Mediagazer: Amazon stops selling newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and in print; some titles, including USA Today, are still available via Kindle Unlimited (Laura Hazard Owen/Nieman Lab)

1:20 PM ET, March 17, 2023

Top News:

Sara Fischer / Axios:

YouTube lifts restrictions, imposed after the January 6 insurrection, on Trump's channel after evaluating the “continued risk of real-world violence” — YouTube will lift its restrictions on former President Trump's channel Friday, a spokesperson confirmed to Axios.

Emily Baker-White / Forbes:

Sources: the FBI and DOJ are investigating what led TikTok's parent company ByteDance to use the app to surveil US journalists; source: ByteDance was subpoenaed — Months before the U.S. government demanded ByteDance divest from TikTok, the Department Of Justice's Criminal Division subpoenaed …

Discussion: New York Times, Engadget, Wall Street Journal, @nfscweizhen, @byron_wan, @ericjhonsa, @gabewildau, @ebakerwhite, @badams, @iblametom, @alexrkonrad, TechCrunch, Quartz, Digital Music News, Bloomberg and NPR, more at Techmeme »

Amanda Silberling / TechCrunch:

In a first for a music streaming service, Bandcamp employees form a union called Bandcamp United, which will include 62 people, and ask for an NLRB election — U.S. employees at Bandcamp, an online audio distributor, have announced their formation of a union.

Discussion: Rolling Stone, Engadget, @modernistwitch, @mountain_goats, @rollingstone, Pitchfork, Bloomberg and Billboard

Sherrell Dorsey / The Plug:

Founder Sherrell Dorsey announces that The Plug, a news outlet focused on Black tech news and research, is closing — Dear readers, subscribers, and long-time supporters— Today is the last day our team will serve you all through The Plug. — We're closing our doors, but never abandoning our convictions.

Discussion: @sheistyler, @ingridriley, @lolitataub, @kristyt, @deongordon, @jewelmelanie, @culturebanx, @melissa_kimble and @rafat

Kris Holt / Engadget:

Meta rolls out Verified in the US for $12/month on web or $15 on iOS/Android, with a blue badge, proactive impersonation protection, and direct customer support — Meta's paid verification program is available in the US starting today, CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Instagram channel.

Discussion: TechCrunch and The Verge, more at Techmeme »

Laura Hazard Owen / Nieman Lab:

Amazon stops selling newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and in print; some titles, including USA Today, are still available via Kindle Unlimited — It doesn't matter whether they're for your Kindle or in print — starting this week, Amazon will no longer sell print or digital newspaper and magazine subscriptions.

Discussion: The Verge, Engadget, Good e-Reader, Beyond Search, @frasernelson, @laurahazardowen, @niemanlab, Amazon.com. Spend less. Smile …, Fortune, Press Gazette and @bloodravenlib@mas.to, more at Techmeme »

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:

An interview with Mother Jones CEO Monika Bauerlein on reader donations, paywalls, and quality over quantity; readers donated 74% of its $16.8M FY 2021 revenue — “Smart, fearless journalism” is the tagline of American investigative news outlet Mother Jones - but would this mission …

Discussion: @pressgazette, @charliebeckett, @pressgazette and Mother Jones

New York Times:

Sources: Twitter explored licensing music rights from three major labels, but negotiations stalled after Musk's takeover and were abandoned due to costs — Twitter didn't move forward with the music licensing deals because of costs, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Discussion: Insider, Wall Street Journal and @kateconger, more at Techmeme »

Editor and Publisher:

McClatchy promotes Robyn Tomlin to Chief News Officer, effective immediately; Tomlin previously served as VP for local news — Today McClatchy, one of the largest media companies in the United States, announced the promotion of Robyn Tomlin to chief news officer, effective immediately.

Discussion: Raleigh News & Observer

Anjan Sundaram / Columbia Journalism Review:

Book adaptation: a reporter chronicles his perilous road trip through the Central African Republic to document the war between the government and rebels — A reporter's perilous trip to document war in the Central African Republic One evening in the fall of 2013, I was at home …

Discussion: @cjr and @anjansun

Patrick McGee / Financial Times:

Q&A with Dina Srinivasan, author of The Antitrust Case Against Facebook, on Meta and Google's ad duopoly, the US antitrust cases, concerns about Apple, and more — In February 2019, Dina Srinivasan, then an independent scholar, published an academic paper entitled ‘The Antitrust Case Against Facebook’ …

Discussion: @rasmus_kleis, @paultang, @markscott82, @anshublog, @patrickmcgee_, @dinasrinivasan and @spignal

Taylor Hatmaker / TechCrunch:

Twitch CEO Emmett Shear steps down after 16 years at the company, replaced by president Dan Clancy, effective immediately; Shear is a Justin.tv co-founder — After serving as its chief executive for more than a decade, Twitch CEO Emmett Shear will take a step back at the company.

Discussion: Insider, Twitch Blog, Variety, @pocketyoutube, @chasejustchase, @dieselttv, @chilledchaos, @rhymestyle, Tubefilter, Deadline, IGN, New York Times and The Information, more at Techmeme »

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Technology Companies Editor, CA — WaPo

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Reporter, Remote US — TechCrunch

Story Editor - Graphics, NY — NYT

Part-time Editor, Remote — Techmeme

Freelance News Reporter, London — Newsweek

Arts & Entertainment Editor, MA — Boston Globe

Assignment Editor, CT — NBCUniversal

Deputy Washington Editor, DC — NPR

Copy Editor, Remote US — ProPublica

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Staff Writer, MI — Watershed Voice

Food Reporter, CA — SF Standard

Staff Writer, NV — Las Vegas Weekly

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Politics Reporter, Brussels — Politico

Managing Ed. - News, Remote US — The Athletic

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More News:

Patricia Nilsson / Financial Times:
Private equity firm Ethical Capital Partners acquires Pornhub owner MindGeek, which had $460M in 2018 revenue and sources say profit margins near 50% at times

Discussion: Variety, Axios, The Guardian, MindGeek, @goldman, @mikestabile, @internetmaggie, @daatdarling, @pkedrosky, @mroliverbarnes, Al Jazeera, The Verge, Deadline, TechCrunch and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Brian Morrissey / The Rebooting:
Digital media companies are shifting from ad-driven scale models into something smaller, which should benefit publishers that have flexible models and low costs

Discussion: @seangriffey, @niemanlab, @jbenton, @simonowens@newsie.social, Variety, Digiday and Simon Owens's Media Newsletter

Aisha Malik / TechCrunch:
YouTube raises YouTube TV's price by $8 to $72.99/month, citing a rise in “content costs”, effective for new users on March 16 and existing users on April 18

Discussion: The Streamable, MediaPost, CNN, Engadget, @jasonromano, Broadband TV News, Media Play News, @sophaskins, @metspolice, @anthony, @tvgrimreaper, @glynmoody, @anthony, TVLine, The Desk, Awful Announcing, CNET, Variety, Deadline, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Droid Life and 9to5Google

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Elliot Resnick, a former editor of The Jewish Press, faces charges of civil disorder, impeding police officers, and misdemeanors at the US Capitol on January 6

Discussion: The Guardian, New York Post, UPI, @egavactip, @kyledcheney, New York Daily News, Associated Press, abc7NY and FBI

Georg Szalai / The Hollywood Reporter:
Paramount+ plans to launch Basic, its first mobile-only plan, on April 18, for ~$2.82/month or ~$25.36/year in Brazil and ~$4.18/month or ~$37.48/year in Mexico

Discussion: MediaPost, Deadline, @paramountco, The Streamable, Broadband TV News, Variety, Media Play News, WORLD SCREEN and Advanced Television

Earlier Picks:

Roger Vincent / Los Angeles Times:
Fox Corp submits plans for a $1.5B expansion of the historic Fox Studio Lot, including adding nine soundstages, for a total of 24, as streaming drives demand

Discussion: @sammy_roth, The Wrap, Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter

Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
Afternoon shows on Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN rate higher than the networks' prime-time shows, as big stars move on, core audiences turn to streaming, and more

Discussion: @nytimesbusiness, @thebeatwithari, @joshkraushaar, @kellycnbc and @brianstelter

Variety:
A survey of 338 US Fox News viewers: 21% trust the channel less due to the testimony and texts from the Dominion lawsuit and 9% say they watch the network less

Charlotte Klein / @charlottetklein:
Axios fires Tampa Bay-based reporter Ben Montgomery after he replied to an email about a Governor DeSantis event, “This is propaganda, not a press release.”

Discussion: Politico, @alexlanfran, Washington Post, @jake_bernstein, Poynter, Talking Points Memo, @davidphinney, @jamessurowiecki, @pboothmedia, @rickjnewman, @zackkopplin, @getwired, @lollardfish, @stphnmaher, @unitedems2022, @brooklynmarie, @jamessurowiecki, @sjdemas, @lemieuxlgm, @gangrey, @ruthbenghiat, @mattfriedmannj, @laurachapin, @ijbailey, @katzonearth, @michaelcdeibert, @froomkin, Fox News, @poynter, @kattenbarge, @nytliz, @deanbaker13, @lizzieohreally, @rachelbitecofer, @rachelbitecofer, @ruthbenghiat, @tiffanydcross, @joshtpm, @colmorrisdavis, @greta, @tomscocca, @hunterw, @gregggonsalves, @hunterw, @justingeorge, @tommytomlinson, The Hill, @schwarz, @brianbeutler, @imillhiser, @bydavidgardner, @kvanvalkenburg, @oliverdarcy, @lindyli, @moorehn, @brettarends, @natemonroetu, @johnmcquaid@journa.host, @alexkoppelman, @what46hasdone, @lavern_spicer, @vabvox, @lighttweeting, @hunterw, @hunterw, @hunterw, @laurarbelin, @bfriedmandc, @dellcam, @jeffreyasachs, @ashtonpittman, @jeffjarvis, @cjciaramella, @dcwoodruff, @rcohen, @donmoyn, @thor_benson, @donmoyn, @tvietor08, @mpdillon, @ijbailey, @lansdallius, @thesarahkelly, @thesarahkelly, @thesarahkelly, @bfriedmandc, @_cingraham, @wajahatali, @mcbyrne, @bruce_arthur, @hemantmehta, @samthielman, @eric_jotkoff, @eric_jotkoff, @3fecta, @natalieweiner, @chuckrossdc, @samyoungman, @thesarahkelly, @lukeoneil47, @christinapushaw, @simonhernandez, @curtishouck, @kept_simple, @espiers, @theseantcollins, @russbengtson, @ggreenwald, @mobute, @helenkennedy, @theinsneider, @domdifurio, @karlbode, @anandwrites, @carigervin, @jeffpearlman, @sayssimonson, @christinapushaw, @bryandgriffin, @mattdpearce, @justin_hart, New York Post, @dangillmor@mastodon.social, Breitbart, Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, The Desk, Florida Politics, The Wrap, HuffPost, Mediaite and @kevinrns@mstdn.social

From Techmeme:

Connor Jones / The Register:
UnitedHealth says the February ransomware attack on Change Healthcare cost the company $872M in Q1; another ransomware group appears to be extorting the company

Financial Times:
Microsoft invests $1.5B in Abu Dhabi-based AI startup G42 for a minority stake, after G42 severed ties with Chinese suppliers; Brad Smith will join G42's board

Raphael Satter / Reuters:
The Open Source Security Foundation and the OpenJS Foundation say the attempt to insert a secret backdoor into XZ Utils “may not be an isolated incident”

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