Top News:
Samantha Cole / 404 Media:
Source and doc: Runway scraped thousands of videos from YouTube creators and brands, including Disney and VICE News, to train its Gen-3 AI video generation tool — A leaked internal document shows Runway's celebrated Gen-3 AI video generator collected thousands of YouTube videos and pirated movies for training data.
Discussion:
The Verge, Engadget, VentureBeat, Samantha Cole on LinkedIn, Jason Koebler on LinkedIn, Dexerto and Diane Duane, more at Techmeme »
David Gilmour / Mediaite:
The AP removed a fact check debunking the claim that JD Vance admitted he had sex with a couch; AP said the post didn't go through its standard editing process — The Associated Press removed its fact-check debunking the claim that former President Donald Trump's running mate Senator JD Vance …
Discussion:
The Verge, New York Post, Associated Press, Rolling Stone, New Republic, Defector, @bfriedmandc, @lyndonbajohnson, @mattgertz, @Haste@mastodon.social, @akivamcohen.bsky.social, Gizmodo, @leo@60228.dev, @horbinski, @ryansingel@writing.exchange, @bgrueskin, @farhip, @ericmgarcia, @mattsheffield, @illumi.meme, @mikeisaac, @nycsouthpaw, @ranimolla, @timmarchman, @lolennui.bsky.social, @kfile, @timmarchman, @paleofuture.bsky.social, @swordsjew.bsky.social, @davidmgilmour, @carlbergstrom.com, HuffPost, The one and only Goblin Queen and Boing Boing
Kendra Barnett / The Drum:
Publicis Groupe announces it will acquire Influential, the world's largest influencer agency by measure of revenue; Influential has a network of 3.5M+ creators — News of the acquisition comes just one week after the holding company posted impressive Q2 results.
Discussion:
Ad Age, Publicis Finance Services, The Media Leader, PRWeek, Adweek, MediaPost, @kerrymflynn and @martyswant
Deepa Seetharaman / Wall Street Journal:
OpenAI says it partnered with publishers including WSJ and The Atlantic to build its search engine SearchGPT; publishers can manage how their content appears — Built with input from publishers, SearchGPT will summarize real-time information on websites — OpenAI is launching a test version …
Discussion:
The Media Leader, CNN, TechCrunch, The Verge, CNBC, The Register, Engadget, New York Post, Quartz, Neowin, The Information, Search Engine Land, VentureBeat, Bloomberg, BGR, @chris@threads.net, 9to5Mac, 9to5Google, Semafor and Cointelegraph, more at Techmeme »
Jake Rudnitsky / Bloomberg:
Russia says it will throttle YouTube download speeds on computers by 70% by the end of next week, as “a consequence of the anti-Russian policy of the host” — - Download speeds to be slowed by 70% by the end of next week — YouTube one of last US social media sites available in Russia
Discussion:
Reuters and Politico, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Parvini / Associated Press:
SAG-AFTRA announces a strike starting Friday against major video game companies, including EA, after talks for a new contract broke down over AI protections — Hollywood's video game performers voted to go on strike Thursday, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage …
New York Times:
Doc: Rupert Murdoch wants to change his family trust to ensure Lachlan Murdoch stays in charge of the media empire; three other siblings are fighting the move — Rupert Murdoch, the patriarch, has moved to change the family's irrevocable trust to preserve his media businesses as a conservative force.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, @johnmcquaid@threads.net, Business Insider, Variety, The Ankler, GB News, Fortune, Newser, @jeffjarvis@mastodon.social, Sydney Morning Herald, The Independent, The Daily Beast, Quartz, Crikey, @jasjwright, @bn_thr_dn_tht, @mattsheffield, @michaelroston, @davidfolkenflik, @tomgara, @michaelroston, @michaelroston, @jimrutenberg, @billbarrowap, @farhip, The i Paper, CNN, Reuters, The Information, @timbray@cosocial.ca, The Wrap, @johnmcquaid@threads.net, Deadline, The Guardian, Sharon Klyne on LinkedIn, Charlie Middleton on LinkedIn, @philthepill.wtf, @cdarwin@c.im, @profdaly@threads.net, @annmlipton@esq.social and @GottaLaff@mastodon.social
Cagan Koc / Bloomberg:
UMG shares fell as much as 30% on Thursday, the biggest decline since company's IPO, and closed down 21%, after revenue growth disappointed investors — - The company's shareholders include billionaire Bill Ackman — Universal Music Group is the world's biggest record label
Discussion:
Billboard, Financial Times, New York Post, Reuters, Music Ally, Variety and Music Business Worldwide
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
A US judge rejects ABC News' motion to dismiss Trump's defamation suit filed after George Stephanopoulos said Trump was found liable for raping E. Jean Carroll — The litigation stems from a March 10 interview in which George Stephanopoulos, the network's star anchor, referred to a civil case brought …
Discussion:
@whetstone.bsky.social, @wendelschwab.bsky.social, Fox News, The Guardian, CNN, The Daily Beast, Deadline, The Hill and TVNewsCheck
Daysia Tolentino / NBC News:
Longtime Mr. Beast collaborator Ava Kris Tyson leaves the YouTube channel after allegations of grooming; Tyson and the alleged victim denied the accusations — Tyson and the alleged victim denied the allegations. — Ava Kris Tyson, a longtime friend and collaborator of YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson …
Discussion:
@mrbeast, @lavags, @kristyson_, TMZ.com, @dramaalert, @kristyson_, @dramaalert, @imbrainfreak, @kristyson_, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Game Rant, Dot Esports, Dot Esports, Forbes, Dexerto, Dexerto, Dexerto, Dexerto, Benzinga, @kristyson_, Deadline, Tubefilter, New York Post and PinkNews
Jorja Siemons / Bloomberg Law:
Ozy Media drops its lawsuit claiming Ben Smith used trade secrets from Ozy to create and launch Semafor — Ozy Media Inc. ended its lawsuit claiming journalist Ben Smith used trade secrets to create and launch the global news platform Semafor Inc. — Judge Frederic Block of the US District Court …
Discussion:
Business Insider and @pressgazette
Catherine Perloff / Adweek:
Six ad firms are limiting their clients' exposure to streaming ads from Pluto TV because they say Pluto exploits auctions using bid duplication to raise prices — Buyers who've pulled spend from the Paramount-owned FAST platform are concerned it's tricking their algorithms into spending too much
Discussion:
Jamison Lackey on LinkedIn, WORLD SCREEN, AdExchanger and The Streamable
Bloomberg:
Together, the NBA's deals with Disney's ESPN and Comcast's NBC are expected to generate $76B over 11 years, with Amazon paying about $1.8B annually — The National Basketball Association announced new long-term TV contract with Amazon.com Inc., spurning a last minute effort by Warner Bros. Discovery Inc …
Discussion:
Observer, MediaPost, Reuters, Tubefilter, The Hollywood Reporter, CNBC, Digital Journal, New York Times, Fortune, Washington Post, Defector, Next TV, @asharma, Media Play News, CNN, @wnba, @nbapr, Washington Post, Variety, Fox News, UPROXX, Mediaite, The Guardian, The Streamable, TVNewsCheck, Variety, NPR, The Information, USA Today, CBS News, Black America Web, The Desk, New York Post, Reuters and Sportico
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Rick Porter / The Hollywood Reporter:
The WNBA's deal with Disney, NBC, and Amazon, which is reportedly worth ~$200M/season, includes more national telecasts and an increased global reach
Discussion:
The Streamable, Media Play News, Next TV, Engadget, Fortune, UPROXX, TVNewsCheck, The Official Home of the WNBA, Cord Cutters News, The Wrap, New York Times and NPR
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
The NBA declines WBD's effort to join the set of rights packages built for Amazon, Disney, and NBCUniversal, saying WBD's proposal did not match Amazon's offer
Discussion:
The Streamable, Awful Announcing, The Wrap, Media Play News, @ourand_puck, @ourand_puck, @edludlow, @ajassy, @jimmytraina, @ourand_puck, @ourand_puck, UPROXX, Variety, Adweek, The Desk, TMZ.com, About Amazon, CNN, TVLine, The Information, Deadline and Sports Media Watch
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