Top News:
Alex Sherman / CNBC:
The Athletic says it now has 1M subscribers and its $60M in subscription revenue and podcast ad sales is enough to make “our newsroom profitable” — - The Athletic has weathered a months-long sports shutdown as subscribers have stuck with the sports website and application.
Nicole Sperling / New York Times:
Starting in 2024, best picture submissions at the Oscars will have to meet two of four inclusion standards in onscreen representation and offscreen staffing — Beginning in 2022, films aiming for the top award will have to turn in a confidential “inclusion standard form.”
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Hollywood Reporter, Oscars.org, The Hill, /Film, Mediaite, Hollywood Reporter, ScreenRant, @marleematlin, @jasonkhenson, New York Post, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Ad Age, @wectnews, CBS News, @jshahryar, @markharrisnyc, Raw Story, @raju, @ira, @markharrisnyc, NME, @markharrisnyc, @hillelneuer, @ramanjr, The Week, @hello_tailor, Decider, CNN, ABC News, CNET and Associated Press
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Randall Rothenberg to step down as CEO of IAB after 14 years; David Cohen, who served as president of IAB since March 2020, to be the new CEO — Randall Rothenberg is relinquishing his role as CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau after 14 years atop the digital advertising and marketing trade association.
Discussion:
IAB, Ad Age, @r2rothenberg, @jpoggi, MediaPost, Adweek, @kerrymflynn, @iab and AdExchanger
Hollywood Reporter:
Cindy Holland, Netflix VP of content who spent nearly two decades at the company, is out, and Bela Bajaria has been promoted to the new role of VP of global TV — The 18-year Netflix veteran is leaving as newly appointed co-CEO Ted Sarandos looks to streamline the streamer's TV operations
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Variety, @lucas_shaw, The Wrap, @wsj, @tsuvik, Broadband TV News, @jbflint, C21Media, @mattbelloni, @kimmasters, @pkafka, @richlightshed, MediaPost, Engadget, MediaNama, WORLD SCREEN, Adweek, New York Post, Deadline and Media Play News
Lara O'Reilly / Digiday:
Facebook apologizes for “technical issue” that it says caused its ads to appear on publisher websites in its iOS app's browser, without publishers' permission — Facebook has apologized for what it has described as a “technical issue” that caused its ads to appear …
Discussion:
VentureBeat and @larakiara
Megan Graham / CNBC:
Source: digital advertising platforms Taboola and Outbrain have ended merger talks after failing to agree on revised deal terms, a year after announcing merger — - Nearly a year after announcing a deal to unite, merger talks between digital advertising platforms Taboola and Outbrain have ended.
Discussion:
Digiday, TechCrunch, Business Insider, Wall Street Journal, @tariqkrim, @digitalshields, @raju, @edvaizey, @larakiara, @matthewhughes, @mathewi, @levynews, @brianroemmele, @kerrymflynn, @ruti_l, @nongaap, @caseynewton, @ruti_l, @ruti_l, @ruti_l, @ruti_l, @slpng_giants, @larakiara and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Marc Tracy / New York Times:
Former NYT editor and Facebook exec Simone Oliver named EIC of Refinery29 after Christine Barberich stepped down to “help diversify” leadership in June — Simone Oliver, who has worked at The New York Times and Condé Nast, will inherit a workplace described as “toxic.”
Discussion:
Variety, The Wrap, @cliffordlevy, @carliwhitwell, @s_evangelina, @conniewang, @newhousemnd, @jnoahmorgan and @thatianadiaz_
Krystie Lee Yandoli / BuzzFeed News:
One current and 23 former TMZ employees allege the outlet is a toxic workplace where staff regularly endure verbal abuse, misogyny, and racism — Since its debut in 2005, TMZ has built its brand on not only breaking celebrity news, but also a brash tone that former employees say is consistent …
Discussion:
@4lisaguerrero, @knickscentral, @lastskiss, Mediaite, @courtrevolution, @freeblackgirl, @ellievhall, @krystielyandoli, @lisatozzi, @buzzfeednews and @jayfaerber
Mike Peterson / AppleInsider:
In the latest iOS 14 beta, Smart App Banners prompt users to open stories in the News app when they open webpages of a News+ partner, instead of publisher apps — Apple has made a change to its Smart App Banner API that points users to the Apple News app instead of a third-party app …
Discussion:
MacRumors, more at Techmeme »
Andrew Bucholtz / Awful Announcing:
Yahoo Sports launches Watch Together, a remote co-viewing experience, and an augmented reality feature, PlayAR, for its NFL game streams — This fall's NFL season will mark the third year where Yahoo will stream games to phones and tablets through Verizon Media apps, including Yahoo Sports …
Discussion:
Fast Company, Cord Cutters News, The Streamable, Verizon, Sports Business Daily and Variety
Politico:
Analysis: Trump campaign spent $9.4M on national ads on Fox News in June, July, and August, more than the $8.3M it spent on local TV in three swing states — President Donald Trump spent the summer trailing in national polls, losing in swing states and bleeding suburban voters to Joe Biden.
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, @ec_schneider, @cjane87, @politico, Raw Story and Axios
Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
El País, which launched a subscription program in May, now has 64K+ digital subscribers, accounting for nearly a quarter of digital news subscriptions in Spain — Since El País, the newspaper of record in Spain and one of the largest in the Spanish speaking world …
Discussion:
EL PAÍS
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Sony plans to release nearly 40 podcasts this year and is developing 100+ originals, says it is the biggest investment in podcasting ever by a major music label — - Sony Music is backing several podcasting ventures in new push — Company plans to release more than 40 podcasts this year
Discussion:
@djbootheic
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