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Taboola says it is buying retail- and e-commerce-focused ad network Connexity for $800M in cash and stock — Taboola, the company that operates a popular grid-based advertising and content recommendation network across media properties, today announced an acquisition to expand its reach further …


In his final Media Ink column, Keith Kelly shares stories from his 23 years at NY Post, about David Remnick, David Carr, Graydon Carter, Jane Mayer, and others — This is my farewell column for Media Ink, which is going out of publication with my retirement.
Discussion:
@marareinstein, @oliverdarcy, @edmundlee and @politico_steve


As local newspapers like Chicago Tribune die, digital ecosystems that unbundle legacy newsrooms have the potential to truly reflect and serve their communities — Digital newsrooms are having a moment — but they're not “replacing” something. They're creating something new, which could do much more.
Discussion:
@kristenhare, Columbia Journalism Review, @localmediarocks, @spj_tweets, @jcstearns, @timafranklin, @mediatwit, WGN Radio 720, @d_holli, @lizzyhazeltine, @joanespositochi, @ncnewsworks, @localnewsini, @blockclubchi, @gteresa, @borderless_mag, @ckrewson, @journalismproj, @pottsmark, @kimfox and @ckrewson


Old stories on news sites including WaPo were displaying embedded porn videos after the domain for the defunct video service Vidme was bought by a porn company — Stories on major news sites like ‘The Washington Post,’ and ‘New York Magazine’ currently have porn embedded in them.
Discussion:
New York Post, Insider, Garbage Day, Matt's Newsletter, Who the Hell Is Jim Treacher?, @motherboard, Sputnik News, The Wrap, Gizmodo, @lexnfx, @epro, @caseynewton, @margarita, @davidbix, @motherboard, @annemariebridy, @s_m_i, @taylorlorenz, The Daily Caller, Crikey, CNET, The Verge, Awful Announcing and Boing Boing, more at Techmeme »


LA Times names Shani Hilton to a newly created role, managing editor for new initiatives; she'll oversee podcasts and video and foster newsroom experimentation — Shani Hilton has been appointed to the newly created role of managing editor for new initiatives at the Los Angeles Times, effective immediately.
Discussion:
@kristoncapps, @latlands, @acnatta, @lisatozzi, @sewellchan, @sorayamcdonald, @emilydreyfuss, @lpolgreen, @sdkstl, @meridak, @kyoshino, @craigsilverman, @niemanlab and MediaPost


NBCU is adopting the Ad-ID identifier, which helps reduce ad repetition and separate competitors' ads by assigning a trackable code to each ad — Collaboration between 4A's and ANA expands on existing work on broadcaster's Peacock streaming service — NBCUniversal is looking to clean …
Discussion:
MediaPost, FierceVideo, Beet.TV and Adweek


Senators introduce Local Journalism Sustainability Act, which would offer tax credits to news consumers, local outlets, and SMEs to advertise in local outlets — Rebuild Local News, a coalition representing more than 3,000 local newsrooms, funders of local journalism, and civil society …


Influencer marketing spending in the US is set to grow more than 30% this year and exceed $3B — Influencer marketing spending in the US is set to grow more than 30% this year and surpass a key milestone. According to our inaugural forecast on US influencer marketing spending …
Discussion:
musically.com


How companies have updated their Olympics ad campaign strategies over the last year, including United, which won't advertise on linear TV — Companies have spent more than $1 billion on ads timed to the Tokyo Games, which will take place in empty arenas as the pandemic lingers.
Discussion:
ESPN, CBS Boston, Metro.co.uk and Columbia Journalism Review


WaPo reporter Felicia Sonmez sues WaPo, Marty Baron, and other editors, claiming she faced discrimination after disclosing she was a sexual assault victim — New York (CNN Business)A reporter at The Washington Post filed a lawsuit Thursday against the newspaper, its former top editor …
Discussion:
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Twitter beats with Q2 revenue of $1.19B, up 74% YoY, vs $1.07B est., ad revenue of $1.05B, up 87% YoY, and mDAUs of 206M, up 11% YoY; stock is up 8%+ — - Twitter's revenue growth accelerated and surpassed analysts' expectations. — The social-media company introduced its first subscription service in the quarter.
Discussion:
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After a delay, Facebook says it is starting a brand safety audit by industry body MRC, set to complete by the end of 2021; Twitter has started the audit process — Pressure from President Joe Biden, regulators and advertisers is building on tech platforms to do more to mitigate extremist, violent and illegal content on their sites.
Discussion:
@katekayereports and Twitter


AT&T Q2: HBO Max and HBO have 67.5M subscribers, up 12M YoY; HBO Max subscription revenue grew 39% YoY to $2B; WarnerMedia income fell 11.3% YoY to $1.7B — For the second quarter of 2021, the company reported a net gain of 2.8 million total domestic HBO Max and HBO subscribers …
Discussion:
New York Times, MediaPost, The Wrap, AT&T, Fast Company, @thewrap, @attnews, @xpangler, Too Much TV Newsletter, @richlightshed, @richlightshed, @richlightshed, Ad Age, CBS San Francisco, FierceVideo, Light Reading, Los Angeles Times, The Streamable, Wall Street Journal, The Streamable, Cord Cutters News, Hollywood Reporter and Media Play News
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Jason Kilar says Warner Bros. will produce at least 10 movies exclusively for HBO Max in 2022
Discussion:
Forbes, /Film, New York Post, @edmundlee, Financial Times, @xpangler, UPROXX, Junghoon's Direct Media …, Yahoo Finance, ScreenRant, Hollywood Reporter, The Playlist, CNBC, Collider, Observer and Media Play News