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 »

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 1:20 PM ET, March 17, 2023.

View the current page or another snapshot:

Who's Hiring in Media?

Output Producer, CA — AP

China Markets Correspondent, Shanghai — Reuters

Senior Assignment Editor, DC — WaPo

Breaking News Editor, Tokyo — Bloomberg

Senior Correspondent - Wealth, NY — WSJ

Reporter - Ottawa Bureau — Globe & Mail

Research Director, CA — OCBJ

Immigration Enforcement Reporter — Documented

Presque Island Reporter, ME — Bangor Daily News

Contributing Parks Ed. - SW, CA — SFGATE

AI Content Editor, WA — Outlier

Legislative Reporter, TN — Daily Memphian

Elon Musk Reporter, NY or CA — The Information

Government & Politics Editor, WA — Seattle Times

Business & GA Reporter. VT — VTDigger

Sports Reporter, WA — Everett Herald

Energy Reporter, TX — Houston Chronicle

Senior Reporter, SC — Island Packet

Trade & Climate Correspondent, DC — FT

Reporter, WI — Racine County Eye

Political Newsletter Writer, CO — The Lever

Jackson Reporter, MS — Verite

Music Editor, AZ — Phoenix New Times

Breaking News Reporter, NV — Las Vegas Sun

Fearless Reporter/Producer, IA — BPC

Reporter II - Technology, Remote — NPR

Editor, Remote US — Daily Kos

City Reporter, WA — Tacoma News Tribune

Executive Editor, OR — Lookout Local

Education & Budget Reporter, CA — Politico

Senior Writer/Editor, FL — Gulfshore Business

Media Editor, Remote — Axios

Add your company here

See Also:

Mediagazer: site main

Mediagazer River: reverse chronological Mediagazer

Mediagazer Mobile: for phones

Mediagazer Leaderboard: Mediagazer's top sources

Subscribe:

Mediagazer RSS feed

Mediagazer on X

Mediagazer on Mastodon

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:

Gleb Bryanski / Reuters:
Russia's finance minister says Russian companies have begun using bitcoin and other digital currencies in international payments to counter Western sanctions

Qwen:
Alibaba's Qwen unveils QvQ-72B-Preview, an experimental research model focused on “enhancing visual reasoning capabilities”, built upon Qwen2-VL-72B

Bloomberg:
Taiwan's FTC blocks Uber's $950M acquisition of Delivery Hero's Foodpanda, arguing it would decrease competition as their combined market share would be 90%+

Sister Sites:

Techmeme
Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web

memeorandum
What US political commentators are discussing online right now

WeSmirch
The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page