Mediagazer: A Dutch court convicts and sentences six men in connection with the murder of celebrity crime reporter Peter R. De Vries on an Amsterdam street in July 2021 (Seb Starcevic/Politico)

Sources: Shari Redstone was irked that Skydance's revised Paramount terms reduced National Amusements' value from $2B to $1.7B, affecting her family's holdings — There were several hitches in the last week as Skydance, Paramount and its parent company, National Amusements, reached the final stages of negotiations.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, CNN, @lucas_shaw, Bloomberg, @richlightshed, The Wrap, Deadline, @benmullin, Fast Company, Next TV, The Guardian, The Hollywood Reporter, Media Play News, The Hill and Cord Cutters News

Jessica Toonkel / Wall Street Journal:

National Amusements ends talks with Skydance; sources: Shari Redstone will likely seek a sale of just National Amusements, without including Paramount directly — Redstone likely to pursue sale of National Amusements, the family company that controls Paramount, with other potential bidders

Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:

In an email to staff, Skydance CEO David Ellison acknowledges Paramount merger talks have ended, and says that Skydance is “stronger” because of the talks — “I have great respect for the legacy of Paramount, value our ongoing partnership and wish them the best,” he added in the note …

Discussion: Deadline, The Desk, Financial Times, CBS News, Variety, Reuters, New York Post, IndieWire, Advanced Television, The Wrap, The Verge and Los Angeles Times

Rolling Stone:

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito suggests partisan funding of ProPublica is to blame for its coverage of the court, in a secret recording at a recent dinner — In a new, secret recording, the Supreme Court justice suggests partisan funding is to blame for coverage of justices' undisclosed luxury gifts

Laura Wagner / Washington Post:

The Baltimore Sun's union says the paper's new ownership has “tossed aside” ethical standards, reusing a below-standard Sinclair Broadcast Group story and more — “Ethical standards,” the Sun's union says, “have been tossed aside under new ownership.”

Seb Starcevic / Politico:

A Dutch court convicts and sentences six men in connection with the murder of celebrity crime reporter Peter R. De Vries on an Amsterdam street in July 2021 — A Dutch court on Wednesday convicted and sentenced six men in connection with the murder of a well-known crime reporter and television presenter.

Discussion: Deutsche Welle, RTÉ and Agence France-Presse

Cuneyt Dil / Axios:

Sources: WaPo CEO Will Lewis is floating Local+, a new offering for readers who want to pay extra for premium local content, including paid newsletters — - In pre-Bezos times, the Post made the world of Washington front and center, dedicating A1 columns to city hall and zoning disputes in the suburbs.

Mike Isaac / New York Times:

Apple News+, LinkedIn, Morning Brew, The Washington Post, and others are increasingly turning to games and puzzles to retain subscribers and attract customers — What's a five-letter word for an activity that media and technology companies are increasingly relying on to gain subscribers and keep them coming back?

Discussion: @katie_robertson

Calum Jaspan / Sydney Morning Herald:

Sources: News Corp Australia plans to cut up to 40% of its sales workforce, or about 80 roles, amid its ongoing restructuring — News Corp Australia will make up to 40 per cent of its sales workforce redundant, while editorial staff await their fate amid the media company's most significant restructure in more than a decade.

Discussion: Crikey

Ben Schoon / 9to5Google:

YouTube plans to roll out its Thumbnail Test & Compare tool to all creators “in the coming weeks”, letting them test video thumbnails “evenly” across audiences — YouTube is preparing to roll out a new thumbnail testing feature to creators, which means you'll …

Discussion: Google Support and The Verge, more at Techmeme »

Adam Ganucheau / Mississippi Today:

Pulitzer-prize winning Mississippi Today appeals to the Mississippi Supreme Court following a lower court order to turn over documents amid a defamation suit — A judge ordered our newsroom to turn over privileged documents regarding our Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporting.

Discussion: @stevenldoyle, Committee to Protect …, @freedomofpress and Poynter

Aidan Ryan / The Boston Globe:

Current and former staff at Boston public media outlet GBH criticize top salaries after 31 people were laid off; nine execs earned $300K+ in base pay in 2023 — When GBH laid off nearly three dozen workers last month, chief executive Susan Goldberg cited flat revenue and rising costs that left …

Discussion: @dankennedy_nu, @chipgoines, @aidanfitzryan, Inside Radio and Radio Ink