Top News:
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: the NBA is closing in on deals with NBC, ESPN, and Amazon that would bring in ~$76B in media revenue over 11 years; the deals will include WNBA rights — The National Basketball Association entered its first TV negotiations in a decade with a problem: Its main business partners seemed to be on shaky footing.
Discussion:
The Desk, Adweek, Los Angeles Times, Robert Dee on LinkedIn, Amol Sharma on LinkedIn, Front Office Sports, Business Insider, Vibe, Next TV, @morningbrew, @asharma, @benfritz, @jbflint, @jbflint, @patrick1kennedy, @webbarr, Christian Grece on LinkedIn, @asharma, ESPN Press Room U.S., Cord Cutters News, Barrett Media, @jbflint, @benfritz, The Wrap, Chris Pfaff on LinkedIn, New York Post, Sports Media Watch, Awful Announcing, Media Play News and The Ringer
Sarah Scire / Nieman Lab:
CEO Nicholas Thompson shares why The Atlantic partnered with OpenAI: publishers can benefit from tech platforms, as long as they avoid becoming wholly dependent — Shortly before The Atlantic announced “a product and content” partnership with OpenAI, the magazine published a piece …
Discussion:
The Atlantic, LinkedIn, @sarahscire, @jessicalessin, Business Insider and MIT Technology Review
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Bloomberg Media unveils product updates, including more deep-dive long reads on Businessweek, set to become a monthly in July, and reports 540K subscribers — Bloomberg Media is betting on increased website functionality and deeper reporting to keep it ahead of generative AI-based information providers.
Discussion:
Talking Biz News and Dominic Ponsford on LinkedIn
Reuters:
China-linked app NewsBreak used AI to write 40+ inaccurate local US stories since 2021 and in March added a note that its content “may not always be error-free” — Last Christmas Eve, NewsBreak, a free app with roots in China that is the most downloaded news app in the United States …
Discussion:
@wexler, @niubi, @nastyoldwomyn, @reuters, @reuters, @robdecola, @pearswick, @reuters, @magneticcrow@catcatnya.com and @nanditab1
Mike Catalini / Associated Press:
New Jersey's governor signs a bill overhauling state public records law; critics say the bill makes it harder for journalists and the public to get documents — New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation on Wednesday overhauling access to the state's public records …
Discussion:
@lwvnj, Courthouse News Service, Politico, New Jersey Globe, @aclunj, @brizzyc and NewsGuild of New York
Liam Scott / Voice of America:
Five former colleagues of exiled Uyghur journalist Kasim Kashgar have been imprisoned in China's Xinjiang region, seemingly over their ties to the VOA reporter — Former colleagues of exiled Uyghur journalist Kasim Kashgar have been imprisoned in China's Xinjiang region …
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
Stability AI releases Stable Audio Open, a text-to-audio model for generating up to 47 seconds of samples and sound effects, prohibited for commercial use — Stability AI, the startup behind the AI-powered art generator Stable Diffusion, has released an open AI model for generating sounds …
Discussion:
@stabilityai, @hugovntr, @benjedwards, @andymac3d, @iscienceluvr, Stability AI, @minimaxir, @simonw and @nickadobos, more at Techmeme »
Ash Parrish / The Verge:
An interview with Netflix VP of External Games Leanne Loombe about the popularity of interactive fiction games on the service, reality TV shows, and more — And while the “serious gamer” might be enticed by the pending arrival of The Case of the Golden Idol or Don't Starve Together …
The Wall Street Journal:
Founder Shane Smith returns to Vice as Vice News EIC, but with no management responsibilities, and will host a series of shows and create social media content — Shane Smith is sorry, but not sorry. The 54-year-old co-founder of Vice Media said he has few regrets as he embarks on a new role …
Will Shanklin / Engadget:
YouTube plans to restrict some content pertaining to the real use of guns from viewers under 18 starting on June 18, a year after a watchdog group report — Last year, a nonprofit flagged gun-related videos recommended to children's accounts. — YouTube quietly snuck in a policy change …
Discussion:
The Hill and Associated Press, more at Techmeme »
Luc Cohen / Reuters:
Netflix plans to donate $1M to the Innocence Project to settle a defamation lawsuit by ex-prosecutor Linda Fairstein over a 2019 Central Park Five show — Netflix (NFLX.O) settled a defamation lawsuit brought by best-selling author and former Manhattan sex crimes prosecutor Linda Fairstein …
Discussion:
@theferocity.bsky.social, Vibe, UPI, The Wrap, Deadline, Los Angeles Times, The Daily Beast, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter
Lauren Forristal / TechCrunch:
Substack adds the ability for writers to send videos to their subscribers via its direct messaging feature Chat — Newsletter platform Substack is introducing the ability for writers to send videos to their subscribers via Chat, its direct messaging feature, the company announced on Wednesday.
Discussion:
On Substack
Rebekah Entralgo / The NewsGuild:
Unions at eight Tribune publications including The Virginian-Pilot and Orlando Sentinel ratify their first contract with Alden after five years of talks — After five long years of negotiations between Alden Global Capital and a joint bargaining committee, journalists at eight Tribune …
Discussion:
@newsguild