Mediagazer: Ars Technica apologizes after publishing an article it says had fabricated quotations generated by an AI tool attributed to a source who did not say them (Ken Fisher/Ars Technica)

12:15 PM ET, February 16, 2026

Top News:

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Following Disney, Paramount sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance, alleging its AI-generated Seedance videos and Seedream images infringed Paramount's IP — Disney also sent a legal demand to Chinese internet company — Paramount Skydance accused ByteDance of engaging in …

Discussion: Deadline, Reuters, Breitbart, The Information, Benzinga, The Hollywood Reporter, Associated Press and The Wrap, more at Techmeme »

Osmond Chia / BBC:

ByteDance says it “respects IP rights and we have heard the concerns regarding Seedance” and it plans to “strengthen” safeguards, after Disney's legal threats — Chinese technology giant ByteDance has pledged to curb a controversial artificial intelligence (AI) …

Discussion: Advanced Television, Deadline, The Wrap, The Decoder, UPI, Business Insider, GamesRadar, Dexerto, The Guardian, Variety, Engadget, Futurism and Chat GPT Is Eating the World

Sara Fischer / Axios:
Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance, claiming it infringed on Disney's works to train its Seedance 2.0 video generation model without pay

Dan Kennedy / The Conversation:

Five regional newspapers in Boston, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Seattle, Philly, and Salt Lake offer examples of sustainability for the news business, as WaPo shrinks — The Washington Post's evisceration at the hands of its billionaire owner, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, didn't have to happen.

Discussion: The Guardian, @billspaced.com, @gerritb.bsky.social, @davew@mastodon.social, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Media Nation, The Week and Foreign Policy

Bloomberg:

Sources: Warner Bros Discovery is considering reopening sale talks with Paramount after receiving Paramount's most recent amended offer — Warner Bros Discovery Inc. is considering reopening sale talks with rival Hollywood studio Paramount Skydance Corp. after receiving its hostile suitor's …

Ken Fisher / Ars Technica:

Ars Technica apologizes after publishing an article it says had fabricated quotations generated by an AI tool attributed to a source who did not say them — On Friday afternoon, Ars Technica published an article containing fabricated quotations generated by an AI tool and attributed to a source who did not say them.

Discussion: @kantrowitz, @mathewi, @agpasquella.bsky.social, @kelciemmorris.bsky.social, @bachynski.bsky.social, @michaelsocolow.bsky.social, @tante@tldr.nettime.org, @carnage4life@mas.to, @matthieudugal.bsky.social, @carnage4life.bsky.social, Pixel Envy, @mayintoronto@beige.party, @mrcopilot@mstdn.social, @benjedwards.com and 404 Media

Scott Shambaugh / The Shamblog:

A now-removed Ars Technica article, covering how an AI agent wrote a hit piece about an open source project maintainer, seems to have included AI hallucinations — Context: An AI agent of unknown ownership autonomously wrote and published a personalized hit piece about me after I rejected its code …

Discussion: @radiodeadair.com, @michaelsocolow.bsky.social, @peark.es, @keithng.bsky.social, @joshuafoust.com, OSnews, @0x0.stonking.com, @ramiismail.com, @chucktowski.com, Andrew Morgan on LinkedIn, @Khrys@mamot.fr, Internet Governance Project, The Decoder, @mjp123.bsky.social, @shannonvallor.bsky.social, @berniethewordsmith …, @Linkshaender@bildung.social, @kazedkaz.bsky.social, @dahukanna@mastodon.social, @albertcardona@mathstodon.xyz, Tyler Adams on LinkedIn, Michael Dawe on LinkedIn, Ben Spargo on LinkedIn, @acdha@code4lib.social, @melissawm@pynews.com.br, @ehashman@cloudisland.nz, @elfsternberg.bsky.social, GitHub, @davidcrespo.bsky.social, @antisomniac.bsky.social, Paul Ford on LinkedIn, Scott Shambaugh on LinkedIn, James Cuff on LinkedIn, Vijay Balasubramaniyan on LinkedIn, Abhinaba Naskar on LinkedIn, Kautuk Pandey on LinkedIn, Scott Shambaugh on LinkedIn, @ciphergoth, @googleoss, I Am Completely Serious, @kendraserra.bsky.social, @librarian.bsky.social, @maoltuile.bsky.social, @librarian.bsky.social, @kendraserra.bsky.social, @kendraserra.bsky.social, @andybalaam@mastodon.social, @ironyuppie.com, The Shamblog, Matt Mullenweg, @mordecwhy.bsky.social, @engineersneedart.com, @dancow.bsky.social, Wall Street Journal, > nick, Ars Technica, @larsmb@mastodon.online, @harld@masto.ai, Decrypt, Fast Company, Ardent Performance Computing, @enikofox.com, @secretaboutbox.bsky.social, @alexhanna.bsky.social, @clauswilke.com, The Decoder and The Register

Will Oremus / Washington Post:

Former NPR host David Greene sues Google for allegedly replicating his voice in NotebookLM without permission; Google says the voice is based on a paid actor — NPR's David Greene says he was “completely freaked out” when he heard an AI voice that sounded just like his own, and he's suing over it.

Jeremy Barr / The Guardian:

CBS News staffers say they believe the network has decided to retain Peter Attia, who issued an apology for his inappropriate Epstein emails, as on-air analyst — Staffers believe network has decided to retain Attia, who issued apology after inappropriate Epstein emails, as on-air analyst

Discussion: Mediaite, Barrett Media, @tlcesq.bsky.social, @metacurity.com, @karlbode.com and @dannygroner.bsky.social

Scott Roxborough / The Hollywood Reporter:

Mexico announces a 30% tax incentive for film and TV productions in Mexico, even as the Trump administration pressures studios to shoot more films in the US — Mexico unveils a series of incentives to support local cinema and attract international productions, just as the Trump government is threatening tariffs.

Discussion: Deadline and Local News Matters

Max Tani / Semafor:

Guardian US plans to launch a daily video podcast in 2026, hosted by Kai Wright and Carter Sherman, to compete with The Daily; a source says it has 10 staff — The Guardian is launching its podcast rival to and . — The growing US outpost of the left-leaning British publication is launching …

Discussion: @maxwelltani

Financial Times:

Patrick Drahi's new ~15% stake in Channel 13 prompts questions about media independence in Israel; Drahi owns the outlet i24, which supports Benjamin Netanyahu — Sale of stake in news channel critical of Israeli premier is latest move to prompt questions about media independence ahead of elections

Discussion: @robertscotthorton.bsky.social

Drew Harwell / Washington Post:

In the nearly two weeks since his arrest, Don Lemon gained 300K+ Instagram followers, 140K YouTube subscribers, and his Substack soared 73% to 140K+ subscribers — The administration's attacks on Lemon and independent journalists have boosted their online attention and revenue.

Discussion: Baller Alert, The Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weekly

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 12:15 PM ET, February 16, 2026.

View the current page or another snapshot:

Who's Hiring in Media?

Correspondent - Russia, Berlin — NYT

Editorial Manager - MENA, Dubai — Reuters

Digital Managing Editor, Mumbai — Bloomberg

Breaking News Editor, TX — Dallas Morning News

Money Writer - Underscored, NY — CNN

Multimedia News Reporter, SD — Capital Journal

Copy Editor, IL — Lamwork

Associate News Editor, NY — The City

Transportation/GA Reporter, CA — Sacramento Bee

Reporter, WI — BizTimes Milwaukee

Reporter - Private Equity, NY — PitchBook

Sr. Immigration & Courts Reporter, IL — Borderless

Community News Reporter, FL — TB Times

Senior Editor, Johannesburg — LexisNexis

Content Editor - Consulting, London — WIRED

Foodie Beat Reporter, WA — Tri-City Herald

News Reporter, CA — The Real Deal

Executive Editor, SC — The State

Retail & Consumer Reporter, MA — Boston Globe

Managing Editor, FL — Observer Media

Executive Editor - Forbes Wine, NJ — Forbes

Tech News Writer - Yahoo Tech — Yahoo

Data Journalist - Lifestyle, WA — Redfin News

Deputy Social Media Editor, DC — The Bulwark

Reporter - Beauty & Wellness, NY — Daily Beast

Community Reporter, NC — County Beacon

Night Editor, CA — SF Chronicle

Govt. Affairs Reporter, MA — Cambridge Day

Reporter - Politics, CA/NY/DC — The Information

Tech Reporter - AI — Business Insider

Night & Weekend News Writer, Remote — AlterNet

US Justice Correspondent, DC — FT

Writer - Mobile, NY or Remote — PCMag

Add your company here

See Also:

Mediagazer: site main

Mediagazer River: reverse chronological Mediagazer

Mediagazer Mobile: for phones

Mediagazer Leaderboard: Mediagazer's top sources

Subscribe:

Mediagazer RSS feed

Mediagazer on X

Mediagazer on Mastodon

More News:

The Times:
Sources: the UK has shelved proposed anti-SLAPP legislation, fearing a backlash from lawyers, despite appeals from the editors of The Times and The Sun

Discussion: @williamrt

Nathan Taylor Pemberton / New York Times:
Conservative creators are increasingly posting “slopulism”, low-quality political content that prioritizes populist rage, aiming to provoke policy action

Discussion: @velveteenrabbi.bsky.social, @paulthedogman.bsky.social, @cip.uw.edu and @cip.uw.edu

Laura Hazard Owen / Nieman Lab:
Q&A with The Atlantic's Liz Bruenig on her hypothetical creative nonfiction measles essay, writing in second person, persuading parents about vaccines, and more

Discussion: The Guardian, Metro.co.uk, @chasewoodruff.bsky.social, @samjmintz.bsky.social, @michaelhobbes.bsky.social, @polgreen.bsky.social, @josie.zone, The Sun, @dannygroner.bsky.social, MS NOW, GB News, @melodyschreiber.com, @juliametraux.bsky.social, @ehahnmd.bsky.social, @melodyschreiber.com and CBS News

Max Tani / Semafor:
Sources: Apple partnered with the UK's Daily Mail soon after the Mail complained to the UK CMA in 2025 that Apple was stonewalling attempts to join Apple News

Discussion: Above Avalon and Reason

Henry Chandonnet / Business Insider:
A look at Sourcery, a podcast and newsletter from Molly O'Shea, which gets big-name guests including Palantir CEO Alex Karp and Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey

Earlier Picks:

James Faris / Business Insider:
As Netflix, Disney, and Paramount add vertical clips to their streaming services, media analysts warn that short-form video isn't a cure-all

Discussion: Cord Cutters News

Hollie Richardson / The Guardian:
A look at the growth of Belfast in Northern Ireland as a home for producing TV shows, following the success of the comedy Derry Girls

Discussion: HELLO!, The Irish News, Digital Spy, Mirror, @debbiemoon.bsky.social, Financial Times and Metro.co.uk

Abbey White / The Hollywood Reporter:
Q&A with PBS Kids' Sara DeWitt on the effect of cuts to the $112M Ready to Learn grant, including potentially partnering with ad tech companies

Discussion: @willmckinley.bsky.social

Isma'il Kushkush / Nieman Reports:
A look at the dearth of media coverage of Sudan's civil war, started in 2023; report: 32 journalists have been killed and 90% of outlets damaged or destroyed

Discussion: arabnews.jp, @zidan.bsky.social and Los Angeles Times

Jessica Toonkel / Wall Street Journal:
Memo: LA Olympics Chair Casey Wasserman is putting his talent agency up for sale after his ties to Epstein surfaced and high-profile talent departed the firm

From Techmeme:

Axios:
A senior official says Pentagon is “close” to designating Anthropic a “supply chain risk”, requiring all US military contractors to sever ties with the company

Mari Novik / Financial Times:
Keir Starmer says no platform “should get a free pass”, as the UK moves to tighten online safety laws covering AI chatbots and social media, to protect children

Eduardo Baptista / Reuters:
Alibaba debuts Qwen 3.5, a 397B-parameter open-weight multimodal AI model that it says is 60% cheaper to use and 8x better at large workloads than Qwen3

Sister Sites:

Techmeme
Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web

memeorandum
What US political commentators are discussing online right now

WeSmirch
The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page