Top News:

Journalists at the New York Daily News have formed a union under the NewsGuild of New York, asking for voluntary recognition from Tribune — The organizing effort at the century-old tabloid comes roughly 25 years after its editorial union was effectively broken.
Discussion:
@nydnunion, @awinston, @royalpratt, @saragregory, @grace_2e, @marcatracy, The NewsGuild - CWA and nyguild.org

Ad tech company Magnite, formerly Rubicon Project, to acquire SpotX, a platform for connected TV and video advertising, from RTL Group for $1.17B — Supply-side platform Magnite announced this morning it has agreed a deal to acquire sell-side video platform SpotX from European media group RTL …
Discussion:
@magnite, Magnite, Variety, AdExchanger, Beet.TV, FierceVideo, CNBC, Digital TV Europe, @davemorgannyc, @anthonykatsur, @mediamath and LUMA Partners, more at Techmeme »

Snap says its TikTok competitor Spotlight had 100M MAUs in January, two months after its launch, and receives an average of 175K video submissions per day — A surprisingly successful debut — Snap says its TikTok competitor, Spotlight, had 100 million users in January 2021, just two months after it launched.
Discussion:
CNN, @karissabe, CNBC, Marketing Dive, contextisking.com, @verge, @megancgraham, @mattrosoff, Investor's Business Daily, Business Wire and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC:
Snap beats with Q4 revenue of $911M, up 62% YoY, vs $857.4M est., DAUs were up 22% YoY to 265M; stock down 7%+ after hours on weak Q1 forecast
Snap beats with Q4 revenue of $911M, up 62% YoY, vs $857.4M est., DAUs were up 22% YoY to 265M; stock down 7%+ after hours on weak Q1 forecast
Discussion:
The Wrap, @ashkan, @tgpharding, @charliebilello, @ashleyrcarman, Fast Company, Ad Age, Financial Times, Axios and Variety, more at Techmeme »

Election tech company Smartmatic files $2.7B defamation lawsuit against the Fox Corporation, Fox News, and hosts Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, and Jeanine Pirro — Smartmatic accused Rupert Murdoch's network of promoting a false narrative about the 2020 election that damaged the company.
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Post, Variety, NPR, Raw Story, MediaPost, Vox, Wall Street Journal, @darickr, @markszaidesq, @noahpinion, The American Independent, @jonathanwpeters, @jamessurowiecki, @hassankanu, National Review, @alanhuntermtv, @zoetillman, @richsignorelli, @markruffalo, @frankpallotta, @brianstelter, @brianstelter, Media Matters for America, The Verge, TVNewsCheck, Bloomberg, Axios, Mediaite, The Wrap, Insider, CNBC and Boing Boing

Google rolls out an initial version of Google News Showcase in Australia, with participation by and financial support for The Canberra Times, Crikey, and others — With the news moving faster than ever, it's clear that journalism is an essential way to keep people informed.

Editor & Publisher gave permission to Internet Archive to digitize its full archives, making them easily searchable, a step that other newspapers should take — My two intellectual loves are history and journalism — alternately, history and its first draft — and I'm always happy to see the two overlap.
Discussion:
@internetarchive, @jbenton and @media2070

Sources: NYT's Rukmini Callimachi has been re-assigned to cover higher education following the Caliphate scandal — The Pulitzer finalist who came to fame via her Middle East coverage is moving to a vastly different beat following the scandal over her largely debunked podcast.
Discussion:
@wajahatali, @johnriordangee and @cquintanadc

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty names Jamie Fly as president and CEO, who will resume leadership after being dismissed by Michael Pack in June — WASHINGTON — Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's (RFE/RL) Board of Directors has named Jamie Fly as the company's President and CEO, effective February 16, 2021.
Discussion:
@davidfolkenflik, @karenkornbluh, @john_hudson, @christopherjm and @jamiemfly

OANN is airing a three-hour “election fraud” film by MyPillow CEO with a disclaimer that it doesn't endorse any statements made about Dominion or Smartmatic — Trump-loving One America News is airing a special the touts conspiracy theories being peddled by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell …
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, Insider, @poniewozik, The Hill, The Week, @davidfolkenflik, @existentialfish, @mattgertz and @mattgertz

Democratic senators' SAFE TECH Act will strip Section 230 immunity for any ads and posts violating civil rights, antitrust, cyberstalking, human rights laws — Three top Democratic senators added to the stack of proposed Section 230 reforms Friday, introducing their own bill …
Discussion:
@hodgesmr, @issielapowsky, @glassbottommeg, @dandotlewis and @issielapowsky, more at Techmeme »

The bylines of Defense News and New York Post reporters were attached to disinformation as a means of making it appear legitimate — Bad actors are hijacking journalist names, photos and bylines to help give credibility to fake storylines or hoaxes on the internet.
Discussion:
@newsalliance and @sarafischer

TikTok's launch on Android TVs in France, Germany, and the UK yesterday is part of its push to diversify its audience and bring its stars into the mainstream — The app's arrival on smart TVs is part of a plan to diversify its audience - and bring its stars further into the mainstream
Discussion:
@stokel, @psythor, @brendangahan and @evafogdk, more at Techmeme »