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Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Nexstar, which owns or partners with over 200 TV stations, is in advanced talks to acquire Tegna, which has 64 TV stations; TGNA rises 30%+ after hours — A deal between Nexstar and Tegna could be a litmus test for the FCC's deregulation push
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison praises South Park creators, noting the show's profitability for Paramount, even as the show mercilessly skewers Trump — Paramount's new CEO doesn't seem to think he has a “South Park” problem. — Rather, David Ellison sees the animated show as part …
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Matt Novak / Gizmodo:
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez says Paramount-Skydance agreed to “never-before-seen forms of government control over newsroom decisions” through a “truth arbiter”
Discussion:
CNBC, Skydance, FCC.gov, Observer, @climatebrad.hillheat.com, @peterarnott.bsky.social, @crampell.bsky.social, @jgo4justice.bsky.social, @agomezfcc.bsky.social, @agomezfcc.bsky.social, Radio & Television …, BMI, New York Sun, Business Insider, Associated Press, Cord Cutters News, TMZ.com and Deadline
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison visited CBS News early Thursday, expressing admiration for the news division and acknowledging recent stresses
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The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount, Barron's Online, Newsbusters, New York Sun, Poynter, @dylanbyers, @loudmouthjulia, UPI, Deadline, Vanity Fair, Slate, The Independent, Business Insider, HuffPost, The Verge, StreamTV Insider, TVNewsCheck, The Wrap, New York Post, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, @brianstelter.bsky.social, Reuters, Deadline, New York Times, Screen, Sports Business Journal, Variety, New York Times, The Streamable, TheDesk.net, The Information, IndieWire and The Ankler
Katie Kilkenny / The Hollywood Reporter:
After four years as SAG-AFTRA president, Fran Drescher will not seek another term; ballots for new candidates will be collected from August 13 to September 12 — A list of national political candidates at the union, released Friday, confirmed that the labor group's erstwhile strike leader is not seeking reelection.
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Entertainment Weekly, The A.V. Club, Bleeding Cool News, The Wrap, Variety, TVNewsCheck and Deadline
Bloomberg:
Sources: Netflix is exploring a deal to stream MLB's Home Run Derby, after ESPN walked away, and may be interested in additional baseball programming — Netflix Inc. is exploring a deal to stream Major League Baseball's Home Run Derby, people familiar with the matter said, after ESPN walked away.
Forbes:
A profile of 30-year-old Daniella Pierson, founder of lifestyle newsletter The Newsette, as sources say she's been exaggerating her companies' worth for years — Daniella Pierson has cozied up to everyone from Diane von Furstenberg to Selena Gomez, burnishing her image as her businesses unraveled.
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@jbenton, @john__hyatt, Futurism, @incrmntlreturns, @hkanji, @jemimacmcevoy, @mhunterhart, @mhunterhart, @mhunterhart, @mhunterhart, Business Insider on LinkedIn, @mhunterhart.bsky.social, @kerrydolan.bsky.social, @kerrydolan.bsky.social, @mhunterhart.bsky.social, @mhunterhart.bsky.social, @mhunterhart.bsky.social and @triketora.com
WyoFile:
Wyoming newspaper owners and staffers are scrambling to save local papers, after Illinois-based News Media Corporation announced their immediate closure — Hope arrived in the form of a caravan winding its way down the dirt road to Marie Hamilton's home out on the eastern Wyoming prairie …
Discussion:
@shelleyridenour.bsky.social, @wyofile.com and Oil City News
Ashley Belanger / Ars Technica:
Two tech groups are backing Anthropic's appeal of a court ruling allowing a copyright class action, saying potential big settlements could chill AI investment — AI industry groups are urging an appeals court to block what they say is the largest copyright class action ever certified.
Discussion:
@garyshapiro, @tomcoates.bsky.social, @ccianet, CCIA, @radiodeadair.com, @jonzoidberg.xyz, @awsparling.bsky.social, @jrmoockjr.bsky.social, @serbianism.com, @sfoskett@techfieldday.net, @botwiki@mastodon.social, @kvetch.gay, @joelvanderwerf@mastodon …, @hub@cosocial.ca, @arstechnica@mastodon.social, Bloomberg Law, CCIA and United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Advocates for net neutrality say they won't appeal a ruling against the policy, saying they don't trust the US Supreme Court to rule fairly on the issue — Advocacy groups that tried to defend federal net neutrality rules in court won't file an appeal, saying they don't trust the Supreme Court to rule fairly on the issue.
Discussion:
Free Press Action Fund Feed, Nudity and Nerdery, RADIO ONLINE, CBS News and Inside Radio, more at Techmeme »
Peter White / Deadline:
Stephen Colbert, whose late show is scheduled to end on CBS in May 2026, directly pitches Netflix and Amazon during his last show before a summer break — The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is ending in May but the host is already courting new employers. — Colbert, who is off for a few weeks …
Discussion:
Variety, The Independent, @howodd69, Cracked.com, Screen Rant, Entertainment Weekly, Screen Rant, Mashable, Collider, The A.V. Club and NME
GB News:
GB News launches on Truth+, Trump Media's streaming TV platform, as part of the free basic package — GB News has today embarked on an exciting new venture in the US after launching onto Truth+. — The sister platform to Truth Social announced today that it has added the People's Channel to Truth+ …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Mirror, Trump Media & … and Financial Times
Stuart Dredge / Music Ally:
A district court judge throws out SoundExchange's 2023 suit against SiriusXM, which had argued SoundExchange doesn't have the right to litigate royalty disputes — - Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email — Two years ago, SoundExchange sued US satellite-radio firm SiriusXM …
Discussion:
Billboard, @seriousextreme.substack.com, Digital Music News, Radio Ink, Music Technology Policy, CMU and Bloomberg Law
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Byron Allen's Allen Media Group agrees to sell 10 local TV stations, mostly in the South and Midwest, to Gray Media in a $171M deal expected to close in Q4 — The mogul put his stations on the market back in June. … The comedian turned media mogul's company Allen Media Group …
Discussion:
Variety, Gray Media, Cord Cutters News, Adweek, TheDesk.net, New York Post, The Ankler, Los Angeles Times, Radio & Television …, @ellenenders.bsky.social, Deadline, The Wrap, TV Tech and al.com
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