Mediagazer: Marc Benioff said there is “no deal on the table” to sell Time, which he has owned since 2018; a report in November said Antenna Group was in talks to buy it (Bloomberg)

4:35 PM ET, December 18, 2024

Top News:

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, RedState, Comic Book, San Francisco Chronicle, Deseret News, Townhall, New York Times, Inverse, Deadline, National Legal …, GB News, Transgender World, The Hill, UPI, @cosmic_marvel, @discussingfilm, @harelliequinn, @savequeerstories.bsky.social, PR Daily, @kaekaecurtis, @24framesofnick, @tinysquash, @esjesjesj, @lostmediabuster, @adequateemily, The Playlist, @rayme.bsky.social, BizPac Review, @sturgeons_law, @lostmediabuster, @miiamustang@eliitin-some.fi, @zoerosebryant, @usa_polling, @spectrathegame, @danny8bit, @bennie.gay, @verdantsquare@mastodon.world, @zoerosebryant, PinkNews, AV Club, The Root, Metro.co.uk, @Catelli@mstdn.ca, New York Post, The Guardian, Variety, New Jersey Online, Raw Story, The Present Age, 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

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.

Discussion: The Wrap, Truthout, New Republic, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, @jeffjarvis, @cold-feet.bsky.social, Newsbusters, @annmlipton.bsky.social, @justinbaragona.bsky.social, @filipecampante.bsky.social, @katiephang.bsky.social, @mediaevan.bsky.social, @emptywheel.bsky.social, The Independent, Politico, Fox News and Deadline

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 …

Discussion: TVNewsCheck, Twitchy, @bruno_j_navarro …, @preciouslarue.bsky.social, @swin24.bsky.social, @brunojnavarro.bsky.social, @jbflint, @bartona104.bsky.social, @lisafung.bsky.social, @photoframd.bsky.social, @carlquintanilla.bsky.social, @owillis.bsky.social, @jbflint, Raw Story, RedState and Reuters

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, London Evening Standard, RTÉ, City A.M. and Associated Press

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

Discussion: Byline Times, Axios, Financial Times, @stagewrite.bsky.social, The Independent, @tortoise, @carolecadwalla, @arusbridger, @tk.gg, @mediaindustry_b, The Guardian and @carolecadwalla

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

A look at GOP attacks on local news outlets across the US, including the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners' harrassment of LNP reporter Tom Lisi — Republicans claim Tom Lisi's reporting is lies to promote a liberal agenda. How should he respond? — On Feb. 1, Tom Lisi took a seat …

Discussion: TVNewsCheck, Frank Scafidi on LinkedIn, @stephenkleege, @johnniemo, @jblumgart, @jackshafer, @ktownsend.bsky.social and @wimbles.bsky.social

Katcy Stephan / Variety:

Amazon says Red One, which opened at just $32M in the US last month, had a record-breaking 50M worldwide viewers in its opening weekend on Prime Video — It's a December to remember for Prime Video. Per the streamer, the Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans Christmas flick “Red One” …

Discussion: StreamTV Insider, Benzinga, Rolling Stone and Forbes

Nicole Sperling / New York Times:
Some streamers now believe that releasing movies in theaters, promoted by expansive marketing and PR campaigns, helps makes movies successful on their platforms

Discussion: Cosmopolitan, The Information, @simonowens.bsky.social, AV Club, Christian Grece on LinkedIn, Mike Rosen on LinkedIn and @mbkplus.bsky.social, more at Techmeme »

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.

Discussion: TechCrunch, Engadget, @michellemanafy.bsky.social, The Verge, @mntyfrsh.mastodon …, @surf.social, @davidimel.com, @jejord.bsky.social, @quillmatiq.com, @harrymccracken.com, @mike@flipboard.social, @harrymccracken@mastodon …, @mattnavarra.com, @davidpierce.xyz and @thinkyparts.bsky.social

Mark Stenberg / Adweek:

The NYT's Wirecutter partners with Google to add buttons with phrases like “Shop nearby with Google” to 150 curated products from December 20 to December 26 — The partnership is the biggest to date for Wirecutter, which started advertising this spring

Discussion: Leilani Han on LinkedIn and @markstenberg3

Bloomberg:

Marc Benioff said there is “no deal on the table” to sell Time, which he has owned since 2018; a report in November said Antenna Group was in talks to buy it — “It's extremely important that we do have fair and balanced journalism, and that's why I'm very proud to be an owner of Time …

Discussion: Fortune

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 …

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

Discussion: TVNewsCheck, Tv Technology, StreamTV Insider, Light Reading, The Verge, The Streamable, The Desk, Deadline, Variety, Radio & Television …, The Hollywood Reporter and WORLD SCREEN

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

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 — In the wake of Donald Trump's election victory and promised revenge tour, a number of individuals have proposed the creation …

Discussion: Raw Story, @sykescharlie, Digby's Hullabaloo, @robfardon, @spytalker, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @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

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

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