Top News:
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Omnicom is in advanced talks to buy Interpublic; the deal could be announced this week and value Interpublic between $13B and $14B, excluding debt — A deal would create the world's largest advertising company, with net revenue of more than $20 billion, topping WPP's $15.1 billion.
Dade Hayes / Deadline:
Brendan Carr, Donald Trump's pick to chair the FCC, vowed to back local TV stations even if it conflicts “with the interests of national broadcast networks” — Video … Appearing Friday on CNBC's Squawk on the Street, Carr continued to draw attention to broadcast networks' …
Discussion:
CNBC and Business Insider
RELATED:
Oliver Darcy / Status:
Q&A with Vox Media CEO Jim Bankoff on The Verge's paywall, New York Magazine's new app, podcast renewal talks, and layoffs at Thrillist, PS, and Eater — The Vox Media boss spoke to Status about the tough reality digital publishers are facing, with “compounding changes in technology …
Discussion:
Business Insider
Max Tani / Semafor:
Source: Vox Media will not renew its deal to distribute Taylor Lorenz's video podcast, set to expire at the start of 2025; the first episode aired in March 2024 — The Scoop — Vox Media is ending its deal to distribute Taylor Lorenz's podcast and YouTube show.
Discussion:
@taylorlorenz.bsky.social, @taylorlorenz.bsky.social and Mediaite
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Guardian and Scott Trust leaders faced staff fury over the Observer sale; the Scott Trust plans to invest £5M in the new Tortoise/Observer business — Guardian and Scott Trust leaders faced furious staff this morning as they answered questions about the plan agreed last night to sell The Observer to Tortoise Media.
Discussion:
MediaPost, The Times, @iainm.bsky.social, @pressgazette, @pressgazette, The Media Leader, Sky News, The Guardian, Australian Financial Review, @dominicponsford.bsky.social, @carolecadwalla.bsky.social, @pressgazette.co.uk, @stevebasnett.bsky.social, @pressgazette.co.uk, @eduardosuarez.bsky.social, @charlottetobitt.bsky.social, New Statesman and The New European
RELATED:
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Guardian Media Group chair Charles Gurassa says the Tortoise investment plan is “the best way forward” and it will end the “inevitable decline” of Observer
Discussion:
The Guardian
Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
The Scott Trust approves the sale of The Observer to Tortoise, despite two days of strikes by Guardian and Observer staffers against the deal
Discussion:
The Guardian, @nujofficial, @pkelso, @davidfolkenflik, @nicolelampert, @suzanne_moore, @rasmus_kleis, @suladoyle, @simonharries3, @charlottetobitt, Press Gazette, @adamsherwin10, @danielthomasldn, @boothbygraffoe.bsky.social, Sky News, @benansell.bsky.social, @writesbright.bsky.social, Associated Press, Reuters, Semafor, London Evening Standard, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, @paulconvery.bsky.social, New York Times, Le Monde, @josiah.writes.news, @writesbright.bsky.social, Tortoise, BBC, @jackcarterbenjamin …, Bloomberg, The Independent, RTÉ, @jackcarterbenjamin … and The i Paper
Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
GroupM expects global ad industry revenue to hit $1T for the first time in 2024; Google, Meta, ByteDance, Amazon, and Alibaba are set to earn 50%+ of the total — Google, Meta, ByteDance, Amazon and Alibaba expected to earn more than half the annual total — The global advertising industry …
Discussion:
City A.M., Adweek, The Irish Times, The Times, The Media Leader, Wall Street Journal, The Hollywood Reporter and Reuters, more at Techmeme »
Josef Adalian / Vulture:
Disney's addition of an ESPN tile within Disney+ shows how Bob Iger's strategy has evolved since 2019, when he wanted to avoid “one gigantic fat bundle” — This story first ran in Buffering, Vulture's newsletter about the streaming industry. Head to vulture.com/buffering and subscribe today!
Discussion:
@tvgrimreaper and @tvmojoe.bsky.social
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Time CEO Jessica Sibley describes Time's shift from reader revenue to direct-to-business sales, ending its paywall, increasing events, and making an OpenAI deal — Time has gone through a “pretty significant transformation”, dropping its paywall and going bigger on events.
Gene Maddaus / Variety:
CBS files to dismiss or at least transfer Trump's $10B lawsuit over 60 Minutes' editing of its Kamala Harris interview to the SDNY, citing 1A protections — Trump sued in the waning days of the presidential campaign, claiming that Harris' interview had been deceptively edited to make her appear “coherent and decisive.”
Jacob Gershman / Wall Street Journal:
TikTok still faces a US ban if not sold by January 19, after a federal appeals court ruled that Congress has the power to take action to protect US interests — Panel rules Congress has the power to shut down Chinese-backed app in the U.S. because of national security concerns
Discussion:
Music Ally, New York Daily News, United States Court of Appeals, @tiktokpolicy, al.com, Yahoo Finance, Washington Post, Reuters, @kyurieff, @rabois, @swiftstories, @danprimack, @drewharwell, @digiphile, @zsk, @committeeonccp, @kyurieff, @wendyndavis, @daphnehk, @drewharwell, Investor's Business Daily, The Moderate Voice, HotAir, Washington Times, Associated Press, The Gateway Pundit, Yahoo News, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, @chup.blakereid.org, New Jersey Monitor, Adweek, Devin DeBacker on LinkedIn, @margarita.bsky.social, Ad Age, @margarita.bsky.social, Forbes, The Wrap, @trevorcroker@threads.net, @trevorcroker@threads.net, Gizmodo, NBC News, Wired, BBC, South China Morning Post, Nikkei Asia, The Information, Axios, Variety, @lauren.rotatingsandwiches.com, The Verge, 9to5Mac, @kurtwag8@threads.net, New York Times, Politico, @anthonymkreis.bsky.social, @mjsdc.bsky.social, The Post Millennial, Voice of America, Semafor, Daily Kos and Deadline
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
The BBC stopped publishing financial market data on its website, app, or TV red button service on November 26 as part of its cost-saving drive — The BBC is no longer publishing financial market data on its website, app or TV red button service as part of its cost-saving drive.
Discussion:
@hawthornesjj and BBC
Kathleen Kingsbury / The New York Times Company:
Paul Krugman, the Nobel Prize-winning opinion columnist who has worked at The New York Times for nearly 25 years, plans to retire at the end of 2024 — After nearly 25 years as an Opinion columnist, Paul is signing off. — I want to take you back to Jan. 2, 2000, a day when Y2K …
Discussion:
Newser, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, ZeroHedge News, @jswatz.bsky.social, The Gateway Pundit, @econberger.bsky.social, @nakedkeynes.bsky.social, @trungtphan, @thestalwart, @mattzeitlin, @AkaSci@fosstodon.org, Mediaite, @carterd.bsky.social, @mattyglesias.bsky.social, RedState, @smotus.bsky.social, @citizencohn.bsky.social, HotAir, LewRockwell, @dylanmatt.bsky.social, @notjessewalker.bsky.social, @meredithshiner.com, @jonmladd.bsky.social, @ddayen.bsky.social, @owillis.bsky.social, @mbkplus.bsky.social, @pkrugman.bsky.social and Instapundit
International Economics Reporter, DC — 
Consumer Brands Reporter, GA — 
Deputy Editor - Playbook, VA — 
Product Editor, CA — 
Indigenous Affairs Editor, Sydney — 
China Autos Correspondent, Beijing — 
Bangor Reporter, ME — 
Commerce Editor - Health, Remote US — 
Sports Editor, MI — 
Managing Editor, Remote US — 
Public Policy Editor, London — 
Stock Picks Writer, NY — 
Part-Time Reporter, AZ — 
Executive Editor, CA — 
Political Correspondent, NV — 
Sr. Reporter, Singapore — 
Evening Dep. Breaking News Ed., CA — 
Commercial Real Estate Reporter, NY — 
Kansas Statehouse Reporter, KS — 
Senior Science & Health Writer, NY — 
Data Journalist, MN — 
DeFi Correspondent, Remote — 
City Government Reporter, OR — 
Healthcare Business Reporter, MA — 
Senior Consumer Tech Reporter, NY — 
Washington Correspondent, DC — 
Editorial Director - Audio & Video, NY — 
Local Editor - Morris County, Remote NJ — 
AI Columnist - Weekend, CA/NY — 
Washington Correspondent, DC — 
Deputy Managing Editor, IA — 
Senior Editor - News, NC — 
Breaking News Editor - Weekend, HK — 
Reporter - National, Remote NY — 
