Mediagazer: Several writers of movie tie-in novels say they haven't been paid royalties for their work since Disney acquired Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Fox (Andrew Liptak/Polygon)

6:55 AM ET, December 20, 2020

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Josh Feldman / Mediaite:

Lou Dobbs aired a fact-check of his own election conspiracies, after Smartmatic threatened legal action; sources: Pirro, Bartiromo will air the same fact check — Fox Business host Lou Dobbs has recently taken to raising questions about voting machine companies, which have been cast …

David Folkenflik / NPR:

NYT retracts the core of Caliphate after a review finds that the podcast gave too much credence to its central character and reassigns Rukmini Callimachi — Toggle more options — The New York Times has retracted the core of its hit 2018 podcast series Caliphate after an internal review found …

Discussion: @rcallimachi, New York Times, @opcofamerica, New York Times, New York Times, CNN, @mitrakalita, @madhulikasikka, @johnjcook, New York Post, @natashafatah, @hshaban, @nycjim, Washington Post, @perlberg, @samsanders, @elaheizadi, @brianstelter, @cd_hooks, @cd_hooks, @peterbale, @sultanreina, @katie_robertson, @erikwemple, @nprinskeep, @amalahmed214, @lailaalarian, @lailaalarian, @lailaalarian, @lailaalarian, @doranimated, @madhulikasikka, @madhulikasikka, @radiokitty, @madhulikasikka, @chuckatwbhm, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @erikwemple, @absurdistwords, @absurdistwords, @joshokane, @davidfolkenflik, @jbflint, Axios, @glcarlstrom, @davidfolkenflik, @steveguest, @janelytv, @lourdesgnavarro, @qjurecic, @bgrueskin, @miriamelder, @miriamelder, @mitrakalita, @mitrakalita, @sairakh, @erikwemple, @laurawags, @lailaalarian, @lailaalarian, @titonka, @neilphauer, @sulliview, @mattgallowaycbc, @dparvaz, @supriyan, @hannahallam, @johnmoe, @lourdesgnavarro, @jonahdispatch, The Line, @brianstelter, @marcatracy, @katie_robertson, @salmanmasood, @marcatracy, @brianstelter, @katie_robertson, The Daily Beast, The Independent, Fox News, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, The Media Nut, Forbes, Business Insider, The Hill, Newser, Mediaite, The Guardian, The Wrap, kottke.org and Reason

Michael Schneider / Variety:

The New York Times has agreed to return the Peabody Award it won for Caliphate, following its retraction of core elements of the podcast series — Now that the New York Times has revealed that it can no longer confirm the tales shared by Shehroze Chaudhry, the central figure in the 2018 podcast …

Discussion: New York Times, @pspoole and The Wrap

Ashley Carman / The Verge:

The rush for podcast-generated IP that can be sold to Hollywood is driving demand for podcasts like Caliphate, which may ignore facts for “cinematic experience” — The need for IP pushes facts aside — The New York Times' Caliphate podcast was a hit — until it wasn't.

Discussion: @reckless, @caseyriankelly, @shomarq, @ashleyrcarman and Fox News

Andrew Liptak / Polygon:

Several writers of movie tie-in novels say they haven't been paid royalties for their work since Disney acquired Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Fox — This November, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, a professional organization for genre authors …

Discussion: Formerly Dangerous

Ben Taub / New Yorker:

A look back at Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder in Malta, and how her sons used her unfinished work to crack the murder case, bringing down Malta's government — After a journalist was assassinated, her sons found clues in her unfinished work that cracked the case and brought down the government.

Discussion: @pcaruanagalizia, @pcaruanagalizia, @andrewgiambrone, @davidakaye, @opensociety, @rebecca_vincent, @jane_gerster, @robertjdenault, @bentaub91, @gaiasquarci, @bentaub91 and @bentaub91

Alexandra Alter / New York Times:

Spiegel & Grau, the literary imprint shut down by Penguin Random House last year, returns as an indie publishing house with plans for podcasts, audiobooks, more — In a literary landscape dominated by the biggest players, Cindy Spiegel and Julie Grau are among the executives rejecting …

Discussion: @hofrench, @sarahw, @xtebordo, @spiegelandgrau, @brendacopeland, @ronhogan, @glecharles, @paulgrondahl and @booksijustread

Will Page / Billboard:

Music streaming may have plateaued with an average of 17.5B streams a week for the past four months, while consumption of games, TikTok, and podcasts increase — Has streaming volume really peaked in the U.S., or is the current stalled growth a blip? — Music streaming services have continued …

Discussion: Context is King, @artjonak, @gavinsbaker and @ashkan

Juwan J. Holmes / The Objective:

How several Black people and people of color spoke up about racism in media last summer, sometimes losing their jobs, and how a true reckoning hasn't arrived — Imani Bashir was unceremoniously fired from Lifehacker, with no notice. Then she spoke up about it. — ⠀

Discussion: @wongalum, @gabemschneider, @moorehn and Nieman Lab

Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:

Sources: digital publishers including BuzzFeed, Group Nine, and Axios are prepping for a wave of consolidation, via acquisitions or going public through SPACs — Big players explore acquiring rivals and going public through blank-check companies — Momentum is building toward consolidation …

Discussion: @raju, @benmullin, @ashkan, @hshaban, @tylerkingkade, @walldo, @sokane1, @stevekopack, @joshsternberg, @alex, @loudmouthjulia, @keithrhernandez, @scottnover, @ryanvailbrown, @mslopatto, @tkawaja, @simonowens, @lalpert1, @megancgraham and A Media Operator

Celine Castronuovo / The Hill:

The Washington Post plans to add 150 jobs next year, bringing its total staff to a record high of more than 1,000 — The Washington Post plans to add more than 150 jobs to its newsroom next year, bringing its total staff to a record high of more than 1,000, the newspaper confirmed to The Hill Thursday.

Discussion: @farhip, @doranimated, @lesserfrederick, @allyschweitzer, @blowryontv, @farhip, @sarafischer and Press Gazette

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Elaine Low / Variety:
Charli D'Amelio and her family will star in The D'Amelio Show, an eight-episode docuseries on Hulu that will follow “the first family of TikTok”

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