Top News:
Brooks Barnes / New York Times:
Sources: Disney worried that it had a flawed case in Trump's ABC lawsuit, and fighting it could hurt the Disney brand and damage press protections for others — Talks started and finished on the same day, after Disney decided that fighting the lawsuit could potentially hurt the company and protections for the press.
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Wall Street Journal:
Several ABC News staffers say its Trump settlement sets a concerning precedent and sends a message that Disney is giving priority to its corporate interests — Staffers question decision by Disney; company was looking to avoid protracted legal battle — Disney's decision …
Richard J. Tofel / Columbia Journalism Review:
ABC needs to answer questions about its $16M settlement with Trump in a libel case, especially whether it is changing accountability coverage of those in power
Discussion:
HotAir, @jmjones61.bsky.social, Tangle, The Present Age, The Boston Globe, The Post Millennial, BizPac Review, New York Post, @davidfolkenflik, @deminlawrence.bsky.social, @michaeljstern.bsky.social, Alternet.org, @kieranbluesky.bsky.social, @therealjocelynj.bsky.social, @michaelmechanic.bsky.social, @taliajane.bsky.social, @evangreer.bsky.social, @rollingstone.com, @rollingstone.com, Rolling Stone, @BruceMirken@mas.to, Newser, Althouse, @lesleyabravanel.bsky.social, @RunRichRun@mastodon.social, @dicktofel.bsky.social, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, Media Nation, Financial Times, The Intercept, Washington Post and r/Journalism
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Some US groups are building resources to defend against Trump lawsuits, and should gather lawyers, money, and people who know how to respond to performance art
Discussion:
Digby's Hullabaloo, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @sykescharlie, @spytalker, emptywheel, @robfardon, @brendannyhan.bsky.social, @rwarnick.bsky.social, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @jayrosen.bsky.social, @emptywheel.bsky.social, @emptywheel.bsky.social, @emptywheel.bsky.social and @emptywheel.bsky.social
Pamela McClintock / The Hollywood Reporter:
Disney confirms pulling a transgender storyline from animated series Win or Lose, saying “many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects” with their kids — The original animated show about a co-ed high school team debuts on Disney+ in February.
Discussion:
Boing Boing, New York Times, The Hill, PR Daily, @bennie.gay, BizPac Review, Deadline, The Root, The Present Age, @cosmic_marvel, @discussingfilm, @harelliequinn, @kaekaecurtis, @24framesofnick, @tinysquash, AV Club, @esjesjesj, @lostmediabuster, @adequateemily, The Playlist, Metro.co.uk, @sturgeons_law, @lostmediabuster, @miiamustang@eliitin-some.fi, @zoerosebryant, @usa_polling, @spectrathegame, @danny8bit, @zoerosebryant, PinkNews, @Catelli@mstdn.ca, Variety, New York Post, The Guardian, New Jersey Online, Raw Story, CNN, @spookalucca.games, @sarahoconnellshow.com, @thegabitype.bsky.social, @matbrunetvo.com, Twitchy, ElsaMaren will be the …, Washington Examiner, Entertainment Weekly, Fox News, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, World of Reel, Polygon, The Wrap, Screen Rant and TVLine
Mark Kleinman / Sky News:
Letter: The Scott Trust's deal to sell the Observer to Tortoise came despite a last-minute bid from Ecotricity founder Dale Vince to thwart the deal — Ecotricity founder Dale Vince made a fresh bid on Wednesday morning to prevent the world's oldest Sunday newspaper from falling into Tortoise Media's hands, Sky News can reveal.
Discussion:
The Times, RTÉ, London Evening Standard, Associated Press and City A.M.
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Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Tortoise formally signs the deal to buy The Observer, appoints acting editor Lucy Rock as the title's print editor, and launches a voluntary redundancy scheme — Tortoise Media has formally signed a deal to buy The Observer and appointed the newspaper's next editor.
Discussion:
Axios, @carolecadwalla, @tortoise, @arusbridger, @carolecadwalla, @stagewrite.bsky.social, The Independent, @tk.gg, @mediaindustry_b and The Guardian
Harry McCracken / Fast Company:
Flipboard launches Surf, an app to create custom feeds from Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, RSS, podcasts, and YouTube, in beta on iOS, Android, and iPadOS — Surf weaves Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, RSS feeds, podcasts, and YouTube into something that wouldn't have been possible until recently.
Jacqui Shine / Wall Street Journal:
As demand for ghostwriters grows, high-end writers see higher salaries and more complex deals; survey: one in three reported earning more than $100,000/year — Shifts in the book industry have been a boon to writers who work quietly behind the scenes — Reality stars don't typically pride themselves on their literary prowess.
Discussion:
Dan Gerstein on LinkedIn and Gotham Ghostwriters
CBS News:
SCOTUS says it will hear a challenge on January 10 to a new law that could lead to a TikTok ban in the US, ahead of the law taking effect on January 19 — Washington — The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will take up a challenge to a new law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in the U.S …
Discussion:
Fast Company, MediaPost, TechCrunch, Axios, Townhall, Reuters, NPR, Forbes, Althouse, @steve_vladeck, The Information, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Bloomberg, The Verge, NBC News, Associated Press, Joe.My.God., Deadline, ABC News, CNBC, Politico, Reason, Digital Music News, Entrepreneur and ABA Journal, more at Techmeme »
Bron Maher / Press Gazette:
Media Concierge agrees to take over Scotsman and Yorkshire Post parent company National World, promising no editorial job cuts and investment in local news — Marketing business and Irish local publisher Media Concierge has agreed a deal to take over Scotsman and Yorkshire Post parent company …
Discussion:
London Evening Standard, City A.M., The Independent and HoldtheFrontPage
Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:
Roku partners with X Games to stream X Games Aspen, founded by ESPN but sold to MSP Sports in 2022, on the recently launched Roku Sports Channel in 2025 — The platform will be home to X Games Aspen and a summer X Games event next year as it continues to expand its sports portfolio
Aisha Counts / Bloomberg:
eMarketer expects Instagram to hit $32B in US ad revenue in 2025, or 50% of Meta's ad sales; filings: Instagram was ~30% of Meta's global business in early 2022 — - Video-sharing app estimated to reach $32 billion in ad revenue — Instagram users spend majority of their time watching videos
Arthur Macmillan / Columbia Journalism Review:
An in-depth look at The Telegraph's sale and British-born publisher Dovid Efune's attempts to buy it, as the newspaper becomes a test case in media valuations — A storied London broadsheet is for sale—again. The latest bidder, right-wing media proprietor Dovid Efune, is struggling to raise the money.
Discussion:
@cjr
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
Media news outlet Press Gazette partners with Flip-Pay to roll out a registration wall to read its content, and says readers must give an email and job title — Press Gazette has launched a registration wall to read our online content. — This title is the most popular commercial online …
Discussion:
@myflippay, @bron_maher and @mediaevan
Todd Spangler / Variety:
YouTube sues Ganjingworld, which runs the Gan Jing World video-sharing website, alleging that it has been “automatically vacuuming up YouTube user channels” — YouTube filed a lawsuit against Ganjingworld, which operates the Gan Jing World video-sharing site, alleging that it has been …
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