Check out Mini-Mediagazer for simple mobiles or Mediagazer Mobile for modern smartphones.
2:45 PM ET, December 18, 2024

Mediagazer

 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.
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.
RELATED:
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 …
RELATED:
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
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.
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 …
RELATED:
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
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
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
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 …
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 …
 
 Archived Page Info: 
This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 2:45 PM ET, December 18, 2024.

View the current page or another snapshot:


 
 See Also: 
Mediagazer: site main
Mediagazer River: reverse chronological Mediagazer
Mediagazer Mobile: for phones
Mediagazer Leaderboard: Mediagazer's top sources
 
 Subscribe: 
Mediagazer RSS feed
Mediagazer on X
Mediagazer on Mastodon
 
 
 More News: 
Sam Bradley / Digiday:
A look at Reddit's growth in sports fan communities; internal data: Reddit recorded a 35% YoY increase in engagement in 1,000+ sports-themed Subreddits in 2024
Discussion: Modern Retail
 Earlier Picks: 
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
Mia Sato / The Verge:
Sources: Forbes is cutting ties with freelancers who wrote for Forbes Vetted, its product review section, citing Google's “site reputation abuse” policy on SEO
 

 
From Techmeme:

Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg:
Sources: Meta is considering deep budget cuts to its metaverse efforts in 2026, potentially as high as 30% and most likely including layoffs as early as January

Kif Leswing / CNBC:
Apple says general counsel Kate Adams and policy chief Lisa Jackson will retire, and Jennifer Newstead, Meta's former chief legal officer, will replace Adams

Will Oremus / Washington Post:
Two studies suggest AI chatbots can shift political views more effectively than TV campaign ads, especially by presenting many claims, regardless of accuracy
 
Sister Sites:

Techmeme
 Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web
memeorandum
 What US political commentators are discussing online right now
WeSmirch
 The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page