, viral content
Discussion:
@kevinroose@threads.net, Quartz, @earleyedition, @j_h_ohner, @monakrewel, @luisassardo, @stokel, @justin_ct_ho, @ulrikeklinger, @akhmxt1, @franzimarquart, @ebakerwhite, @johannesbgruber, @brchastain_@threads.net, @instashazbot@threads.net, @lorakolodny@threads.net, @azipaybarah@threads.net, @mattnavarra@threads.net, @katieharbath@threads.net, @kylewilsontharp@threads.net, @owswills@threads.net, @colinjones@threads.net, @lrossi@threads.net, Engadget, @stevierea.bsky.social and @dell.bsky.social, more at Techmeme »
Todd Shields / Bloomberg:
The FCC votes to make cable and satellite TV providers show the total cost of services, including fees for TV station signals and regional sports programming — - Consumer charges have been targeted under President Biden — Cable industry calls rule unneeded and costly to implement
Discussion:
@tvgrimreaper
Zachary Small / New York Times:
Artforum names Tina Rivers Ryan as its editor-in-chief to replace David Velasco, who was fired after signing an open letter calling for Palestinian liberation — The curator and essayist will become the magazine's next leader after a period of turmoil. — Artforum named Tina Rivers Ryan …
Discussion:
@annespalter, ARTnews, @andrewrusseth, Artforum and Vogue
Aisha Malik / TechCrunch:
Reddit launches free-form ads, an ad format that looks similar to posts made by users, but with a “Promoted” label, to help advertisers get maximum engagement — Reddit is introducing a new ad format that looks similar to posts made by users on the platform, the company announced on Thursday.
Discussion:
Reddit Upvoted, Boing Boing, Ad Age and EMARKETER, more at Techmeme »
Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
Ex-employees of Mexico's shuttered state news agency, Notimex, launch the Mexican Association of Information, which will operate as a worker cooperative — Mexico's president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, had said last year that there no need for a state news agency since he conducts daily press briefings.
Discussion:
@hanaatameez and @niemanlab
Reuters:
UN report: Israel violated international law by firing at a group of “clearly identifiable journalists” on October 13, killing Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah — An Israeli tank killed Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah in Lebanon last year by firing two 120 mm rounds at a group of …
Discussion:
Talking Biz News and Yasir Khan on LinkedIn
Jonathan Randles / Bloomberg:
Kast Media, which was accused by Theo Von and other podcasters last year of missing payments, files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, listing $6.3M+ in liabilities — - Podcast producer Kast Media filed Chapter 11 after accusations — Comedian Theo Von is owed $456,398, according to filing
Discussion:
@tvgrimreaper, @theinsneider and @ashleycarman@threads.net
Wes Davis / The Verge:
Meta will be “forced” to remove news from its platforms in Illinois if the state passes a bill requiring Meta, Google, and others to pay local news outlets — A new Illinois bill called the Journalism Preservation Act (SB 3591) that's currently sitting in the state's Senate …
Chris Kornelis / New York Times:
Gerald M. Levin, the former Time Warner CEO who oversaw the AOL merger, widely considered the worst corporate merger in US history, died on March 13 at age 84 — He was called a visionary in cable television, but his foray into the world of the internet, in a marriage with AOL, proved disastrous.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Next TV, @stevecase, Washington Post, @jbflint, @billshapiro@threads.net, @edmundlee@threads.net, Brian McCourt on LinkedIn, @nemalki, @nemalki, @nemalki, @editorialiste, Advanced Television, @miketrose@threads.net, @nytimes, @karaswisher@threads.net, @nemalki, @timjhanrahan, @msn, @business, @washingtonpost, @wsjbusiness, @kifcap, @nemalki, @ernie.tedium.co, @ernie.tedium.co, TIME, @jamisonfoser.bsky.social, Deadline, Variety, The Wrap, @paleofuture.bsky.social, @mrwaltershapiro.bsky.social, The Hollywood Reporter and @mettlinger.bsky.social, more at Techmeme »
Spencer Soper / Bloomberg:
Amazon says “a tiny fraction” of sellers paid for ads for products users couldn't buy and pledges a fix; Amazon offered a $15K refund to a seller seeking $300K — The company has pledged to reimburse sellers for the mistake and make fixes to its lucrative advertising operation.
Discussion:
Engadget and Business Insider
Russ Crupnick / MusicWatch:
US paid music subscribers hit a record 109M in 2023, or 136M if SiriusXM and Amazon Prime Music are included; seven of every 10 US millennials pay to subscribe — MusicWatch Annual Music Study points to continued health of the US music market, a record number of paid subscribers, and increased spend on recorded music.
Discussion:
Inside Radio, @billyyfantis and Billboard, more at Techmeme »