Top News:
CNBC:
Source: Paramount leadership will present a plan that includes job cuts and a potential streaming partnership in the event a sale of the company doesn't happen — The current leadership of Paramount Global is gearing up to present a plan at the company's annual shareholder meeting Tuesday …
Discussion:
Reuters, @sherman4949, The Wrap, Next TV and Deadline
RELATED:
Lillian Rizzo / CNBC:
Source: Paramount and Skydance agree to the terms of a merger, which will likely be announced in the coming days; Shari Redstone still needs to sign the deal — - CNBC Councils — CNBC on Peacock — Join the CNBC Panel — Supply Chain Values — Select Shopping — Ad Choices
Discussion:
CNBC, The Wrap, Front Office Sports, @tvgrimreaper, Deadline, Variety, Fast Company, The Desk, The Hollywood Reporter, World of Reel, The Information, Barrett Media, SlashFilm, The Streamable, New York Post, Media Play News, Business Insider, Mediaite, Advanced Television, Wall Street Journal and New York Times
Matt Stieb / New York Magazine:
US prosecutors charge The Epoch Times' CFO Bill Guan with conspiracy to commit money laundering for allegedly moving at least $67M in illegally obtained funds — One of the strangest stories in media over the past decade is the Epoch Times, a formerly free newspaper distributed on the streets …
Discussion:
US Department of Justice, New York Post, The Guardian, New York Times, @brandyzadrozny, @justinbaragona, @trueanonpod, @davidgerard, @daveweigel, @bryson_m, Al Jazeera, @jaredlholt, @emilybell, Associated Press, @scottnover, Rolling Stone, @semaforben, NPR, @annamerlan, Business Insider, Courthouse News Service, @howelloneill@infosec.exchange, @jbillinson@threads.net, The Daily Beast, @kurtsh@mastodon.social, Mediaite and @nickheer@c.im
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
A profile of Robert Winnett, the low-key, scoop-obsessed UK editor who will take charge of WaPo's newsroom this fall after 17 years at The Telegraph — Robert Winnett is virtually unknown in the U.S. and keeps a low profile in his native Britain, too. This fall, he will oversee the newsroom of Woodward and Bernstein.
Discussion:
The Media Leader, @grynbaum, @benmullin, Politico, The Desk, Press Gazette, The Guardian and Talking Biz News
RELATED:
New York Times:
Source: Will Lewis told Sally Buzbee she could run one of the new WaPo divisions, in what would've been an effective demotion for her; Buzbee chafed at the idea
Source: Will Lewis told Sally Buzbee she could run one of the new WaPo divisions, in what would've been an effective demotion for her; Buzbee chafed at the idea
Washington Post:
A WaPo staff meeting to introduce new top editor Matt Murray turned contentious when staff questioned CEO William Lewis about Sally Buzbee's abrupt replacement
A WaPo staff meeting to introduce new top editor Matt Murray turned contentious when staff questioned CEO William Lewis about Sally Buzbee's abrupt replacement
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, Associated Press, NPR, @genepark, Fox News, @brianstelter, @ericschultz, @angela_denker, @scotbertram, @vibinc, @jamesrbuk, @barbarahoff52, @maxwelltani, @nkulw, Mediaite, New York Post, @brianvastag@sciencemastodon …, The Wrap, @samlitzinger@journa.host, The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline
NOTUS:
WaPo staffers say they are concerned that Will Lewis is trying to impose a new editorial vision without giving them clarity ahead of the contentious US election
WaPo staffers say they are concerned that Will Lewis is trying to impose a new editorial vision without giving them clarity ahead of the contentious US election
David Folkenflik / @davidfolkenflik:
[Thread] Sources: Will Lewis wants to make his mark on the WaPo newsroom, bringing in Robert Winnett, who Lewis worked with on a UK MP's expenses scandal story
[Thread] Sources: Will Lewis wants to make his mark on the WaPo newsroom, bringing in Robert Winnett, who Lewis worked with on a UK MP's expenses scandal story
Discussion:
@froomkin, @dlknowles, @25thcenturygirl, @davidfolkenflik, @edmundlee, @burnerobserv2, @lorna_tveditor, @deggans, @paulamoore, @tanzinavega, @sulliview, @davidfolkenflik, @moorehn, @maxwelltani, @davidfolkenflik, @loisbeckett, @jpodhoretz, @moorehn, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, New York Times, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, @williams_paige, @tanzinavega@threads.net, @jeffjarvis, New York Times and Washington Post
Rob Rose / Financial Times:
South Africa's MultiChoice recommends that shareholders accept Canal+'s buyout offer that values the company at $2.9B and will remain open until April 2025 — Takeover of Africa's largest pay-TV operator must overcome regulatory hurdles — Africa's largest pay-TV operator, MultiChoice …
Discussion:
Reuters, Business Insider and Bloomberg
Brody Ford / Bloomberg:
Shutterstock CEO Paul Hennessy says the company's licensing business with AI companies made $104M in revenue in 2023 — - Reka AI is latest customer to announced deal with Shutterstock — OpenAI, Meta, among others using Shutterstock images for AI
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Dinesh D'Souza's 2000 Mules, which Salem Media pulled from distribution only last week, is a case study in how appealing, lucrative falsehoods endure — “2000 Mules” is a case study in how appealing, lucrative falsehoods endure. — I was sitting at dinner with my editor in early 2022 …
Discussion:
@w7voa@journa.host, @pbump and Inside Radio
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Antenna: Spotify users are the least likely to cancel among major video or audio streaming services in the US, with a ~2% monthly churn rate, similar to Netflix — Its customers are the least likely to cancel among major video or audio streaming services. — Good afternoon from Chicago …
Discussion:
Music Ally, The Information, @lucas_shaw, @lucas_shaw and Deadline, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Spotify plans to raise US prices: Premium from $10.99 to $11.99 per month, Duo from $14.99 to $16.99, and Family from $16.99 to $19.99, after a July 2023 hike
Spotify plans to raise US prices: Premium from $10.99 to $11.99 per month, Duo from $14.99 to $16.99, and Family from $16.99 to $19.99, after a July 2023 hike
Discussion:
Spotify, 9to5Google, @ccm_brett, @radnorcapital, The Hollywood Reporter, @film_girl, @alexweprin, @tomwarren, The Desk, BGR, Engadget, CBS News, Gizmodo, Bloomberg, The Media Leader, Micah Willbrand on LinkedIn, CNBC, Digital Trends, Variety, Music Ally, 9to5Mac, The Wrap, TechCrunch and KTVX-TV
Jane Croft / The Guardian:
UK broadcasters like Channel 4 and ITV are taking stakes in early-stage digital companies, often by providing advertising airtime in return for equity — With advertisers slashing their spend, channels have found a new way to fill unsold ad space — When Kubos, a semiconductor company …
Discussion:
Diana Florescu on LinkedIn
Max Goldbart / Deadline:
Disney EMEA President Jan Koeppen says Disney spent £3.5B on production in the UK since 2019, including on 29 films; Netflix spent $6B in the UK in 2019 to 2023 — Disney has spent £3.5B ($4.5B) on production in the UK since 2019, EMEA boss Jan Koeppen has revealed.
Discussion:
Variety and The Hollywood Reporter
New York Times:
The Monday night shows of Rachel Maddow and Jon Stewart are luring viewers back to basic cable, a sign of the staying power of established TV personalities — Once a week, Rachel Maddow and Jon Stewart are luring viewers back to basic cable. — Liberal TV viewers have a new mantra: T.G.I.M.!
Discussion:
HuffPost, @johnnydollar01, @johnnydollar01, Liza Burnett Fefferman on LinkedIn, Rolling Stone and LateNighter
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Instagram confirms testing an unskippable ad format with a countdown timer that briefly prevents feed scrolling, similar to the free version of YouTube — Instagram confirmed it's testing unskippable ads after screenshots of the feature began circulating across social media.
Discussion:
The Verge, @howfxr, @dexerto, @mikeisaac, @robmoses, @kennysmith.bsky.social, @thedanlevy, Gizmodo, Engadget, 9to5Mac, MediaPost, BGR, @macloo.bsky.social, @georgescriban@threads.net, @hi.im.vijay@threads.net, @actualscott@threads.net, @crumbler@threads.net, @katzish@threads.net, @ajcousins.bsky.social, @isobelcarr.com, @pauljdavies.bsky.social, @smi.bsky.social, @faineg.bsky.social and Metro.co.uk, more at Techmeme »
Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
X changes its adult content policies, formally letting users post consensual NSFW and AI content “provided it's properly labeled and not prominently displayed” — The internet has been home to all kinds of content for a long time, so it was no surprise to anyone when people started tweeting porn at each other.
Discussion:
X, MediaPost, MEDIANAMA, The Verge, News18, @allenholub, @iaponomarenko, @carnage4life, @safety, Al Jazeera, PRWeek, Deadline, TMZ.com, The Information, Variety, WCIA-TV and Hacker News