Top News:
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Linda Yaccarino told close contacts that some advertisers returning and xAI acquiring X, which effectively demoted her, made it a good time to depart — The X CEO stabilized the social-media company's ad business, but contended with an erratic boss and pressure to move faster
Discussion:
The Guardian, @eric_seufert, Adweek, Fortune, Bloomberg, Axios, NPR, Decrypt, Business Insider, Digiday, TheStreet, Straight Arrow News, Social Media Today, The Hollywood Reporter, The Economist, Mediaite, TechCrunch, Plain Dealer, Le Monde, San Francisco Chronicle, Fast Company, The Information, The American Bazaar, Rolling Stone, Futurism, New York Daily News, Reuters, ZeroHedge News, New York Post, CNN, New Republic, Pixel Envy, Semafor, Yahoo Finance, Axios and New York Times, more at Techmeme »
Amy Hollyfield / Dallas Morning News:
Dallas Morning News parent company DallasNews Corporation signs a merger agreement to be acquired by Hearst, in a deal that values it at $74.9M — DallasNews Corporation, the public parent company of The Dallas Morning News and Medium Giant, has signed a definitive merger agreement …
Mark Stenberg / Adweek:
World of Good Brands, formerly Leaf Group, shuts down after owner Graham Holdings sold off its last three titles; Graham Holdings acquired it in 2021 for $323M — The closure represents the end of the digital media company once known as Demand Media. — Digital media company World …
Danielle Broadway / Reuters:
SAG-AFTRA says Hollywood video game voice and motion capture actors signed a new contract with game studios, including AI protections like consent requirements — Hollywood video game voice and motion capture actors signed a new contract with video game studios on Wednesday with a focus …
Discussion:
Wired, New York Times, Variety, LAist, Gameranx, Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Decrypt, GamingBolt, KitGuru, Kotaku, Polygon, Game Rant, SAG-AFTRA, PocketGamer.biz, @sagaftra, PC Gamer, GamesIndustry.biz, Media Play News, Eurogamer.net, TechPowerUp, Deadline, Game Developer, The Hollywood Reporter, The Wrap, Game World Observer, PC Games Insider, Gamereactor UK and Blue's News
Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Google adds image-to-video generation to Veo 3 in the Gemini app for Pro and Ultra subscribers, and says users have created 40M+ videos since Veo 3's May launch — Google said on Thursday it's adding an image-to-video generation feature to its Veo 3 AI video generator through its Gemini app.
Discussion:
Android Central, Neowin, Mashable, Lifewire, CNET, PetaPixel and The Decoder, more at Techmeme »
Corbin Bolies / The Daily Beast:
Joe Davidson, a longtime Washington Post columnist, says he resigned after a column he wrote about Trump's policies was blocked for being “too opinionated” — BAD GUY — Joe Davidson said he left the paper after it spiked political commentary from his column.
Muck Rack:
In 2025, the US has 8.2 journalists per 100K residents on average, down from 40 in 2002; 33% of US counties don't have even one full-time journalist — Where are the journalists? — For the first time, we've mapped how many local journalists cover each U.S. county, revealing in stark detail the stunning collapse in local reporting.
Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch:
Google launches AI ad tools in India; a repeal of the so-called “Google Tax” in India has made it more attractive to global tech companies selling online ads — Google has launched a suite of its AI-powered advertising tools in India, which debuted in the U.S. in May …
Discussion:
TechSpot, Fast Company, MediaNews4U, City A.M., The Indian Express, NDTV Profit and nextbigwhat, more at Techmeme »
McKenzie Sadeghi / NewsGuard's Reality Check:
NewsGuard is retiring “misinformation” and “disinformation” as primary labels, saying the words have become meaningless and politicized — Welcome to Reality Check, a newsletter that helps you keep track of the false claims and online conspiracy theories that shape our world — and who's behind them.
Discussion:
@kennysmith.bsky.social and @ascottreid.bsky.social
Jessica Davies / Digiday:
Condé Nast and Hearst sign multiyear agreements with Amazon to license their content for use in Amazon's AI shopping assistant Rufus; the terms are undisclosed — Condé Nast and Hearst have signed multi-year agreements with Amazon to license their content for use in its AI shopping assistant Rufus.
Discussion:
Editor and Publisher, The Decoder and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Trishla Ostwal / Adweek:
Rembrand, which uses AI tools to add products into social and CTV ads, buys the US arm of Mirriad, which uses VFX to place branded items into TV and film scenes — The younger AI company acquires the legacy firm, signaling a broader shift in the media landscape
Discussion:
Omar Tawakol on LinkedIn
Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter:
Webtoon Entertainment is rebranding and reorganizing its North American entertainment and IP business, with Wattpad Webtoon Studios becoming Webtoon Productions — David Madden has been elevated to president of the new Webtoon Productions, among other changes.
