Top News:
Axios:
Email: the White House orders the GSA to terminate “every single media contract” expensed by the agency and all contracts for Politico, BBC, E&E, and Bloomberg — - The discovery, made through a U.S. government spending database that has long been publicly available …
Discussion:
The Dispatch, Mediaite, CBS News, RedState, @kagrox.bsky.social, @asymmetricinfo, @barbarasobel.bsky.social, @hallijayne.bsky.social, @nytimespr, @lawrencehurley.bsky.social, The Post Millennial, @doge, @brianstelter, @mjnblack, @apbioonly, @nkLottery@shakedown.social and The Gateway Pundit
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Politico:
Politico's EIC and CEO say the company has never received any government funding, and agencies that subscribe to Politico Pro do so through standard processes — POLITICO has been the subject of debate on X this week. Some of it has been misinformed, and some of it has been flat-out false.
Discussion:
Rolling Stone, New York Times, CNN, Associated Press, @politico, @ewerickson, Twitchy, The Hill, @brianstelter, @w7voa.journa.host.ap.brid.gy, Beth Diaz on LinkedIn, HotAir, @suellentrop.bsky.social, The Post Millennial, @natsfert, @adamwren, @stevenoverly, @timbays.bsky.social, MeidasTouch News, @zachary, @jimgeraghty, @zachschermele, @joanwalsh, Fox News and Axios
Isabella Kwai / New York Times:
Trump amplifies a conspiracy theory that “billions” in USAID and other agencies' funds were stolen to pay Politico and others for positive coverage of Democrats — President Trump spread unfounded claims that the government had paid Politico and other news media outlets for positive coverage of Democrats.
Discussion:
CNN, Townhall, @realDonaldTrump …, Raw Story, RedState, Washington Post, Breitbart, The Wrap, @stuartathompson.bsky.social, @rubinreport, @armanddoma, @billackman, @elonmusk, @parkermolloy.com, @cabot_phillips, @jason, Daily Kos, The Guardian, Blaze Media, Hollywood Life, @mehdirhasan, @billybinion, @sanleekelly.bsky.social, @lhfang, @cheetah.bsky.social, @stuartathompson.bsky.social, New Jersey Online, DNyuz, @krassenstein, @nancyscola, @elonmusk, @ryangrim, The Independent, @ike_saul, @rikkiratliff, @mtaibbi, OpenTheBooks, @peterschiff, @armanddoma, @brianstelter, @jeremymbarr, @willsommer.bsky.social, Althouse, Newser, freebeacon.com and Digby's Hullabaloo
Sean Burch / The Wrap:
News Corp reports Q2 revenue up 5% YoY to $2.24B, net income up 58% YoY to $306M, Dow Jones revenue up 3% YoY to $600M, and WSJ subscriptions up 4% YoY to 4.2M — The news giant lost 30,000 WSJ customers during the holiday quarter as overall Dow Jones subscriber growth was flat
Discussion:
New York Post, Capital Brief and News Corporation
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Todd Spangler / Variety:
Amazon reports Q4 ad revenue up 18% YoY to $17.29B, vs. $17.4B est., and subscription services revenue up 10% YoY to $11.51B — Overall earnings for the period smashed Wall Street expectations. — However, the Q4 ad revenue figure fell short of analyst expectations of $17.4 billion, per StreetAccount.
Charlotte Klein / New York Magazine:
The Bulwark had its first profitable year in 2024, and its Substack, which has 76K paid subscribers, is gaining 700 to 1,000 paid subscribers every day or two — The explosive success of The Bulwark. — It was the day after Donald Trump's inauguration, and Tim Miller was struggling …
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Trump calls on CBS to “terminate” 60 Minutes, and says “CBS should lose its license”, amid his $10B lawsuit against CBS over the Kamala Harris interview — President Donald Trump called on CBS to cancel its long-running newsmagazine, “60 Minutes,” …
Discussion:
The Guardian, @realDonaldTrump …, New York Post, TVNewsCheck, Daily Caller News Foundation, DNyuz, Megyn Kelly, @robowentv.bsky.social, Boing Boing, The Daily Beast, Mediaite, Blaze Media, @mherskovitz, The Wrap, Twitchy, RedState, Louder With Crowder, Reason, @aidnmclaughlin, Daily Mail, @mergerson.bsky.social, New Republic, @willharrisinva.bsky.social, Townhall, Fox News, Axios, The Daily Wire, freebeacon.com, Washington Examiner, Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter and The Gateway Pundit
RELATED:
Mark Sweney / The Guardian:
The British Film Institute: UK broadcasters slashed their spending on high-end TV shows to the lowest level since 2015, while US streamers increased spending — Channel 4, Channel 5 and Sky also among UK broadcasters making cuts as Netflix, Disney and Amazon pile on pressure
Discussion:
@philralph.bsky.social, WORLD SCREEN, @debbiemoon.bsky.social and Deadline
RELATED:
Christopher Palmeri / Bloomberg:
A California state court issues a temporary restraining order stopping Sony from taking Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune distribution rights away from CBS — “The court's order has no bearing on, and is not indicative of, the eventual outcome of the ongoing litigation,” Sony said Thursday in a statement …
Discussion:
Variety, TVNewsCheck, Cord Cutters News, Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter and NewscastStudio
Sean Burch / The Wrap:
Meta hires Henry Rodgers, chief national correspondent at The Daily Caller, to help the company shape its public policy; Rodgers has covered Trump closely — Mark Zuckerberg has hired Henry Rodgers to help the company shape its “public policy” — Meta has hired Henry Rodgers …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Bloomberg, @henryrodgersdc and @mikeisaac
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Le Monde ends 2024 with 660K subscribers, of which 580K were digital, and expects digital subscriber revenue to cover editorial staff costs within two years — Digital subscriber revenue is expected to cover the costs of Le Monde's entire editorial staff within the next two years, according to chief executive Louis Dreyfus.
Discussion:
@pressgazette.co.uk, @polemicdigital.com and Charlotte Tobitt on LinkedIn
Mia Sato / The Verge:
StackCommerce, an online shopping platform creating affiliate marketing content, acquired Reviewed from Gannett on December 1 after its shutdown in August 2024 — Now, it's back from the dead under a new owner. … Now, it's back from the dead under a new owner.
Discussion:
The Information, @chillburg.bsky.social and @miasato.bsky.social
Financial Times:
Leaders in Russia, Hungary, and more applaud USAID's funding freeze affecting independent news outlets; the 2025 US foreign aid budget included $268M for media — Independent outlets in former Soviet Union are poised to be hurt by temporary shut down at key US agency
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