Mediagazer: New Mexico prosecutors drop firearm enhancement charges against Alec Baldwin and Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, removing the chance of a five-year sentence (Marisa Dellatto/Forbes)

5:40 PM ET, February 20, 2023

Top News:

Mike Allen / Axios:

Sources: last week, US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy gave Tucker Carlson exclusive access to 41,000 hours of Capitol surveillance footage from the January 6 riot — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has given Fox News' Tucker Carlson exclusive access to 41,000 hours of Capitol surveillance footage …

Katie Robertson / New York Times:

Polk Awards: The New York Times wins three, CoinDesk wins for its FTX report, The Stanford Daily's Theo Baker becomes the youngest recipient yet at 18, and more — The Times was honored for its coverage of the war in Ukraine and a photo of war victims, as well as for its reporting on private schools for Hasidic Jews in New York.

Will Sommer / The Daily Beast:

Project Veritas removes James O'Keefe as its leader, after he clashed for weeks with its board, following staff complaints alleging “outright cruel” conduct — The founder of the right-wing nonprofit resigned without striking a severance deal, The Daily Beast has learned.

Jason Garcia / Nieman Lab:

A look at the close collaboration between Ron DeSantis' administration and The Florida Standard as he cultivates a network of sympathetic conservative outlets — Last summer, six days after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis suspended Tampa prosecutor Andrew Warren, one of the governor's top aides drafted …

Discussion: @deggans, @amlwhere, @alexanderrusso, @spj_tweets, @jayrosen_nyu, @froomkin and @markmaxwelltv

Phineas Rueckert / Forbidden Stories:

Leaked docs detail reputation management company Eliminalia's tactics to remove public-interest info from the internet, like via fake sites and copyright claims — Leaked documents obtained by Forbidden Stories reveal the inner world of Eliminalia, a Spanish reputation management company.

Discussion: Washington Post, @brooklynmarie, @washingtonpost, @sandra_cuffe, @rawtraveltv, @phineasjfr and @phineasjfr

Lachlan Cartwright / The Daily Beast:

Don Lemon did not appear on February 20's CNN This Morning; sources say executives are discussing Lemon's future after his offensive women and aging remarks — CNN sources told Confider that the network changed its Monday lineup to proceed without Lemon while “conversations about Don's future” are ongoing.

Jack Mirkinson / The Nation:

The New York Times' anti-trans coverage parallels its notorious failings over gay rights and AIDS under Abe Rosenthal, who led the newspaper from 1969 to 1986 — The paper's anti-trans coverage parallels its failings over gay rights and AIDS. But the Times appears determined not to learn from its own history.

Issac J. Bailey / Nieman Reports:
The New York Times' response to criticism of its trans coverage reduced serious journalists to radical activists, a route too many outlets take when challenged

Discussion: The Guardian, @bindelj, @sarahditum, @roseschmits, @gustavoturnerx, @jeffjarvis, @jessifer, @maria@thelife.boats, @dianagoetsch, @autostraddle, @nancyromm and @niemanreports

Hayden Vernon / The Guardian:

Puffin hired sensitivity readers to rewrite language the book publisher deems offensive, removing words like “fat” and “ugly” from Roald Dahl's children's books — Augustus Gloop now ‘enormous’ instead of ‘fat’, Mrs Twit no longer ‘ugly’ and Oompa Loompas are gender neutral

Discussion: @suzannenossel, The Guardian, Washington Post, @salmanrushdie, The National, New York Post, The Week, National Review, Conquest of the Useless, @film_girl, New York Times, Mediaite, @jason, @ericowensdc, @penamerica, Semafor, @ankaman616, @adamserwer, Forbes, @luketurneresq, @marypcbuk, @mrlukowski, @jonostrower, @iandunt, @suzannenossel, @mattwalshblog, @adammilstein, @stevesi, Deadline, @suzannenossel, @mrlukowski, Bloomberg, @jillfilipovic, CBS News, The Indian Express, @mrlukowski, @mbrookerhk, @heerjeet, @hblodget, @daveleedwnundr, @julieroginsky, @incunabula, @agordonreed, @sifill_, @summeranne, @beebabs, @jhweissmann, @stphnmaher, Axios, @prisonplanet, @andrewdoyle_com, Just the Facts …, @richardhanania, @lbc, Insider, Your Humble Narrator, Telegraph, Variety, @mattdpearce, @p_a_kirschner, @keitholbermann, @jonnelledge, @bill_gerrard, @adrian_hilton, @sarahw, @maxthegirl, @helenkennedy, @ethanhein, @seerutkchawla, @theabridgedzach, @millihill, @jackholmes0, @musicclerk, @lazlosghost, @af632, @stephenkb, @paulg, @bdstanley, @anitathetweeter, @katrosenfield, @stigabell, @amandadeibert, @donaldclarke63 and @mrlukowski

Dánae Vílchez / Committee to Protect Journalists:

Q&A with Nicaragua's La Prensa publisher Juan Lorenzo Holmann, incarcerated in August 2021 and unexpectedly released and deported to the US on February 9, 2023 — Juan Lorenzo Holmann Chamorro was on the verge of sleep in his Nicaraguan jail cell when he was issued civilian clothes …

Discussion: @gypsystrategy, @cpjamericas, @pressfreedom, @pressfreedom and @pressfreedom

Marisa Dellatto / Forbes:

New Mexico prosecutors drop firearm enhancement charges against Alec Baldwin and Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, removing the chance of a five-year sentence — Prosecutors who charged Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter over the shooting death of Halyna Hutchins on the set …

Gerrit De Vynck / Washington Post:

A preview of Gonzalez v. Google SCOTUS case and a look at the Israeli nonprofit Shurat HaDin that is arguing the case against Google at the February 21 hearing — Are tech companies liable when their algorithms recommend terrorist content? The Court's answer could upend the way the internet works.

Discussion: Associated Press, New York Post, New York Times, Fast Company, @tnatw, Politico, Bloomberg, @washingtonpost, Brookings, Techdirt, Vox and LegalEagle on YouTube

NBC News:
Biden and some GOP senators have formed a loose alliance in asking SCOTUS to change Section 230 protections when hearing Gonzalez v. Google on February 21

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, CNN, CNET, Insider, AppleInsider, Reason, @eff, @carnage4life and Fox News

Aisha Malik / TechCrunch:

TikTok launches a revamped Creativity Program creator fund in beta and says the program will generate higher revenue and unlock more opportunities for creators — TikTok announced today that it's launching the beta version of a revamped creator fund called the “Creativity Program.”

Discussion: The Verge, MediaPost, The Chainsaw and The Information

Gary Baum / The Hollywood Reporter:

New York AG's November 2022 report details how former CBS CEO Leslie Moonves' trusted lieutenants worked to quash sexual misconduct claims to protect their boss — A recent investigation reveals the lengths to which the ex-CBS chief's cadre of C-suite insiders — some of whom remain with the company …

Discussion: @willicaroline and @nina_metz

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More News:

Jake Kanter / Deadline:
Sources: BBC News told presenters to relax their formal dress code, as the “sweaty and dirty” look they adopt when away from the studio can be more trustworthy

Discussion: The i Paper, @ashleevance, @ernie@writing.exchange, @mcwm, @dinosofos and @jake_kanter

Max Tani / Semafor:
Memo: New York public radio station WNYC won't renew The Takeaway, launched 15 years ago to rival NPR's Morning Edition, after the show's contract ends in June

Discussion: @vincefair, @talkonpointe, @ryanandrewwilde, @toddzwillich, @jacklynpinera, @ethan_oberman, @cikutheuri, @maxwelltani, @bwdbwdbwd, @josephzeballos, @tjraphael, @reblavoie, @catverypopular, @deggans, @katerinabarton, @woolyknickers, @dansaltzstein and @rccunni

Jabari Young / Forbes:
Sources: the NBA, MLB, and other leagues are making contingency plans, including local TV station deals, to avoid blackouts amid Diamond Sports' financial woes

Discussion: @ourand_sbj, The Comeback and @tvanswerman

Nikkei Asia:
Japanese video streaming services U-Next and Paravi plan to merge on March 31, becoming Japan's No. 2 streamer, with 3.7M+ paid subscribers, behind only Netflix

Geneva Abdul / The Guardian:
London-based Iran International TV closes its London studio and will broadcast from Washington, DC, acting on advice from the UK police about threats from Iran

Discussion: Fox News, Reporters Without Borders, @ramitanavai, Broadband TV News, @bbchamedani, @petertatchell, @omid_m, Politico, @ruslantrad and Associated Press

Earlier Picks:

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
NewsGuild members hijacked the official topics on a C-SPAN morning call-in show to accuse C-SPAN board member and Block CEO Allan Block of union busting

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:
Dow Jones' general counsel says OpenAI lacks a deal to use WSJ reporters' work to train its AI; source: CNN plans to ask OpenAI to pay to license its content

Discussion: @sarhan_, @brianroemmele, @carnage4life, MediaNama, @ndiakopoulos, Media Voices, @newley, @stevesi, @fpmarconi and @sub8u, more at Techmeme »

Oliver Darcy / CNN:
Text messages and emails in the Dominion-Fox suit show that Fox News hosts and executives feared losing audience to Newsmax, which embraced election denialism

Discussion: The Atlantic, @jayrosen_nyu@mastodon.social, @ryandbusse, @jayrosen_nyu, @jayrosen_nyu@mastodon.social, @jayrosen_nyu, @martina, @jayrosen_nyu, @pithypacky, @gtconway3d, @timothydsnyder, The Atlantic, @timfullerton, @jemelehill, @richsignorelli, @jmhaigh, @mattderienzo and @oliverdarcy

From Techmeme:

CNBC:
Ilya Sutskever says he will leave OpenAI to work on a “personally meaningful” project; Director of Research Jakub Pachocki will become OpenAI's chief scientist

Emma Roth / The Verge:
Google announces AI-powered scam call detection on Android, a chatty new voice mode with its Gemini Live feature, and voice and video search with Google Lens

Sheena Vasani / The Verge:
Google open sources code for Project Gameface, its hands-free gaming “mouse” controlled by head movement and facial gestures, to Android developers

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