Top News:
Diego Ramos Bechara / Variety:
The Toronto International Film Festival pauses screenings of Russians at War due to “significant threats to festival operations and public safety” — The Toronto International Film Festival has decided to halt screenings of the controversial documentary, “Russians at War,” …
Discussion:
TIFF, Global News, Deadline, CBC News, The Wrap, IndieWire, The Hollywood Reporter and Toronto Star
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Spotify is trying to entice video-oriented creators to distribute shows on the platform in addition to YouTube, sometimes offering them seven figures — The music and podcast service wants to beef up its video catalog and will pay up to seven-figures to do so — Hello again.
Discussion:
Digiday, @mikeisaac, @ashleyrcarman, The Desk, @mikeisaac, The Information, Castos, New York Times and Business Insider, more at Techmeme »
Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:
Fubo's antitrust trial against Fox, WBD, and Disney over Venu Sports is set for October 2025; Fox, WBD, Disney have also appealed the injunction blocking launch — Fubo's legal fight with Fox, Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney over antitrust concerns surrounding the trio's plans …
Discussion:
Deadline, Bloomberg, Deadline, Awful Announcing, The Streamable, Reuters and Cord Cutters News
Marshall Cohen / CNN:
A Delaware judge rules that Smartmatic's defamation case against Newsmax over 2020 election lies will proceed to trial later this month — A major defamation case against Newsmax will proceed to trial later this month, a judge ruled Thursday, dealing a blow to the right-wing network and setting …
Discussion:
The Hill, TVNewsCheck and Deadline
Dominic Patten / Deadline:
A Nevada court rules that hearings about Rupert Murdoch's effort to modify his family's succession plans will remain closed to the public and to the media — “The Motion for Access to the hearings in this case is denied,” probate commissioner Edmund J. Gorman Jr. recommended late today …
Dominic Patten / Deadline:
Francis Ford Coppola sues Variety and two of its journalists over a July 26 article documenting Megalopolis crew members' claims that he tried to kiss extras — The 85-year-old filmmaker is seeking $15 million and further punitive and exemplary damages from defendants Variety Media LLC …
Discussion:
Jezebel, New York Post, Associated Press, Entertainment Weekly, HuffPost, AV Club, Vulture, Global News, Rolling Stone, The Hollywood Reporter, Breitbart, TVNewsCheck and The Wrap
Laura Wagner / Washington Post:
News photographers object after their seats in Kamala Harris' plane travel pool were cut from four to one and push for more access for “a fair and free press” — White House News Photographers Association criticized the limited seating on the vice president's plane.
Discussion:
New York Post, @redsteeze, @albertomiguelf5, @kentnish@threads.net, Axios, @kentnish@threads.net, @kinseyandrew, @briannalyman2, White House News …, @armandondk, @kentnish@threads.net, @alexthomp, @alexthomp, @kentnish@threads.net, @richardgrenell, @pettylupone, @alexthomp, @noahpollak and @chrisharihar
Oliver Darcy / Status:
Vox Media says its annual Code Conference has been put on hold, calling it a “strong franchise” but declining to share further information about its future — Outside missing a year during the Covid-19 pandemic, it's the first time the annual technology conference has not taken place in its more than two-decade history.
Discussion:
@kylie.robison@threads.net
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
A look at “consent or pay” in the UK and Europe, where news sites charge fees for users to avoid personalized ads; six of the top 50 UK sites ask readers to pay — Six of the top 50 news websites in the UK are now asking people to hand over cash if they don't want to share their personal data for advertising purposes.
Discussion:
Elena Morin on LinkedIn
Andrew Deck / Nieman Lab:
The Archival Producers Alliance releases new guidelines for the use of generative AI, emphasizing transparency and laying out ethical considerations — The Archival Producers Alliance's new generative AI guardrails put audience transparency first. — Last year, Rachel Antell was working on her latest documentary.
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter
Tim Baysinger / Axios:
Box office revenue for movies in 2024 still trails 2023 by almost 14% in the US, but Q3 box office is now expected to come in above projections — - Summer got off to a slow start, including the weakest Memorial Day weekend in nearly three decades, but the box office has rallied with a string of hits since.
Discussion:
Collider
Erik Gruenwedel / Media Play News:
Antenna: 31% of US SVOD users transacted with a specialty SVOD service by the end of Q2; Amazon Channels generated 58% of specialty SVOD sign-ups in H1 — While the trend of stacking subscription streaming VOD services seems to be cooling, consumers continue to gravitate toward niche streaming platforms.
Discussion:
The Desk, Next TV and The Streamable