Top News:
New York Times:
Memo: MLB and ESPN mutually agree to end their national television deal after the 2025 season; ESPN was due to pay MLB around $550M/year in 2026, 2027, and 2028 — Major League Baseball and ESPN have “mutually agreed” to end their national television deal after the upcoming 2025 season …
Discussion:
Variety, TVNewsCheck, The Wrap, TVLine, The Desk, Sportico, Washington Post, Awful Announcing, Bloomberg, WFAA-TV, CNBC, Deadline, Front Office Sports, KSTP-TV, Newser, Barrett Media, Chicago Sun Times, @wusiji.bsky.social, @kylebutoverhere.bsky.social, The Hollywood Reporter, @robhanna.bsky.social, @tylerkepner.bsky.social, Sports Media Watch, @ceetar.bsky.social and @evandrellich.bsky.social
Justin Kroll / Deadline:
Amazon MGM Studios, Michael G. Wilson, and Barbara Broccoli form a JV to house James Bond IP rights, under which Amazon gains creative control of the franchise — In news that will send shock waves through the industry, longtime James Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli …
Discussion:
BBC, @jeffbezos, About Amazon, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, @cpmaz.bsky.social, @librarythingtim.bsky.social, Just Jared, @autismsupsoc.bsky.social, Mirror, @joerussotweets, @marcusjdl.bsky.social, Entertainment Weekly, TheStreet, NPR, Vanity Fair, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, @billhuntbits.bsky.social, @mgsiegler, CBR, Esquire, Gizmodo, @bennomatic@appdot.net, CNN, @mrfengi.bsky.social, Steve Siskind on LinkedIn, The Information, GB News, Carlo Bertucci on LinkedIn, @michaelthec@poweredbygay …, @deeketweak, Financial Times, @_patmurray@mastodon.social, Fortune, GoldDerby, Variety, Bloomberg, World of Reel, @illdave.bsky.social, TVNewsCheck, @taraconlan.bsky.social, The Daily Wire, @bunndumm, @nedraggett.bsky.social, @autismsupsoc.bsky.social, The Verge, Comic Book, @vinzenzhediger.bsky.social, Geoff Hollingworth on LinkedIn, @benschwartz.bsky.social, Rolling Stone UK, Wall Street Journal, Town & Country, @mutarada.bsky.social, Cord Cutters News, @davidjcourt.bsky.social, @jacobkleinman, LADbible, SlashFilm, Engadget, @benroyturner, Collider, @courier12.bsky.social, Rolling Stone, Advanced Television, @richlightshed, Los Angeles Times, Syracuse Post-Standard, @sonnybunch, New York Times, Axios, The Wrap, New Jersey Online, CNBC, @nextbestpicture, GQ, The Playlist, Forbes, @ronmarz.bsky.social, LADbible, CBR, Consequence, Quartz, IndieWire, Gizmodo, Reuters, @moviessilently.bsky.social, Collider, WPXI-TV, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, @gigawattconduit.bsky.social, @jjdotbiz.bsky.social, @josie.zone, Screen Rant, @caseym.org, @gigawattconduit.bsky.social, FemaleFirst, Media Play News, NDTV and Oh No They Didn't!
Peter Kafka / Business Insider:
If X threatened an ad group with US government interference, we've hit a high level of coercion, and conservatives who complained of Big Tech bias should object — - Elon Musk's X — the thing we used to call Twitter — lost lots of advertisers after he bought it.
Gene Maddaus / Variety:
Senator Warren urges the US DOJ to scrutinize Disney's deal to acquire a controlling stake in Fubo and merge it with Hulu + Live TV, citing antitrust concerns — Sen. Elizabeth Warren has urged the Justice Department to carefully scrutinize Disney's deal to acquire a controlling stake in Fubo …
Discussion:
Awful Announcing, The Desk, Reuters, Business Insider, Benzinga, Light Reading, Deadline, Media Play News, The Wrap and Yahoo Finance
Lauren Easton / Editor and Publisher:
Memo: AP is launching its Local Investigative Reporting Program, to be led by Ron Nixon, to support US state and local newsrooms in investigative reporting — In a memo to staff Thursday, Executive Editor Julie Pace announced AP will launch a Local Investigative Reporting Program led by Ron Nixon:
Discussion:
@rebuildlocalnews.bsky.social, @sdkstl.bsky.social, Ron Nixon on LinkedIn and TVNewsCheck
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
YouTube plans to add a “premium lite” tier, a source says for the US, Australia, Germany, and Thailand, offering podcasts without ads and music videos with ads — - The service will continue to put ads in music videos — The tier will launch in areas that include the US, Australia
Discussion:
Adweek, The Information, Cord Cutters News, 9to5Google, The Desk and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:
Bloomberg News promotes Mark Gurman to managing editor for global consumer tech and adds senior editor Dana Wollman and two others to his team — Tom Giles, senior executive editor of global technology coverage at Bloomberg News, sent out the following on Thursday:
Discussion:
@markgurman and @markgurman
Hannah Miller / Bloomberg:
Former Merit TV employees detail struggles at Dr. Phil McGraw's streaming service, including multiple rounds of layoffs, staff discontent, and low ratings — Merit TV has entered a crowded field of news networks. Can it find its audience? — Phil McGraw strolled onstage and waved at the cheering crowd.
Discussion:
The Desk, @thedesk.net, RADAR and TVNewsCheck
Matthew Keys / The Desk:
National Association of Broadcasters CEO Curtis LeGeyt calls for the FCC to end ownership caps that prevent TV and radio conglomerates from growing larger — The chief executive of the commercial broadcasting industry's largest lobbying group has called on federal regulators to eliminate national …
Discussion:
@kv417.bsky.social, TV Tech, Inside Radio, Barrett Media, RADIO ONLINE and Radio & Television …
Matthew Keys / The Desk:
A NY court tells Nexstar to pay DirecTV $26.6M in a case over retransmission fees; a court earlier said Nexstar wrongly received $10.5M in fees in the same case — A New York court on Thursday awarded satellite and streaming television provider DirecTV nearly $27 million in a civil case brought …
Discussion:
TVNewsCheck and Cord Cutters News
Dominic Ponsford / Press Gazette:
A look at London news startups, including Jim Waterson's London Centric, that launched since the Evening Standard's daily print edition closure in summer 2024 — Two upmarket London news start-ups are finding a growing (albeit small so far) market for paid online news about the UK capital.
Discussion:
Alexander Smith on LinkedIn, LinkedIn and @pressgazette
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Gallery Media Group says it made $50M in 2024 revenue from its women's media title PureWow and 50+ social-only brands on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts — The chief revenue officer of profitable US publisher Gallery Media Group believes it has found the difference between publishers merely being …
Discussion:
Simon Owens's Media Newsletter
Matt Novak / Gizmodo:
Elon Musk says he will “fix” Community Notes as they are “increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media”, after disagreeing with notes about Ukraine — The billionaire has a history of manipulating X to fit his far-right worldview.
Discussion:
@page_eco, @ike_saul, @stankutcher, @ike_saul, @lefterisjp, @alexandrosm, @levyantoine, @rothschildmd, @gummibear737, @theabridgedzach, @rorystewartuk, @ibd_ecarson, @billybinion, @philipdbunn, @billybinion, @matthewberman, @ike_saul, @eyeslasho, @jseyff, @tekbog, @spencerfernando, @elonmusk, @christogrozev, @shayan86, @byzgeneral, @charliepick, @piersmorgan, @walshfreedom, @angry_staffer, @alanlevinovitz, @oalexanderdk, @youranoncentral, @elonmusk, @amuse, CNN, @shayan86, The Independent, Engadget, @kv417.bsky.social, @elonmusk, @glynmoody@mastodon.social, @micheil.bsky.social, @carlquintanilla.bsky.social, Mediaite, @willoremus.com, The Hill, @TodayInTwitter@mastodon …, @paleofuture.bsky.social, @olivia10.bsky.social, @jamesrbuk, Washington Examiner, University of Manchester and Commentary Magazine, more at Techmeme »
Oliver Darcy / Status:
40 news organizations signed a letter delivered to the White House this week, asking the White House to lift its AP ban immediately in support of press freedom — News outlets across the political spectrum have united behind the AP, signing a WHCA-backed letter urging the White House …
Discussion:
NPR, Adweek, The Reporters Committee …, The Hill, Deadline, The Nation, @bryanranderson.bsky.social, @jeremymbarr, @katie_robertson, Mediaite, New York Times, @jeremymbarr, @amptsuper.bsky.social, Media Nation, @brianstelter, @jpmarthoz.bsky.social, @mattgoerzen.bsky.social, @charliebeckett.bsky.social, @susangardner.bsky.social, @alansunderland.com, @chathamharrison.bsky.social, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, The Wrap, @sharonwaxman.bsky.social, The Atlantic, RADIO ONLINE and The Rio Times
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