Mediagazer: Spotify and UMG announce a new multiyear deal, establishing a direct license between Spotify and Universal Music Publishing Group in the US and other countries (Tim Ingham/Music Business Worldwide)

3:30 PM ET, January 26, 2025

Top News:

Lucy Clarke-Billings / BBC:

Dark Horse Comics cancels Neil Gaiman's upcoming work after sexual misconduct allegations were made against him — A publisher of Neil Gaiman's graphic novels and comic books has cancelled his upcoming work after sexual misconduct allegations were made against him.

Discussion: @darkhorsecomics, Deadline, NME, Variety, @conversecomics, WFAA-TV, The Hollywood Reporter, Oregonian, AV Club, Rolling Stone, The Wrap, @darkhorse.com, Screen Rant and Gizmodo

Wall Street Journal:

Despite assurances, advertisers worry Meta's tools may not prevent ads from appearing near offensive content as the new content moderation approach takes effect — Social-media giant's loosening of speech restrictions is unsettling advertisers, who say a decade of efforts to protect their reputations is at risk

Discussion: The Verge, Todd Irwin on LinkedIn, @kevinbriody.bsky.social, @dannygroner.bsky.social, @jeffjarvis@mastodon.social, @annmlipton@esq.social and Hindustan Times, more at Techmeme »

Tim Ingham / Music Business Worldwide:

Spotify and UMG announce a new multiyear deal, establishing a direct license between Spotify and Universal Music Publishing Group in the US and other countries — It's official: as MBW reported earlier, Spotify and Universal Music Group have inked a new multi-year licensing agreement.

Discussion: The Wrap, Variety, Reuters, Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, UMG and Consequence

Reuters:

Trump denies talks with Oracle about a TikTok deal, says “I have spoken to many people about TikTok” and expects a decision in the next 30 days — ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE, Jan 25 (Reuters) - (This Jan. 25 story has been refiled to add the missing words ‘some of’ in paragraph 9)

Discussion: Fortune, Forbes, Engadget, USA Today, @mmasnick.bsky.social, Reuters, @bobbyallyn, @danprimack, @turnernovak, The Information, @carnage4life@mas.to, @bobbyallyn.bsky.social, NPR, The Verge, Adweek and CNBC, more at Techmeme »

Kate Wright / The Conversation:

The VOA and its journalists remain vulnerable despite measures introduced after an intense wave of politicization during the waning months of Trump's first term — With President Donald Trump installed for a second term, one big item on the new administration's agenda appears to be rearranging …

Discussion: @niemanlab, @uk.theconversation.com, @patriziac.bsky.social, @kaedotcom.bsky.social and Instapundit

Charles Kaiser / Columbia Journalism Review:

An interview with Paul Krugman on leaving the NYT in 2024 after his newsletter was killed and editing of his column “became extremely intrusive”, Substack, more — The paper wanted to take away his newsletter or make him write less frequently, he says.

Discussion: Fox News, Noahpinion, @inthehands@hachyderm.io, @petersuber@fediscience.org, @melinab.bsky.social, @atabarrok, @afib.bsky.social, Troy Tassier on LinkedIn, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, @buermann@mastodon.social, Simon Owens's Media Newsletter, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, @thetasalmon.bsky.social, Simon Owens on LinkedIn, @christineloriol.bsky.social, @dicktofel.bsky.social, Dan Gillmor on LinkedIn, @mattcowgill.bsky.social, @jfallows.bsky.social, @harrylitman.bsky.social, @perrybaconjr.bsky.social, @cbarbermd@med-mastodon.com, @amycastor.bsky.social, @scripting.com, @karaswisher.bsky.social, @doughenwood.bsky.social, @katie0martin.bsky.social, @adamserwer.bsky.social, @jonflan.bsky.social, @luciaguimaraes.bsky.social, @columjournreview.bsky.social, @gregggonsalves.bsky.social, @viktorshtrum.bsky.social, @newsjennifer.bsky.social, @ryanlcooper.com, @dynarski.bsky.social and Talking Biz News

Rest of World:

Major Chinese social media apps have mastered the “shoppertainment” experience, blending social media with shopping, that Western competitors struggle to match — Addictive algorithms fuse social networking with shopping and entertainment. — In the days leading …

Discussion: @anup.bsky.social and The Guardian

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Similarweb: RedNote's DAUs in the US fell by 54% on January 20 when the TikTok ban was put on hold, after reaching a high of 32.5M DAUs on the day of the ban

Discussion: NPR and TechNode

Tom Bowman / NPR:

Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth wins Senate confirmation to become Donald Trump's defense secretary, after Vice President JD Vance cast a tie-breaking vote — Pete Hegseth overcame allegations of sexual assault, public drunkenness and questions of financial mismanagement at two veterans' groups …

Discussion: New York Times, Democrats, @donmoyn.bsky.social, CNN, The Atlantic, Digby's Hullabaloo, New York Post, @mkraju, @mikenellis, @senwarren, @jeffjarvis@mastodon.social, PBS NewsHour, Al Jazeera, @ChrisBoese@newsie.social, The Defense Post, Semafor, @mrhoyle.bsky.social, The Gateway Pundit, NOTUS, Stars & Stripes, Telegraph, Politico, U.S. Department of Defense, Financial Times, Military.com, The Guardian, Axios, Reuters, Associated Press, MSNBC, BBC, Military Times, @rainwater14.bsky.social, DefenseScoop, The Hill, Washington Post, @mollyjongfast.bsky.social, Associated Press, @repjasmine.bsky.social, Bloomberg, Variety, Roll Call, Scripps News, The 19th, Business Insider, Washington Post, The Wrap, New York Post, @indivisibleteam …, USA Today, Rolling Stone, @pattonoswalt.bsky.social, Deadline, Wall Street Journal, @joshuajfriedman.com, @chrislhayes.bsky.social, IJR and CBS News

Global Voices:

An interview with journalist and Ethical Journalism Network founder Aidan White on the current global lack of trust in media and ways to rebuild public trust — Media can adopt mechanisms to prove their credibility, such as self-assessment and independent certification

Patrick Coffee / Wall Street Journal:

Nielsen plans to stop selling its TV ratings product that solely uses consumer panels in Q4 2025, moving to a tool combining panels with smart-TV data and more — The dominant ratings provider hopes to fend off competitors by pivoting to a bundle that combines its consumer panels with data …

Discussion: @tvgrimreaper, @jeffjarvis@mastodon.social and The Desk

Addie Morfoot / Variety:

A look at documentaries at Sundance: indie films still struggle to get distribution, political topics remain crucial despite a challenging market, and more — It's no secret that corporations like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple have lost their appetite for current event documentaries that tackle politics.

Discussion: Addie Morfoot on LinkedIn, Deadline, Hyperallergic and Associated Press

David Satin / The Streamable:

Fubo raises prices on all of its English-language plans for new customers; its least expensive offering, its Essential plan, is now $85/month — Despite launching less than two months ago, Fubo is raising the price of its new Essential package alongside those of its other plans.

Discussion: Business Insider, Cord Cutters News, NBC Bay Area, The Verge, Awful Announcing, @tvgrimreaper, The Desk, @kennysmith.bsky.social, @2xaught7.bsky.social, The TV Answer Man! and Streaming Better

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More News:

Claire Heddles / NOTUS:
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Jorge Mercado / Pacific Coast Business Times:
How the assets of the Santa Barbara News Press, which closed after bankruptcy in 2023, ended up with nonprofit NEWSWELL, as the nonprofit plans a relaunch

Discussion: Cal Coast News and KEYT-TV

Kerry Flynn / Axios:
Sources: Blackstone-backed IDG nears a deal to sell Foundry, which runs outlets like PCWorld and Macworld, to private equity firm Regent

Discussion: @harrymccracken.com and @harrymccracken@mastodon …

Lauren Forristal / TechCrunch:
Flip, which lets shoppers share video reviews and earn cash based on engagement, launches a creator fund that grants up to $100M of equity over 5+ years

Discussion: Chase Dillon on LinkedIn, Abdulla AlBanna on LinkedIn, Tubefilter, Idan Netser on LinkedIn and Yuval Rechter on LinkedIn

Katie Deighton / Wall Street Journal:
ShopMy, which lets brands run influencer marketing efforts, raised a $77.5M Series B led by Bessemer and Bain, sources say at a $410M valuation vs. $80M in 2024

Discussion: @amytongwu, @almostcmb, @menloventures, @baincapvc, Riley Laird on LinkedIn, Tubefilter, Adweek, Marshall Porter on LinkedIn, Susannah Shipton on LinkedIn, Nicole Giusti on LinkedIn, Bessemer Venture Partners, The Information, Feed Me and The Business of Fashion

Earlier Picks:

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Meta begins a “limited, early test” of ads in Threads in the US and Japan, with the goal of making the ads “as interesting as organic content”

Melanie Goodfellow / Deadline:
Apple TV+ signs a four-year agreement with French audiovisual groups, investing 20% of its net annual France turnover in European and French content

Discussion: 9to5Mac

Matthew Keys / The Desk:
Source: Allen Media Group reverses some of its plans to lay off 100+ local TV meteorologists and outsource regional weather forecasts to its Atlanta facilities

Discussion: Newsweek, Variety, NewsLab, @ryanmaue, @alyssaknewton, @amberkulick_wx, @matthoffmanwx, @masonbrighton, @timbuckleywx, @matthewcappucci, @kcraheather, WTVA-TV, New York Post, TV Tech, Adweek, Abby Turpin on LinkedIn, TVNewsCheck and Bleeding Heartland

Adweek:
Newsweek generated $90M in revenue at a profit margin of 20% in 2024, up from $20M revenue in 2018; digital advertising made up 63% of revenue in 2024

Discussion: @ryanbarwick, @michaelmitsanas, @markstenberg3, @markstenberg3, @markstenberg3, Josh Smith on LinkedIn, Dev Pragad on LinkedIn, @brizzyc.bsky.social, @brizzyc.bsky.social, Ben Billingsley on LinkedIn and Julie Amalfi on LinkedIn

Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
Len Blavatnik invests $827M in DAZN, bringing his total to $6.7B, as DAZN eyes Middle East funding to become the “Spotify of sport”

Discussion: Advanced Television, Broadband TV News, Luis Vicente on LinkedIn and The Streamable

From Techmeme:

Dan Mangan / CNBC:
Trump announces a 90-day tariff pause for some countries and a “lowered Reciprocal Tariff during this period, of 10%”, but raises tariffs on China to 125%

Alexey Shabanov / TestingCatalog:
Google announces Agent2Agent, an open interoperability protocol to enable seamless collaboration between AI agents across diverse frameworks and vendors

Jesse Hamilton / CoinDesk:
The US Senate confirms former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins as SEC chair, succeeding Gary Gensler; Atkins is widely expected to support crypto-friendly policies

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