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David Smith, the executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group, said print media has no credibility and no relevance — David Smith, the executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group, said he dislikes and fundamentally distrusts the print media, which he believes “serves no real purpose.”
Discussion:
CNN, Business Insider, Mediaite, Quill, Washington Post, Slate, Politico, New York Times, The Wrap, Vox, @chanceseales, @mmehlsak, @kylegriffin1, @davidfolkenflik, Fast Company, @danrather, KTLA, CBS San Francisco, TVWeek.com, Hollywood Reporter and TV Tattle
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Review of Sinclair employment contracts shows some employees cannot resign from firm without incurring a penalty equivalent to 40% of their annual compensation — Noncompetes, forced arbitration and a liquidated damages clause can equal 40 percent of annual salary. — , and
Discussion:
@fox47madison, Washington Post, New York Times, Politico, AOL and Jezebel


Sources: Trump wants USPS to increase Amazon's shipping costs as advisers encourage the president to cancel Amazon's cloud computing contract with the Pentagon — With the West Wing finally calm, Trump is contemplating a multi-front campaign against Jeff Bezos.
Discussion:
VentureBeat, @gabrielsherman, Media Nation, New York Magazine, @coreypein, CBS San Francisco, Business Insider, Reuters, WGBH News, @bradmossesq, CNNMoney, The Week, @kbeninato, @kumailn, @page88, @maggienyt, @renato_mariotti, @nickbilton, Mediaite, @dangillmor and Dan Kennedy, more at Techmeme »
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Washington Post's Martin Baron refutes Trump's claims that the Post acts as a lobbyist for Amazon as Trump conflates the two, which have different leadership — Amazon does not own The Washington Post. President Trump, however — impervious to certain facts and armed with a Twitter account …
Discussion:
Reporters Without Borders, The Week, Mediaite, bookforum.com, @nytimesbusiness, Deadline, @dealbook, @wesleylowery, @jdawsey1, @fbihop, @melbournecoal and Variety


Sumner Redstone will not have final say on potential CBS-Viacom merger as he has only one vote on National Amusements, the holding company owning voting stakes — The 94-year-old media mogul would be one vote among seven National Amusements board members — Sumner Redstone …
Discussion:
@tomgara, @keachhagey, CNBC, @theferocity, @katie_martin_fx, @jdawsey1, @sarahnassauer, @jswatz and @eorden
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Sources: talks between Viacom and CBS have hit a snag, as they are divided over who would be second-in-command at the new company, Bob Bakish or Joe Ianniello — - CBS has not made a formal offer to buy Viacom after social issues raised a roadblock in the talks.
Discussion:
Broadcasting & Cable


Fox News President Jack Abernethy releases statement in support of Laura Ingraham, says network will not be “censored by agenda-driven intimidation efforts” — The cable news outlet's co-president Jack Abernethy said the network won't be “censored by agenda-driven intimidation efforts.”
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Bill O'Reilly, The Wrap, Ad Age, Washington Post, TheBlaze, TVNewser and Mediaite
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Disney has expressed an interest in acquiring Sky News, whether or not its acquisition of 21st Century Fox proceeds, as UK regulator scrutinizes Fox's bid — Move aims to allay media plurality fears over 21st Century Fox's takeover of British broadcaster
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21st Century Fox proposes to sell Sky News to Disney or establish it as a separate entity with a 15-year funding guarantee to seal the deal with UK regulators — The news came in an update published by Britain's Competition and Markets Authority, which has been looking at concerns about Sky News' independence from Fox.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Independent.ie, Variety, BBC, Financial Times, Sky News, Reuters and Editor & Publisher


Spotify, which posted operating loss of $461M in 2017, thinks its reliance on labels will ease; sources: hope is more artists will work directly with Spotify — The streaming music company wants to get more music — and more profitable music — from the little guys.
Discussion:
Forbes, newsroom.spotify.com, RAIN News, Mashable, SlashGear and Fortune, more at Techmeme »


Amazon Music says it now has “tens of millions” of paid subscribers, with Amazon Music Unlimited subscriptions doubling in the past six months — Amazon Music tells Billboard it has “tens of millions” of paid customers, with Amazon Music Unlimited subscriptions having more than doubled …
Discussion:
@joaquinmencia, hypebot and RAIN News


The age of trends is over, as social signals like retweets and likes are too easily manipulated by bots, and journalists must learn to identify their influence — Bots are everywhere. A report by The New York Times recently outed about 3.5 million of them on Twitter.
Discussion:
VentureBeat


Film and TV veteran Catherine Tait named president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada, becoming the first female in the role — - Angelina Jolie Says Making ‘First They Killed My Father’ Was About Discovering ‘What the Film Means’ — TORONTO — Film and TV veteran Catherine Tait has been appointed …