Mediagazer: Some designers say AI tools have made them anxious about the YouTube thumbnail microeconomy's future; creators like MrBeast pay up to $10K for a video thumbnail (Nilesh Christopher/Rest of World)

1:05 AM ET, August 6, 2023

Top News:

Christopher Mathias / HuffPost:

Investigation: Richard Hanania, a Substack writer also published in WaPo, NYT, WSJ, and more, wrote for white supremacist outlets in the 2010s using a pen name — Hanania is championed by tech moguls and a U.S. senator, but HuffPost found he used a pen name to become an important figure in the “alt-right.”

Discussion: @amandamarcotte.bsky.social, @danprimack, @letsgomathias.bsky.social, @emilybell.bsky.social, @martinsfp, @ositanwanevu, @letsgomathias, @david_j_roth, @letsgomathias, @letsgomathias, @david_j_roth, @letsgomathias, @letsgomathias, @letsgomathias, @paulstewartii, @paulstewartii, @paulstewartii, @paulstewartii, @katzonearth, @exador23@m.ai6yr.org, @tomscocca.bsky.social, @philipncohen@mastodon.social, @acdha@thepit.social, @lolgop.bsky.social, @socprof@masto.ai, @mmasnick.bsky.social, Mediaite, @mmasnick.bsky.social, @chadloder.bsky.social, @ddayen.bsky.social, @timnitGebru@dair …, @mattsheffield@mastodon.social, @timcarvell.bsky.social, @michellegoldberg.bsky.social, @tomscocca.bsky.social, @KimPerales@toad.social, @dandrezner.bsky.social, @jacobtlevy.bsky.social, @sethcotlar.bsky.social, @alexwild@mastodon.online, @strangestrings.bsky.social, @stevesilberman@newsie.social, @jsthrill.bsky.social and @charliearchy@mstdn.social

The Wrap:

Memo: the WGA says the two sides remain too far apart after the August 4 meeting with the AMPTP, accusing the AMPTP of violating its own media blackout request — In a letter to members, WGA accuses studios of leaking details about ‘confidential’ meet-up — Hopes for renewed contract talks between …

Discussion: IGN, Los Angeles Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, @genemaddaus, Vanity Fair, Collider, @genemaddaus, TV Insider, IndieWire, Deadline, The Verge, TVLine, IGN, Bloomberg, CBS News, Puck, Deadline, Fortune, Screen Rant and Reuters

Deadline:
Thousands of WGA and SAG-AFTRA members picket NBCUniversal, after union members filed NLRB complaints saying the studio interfered with prior picketing activity

Discussion: Rolling Stone, @slack2thefuture, Fans for the WGA, Deadline, @sonyasteele@mastodon.social, Forbes, The Wrap, Variety and Los Angeles Times

Reuters:

Elon Musk says X will fund the legal bills of people who have been “unfairly treated” by their employer “due to posting or liking something on this platform” — Elon Musk has said his X social media platform will fund the legal bills of people who have been treated unfairly …

Discussion: Forbes, @srossmktg.bsky.social, @evacide@hachyderm.io, @redsteeze, @ngrossman81, @pinboard, @iamcouncil, @gokulns, @wholemarsblog, @lauraloomer, @radiofreetom and @elonmusk, more at Techmeme »

Richard Lawler / The Verge:

X delays its Ads Revenue Sharing program's payouts that were set for the week of July 31, saying the volume of people signing up “has exceeded our expectations” — In news that isn't very surprising given the recent history of Twitter, which Elon Musk is currently rebranding to X …

Discussion: @elonmusk, @helenkennedy, @carnage4life@mas.to, @rjcc, @bestofdyingtwitter …, @enriquebrgn, @mho@social.heise.de, @chrisparkx, Techlusive, Insider, @hunterwalk.com, @caseynewton.bsky.social, @rjcc.bsky.social and Daring Fireball, more at Techmeme »

Meduza.io:

Russian independent news outlet Meduza says Apple removed its flagship podcast from Apple Podcasts; source: Roskomnadzor asked Apple to remove the show — Meduza has received a notice from Apple, informing our media that our flagship podcast “What Happened” has been removed from the Apple Podcasts streaming platform.

Discussion: @Marielle_W@mastodon.social, @abarbashin, @kevinrothrock@infosec …, @abarbashin, @kmartynov, @sambreazeale2, @meduza_en and @marielle_w_, more at Techmeme »

Khadijah Khogeer / NBC News:

Journalists at Vancouver-based IndigiNews and Ontario-based The Sarnia Journal say Meta's news block is reducing their sites' visitors and hurting their outlets — Meta recently began blocking news from Instagram and Facebook in Canada in response to the Online News Act.

Discussion: @tehuti88

Canadian Association of Broadcasters:

North American broadcasters say Meta's news ban in Canada is “monopolistic” and urge lawmakers to support rules letting publishers negotiate with tech platforms — In response to Meta blocking news on Facebook and Instagram for Canadian users after the passage of Canada's Online News Act …

Discussion: New York Times, Next TV, Inside Radio and Radio & Television …

Thomas Wilde / GeekWire:

Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast will prohibit the use of AI-made illustrations, after fans spotted signs of AI art in an upcoming sourcebook — BOT or NOT? This special series explores the evolving relationship between humans and machines, examining the ways that robots …

Discussion: @onyrica, @gontijodesign, @evilcleverdog, @aarantheartist, @nevernotdm and Gizmodo

André Beganski / Decrypt:

The New York Times is fighting a gag order imposed on FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried after he shared former lover Caroline Ellison's writings with the outlet — The Gray Lady's letter follows a report that landed Bankman-Fried back in court. … The New York Times pushed back on Thursday …

Discussion: ABC News, @elonmusk, @zguz, @decryptmedia, @zguz, @zguz, Talking Biz News, The New York Times Company, Reuters, CryptoSlate, US Department of Justice, Cointelegraph, Molly White, CourtListener and CoinDesk

New York Times:

Investigation: US tech entrepreneur Neville Roy Singham, who funds left-wing outlets globally, works closely with Chinese government media to spread propaganda — The Times unraveled a financial network that stretches from Chicago to Shanghai and uses American nonprofits to push Chinese talking points worldwide.

Discussion: @jason, @fahrenthold, @justinhendrix, @kerim@zirk.us, @donaldcclarke.bsky.social, @davidfolkenflik, @pekingmike, @anneapplebaum, @michaeldweiss, @brianhioe, @rotnroll666@mastodon.social, @brainwane@social.coop and @paulg

Casey Newton / Platformer:

US state laws restricting access to porn circumvent First Amendment protections that prevent the government from deciding which content is “harmful to minors” — Anti-speech laws are spreading from states to Congress, and the future of online speech could hang in the balance

Discussion: @charliejane.bsky.social, @waxy@xoxo.zone, @caseynewton@mastodon.social, @dtgeek@mastodon.social, @carnage4life@mas.to, @drewharwell@mastodon.social, @ernie@writing.exchange, @metacurity@infosec.exchange and MediaPost

Nilesh Christopher / Rest of World:

Some designers say AI tools have made them anxious about the YouTube thumbnail microeconomy's future; creators like MrBeast pay up to $10K for a video thumbnail — Creators like MrBeast pay up to $10,000 for a single YouTube video thumbnail, but the rise of AI tools have some designers anxious about the microeconomy's future.

Discussion: @restofworld, @nilchristopher, @restofworld and @TechDesk@flipboard.social, more at Techmeme »

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 1:05 AM ET, August 6, 2023.

View the current page or another snapshot:

Who's Hiring in Media?

Consumer Tech Reporter, CA — Bloomberg

Associate Editor, Remote US — TechCrunch

Curation Editor (Contract), NY — Apple News

Business Editor, CA — TheWrap

Executive Ed. - Tech & Electronics, AZ — AspenCore

Economy & Industry Reporter, TX — Texas Tribune

ESPN FC Associate Editor, CA/CT — ESPN

Political Enterprise Editor, DC — Guardian US

Housing & Real Estate Reporter, ME — BDN

Associate Reporter - Yahoo Finance — Yahoo

Senior Editor, Remote — Raw Story

News Reporter, MA — Berkshire Eagle

Freelance Contributor, FL — Miami New Times

Senior Reporter, CA — Pensions & Investments

Managing Editor - State, CT — CTInsider

Sr. VP & Chief Content Officer, OR — OPB

Writer - Streaming (Temporary), GA — CNN

Data Graphics Reporter, CA — SF Standard

Data Reporter, TX — Houston Business Journal

Town Reporter, CT — The Day

Weekend Audience Editor, VA — Politico

Managing Editor, FL — HRDC

Business Reporter, WA — Seattle Times

Associate Editor, NY — Beer Marketer's Insights

Freelance Reporter, NC — PBS Charlotte

Crypto/Markets Reporter - Europe — The Block

Education & Family Reporter, OR — Lookout Local

Red Sox Reporter, MA — Boston Globe

Cockburn Editor, DC — The Spectator

Investigative Reporter, NC — Charlotte Observer

Writer - Women's Soccer, Remote US — The Athletic

Senior IP Correspondent, London — MLex

Computational Journalist, NY — ProPublica

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:

The Conversation:
A comparison of NYT headlines about the ongoing Yemen and Ukraine wars finds extensive biases in the scale and tone of coverage, aligning with US foreign policy

Discussion: @caitoz, @caitoz, @caitoz, @bmarchetich and @markamesexiled

David Sharman / HoldtheFrontPage:
With online page views declining, UK-based Reach launches a voluntary redundancy scheme for editorial staff after undertaking multiple rounds of cuts in H1 2023

Joe Amditis / Center for Cooperative Media:
A look at LocalLens, a completely AI-driven website generating coverage of local government whose stated goal is to serve as a starting point for journalists

Discussion: @_jeffpierce, @jsamditis, @spsullivan, @spsullivan, @jozsefmeszaros.bsky.social, @ndiakopoulos and Politico

Luke Bouma / Cord Cutters News:
Fubo reports Q2 revenue up 41% YoY to $312.7M, net loss down 43% YoY to $54.2M, and paid subscribers up 23% YoY but down 9% QoQ to 1.17M

Discussion: Fubo, Streaming Better, ir.fubo.tv, The Streamable, The Desk and MediaPost

Jennifer Maas / Variety:
AMC Networks reports Q2 net revenue fell 8% YoY to $679M and adjusted operating income fell 9.6% YoY to $177M; streaming subscribers fell by 500K from Q1 to 11M

Discussion: Streaming Better, Media Play News, The Streamable, The Wrap, The Desk, Deadline, Next TV, Associated Press, The Hollywood Reporter, Advanced Television and Kidscreen

Earlier Picks:

Wall Street Journal:
Sources: private equity firm KKR is in advanced talks to acquire Simon & Schuster from Paramount for ~$1.65B; a judge blocked Penguin Random House's bid in 2022

Discussion: Reuters, Financial Times, @geekaren@mstdn.social, The Wrap, New York Times, Publishers Weekly, 24/7 Wall St. and The Bookseller, more at Techmeme »

Pew Research Center:
The top 20 NPR-affiliated public radio stations had an average total weekly listenership of ~8M in 2022, down 10% YoY; NPR's 2022 revenue grew 8% YoY to $316.7M

Discussion: Jacobs Media Strategies

Bobby Allyn / NPR:
Background actors describe studios scanning their bodies and worrying over the lack of control of their digital likenesses, a key issue in the SAG-AFTRA strike

Discussion: The A.V. Club, New York Times, ComingSoon.net, Screen Rant, Comic Book, Deadline, @kagan@wandering.shop, @phillewis.bsky.social, @baldur@toot.cafe, IGN, Hollywood Reporter, Variety and SlashFilm

Matthew Keys / The Desk:
Fox Corp defends its effort to renew the license of a Philadelphia TV station, after a group asked the FCC to block the renewal due to Fox News' legal issues

Discussion: @thedeskdotnet, Next TV, Mediaite, The Daily Beast, @researchbuzz@researchbuzz … and Deadline

Janet Lorin / Bloomberg:
Texas A&M agrees to pay Black journalist Kathleen McElroy $1M to settle legal claims over her botched hiring; the case led to the resignation of A&M's president

From Techmeme:

Richard Spencer / The Times:
DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng has become a superstar in China with tourism around his origin story, as DeepSeek proves an unexpected boon for President Xi

Rachel Metz / Bloomberg:
Google's Gemma 3 and Cohere's Command A, which require just one or two Nvidia AI chips to run, hint at an industry-wide push for more efficient AI software

Francisco Rodrigues / CoinDesk:
21Shares plans to liquidate two actively managed bitcoin and ether futures ETFs, following $1.66B in outflows from US-listed spot bitcoin ETFs this month

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