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3:00 PM ET, August 2, 2023

Mediagazer

 Top News: 
New York Times:
People, The Washington Times, MarketWatch, and others fell for an elaborate hoax that claimed Barbie dolls would be plastic free by 2030; most removed the posts  —  The false campaign by environmental activists claimed that the toy giant was launching a new line of decomposable Barbies and would stop using plastic by 2030.
Emily Longeretta / Variety:
Digital media company Factz acquires celebrity entertainment news site Hollywood Life; founder and EIC Bonnie Fuller leaves the company  —  Factz, a digital media company, acquired the celebrity entertainment news site HollywoodLife.com on Tuesday.  Founder, president and editor-in-chief Bonnie Fuller is no longer part of the company.
Discussion: The Wrap and @ckrewson
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Filing: WWE Executive Chairman Vince McMahon faced a search warrant and subpoena in July and is now on medical leave; the merger with Endeavor's UFC is on track  —  The WWE said in a footnote to a SEC filing that federal agents executed a search warrant and served a federal grand jury subpoena on McMahon July 17.
Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
PBS announces that The Atlantic EIC Jeffrey Goldberg will be the next moderator of Washington Week, which will be renamed Washington Week With The Atlantic  —  The Atlantic will co-produce the show, which will be renamed “Washington Week With The Atlantic.”  The publication will cover some of the costs and help sell sponsorships.
John Koblin / New York Times:
The Writers Guild of America told screenwriters in an email that it agreed to restart talks with Carol Lombardini, the studio negotiator, on Friday, August 4  —  A strike by writers and actors has caused nearly a complete production shutdown of scripted entertainment.
John Herrman / New York Magazine:
Three theories about how AI will change the news: replace some outlets entirely, be a helpful tool, or turn news organizations into wire services  —  Here are three theories of the case.  —  In early July, the Associated Press made a deal with OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT, to license …
Charley Piringi / The Guardian:
The Solomon Star and other newspapers in the Solomon Islands face criticism after accepting funding from China in exchange for positive coverage  —  The Solomon Star denies accusations of ‘giving away’ its independence by accepting thousands of dollars' worth of equipment
Mark Caro / Local News Initiative:
Q&A with ex-Washington Post chief Marty Baron on the need for outlets to figure out a commercially successful model by themselves, the role of owners, and more  —  In Pt. 1 of interview, Marty Baron calls on journalists to stop the nostalgia and doom-and-gloom and to focus on solving problems and making tough choices
Liz Shackleton / Deadline:
MPA: Southeast Asia added only 7K net new streaming subscribers in H1 2023, down from 7M in H2 2022, for 47.6M total; TikTok had 42% of video streaming minutes  —  Southeast Asia only added 7,000 net new SVOD subscriptions in the first half of 2023, a big slowdown from 7 million new subscribers …
Discussion: WORLD SCREEN and Variety
Helen Coster / Reuters:
Thomson Reuters reports Q2 operating profit up 111% YoY to $825M and revenue up 2% YoY to $1.6B; News revenue grew 1% to $194M  —  Thomson Reuters Corp (TRI.TO), on Wednesday reported higher sales and operating profit in the second quarter, helped by strong performance at its “Big 3” segments …
Discussion: Thomson Reuters and @jonchevreau
 
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 More News: 
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
Fiction-focused podcast company Realm, which has raised $20M, acquires kids content company Pinna and Lipstick & Vinyl, which focuses on unscripted shows
Discussion: Kidscreen
Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
A look at news avoidance, a real threat to the news business, as many once-loyal readers and viewers say some news topics have become relentlessly toxic
Pete Thamel / ESPN:
Sources: the Pac-12 commissioner presented conference members with a primarily subscription-based Apple streaming deal that would start in 2024-25
 Earlier Picks: 
Manuela Lazic / The Guardian:
How film criticism has deteriorated as studios invite influencers to screenings, critics seek to promote cinema, and expertise and writing are devalued
Reuters:
Meta begins the process to end news access on Facebook and Instagram in Canada, in response to a law forcing some companies to negotiate deals to pay publishers
Natalie Korach / The Wrap:
Internal memo: Vice Media's SVP of Global News and Entertainment, its senior director of global news operations, and Motherboard's EIC are stepping down
 

 
From Techmeme:

Bloomberg:
Polymarket says the FBI seized CEO Shayne Coplan's phone and electronics; source: the DOJ is investigating Polymarket for allegedly accepting bets from US users

Ramish Zafar / Wccftech:
AMD says it will lay off ~4% of its global staff to align “resources with our largest growth opportunities”; SEC filing: AMD had 26,000 employees at 2023's end

Bloomberg:
Sources: OpenAI plans to launch a new AI agent codenamed Operator, which can use a computer to take actions on a person's behalf, in January
 
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