Top News:
NBC News:
Three current and seven former Fox employees say Pete Hegseth drank in ways that concerned his colleagues; Fox News did not respond to requests for comment — Ten current and former Fox employees say Trump's pick for defense secretary drank in ways that concerned his co-workers.
Discussion:
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Ashley Carman / @ashleycarman@threads.net:
Bloomberg bundles five tech newsletters, including Mark Gurman's Apple-focused Power On and Ashley Carman's Soundbite on podcasts, into a $11.99 per month plan — an update on my newsletter! from me, on linkedin. link below to subscribe 🫶🫶 https://www.bloomberg.com/...
Discussion:
@robaeprice@threads.net
Dade Hayes / Deadline:
Tech startup Channel 1, which debuted a newscast hosted by AI-generated anchors in 2023, unveils AI tools to improve the production and distribution processes — The products, First Cut and Prism, help automate workflows and put videos into different formats.
Discussion:
@kevinerb.bsky.social
Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
The Economist, the WaPo, the NYT, and Wired are embedding vertical video carousels in news stories and featuring them on homepages to cater to mobile users — “It's a much better experience if you're not turning your phone. And people don't turn their phones."
Bloomberg:
Sources: David Ellison plans sweeping changes at Paramount after merger, including consolidation of its TV networks; co-CEO Brian Robbins is expected to leave — - CBS Chief George Cheeks is expected to stay after deal closes — Plans include consolidation of the company's TV networks
Discussion:
The Wrap, @lucasshaw.bsky.social, New York Post, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, Deadline and The Desk
Mike Pastore / MarTech:
Informa Tech, a B2B media and data company that owns brands like Industry Dive, merges with TechTarget to broaden reach to customers and scale for marketers — We've updated this article with news that the combination of Informa Tech and TechTarget is now official, after TechTarget shareholders approved the deal.
Discussion:
TechTarget, MediaPost, Light Reading and Cybersecurity Dive
The Guardian:
Guardian and Observer journalists hold a 48-hour strike against a planned sale of The Observer to Tortoise Media; it is The Guardian's first strike in 50+ years — Forty-eight-hour strike, first at Guardian in more than 50 years, to take place on Wednesday and Thursday
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Walmart closes its $2.3B cash acquisition of TV maker Vizio, saying the deal will let it offer new ways for advertisers to reach customers via Walmart Connect — Walmart announced the completion of its $2.3 billion all-cash acquisition of TV maker Vizio, a move by the retailing giant to expand its advertising business.
Mediapart:
Investigation: the US government funds about half the budget of OCCRP, which reports on corruption in places like Russia, and has veto power over key personnel — The OCCRP, the largest organised network of investigative media in the world, hid the extent of its links with the US government, this investigation can reveal.
Marc Schneider / Billboard:
Stephen King will close his three radio stations in Bangor, Maine, on New Year's Eve, citing financial losses and his advancing age as reasons for the shutdown — A desire to “get his business affairs in better order” leads the 77-year-old horror author to shutter his trio of stations in the Bangor area.
Peter Kafka / Business Insider:
BuzzFeed is $123.5M in debt with interest payments due, and a plan to cut debt will likely come soon; it earlier tried to sell Hot Ones' parent company for $70M — - A few years ago BuzzFeed was supposedly worth close to $2 billion. — Now it's worth much less, and it has been scrambling …
Discussion:
@katienotopoulos.bsky.social
Nilay Patel / The Verge:
The Verge unveils a $7/mo. or $50/year “dynamic metered paywall”; some content like the social feed-like homepage, live blogs, and core news posts will be free — Okay, we're doing this. — Today we're launching a Verge subscription that lets you get rid of a bunch of ads …
Discussion:
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