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Jim Lehrer, a longtime PBS news anchor who moderated a dozen presidential debates and wrote about 20 novels, has died at 85 — PBS NewsHour co-founder Jim Lehrer, a giant in journalism known for his tenacity and dedication to simply delivering the news, died Thursday at the age of 85.
Discussion:
PBS NewsHour, New York Times, The Wrap, @judywoodruff, TVNewser, Newser, Radio & Television …, Mediaite, Variety, The Hill, Axios, NPR, @costareports, @yamiche, @gregorykorte, Los Angeles Times, @kalhan, Hollywood Reporter, @zeitchikwapo, @jackshafer, @joshscampbell, @dougf24, @greta, @dmoren, @claudebrodesser, @alancoxshow, @budkennedy, @briancohalloran, @pbs, @scottcharton, @erinnbcnews, @yamiche, @paulbegala, @keitholbermann, @tedstew, @paulrieckhoff, @werderedespn, @shaneharris and @poniewozik


Comcast's NBC and Sky to launch NBC Sky World News, an international news channel, this summer; they will open ten new bureaus worldwide and hire 100-200 staff — Comcast's NBC and Sky will this summer attempt to overturn three decades of CNN pre-eminence in international television news …
Discussion:
Press Gazette, Variety, @bristei, @christinamarker, @kamahlaje, @jim_edwards, @financialtimes and @matthewkeyslive
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Comcast beats Q4 expectations: profit rose 26% YoY to $3.16B on revenue of $28.39B; NBCU revenue fell 2.6% YoY to $9.2B; Sky revenue rose 0.4% YoY to $5.04B — - Comcast beat on both the top and bottom lines in its fourth-quarter results. — The company added 442,000 …
Discussion:
Variety, The Wrap, Multichannel News, Comcast Corporation, Fast Company, @cnbc, The Verge, MediaPost, Broadcasting & Cable, @richlightshed, @karlbode and The Streamable

CJR's new “public editor” for The Washington Post notes the newspaper's profitability, and lingering wage issues, as it blends serious stories with clickbait — It would be trite to force an Amazon metaphor onto the Washington Post in my first column just because they are both owned by the same rich guy.
Discussion:
@mathewi, @hamiltonnolan, @ckpolansky, @froomkin, @jyarow, @tcberman, @tomgara, @blippoblappo, @cjr, @mariabustillos, @kylepope and @aleksnotalex


Jim Rich, formerly EIC for the New York Daily News, has been appointed EIC of Deadspin, the G/O Media site where the entire staff resigned last fall — Jim Rich is stepping in to lead the site months after the entire staff resigned to protest the chief executive of parent G/O Media
Discussion:
Deadline, @sdkstl, @jeremystahl, @jeremymbarr, @timothypmurphy, @mattgertz, @srubenfeld, @kevinmdraper, @ashleyfeinberg, @jasonschwartz, @jeremymbarr, @benmullin, @benmullin, @adriana_lacy and @benmullin


A look at results from a test by NYT R&D's The News Provenance Project, which stored image metadata on the blockchain to help users identify faked photos — Can blockchain save journalism? The Magic 8-Ball's best answer thus far appears to be “Outlook not so good.”
Discussion:
American Press Institute, @palewire, @nytimesrd, @ibmblockchain and @rozzy


BBC World Service to air My World, a show to help kids over 13 spot fake news, by explaining the stories behind news — Angelina Jolie and the BBC want to give young viewers real tools to stop fake news, — Jolie will executive produce “BBC My World,” a program that explains …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Vanity Fair, The A.V. Club and New York Post


TikTok signs licensing deal with music rights agency Merlin for indie label music in videos and, source says, in its upcoming music streaming service, Resso — TikTok, the fast-growing user-generated video app from China's Bytedance, has been building a new music streaming service to compete …
Discussion:
Financial Times, Music Business Worldwide, @markghuneim, @ingridlunden, @ingridlunden, iMore and Engadget, more at Techmeme »


Arron Banks drops part of his libel lawsuit against Carole Cadwalladr, a suit that press freedom groups say is intended to stifle public interest reporting — Prominent Brexiteer Arron Banks has dropped half of his libel case against Observer journalist Carole Cadwalladr …
Discussion:
The Guardian, @carolecadwalla, @rebecca_vincent, @carolecadwalla, @carolecadwalla, @rebecca_vincent and @carolecadwalla


Mona Simpson named publisher of The Paris Review, where she has been a member of the board of directors and the editorial committee since 2014 — The Paris Review Foundation is delighted to announce the appointment of Mona Simpson as the magazine's new publisher.
Discussion:
@bardcollege, @emilynemens, @macdowellcolony and bookforum.com


UN officials call for further investigation into the alleged hacking of Jeff Bezos' phone in 2018 by Saudi's MbS, targeting Bezos “principally” as WaPo's owner — Separately, federal prosecutors probe whether racy photos of Amazon boss were provided to National Enquirer by his girlfriend's brother
Discussion:
@saudiembassyusa, @jeffbezos, VICE, @dnvolz, Business Insider, GeekWire, New York Times, Telegraph, Vox, The Verge, @alexstamos, @kaitlancollins, @davidakaye, @kaitlancollins, Fortune, Beyond Search, iMore, @sheeraf, @nytben, @sam_vinograd, @davidakaye, Boing Boing, @karaswisher, @oamaz7, @marietjeschaake, @davidakaye, @globalfreemedia, @blakehounshell, @langamahesh, @bruno_j_navarro, @shivaroor, @roigfranzia, @lizsly, @bazzinyu, @rickhasen, @riskybusiness, @alexstamos, @shashj, @kimzetter, @emilybell, @alexstamos, @alexstamos, @pressfreedom, @article19org, @dnvolz, @josephfcox, @eamonjavers, @miekeeoyang, @africatechie, @ragipsoylu, @johnbattelle, @jmalsin, @mikko, @dnvolz, @rafsanchez, Vanity Fair, Fast Company and ARTICLE 19, more at Techmeme »


In a letter to AG Barr, Republican congressman asks DOJ to compel China's state agency Xinhua to register as a foreign agent, as CGTN has already done — A Republican congressman has asked Attorney General William Barr to examine whether Chinese state news agency Xinhua has registered under …
Discussion:
@sarafischer and @repjimbanks