Top News:

Sources: Stewart Bainum and Hansjörg Wyss say they can personally contribute $600M+ total toward their $680M bid, up from $200M, as Alden's bid loses favor — Tribune likely to deem new bid superior to agreement with Alden, according to sources — A Maryland hotel magnate …
Discussion:
@royalpratt, Robert Feder, @blairkamin, Chicago Sun-Times, @tomwarren, @ourmaninchicago, @nestruck, @jbenton, @wsj, @ryanhanrahan, @noah__goldberg, @samontv, @harrysiegel, @petersagal, @anthony, @lalpert1, @cararlombardo, @hotlinejosh, @brynstole, @jessbravin, @benmullin and @brianstelter, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:

Orlando Sentinel's editorial board says an impending takeover of Tribune by Alden Global Capital feels like “an existential moment for our newspaper's future” — The Orlando Sentinel's extensive coverage of Joel Greenberg started getting attention this week.

Profile of Viet Dinh, Fox's chief legal officer, who has been seen internally as the company's power center since before Lachlan Murdoch moved to Australia — Even before the company's C.E.O., Lachlan Murdoch, moved to Australia, Viet Dinh was seen as Fox's power center.
Discussion:
@jeremymbarr

Profile of Bill Hwang, who led Archegos Capital Management to being the top shareholder in ViacomCBS, behind ~$20B in shares before the price halved in a week — Banks were eager to do business with Bill Hwang and his Archegos Capital Management — until he ran out of money.
Discussion:
@trungtphan, @edmundlee, @jessefelder, The YEET and @finalappchfix

EICs of all eight Ivy League papers are women for the first time: they discuss what this milestone means, priorities moving forward, and more — For the first time, women hold the highest editorial positions at all eight Ivy League papers. — The path to leadership …

Many digital news outlets are just not financially viable, and those that sought scale lost to platforms; survivors nurture durable ties to specific customers — On March 9, management at HuffPost notified 47 employees that they were being laid off as part of a cost-cutting effort following …
Discussion:
contextisking.com, @elizatalks, @yappelbaum, @tylrfishr, @mitalilive, @ckrewson, @jaredshopkins, @hchawlah, @jayrosen_nyu, @ginaspadafori, @dougfisher, @adriennelaf, @sstossel, @ahmed, @genepark and @theatlantic

Sicilian prosecutors looking into human trafficking wiretapped Italian journalists covering the Mediterranean migrant crisis and allegedly exposed their sources — Conversations recorded ahead of cases in which rescuers from charities charged with collaboration with people smugglers
Discussion:
@ioannisekolovos, @darachos, @seawatch_intl, @manisha_bot, @lorenzo_tondo, @dariadavitti and @trillingual

Profile of Bandcamp, profitable since 2012 without ads or major investors, which has paid out $196.3M to artists since March 2020, often foregoing its fees — Without advertisers or major investors, Bandcamp turned a profit helping musicians at all levels make a living.
Discussion:
@sonixcursions, @txmusicoffice, @kr8cken, @tatianacirisano and @billboard, more at Techmeme »
Om Malik / On my Om:
Unsplash, a startup that hosts freely usable images and was designed to upend behemoths like Getty Images, sells to Getty Images — Knowing of my growing distaste for the Facebookization of Instagram, Evgeny Tchebotarev, the co-founder of 500px, sent me an email about a new project from Crew, a freelancer-focused design company.
Discussion:
@ampressman, Data Operations, @bikehugger, @waskov6, @olli101, @om, @givemefoxes, @lukechesser, @readdanwrite, @davemark, @davewiner, Digital Photography Review, Getty Images Press Room, Digital Information World, Hindustan Times, BetaKit, MUO, PetaPixel, @dangillmor, Unsplash and @unsplash

An argument over press freedom erupted in Mexico after its president attacked a US human rights report that highlighted Mexico's failure to protect journalists — A growing row over press freedom has engulfed Mexico after the country's nationalist president maligned a routine US human rights report …
Discussion:
@kenroth, @kenroth, @statedept, @usmission2asean, @dawn_, @agnescallamard, @duncantucker, Fronteras and United States Department …
Danny Konstantinovic / The Business of Business:
Gumroad's CEO on the company's first 10 years, competitors like Patreon and Substack, the rise of the creator economy, and how app store “taxes” stifle growth — When you visit Gumroad's website, one of the first things you see is a simple promise. — “Gumroad makes it possible for you to: Escape your 9-5 desk job.
Discussion:
@trengriffin, @efeng and @thebizofbiz, more at Techmeme »

HYBE, which manages K-pop's BTS, is buying Ithaca Holdings, the company behind artists and labels including Justin Bieber and Big Machine Label, for $1B+ — Deal would unite South Korean media company with Scooter Braun's Ithaca Holdings — The South Korean media company that manages K-pop group BTS …