Mediagazer: Vimeo announces AI tools, coming on July 17, to automate parts of the video creation process: a script generator, a teleprompter, and a text-based video editor (Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNet)

10:15 AM ET, June 20, 2023

Top News:

How local US government officials increasingly retaliate over unfavorable coverage by revoking hometown newspapers' lucrative contracts to print public notices — When coverage upsets them, towns and counties are revoking newspapers' lucrative contracts to print public notices. — Reporting from Delhi, N.Y.

Discussion: @emoltzen, @flasqueeze, The Rural Blog, @dankennedy_nu, @karynregal, @jeremymatlowtlh, @jisraelbalderas, @jayrosen_nyu, @kdkleman, @tbridis, @aarongell, @scottbrodbeck, @jrcflatheadmemo, @joelmmathis and @rkarpel

Brooks Barnes / New York Times:

After Elemental had the worst opening in Pixar's 30 year history, some argue Disney may have weakened the Pixar brand by using its films as “just Disney+ food” — The original animated film took in $29.5 million at the box office, by far the worst opening in Pixar's three-decade history.

Discussion: @jonpyle, @johndellaporta, Variety, @tvgrimreaper, @lucas_shaw, Forbes, The Wrap, ComingSoon.net, Looper, IndieWire and SlashFilm

Marah Eakin / Wired:
How Pixar used neural style transfer, a type of AI used to make photos look like popular artworks, to animate Ember, a lead character in its movie Elemental

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Screen Rant, The Guardian, SlashFilm, PinkNews and Comic Book

Ben Smith / Semafor:

Internal presentation: ~70% of the Los Angeles Times' $232.5M projected 2023 revenue is coming from print, which executives used to explain plans to cut 70 jobs — Progressive media activists, rattled by the collapse of a generation of youth-oriented digital news outlets like Vice and BuzzFeed News …

Discussion: Semafor, @maxwelltani, @stufalk, @tvmojoe, @jamesoliphant, @beachwoodreport, @stufalk, @phil_rosenthal and @jeffjarvis

Thomas Germain / Gizmodo:

Some publishers say they have seen a sharp drop in Facebook traffic since May 2023; Echobox: the share of traffic to publisher sites from Facebook fell ~50% YoY — With no communication from the company, publishers relying on Facebook traffic are at the mercy of the inscrutable algorithm, and they say it's punishing them.

Discussion: @saptarshinath, @coswise, @thomasgermain and @mattnavarra, more at Techmeme »

Ben Smith / Semafor:

The organizers of Cannes Lions, the ad industry's top awards, tell juries to steer clear of politics and advocacy in favor of more commercially-minded campaigns — The Scoop — The organizers of the advertising industry's top awards ceremony have quietly instructed juries to steer clear …

Discussion: Ad Age and @semaforben

Alexandra Bruell / Wall Street Journal:

Black-owned media investor Group Black strikes a deal with NBCU to sell ads in Peacock shows popular among Black audiences, keeping the majority of the revenue — Some marketers have sought ways to invest more advertising dollars in Black-owned media — Comcast's NBCUniversal said Group Black …

Discussion: MediaPost, @kerrymflynn, @alexbruell and The Hollywood Reporter

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Spotify signs a deal with Trevor Noah for a weekly podcast, available on multiple platforms, set to launch later in 2023, signaling a commitment to podcasts — The weekly podcast will blend Noah's “signature humor and razor-sharp wit with his global perspective to deliver a unique …

Discussion: The Hill, Adweek, Billboard, The Wrap, Axios, Podnews, @eldsjal, Spotify, @brianstelter, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Sydney Morning Herald and Nitter

Alexandra Sternlicht / Fortune:

A look at Kick, a live streaming service launched in March 2023 with lax moderation and gambling company ties, that lets creators keep 95% of subscriber revenue — Video game streamer Tyler Blevins, known as “Ninja” — Video game streamers, who display their prowess in real time playing …

Discussion: Gizmodo, Music Ally and Deadline

Sabrina Ortiz / ZDNet:

Vimeo announces AI tools, coming on July 17, to automate parts of the video creation process: a script generator, a teleprompter, and a text-based video editor — Have you ever had a great video idea that you just never got to because of how much work was involved?

Discussion: The Verge, Gizmodo, @anjsud, Vimeo.com, Inc., @anjsud and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »

Podnews:

Spotify executive Bill Simmons calls Harry and Meghan “grifters” after their $20M deal ends with 12 episodes; sources say their staff did some of the interviews — Archewell, the podcast company owned by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, will not have its contract renewed with Spotify.

Jon Henley / The Guardian:

Report: Germany's Bild plans to replace a range of editorial jobs with AI as part of a €100M cost-cutting program expected to lead to hundreds of redundancies — Hundreds of redundancies expected as Axel Springer tells staff certain roles will ‘no longer exist as they do today’

Discussion: Telegraph

Patrick Coffee / Wall Street Journal:

Celebrities, including aging star athletes, are signing deals to put AI duplicates of themselves into ad campaigns, helping brands de-age them, among other uses — Using AI-generated duplicates, brands also benefit, using stars in ways they never could before

Discussion: @textually, @chetmitchell@masto.ai, @falcongrovepro and Shelly Palmer, more at Techmeme »

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More News:

Patrick Frater / Variety:
NBCUniversal expands its One Platform digital ad system globally and announces partnerships with Comcast's FreeWheel, the UK's Channel 4, and others

Discussion: MediaPost, Ad Age, NBCUniversal Together, Broadband TV News and Hollywood Reporter

Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
Source: Spotify plans a more expensive “Supremium” tier with HiFi audio, audiobooks, and more, launching outside the US later in 2023; Premium costs $9.99/month

Discussion: TechCrunch, AppleInsider, The Verge, Music Business Worldwide, @ashleyrcarman, 9to5Mac and BGR, more at Techmeme »

Mark Bergen / Bloomberg:
Twitter says CEO Linda Yaccarino and Elon Musk do not plan to attend the week-long Cannes Lions festival, even during the company's new “brand safety” push

Discussion: Insider, @ingridlunden, Media Play News, Ad Age, Digiday and Reuters, more at Techmeme »

Allison Braden / Charlotte Magazine:
Charlotte, North Carolina, has no shortage of local media outlets, but they are fractured and struggle with shrunken staffs, scant budgets, and a lack of power

Discussion: @charlottemag and @charlottemag

Alex Barinka / Bloomberg:
Snap hopes to use My AI chatbot interactions to personalize ads; 150M+ Snapchat users, or ~20% of MAUs, sent 10B messages to My AI since its late February debut

Discussion: @matt_mcgowan, more at Techmeme »

Rebecca Tan / Washington Post:
Sources: Meta plans tighter content rules in Vietnam, its seventh largest market, and keeps a list of officials not to be criticized, after government requests

Discussion: @davidscloud, @sarahemclaugh, @thr, @alexdukalskis, @kenroth and @rachel_chason

Earlier Picks:

Bron Maher / Press Gazette:
Podcasting company Acast launches Acast+ Access to let publishers integrate their pre-existing paywalls into Apple Podcasts and other platforms

Discussion: Media Voices and MediaPost

Jo Ellison / Financial Times:
A look at Vogue Ukraine, which is published under license from Condé Nast by Vanguard Media and has focused on Ukraine's war effort since Russia's invasion

Discussion: @ifmparis

Megan Graham / Wall Street Journal:
Duolingo says the company significantly scaled back TV ads and its DAUs growing 62% YoY to 20.3M in Q1 2023 is due in part to efficient social media marketing

Discussion: @trengriffin

Mark Caro / Local News Initiative:
Q&A with Stephanie Lulay, one of Block Club Chicago's three co-founders, as the nonprofit outlet's 29 full-time staff marked its fifth anniversary in May 2023

Discussion: @alexanderrusso, @journogeoffz, @danielkayhertz, @timafranklin, @poynter, @markjacob16 and @poynter

Rebecca Rubin / Variety:
Imax says its North American market share is up 50% from 2019, as studios fight over access amid growing demand to watch certain movies on premium large formats

Discussion: Looper, Screen Rant, Numlock News and @variety

Lucy Westcott / Committee to Protect Journalists:
CPJ helped journalists in exile, via immigration support letters and grants for necessities like rent and food, 206 times in 2022 vs. 63 times in 2020, up 227%

Discussion: Reporters Without Borders and @pressfreedom

From Techmeme:

Kif Leswing / CNBC:
Tech stocks fall after President Trump announced new global tariffs: Amazon drops as much as ~6%, Meta drops ~5%, Nvidia ~6%, Alphabet ~3%, and Microsoft ~3%

New York Times:
Sources: Amazon has put in a bid to acquire all of TikTok, but various parties involved do not appear to be taking it seriously, ahead of the April 5 deadline

The Verge:
Nintendo says the Switch 2 will cost $450 for the console or $500 for a Mario Kart World bundle on its June 5 launch; preorders in North America open on April 9

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