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Some reporters say they are finding more readers and less hate on Bluesky, as Elon Musk turns X into an increasingly difficult place for journalists — Journalists are finding more readers and less hate on Bluesky than on the platform they used to know as Twitter.
Discussion:
@lonsj.bsky.social, @duanedichiara, Dr. Carsten Stöcker on LinkedIn, Alexis B. on LinkedIn, @jayrosen.bsky.social, @bigbluewaveusa.bsky.social, @thechrisbenson.bsky.social, @takethelongway.bsky.social, @americanfietser.com, @alexhuot.bsky.social, @ashtonpittman.bsky.social, @newhercules.bsky.social, Le Monde, @gemmaclark.bsky.social, @grrlscientist@mastodon.social, Boston Herald, The Hill, Press Gazette and Awful Announcing


An investigation finds that OCCRP, which works with major newspapers on scoops like the Panama Papers, is primarily bankrolled by the US and its Western allies — Drew Sullivan is unknown to the broad public, but the head of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project is one of the most influential journalists in the world.
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Docs: German public broadcaster NDR shelved an investigation it started into OCCRP as part of a consortium due to pressure from OCCRP co-founder Drew Sullivan — After launching an investigation into the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), and after subsequently inviting Mediapart …
Discussion:
@ryangrim


Paramount co-CEO Chris McCarthy aims to revitalize Showtime by using successful formulas like Yellowstone from Paramount+ and investing in high-profile projects — Before a new owner takes over, the TV brand once known for ‘Billions’ and ‘Homeland’ is working to come up with new marquee hits
Discussion:
@mediaevan


How YouTuber Ms. Rachel, whose baby-focused educational videos get 100M views, has attracted huge interest from toy companies and publishers before the holidays — About a year and a half ago, Laura Henderson, a toy company executive and 38-year-old mother in Toronto, was at the tail end of maternity leave with her second child.
Discussion:
@dru.bsky.social


Disney's Moana 2 took $221M in the US during the five-day Thanksgiving weekend, including $135.3M from Friday to Sunday, breaking multiple Box Office records — The Walt Disney Animation sequel sailed into history with a Thanksgiving haul of $221 million, the biggest five-day opening of all time, among numerous other milestones.
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Memo: TelevisaUnivision will undergo a reorganization under new CEO Daniel Alegre; source: mid to high single digit percentage of staff will be laid off — José Luis Fabila will lead all content globally for the company, which will reduce its workforce by the mid-high single digits.


OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar says OpenAI is weighing an ads model, but plans to be “thoughtful”; sources and LinkedIn analysis: OpenAI hired Meta and Google ad talent — ChatGPT maker hires advertising talent from big tech rivals — OpenAI is discussing plans to introduce advertising …
Discussion:
The Wrap, MediaPost, @lukaszolejnik.bsky.social, @eric_seufert and @ohmrun@cr8r.gg, more at Techmeme »


Documents: in 2023, LeBron James' Springhill lost $28M on $104M in sales; the production company aims to be profitable in 2024, after its merger with Fulwell 73 — Film and TV businesses started by celebrities have raised lots of money. What's missing are profits — I changed my mind about the newsletter.
Discussion:
New York Post, Awful Announcing, @ddiamond, @lucas_shaw, @howielongshort and The Gateway Pundit


Ofcom: the BBC had a 37% share of local news page views in H1 2024 in the UK, up from 26% in 2022; commercial publishers' share in England fell from 80% to 67% — An increase in local news being produced online by the BBC is adding to the “headwinds” facing commercial publishers, regulator Ofcom has found.
Discussion:
HoldtheFrontPage


A Tow Center analysis finds ChatGPT was partially or entirely incorrect in 153 out of 200 quote citations whether or not publishers allowed OpenAI's crawler — ChatGPT search — which is positioned as a competitor to search engines like Google and Bing — launched with a press release …


Mubi plans to launch Mubi Editions, a new global publishing arm dedicated to cinema and the arts, in April 2025 and hopes to publish three titles in 2025 — Arthouse distributor, streamer and production company Mubi is venturing into the world of publishing.
Discussion:
Publishers Weekly, The Bookseller and @hannahstrong.co.uk