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Alexandra Bruell / Wall Street Journal:
Dotdash Meredith will cease printing six magazines, including InStyle and EatingWell, after April, turning them into digital brands and cutting about 200 jobs — The publications, which IAC's Dotdash acquired when it bought Meredith last year, will live on as digital-only brands
Discussion:
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Georg Szalai / Hollywood Reporter:
Filing: Discovery says its merger with WarnerMedia received US antitrust clearance, following European Commission approval in December — The mega-deal is expected to close in the second quarter.
Discussion:
Axios, Variety, CNN, The Hill, The Wrap, New York Post, @brianstelter, The Verge, @brianstelter, New York Times, Deadline, @axios, Media Play News, @alexweprin, @alexweprin and @roncharles
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Sources: Discovery sees Zucker's departure as an opportunity for a reset at CNN, making it less opinionated, after ratings declined noticeably in recent months — Ever since Jeff Zucker seized the reins at CNN in early 2013, the cable-news network has been one of loudest voices in media circles.
Discussion:
Mediaite, @jayrosen_nyu, @soledadobrien, @emilytvproducer, @bristei, Poynter, @bristei, @froomkin and @bristei
Sara Fischer / Axios:
As ABC News, ESPN, Daily Mail, and other outlets amass over 1M TikTok followers, some suggest the surge is similar to the explosive growth on Facebook in 2015 — A handful of news media companies now have more than 1 million followers on TikTok, a testament to how much the viral video platform …
Discussion:
@shannmclellan, @evanmcmurry, @_andersonbecca and @callingcaterina
Financial Times:
A look at the effect of current and prospective regulations by EU countries on US streamers, including mandatory investments and retention of producer rights — Netflix, Disney and Amazon grapple with national investment targets and a shake-up in who owns rights
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
In a deposition, James Bennet says that he included a direct apology to Sarah Palin in a response to CNN's questions but the apology didn't make it past NYT PR — “America's Lethal Politics,” the June 14, 2017, editorial at the center of Sarah Palin's defamation lawsuit, is cause for apology.
Discussion:
@erikwemple, Nieman Lab, The Daily Beast, @davidfolkenflik, CNN, @davidfolkenflik, Poynter, @oliverdarcy, @mboorstein, Politico and NPR
Andrew Kersley / Press Gazette:
BBC will launch a new live team with 31 journalists to expand coverage beyond COVID-19, after its live pages collectively had 1B+ visits during the pandemic — The pandemic has attached “rocket boosters” to news live blogs and led to more investment from publishers as sites try …
Discussion:
Talking Biz News, @davidclinchnews and @stuartmillar159
Etan Vlessing / The Hollywood Reporter:
James Murdoch and ex-Star India CEO Uday Shankar form Bodhi Tree with $1.5B from Qatar's wealth fund to invest in media and tech in SE Asia, particularly India — The alliance sees the launch of the platform, titled Bodhi Tree, with financial backing from the Qatar Investment Authority.
Discussion:
Variety, TechCrunch, @sarafischer and Deadline
Amanda Silberling / TechCrunch:
Tumblr launches a tip jar, initially in the US, on iOS, Android, and the web; Tumblr will not take a cut and won't use Apple or Google's billing systems — Tumblr is launching its second attempt at a monetization feature today. Rolling out in the U.S. now and soon globally …
Discussion:
Tumblr Staff
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Moonbug Entertainment acquires Little Angel, a YouTube network with more than 88M subscribers — The deal is the first for Moonbug since selling itself to Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs' Candle Media. — Moonbug Entertainment, fresh off of its $2.7 billion sale to Candle Media, is expanding its footprint.
Discussion:
Variety, Kidscreen, Bloomberg and Tubefilter
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Fox Corp. beats as Q2 revenue rose 9% YoY to $4.44B with $2.4B in ad revenue, but its net loss reached $73M due to a change in fair value from its investments — Fox reported its fiscal Q2 earnings on Wednesday morning, swinging to a net loss but beating Wall Street expectations on revenue and EPS.
Discussion:
The Streamable, The Wrap, Variety, MediaPost, Next TV, Deadline, Fox, @alexweprin, Deadline and Cord Cutters News
Axios:
Foreign correspondents detail intimidation in Beijing, including being assigned a “guide” to follow them and check that interviewees stick to official discourse — Foreign correspondents in China are speaking out after a Chinese security official pulled a Dutch reporter …
Discussion:
@sjoerddendaas, @joannachiu, @phelimkine, @serpentza, @niccijsmith, @emilyzfeng, @antwanmorel, @sarafischer, @paddyfok, @edmundlee and The Daily Beast