Top News:
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Similarweb: total desktop social referral traffic from Facebook grew 75% YoY for 68 top English-language news sites due to algorithm changes in January 2025 — Facebook traffic appears to be a growing part of the social pie again at three-quarters of the world's biggest news websites.
Discussion:
@2xaught7.bsky.social
Reuters:
MoffettNathanson: a US recession may result in $45B in lost ad spend in 2025 and ad budgets shifting from traditional TV to alternatives like streaming services — Wall Street analysts offered a gloomy view of the first quarter for much of Hollywood, warning that economic uncertainty caused …
Discussion:
The Register
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Melanie Goodfellow / Deadline:
Palestinian photojournalist and artist Fatima Hassouna has been killed in an Israeli airstrike on her family's home in Gaza City — A Palestinian artist and photojournalist who is the protagonist of a documentary due to premiere in Cannes in May has been killed in an Israeli air strike.
Discussion:
Le Monde
Julian Sancton / The Hollywood Reporter:
Breakthrough Prize Foundation cut Seth Rogen's criticism of Silicon Valley's Trump support from a “full” YouTube video; a spokesperson blamed the event's length — While presenting an award at the event known as the Oscars of Science, ‘The Studio’ star pointed out the irony …
Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Smashing, an AI-powered news and social media posts aggregation app by Goodreads co-founder Otis Chandler, shuts down, citing its inability to grow quickly — Building an app dedicated to helping people aggregate and read news, articles and social media posts in one place is apparently a tough proposition these days.
Discussion:
Smashing Team's Substack, Smashing and @otown
Devin Leonard / Bloomberg:
A profile of Hipgnosis founder Merck Mercuriadis, who stepped down in July 2024 after accusations of mismanagement, conflicts of interest, and accounting issues — Merck Mercuriadis convinced everyone from pop stars to Blackstone that music was the next hot asset class. It worked out for everyone—but him.
Discussion:
@devinleonard and @bw
Bloomberg:
The FTC challenges ex-Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg over past emails; she called Google+ a “real” competitor in 2011 and discussed blocking its Facebook ads in 2012 — Sandberg, who left Meta in 2022 after more than 14 years as Mark Zuckerberg's No. 2, was Meta's senior-most business leader …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Washington Post and Benzinga, more at Techmeme »
Washington Post:
President Trump's DC US attorney pick, Ed Martin, has been on Russian state-funded RT and Sputnik as a commentator over 150 times from August 2016 to April 2024 — Nominee Ed Martin did not initially disclose his RT and Sputnik appearances from 2016 to 2024 to the Senate.
Discussion:
KRDO, MSNBC, The Kyiv Independent, Patterico's Pontifications, The Independent, Mediaite, Bloomberg, @justinbaragona.bsky.social, @simiansilverback.bsky.social, @briankrebs@infosec.exchange, @kevinrothrock@infosec …, Raw Story, Political Wire, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, Washington City Paper and The Hill
Jennifer Maas / Variety:
Q&A with Phil Spencer on A Minecraft Movie, potential IP for future movies, Microsoft's Hollywood goals, Fallout Season 2 and the Minecraft TV series, and more — The execs at Microsoft, Warner Bros. and Legendary can now breathe a collective sigh of relief as “A Minecraft Movie” …
Discussion:
TechRadar, Metro.co.uk, Business Insider, The Verge, XboxEra, GamesRadar and National Review
Max Goldbart / Deadline:
Study: in South Korea, active YouTube users spent 210 minutes per day on the service in Q4, while Netflix subscribers spent 96 minutes per day on the streamer — Koreans who subscribe to Netflix spent less than half that time (96 minutes) watching the streamer, which airs Korean hits like Squid Game, Love Next Door and Queen of Tears.
Discussion:
Digital i and The Korea Herald, more at Techmeme »
Catherine Perloff / The Information:
Source: in January 2025, Pinterest considered buying an ad tech firm to boost its ad sales, and is working to allow ad sales through independent ad tech firms — Pinterest in January considered spending hundreds of millions on an acquisition to supercharge its ad sales …
Eileen Guo / MIT Technology Review:
Marco Rubio confirms the elimination of the Counter Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference Hub; conservatives alleged it censored conservative media — The only office within the US State Department that monitors foreign disinformation is to be eliminated, according to US Secretary …
Discussion:
The Guardian, American Thinker, JONATHAN TURLEY, Politico, The Guardian, @secrubio, @secrubio, @matthewfoldi, @secrubio, @seanmdav, @mikebenzcyber, @mediaevan, @ambkennedy_ret, @secrubio, @mikebenzcyber, Breitbart, @reclaimthenethq, @brendancarrfcc, @benshapiroshow, @mattgaetz, @rephuizenga, @basedmikelee, Raw Story, @johnshirley2024.bsky.social, Twitchy, HotAir, Wired, The Gateway Pundit, New York Post, The Independent, Truthout, Blaze Media, Washington Examiner, The Daily Wire, New York Times, The Daily Wire, Washington Post, @airbagmoments.bsky.social, The Kyiv Independent, IJR, United States Department …, The Hill, The Post Millennial, Reclaim The Net, @kateross.bsky.social, @jaynegallaghe20.bsky.social, @greene.haus, Fox News and The Federalist, more at Techmeme »
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