Top News:
CNBC:
Comcast confirms plans to spin off its NBCUniversal cable TV networks, including MSNBC and CNBC, with Mark Lazarus as CEO; the separation may take about a year — Comcast is moving forward with the spinoff of its cable network channels, including CNBC, MSNBC and E!, the company said Wednesday.
Discussion:
Comcast, New York Times, Fast Company, Business Insider, Axios, CNN, TechCrunch, The Guardian, Bloomberg, The Desk, Mediaite, Fox Business, Breitbart, USA Today, Total Telecom, TVNewsCheck, Variety, Washington Examiner, @jbflint, @sherman4949, Engadget, Talking Biz News, HuffPost, HotAir, NBC News, The Verge, Stephani Shelton on LinkedIn, Media Play News, @stark.soy, @sherman4949, @great_katzby, @benmullin, Financial Times, @mediaite, @jeffjarvis, Benzinga, Fortune, Cord Cutters News, @sarafischer, Barron's Online, Newser, @brianstelter, @sherman4949, @colbyhall, @joshuabenton.com, @benmullin, @brianstelter, The Hollywood Reporter, Yahoo Finance, The Information, @amolsharma.bsky.social, NBC News, Media Play News, Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, Variety, Ad Age, CNN, Awful Announcing, Cord Cutters News, Deadline, Business Insider and Wall Street Journal
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Sources: Comcast execs told staff that MSNBC may have to change its identity as part of the spinoff, including losing access to NBC News' newsgathering process — MSNBC fans who are disappointed in the progressive-leaning network after Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 election may no longer have it to kick around.
Discussion:
Adweek, @tomgara@threads.net, @bristei, @maxwelltani and Deadline
Liz Hoffman / Semafor:
Sources: under current plans, Comcast's new spun off entity would carry little of its $101B of debt, giving it the ability to borrow for acquisitions — The Scoop — Corporate spinoffs are born as takeover prey. They're often unloved, underperforming divisions, flung out to shareholders wearing a …
Discussion:
Bloomberg and @semaforben
Peter Kafka / Business Insider:
Comcast's spinoff is essentially a garage sale of its basic cable TV networks, as the number of people paying for and watching cable networks falls every year — - Cable networks used to be incredibly valuable. But in the streaming and cord-cutting era, they are in decline.
Discussion:
MediaPost, Reuters, Advanced Television and WHEC.com
Georg Szalai / The Hollywood Reporter:
Comcast spinoff: cable channel Bravo, the NBC broadcast network, and Peacock will remain part of NBCUniversal; the new entity's ownership will mirror Comcast — NBCU CFO Anand Kini will become CFO and COO of the new channels company. … Cable channel Bravo, the NBC broadcast network …
Discussion:
Variety, Deadline, @pkafka and Screen Rant
James Warrington / Telegraph:
Almost 93% of 600 Guardian and Observer staff organized by the NUJ vote in favor of strike action over the proposed sale of The Observer to Tortoise — Union leaders say walkouts can be avoided if the company ends discussions with Tortoise — The Guardian is braced for strike action …
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Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Tortoise says it plans to invest £25M in Observer over five years, aiming to turn it into a self-funded, paywalled newsbrand with 100K new digital subscribers — Journalists have opted for a 48-hour stoppage next month, with a second possibly to follow.
Discussion:
@danielthomasldn and Telegraph
Kanis Leung / Associated Press:
Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai testifies for the first time in his years-long national security trial; he is already serving a jail term for a fraud conviction — Former Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai began testifying Wednesday in his landmark national security trial that is widely seen …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Washington Post, Semafor, The Wire China, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Hong Kong Free Press HKFP, New York Times, Financial Times, The Japan Times, South China Morning Post, Reuters, Wall Street Journal, CBS News, Bloomberg, Raw Story, London Evening Standard and Reporters Without Borders
Mia Sato / The Verge:
Google tightens its rules against “parasite SEO” content, or articles that have little to do with the website's focus, after cracking down on “reputation abuse” — Google is tightening its rules against “parasite SEO” content, or articles and pages that often have little …
Discussion:
MediaPost, Entrepreneur, Search Engine Roundtable, @simonowens.bsky.social and CNET, more at Techmeme »
Oliver Darcy / Status:
Nielsen: Morning Joe's total audience fell 17% from the 6am hour to the 7am hour after Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski said they met Trump, an unusual drop — The decision from Comcast will notably rip apart NBCU News Group boss Cesar Conde's kingdom, with MSNBC and CNBC being spun off.
Discussion:
Variety, Adweek, The Hollywood Reporter, @michellesea.bsky.social, @kellycripe, @jeremymbarr, Mediaite, @jeffjarvis, @brianstelter, Stephanie Smith on LinkedIn, @sallyshin, @oliverdarcy@threads.net, @asharma, @tvgrimreaper, @asharma, @asharma, @timkarr.bsky.social, The Desk, Reuters, TVNewsCheck, Matthew Keys on LinkedIn, Dan Rayburn on LinkedIn, @amolsharma.bsky.social, The Hill and Daily Mail
Sophie Culpepper / Nieman Lab:
A profile of The Green Line, a Toronto-based local news site that combines traditional reporting, community events, and solutions and action — The Green Line combines events, explainers, and solutions to appeal to young Torontonians. — Toronto-based local news site The Green Line …
Discussion:
@niemanlab, @carolynjack, Anna Nirmala on LinkedIn and @tassosmorfis
Amanda Gerut / Fortune:
A Brooklyn federal grand jury indicts two brothers over allegedly running illegal sports streaming service 247TVStream, offering live NFL, NBA, and NHL games — “Thanks to the work of our prosecutors, along with our domestic and international law enforcement partners, the illicit digital streaming site …
Discussion:
The Desk and US Department of Justice
Anil Dash:
Substack wants writers to call their work by its brand name because “they control your audience and distribution” and “want to own your content and voice” — Email's been here for years. But the reason Substack wants you to call your creative work by their brand name …
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