Top News:


Memo: Dotdash Meredith will cease printing six magazines, including Entertainment Weekly and InStyle, in April, turning them into digital-only brands — The publications, which IAC's Dotdash acquired when it bought Meredith last year, will live on as digital-only brands
Discussion:
New York Times, The Hill, WWD, Axios, Variety, TheStreet, New York Post, @thehrh, @shanellegenai, @casey_mink, @chrisvfeil, Christopher Six's Pick Six, @jeffjarvis, @markstenberg3, The Hollywood Reporter, @hiattb, @jaredbkeller, @natalieabrams, @sarahjaeleiber, @jessewashington, @mikeroe, @jmdornbush, @richardlnewby, @tvmojoe, @heykmenz, @terri_schwartz, @ericrennerbrown, @jowrotethis, @azalben, @samontv, @froomkin, @benpershing, @lmoses and @jbflint


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:
Variety, Axios, CNN, The Hill, The Wrap, New York Post, @brianstelter, @brianstelter, The Verge, New York Times, Media Play News, Deadline, @axios, @alexweprin, @alexweprin and @roncharles
RELATED:


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:
@jayrosen_nyu, @soledadobrien, @emilytvproducer, @froomkin, Poynter, @bristei, @bristei and @bristei


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, @davidfolkenflik, @davidfolkenflik, @oliverdarcy, CNN, Poynter, @mboorstein, Mediaite and NPR
RELATED:

The editorial that spawned Palin v. NYT showcases mainstream media's insistence to filter breaking news events through insights on “both sides” of US politics
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Times, @froomkin, Insider, bookforum.com, @davidmackau, @amyargetsinger, @jannwolfe, @noahcrothman, @tripgabriel, @davidmastio, @picardonhealth, @jayrosen_nyu, @whignewtons, @erikwemple, HuffPost, Politico, New York Post, @erikwemple, Law & Crime and The Daily Beast


One of two people charged with conspiring to launder ~$3.6B in stolen bitcoin has been a consistent contributor at Forbes since late 2017 and at Inc. since 2016 — A husband and wife were arrested in Manhattan on Tuesday for allegedly conspiring to launder $4.5 billion in stolen cryptocurrency.
Discussion:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bloomberg, Insider, Mediaite, @sarahnemerson, New York Times, The Verge, @petersterne, CNET, @saradietschy, @seldo, @susanlitv, @erenbali, @blakersdozen, @sheilahbirgen, @malwaretechblog, @dcseifert, @vickerysec, Metacurity, @dex_eve, @karlbode, @nktpnd, Wall Street Journal, @aaschapiro, @johnatron4000, @szmarsupial, @kscottz, @stevekovach, @lalpert1, @sarahnemerson, @paldhous, @katienotopoulos, @alexdemling, @justinhendrix, The Sun, Reuters, MarketWatch, BroBible, TechCrunch, ZDNet, NPR, Shelly Palmer, Protocol, Boing Boing, Forbes and Washington Post, more at Techmeme »


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, Deadline and @sarafischer


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


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


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


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, Tubefilter and Bloomberg


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, @antwanmorel, @joannachiu, @phelimkine, @serpentza, @niccijsmith, @emilyzfeng, @paddyfok, @sarafischer, @edmundlee and The Daily Beast


A review of digital advertising in 2022, which has shifted from a Google-Meta duopoly to one where Amazon and potentially Apple are major forces — Six years ago tomorrow, in The Reality of Missing Out, I wrote that the digital advertising market was settled, and Google and Facebook won:


Disney used Tuesday's Oscar nominations to run Disney+'s first test of livestreaming capabilities in the US; it may use the tech for live sports on the service — Disney+ ran its first-ever test of livestreaming capabilities this morning in the U.S., hinting at future changes to come for its on-demand subscription video service.
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Digital TV Europe, @b52malmet, Cord Cutters News, The Streamable, Literary Hub, The Verge, Billboard and Deadline
RELATED:

Netflix and Amazon had fewer Oscar nominations in 2022; half of the Best Picture nominees had little to no theater time and all major studios used hybrid models
Discussion:
@tepper_jonathan, Variety, The Wrap, @tepper_jonathan, @tweet_dec, @willmckinley, @dadehayes, Wired, GoldDerby and The Daily Beast