Top News:
Alexandra Bruell / Wall Street Journal:
How AI is helping expand coverage; the Philadelphia Inquirer launched four AI-assisted newsletters in 2025, which have been a “massive subscription driver” — The Philadelphia Inquirer and other regional outlets turn to AI to automate elements of reporting and expand coverage
RELATED:
Liz Skalka / Columbia Journalism Review:
Patch's AI-generated newsletters, which carry local and national ads and rely on aggregation and event calendars, have ~1M subscribers across 14K US communities — Patch built a newsletter system to be not hard-nosed journalism but a community-building tool.
Discussion:
@columjournreview.bsky.social
Mikeie Honda Reiland / Nashville Banner:
A reporter for Nashville Noticias, Estefany Rodríguez, has been detained and is being sent to an ICE center in Louisiana; she had reported on ICE previously — Estefany Rodríguez faced death threats in Colombia, came to the U.S. legally and has applied for asylum; her attorney says ‘she has been following the rules’
Michael Savage / The Guardian:
In response to its charter review, the BBC says “irreversible” trends threaten its survival, citing a “mismatch” between TV license rules and viewing habits — In opening response to charter review, corporation points to ‘mismatch’ between TV licence rules and viewing habits
Discussion:
@Lazarou@mastodon.social, @rogermosey, @michaelsavage, Ben Werdmuller, The Times, GB News, The Sun, BBC and The i Paper
RELATED:
Corbin Bolies / The Wrap:
In an interview, David Ellison says CNN would retain editorial independence if the WBD deal closes: “it's maintained at CBS and it will be maintained at CNN” — “We want to be in the truth business and we want to be in the trust business,” Ellison says on CNBC
Discussion:
Variety, CNBC, Mediaweek, Washington Examiner, @jonathanjarry.bsky.social, KVIA-TV, The A.V. Club, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @freedom.press, Awful Announcing, Media Play News, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Mediaite, Los Angeles Times, TVNewsCheck, The Hill, Cord Cutters News and r/Journalism
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Netflix buys InterPositive, a 16-person company founded by Ben Affleck that builds an AI model based on a production's dailies to be used in postproduction — In a rare acquisition, Netflix has bought InterPositive, a start-up founded by Ben Affleck that makes AI-powered tools for filmmakers.
Discussion:
Faizan Kareem on LinkedIn, New York Daily News, The Boston Globe, Gizmodo, Silicon Valley Business …, Claire Xue on LinkedIn, About Netflix, Russell Palmer on LinkedIn, Los Angeles Times, Boston.com, @hypercubexl.bsky.social, The A.V. Club, The Mac Observer, Screen, iPhone in Canada, Forbes, Benzinga, Engadget, Fast Company, BANG Showbiz, Deadline, Deadline, TechCrunch, The Verge, Blockonomi, Reuters, @carnage4life.bsky.social, The Hollywood Reporter, @nowarbutclasswar.bsky.social, Wall Street Journal, The Wrap, 9to5Mac, Inc.com, Bloomberg and Media Play News, more at Techmeme »
Ray Schultz / MediaPost:
An interview with Ben Levisohn, recently named editor-in-chief of Barron's, on his routine, the magazine's digital strategy, and more — Ben Levisohn was recently named editor in chief of Barron's, the slot once held by legends like founder Clarence Walker Barron and writer Alan Abelson.
Discussion:
Talking Biz News
Dylan Smith / Digital Music News:
UMG reports Q4 revenue up 4.8% YoY to €3.61B and paid listening up 2.4% YoY to €1.26B; UMG says it is not moving ahead with a US listing at this time — Universal Music Group (UMG) has posted modest Q4 2025 revenue growth due largely to a continued paid-streaming slowdown.
Discussion:
Billboard, UMG, Reuters, The Hollywood Reporter and Music Business Worldwide
Zack Zwiezen / Kotaku:
The White House's official X account posted a video mixing footage from Call of Duty with real military strikes against Iranian targets — It is the latest example of Donald Trump's White House using video games in their propaganda … This is the latest example of President Donald Trump …
Discussion:
PC Gamer, @drewharwell, @captaincons, Aftermath, Metro.co.uk, @drewharwell, Mashable, TMZ.com, @brianstelter, @drewharwell, Rock, Paper, Shotgun, @brianstelter, Courthouse News Service, The Independent, Raw Story, @drewharwell, CNN, Polygon.com, @ethangach.bsky.social, @kotaku.com, Mediaite, @erinmcunningham.bsky.social, The Verge, The Daily Beast and The A.V. Club
Henry Bushnell / The Athletic:
Sources: FIFA will allow TV broadcasters to cut away to ads during the World Cup's three-minute “hydration breaks” that will split each half of matches — Share full article — FIFA will allow broadcasters to cut away to advertisements during the “hydration breaks” …
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Internal memo: CBS Mornings top producer Shawna Thomas will leave her role; a source says CBS News executives are eager to find a way to keep working with her — The anchors are staying. The producer is going. … The journalist, who has won plaudits for her entrepreneurial career …
Discussion:
Status, Daily Mail, Deadline, @benmullin, TV Insider, The Wrap, Newsbusters, New York Post, @benmullin, @dylanbyers, The Movie Blog, @bristei, Awful Announcing, DNYUZ, The Wrap, Fox News, Poynter, Reality Tea, The Hollywood Reporter, Baller Alert, New York Daily News, Us Weekly and Wall Street Journal
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
X overhauls its Creator Subscriptions with new features including exclusive threads, a refreshed subscriptions paywall, and a shareable subscriptions card — Elon Musk-owned X announced on Thursday that it's revamping the social network's Creator Subscriptions offering with a number of new features …
Discussion:
Engadget and Mashable, more at Techmeme »
Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai / TechCrunch:
Italian authorities confirm that Francesco Cancellato, director of news site Fanpage, had his phone hacked in December 2024 using spyware made by Paragon — Italian authorities confirmed that a journalist who was alerted by WhatsApp last year of a suspected spyware attack on his phone was indeed hacked.
Discussion:
@jsrailton, @TechCrunch@mstdn.social, @jsrailton, @jsrailton, @jsrailton and @jsrailton
Matthew Keys / TheDesk.net:
The Washington Post enters a multiyear licensing deal with Veritone to make its video journalism and archival footage available to partners and creators — Veritone has entered into a multi-year, global content licensing agreement with The Washington Post that will make the news organization's …
Discussion:
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