Top News:
Reuters:
Nexstar agrees to acquire Tegna for $3.54B in a deal valued at $6.2B including debt, expected to close by H2 2026; Nexstar plans to pay $22 per share — Nexstar Media has agreed to buy smaller rival Tegna for $3.54 billion, creating a local-TV powerhouse that seeks to compete better …
Discussion:
Adweek, StreamTV Insider, Nexstar Media Group, Inc., Variety, New York Post, TheDesk.net, New York Times, Dallas Innovates, Radio & Television …, MediaPost, FTVLive, Portland Business Journal, CNBC, @agomezfcc, Poynter, Associated Press, Columbus Business Journal, Houston Business Journal, Dallas Business Journal, TV Tech, Deadline, Baltimore Business Journal, @eriqgardner, @amandamatwell, Wall Street Journal, KWES, CBS News, @tegna, @tylerhugheswx, @jerodnbc4, The Wrap, Yahoo Finance, Free Press Action Fund Feed, Washington …, @reporterashley, @markmaxwelltv, Investigative Post, Axios, @brianstelter, The Streamable, NCS | NewscastStudio, The Hollywood Reporter, @nxstmediagroup, UPI, CNN, Cord Cutters News, Bloomberg, @bethfinellowx, @kevinbuffalo, @sarafischer, @matthewcappucci, Los Angeles Times, @brianstelter, @jeremyjojola, Awful Announcing, Advanced Television, al.com, WTOP News and Barrett Media
James B. Stewart / New York Times:
Interviews with Shari Redstone and others detail her decision to sell her family's empire, Paramount's settlement with President Trump, her reputation, and more — The media mogul spoke at length for the first time about selling her family's empire, Paramount's settlement with President Trump …
Discussion:
Fox News, Business Insider, HotAir, Deadline, Variety, The Wrap, New York Post, @loudmouthjulia, Daily Caller News Foundation, @mediaevan, Fortune, Media Play News, @alexthomp, @benmullin, @collinconnors, Mediaite, @pkafka, @paulthedogman.bsky.social, The Hollywood Reporter, @aidnmclaughlin, @jpodhoretz and Instapundit
Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
The Knight Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and others unveil the Public Media Bridge Fund, providing $26.5M+ to help CPB radio and TV stations avoid closure — Maribel Pérez Wadsworth, the president and chief executive of the Knight Foundation.Moriah Ratner for The New York Times
Discussion:
Media Nation, The Hill, Politico, @joshshepperd.bsky.social, RedState, The Washington Free Beacon, @dicktofel.bsky.social, @knightfoundation.org, Newsbusters, Maribel Perez Wadsworth on LinkedIn, @davidho@mastodon.world, @jaykaydee.bsky.social, Public Media Company, @benmullin.bsky.social, Knight Foundation, Washington Post, @jeradwalker.bsky.social, @benmullin, Washington Examiner, Inside Radio, NewsMax.com and TV Tech
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
GB News plans to launch a DC bureau with live programming starting in September, including “The Late Show Live from DC”, and aims to hire a US political editor — GB News says it marks “huge moment” with US expansion. — Update 19 August: GB News has announced its presenter Ben Leo …
Discussion:
GB News and @josiah.writes.news
Mandy Dalugdug / Music Business Worldwide:
TikTok launches Music On Stage 2025, a global contest for artists from 23 regions on TikTok Live; it will promote winners on its distribution platform SoundOn — TikTok has launched a new global music competition targeting emerging artists and music creators on TikTok LIVE.
Discussion:
Music Ally, TikTok and Music Week
Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
Google will pay $30M to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it violated kids' privacy on YouTube by collecting data without parental consent for targeted ads — Google (GOOGL.O) will pay $30 million to settle a lawsuit claiming it violated the privacy of children using YouTube by collecting …
Charlie Eccleshare / The Athletic:
TikTok and the ATP Tour announce a content partnership to help players boost engagement and collaborate with established tennis creators on the platform — Seven million people have watched 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic dancing to “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars.
Discussion:
KSTP-TV, @cdeccleshare, TikTok, ATP Tour and SportBusiness
Denise Petski / Deadline:
Ron Perlman unveils Watrfall, a financing and content development platform for film and TV that lets fans invest in projects and decide which ones get funded — Along with Perlman, Watrfall is co-founded by Oscar-winning producer Michael Donovan (Bowling for Columbine), Dana Landry …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Variety and @watrfall_io
Sara Fischer / Axios:
The Spectator, which launched a US print edition in 2019, plans to double its print output in the US to 24 issues annually as part of a relaunch this fall — The Spectator's U.S. edition plans to double its print output to 24 issues annually as part of a broader relaunch this fall, its deputy editor Kate Andrews tells Axios.
Hilke Schellmann / Columbia Journalism Review:
Testing AI tools for journalism work: LLMs worked well for short summaries but poorly for long ones, and scientific research tools lacked depth and consistency — Some tools were sufficient for summarizing meetings. For research, the results were a disaster.
Alice Brooker / Press Gazette:
City Matters, a free monthly newspaper serving the City of London since 2016, enters voluntary liquidation, citing rising print costs and declining ad revenue — Free monthly newspaper City Matters has entered voluntary liquidation and put its assets up for sale, citing rising costs of …
Discussion:
@josiah.writes.news
Daniel Tencer / Music Business Worldwide:
Performance rights organization BMI and a group representing radio broadcasters settle a dispute over royalty rates paid to artists and songwriters on US radio — Performance rights organization BMI says it has reached a settlement on royalties paid to artists and songwriters on US radio …
Discussion:
Billboard, Billboard, Digital Music News, RADIO ONLINE and Radio & Television …
CNN:
Filing: Newsmax agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $67M to settle a defamation lawsuit over false claims about the 2020 election, with $27M due this month — Egregious lies about the 2020 presidential election are going to cost Newsmax $67 million. — To avert a high-stakes trial …
Discussion:
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RELATED:
Newsmax:
Newsmax says its 2020 election coverage was “fair” but it settled with Dominion as the Delaware court where the trial was to happen wouldn't allow a fair trial
Newsmax says its 2020 election coverage was “fair” but it settled with Dominion as the Delaware court where the trial was to happen wouldn't allow a fair trial
Discussion:
The Independent, CBS News, The Guardian, The A.V. Club, Salon, JURIST, Daily Caller News Foundation, CyberScoop, Axios, Mediaite, Forbes, Barrett Media, The Hill and Politico
