Top News:


Rupert Murdoch accuses Google and Facebook of trying to silence conservative voices and cites a lawsuit claiming they colluded on digital ad market manipulation — Rupert Murdoch renewed his attacks on Google and Facebook during News Corp's annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Newser, Axios, Vanity Fair, Insider, @martysilkhack, @thetowncrier, Press Gazette, @jonkudelka, New York Post, @mrkrudd, Bloomberg, Mumbrella, The Hill, Mediaite and The Wrap


Spotify expands real-time lyrics to all users globally in partnership with Musixmatch, after initially launching in 26 markets — After years of ignoring consumer demand for in-app lyrics, particularly in the U.S., Spotify announced today it will make a new Lyrics feature available to all global users …
Discussion:
Spotify, CNET, Variety, Fast Company, @eldsjal, Trusted Reviews, Digital Trends, XDA Developers, The Verge, 9to5Mac, @spotifynews and @richlightshed, more at Techmeme »


Axios Local expands to 11 new cities for a total of 25, with plans for 25 more cities in 2022; CFO says it is on pace to earn $5M in revenue by year end — Axios Local is going bicoastal. The city-based network of free, local newsletters announced Thursday morning that it is expanding to 11 new locations …
Discussion:
@jonathanvswan, @djtweets, @russcontreras, @markstenberg3, @jimvandehei, @ssavitsky, @adweek and @adamwren


Spotify expands Podcast Subscriptions globally with 20 price points from $0.50 to $150 and will let creators download subscribers' contact info — Just a few months after launching support for podcast subscriptions to U.S. creators, Spotify today is making the service available to creators in global markets.
Discussion:
Fast Company, RAIN News, Podcast Movement, Variety, What's New in Publishing, Music Ally and XDA Developers


Hulu launches Shop Hulu, a site selling limited-edition collections of clothes and lifestyle products related to its content library — This summer, Netflix launched its own shopping site that allowed fans to purchase apparel, accessories and other lifestyle products from their favorite shows, like “Stranger Things.”


The Marshall Project is launching a newsroom in Cleveland in 2022, which will collaborate with local outlets and is partially funded by a Gund Foundation grant — New support from the Gund Foundation to drive expansion of local investigative reporting — The Marshall Project …
Discussion:
Scene and Heard, @danmoulthrop, @schwartzapfel, @marshallproj, @geraldinesealey, @racheldissell and @davidfolkenflik


As well-written obituaries of prominent figures attract large online readership, outlets are bolstering their pre-written obituaries, including 1,850 at NYT — When Rush Limbaugh died this year, the mainstream media he had so long railed against gave him the kind of immaculately choreographed send-off …


Russian tech exec Aleksej Gubarev drops his defamation lawsuit against BuzzFeed over its publication of Steele dossier — A Russian internet entrepreneur has dropped a four-year legal battle against BuzzFeed over its publication of the so-called Steele dossier, a politically charged compendium …
Discussion:
emptywheel, @emptywheel, @joshgerstein and TK News


Google will begin paying Agence France-Presse for content in Europe as part of a five-year partnership, the first with a news agency under a 2019 EU directive — Under the agreement with Google, AFP will also offer fact-checking training on several continents (AFP/Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD)
Discussion:
Reuters and @risj_oxford


Bad Robot launches a podcast division, to be led by former Audible and Spotify exec Christina Choi, and strikes a multiyear first-look deal with Spotify — JJ Abrams' Bad Robot is moving into the audio space. — The production company is launching its own podcast division …
Discussion:
@baekdal, Spotify, Engadget and Los Angeles Times


Fourthwall, an all-in-one creator commerce service that provides tools to set up merch stores, membership programs, tipping, and more, raises $17M — Let's say you're a YouTube star — honestly, it's not impossible, given that now, some estimate that over 20,000 YouTubers have at least 1 million subscribers.
Discussion:
Fast Company, Fourthwall and @fourthwallhq


Daily Mail editor Geordie Greig steps down; Ted Verity will become Mail Newspapers editor overseeing Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, and You magazine — Daily Mail editor Geordie Greig is leaving his role this week, with the Mail on Sunday's Ted Verity stepping up to take charge of a new seven-day operation.