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An interview with Paul Krugman on leaving the NYT in 2024 after his newsletter was killed and editing of his column “became extremely intrusive”, Substack, more — The paper wanted to take away his newsletter or make him write less frequently, he says.
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Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth wins Senate confirmation to become Donald Trump's defense secretary, after Vice President JD Vance cast a tie-breaking vote — Pete Hegseth overcame allegations of sexual assault, public drunkenness and questions of financial mismanagement at two veterans' groups …
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Nielsen plans to stop selling its TV ratings product that solely uses consumer panels in Q4 2025, moving to a tool combining panels with smart-TV data and more — The dominant ratings provider hopes to fend off competitors by pivoting to a bundle that combines its consumer panels with data …
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The Desk and @tvgrimreaper

Amended FEC filings: WH Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's failed 2022 congressional campaign owes $300K+ in unpaid debts that weren't initially disclosed — On Thursday, Karoline Leavitt's failed congressional campaign amended every FEC filing it had ever made to reveal that she failed …
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A look at documentaries at Sundance: indie films still struggle to get distribution, political topics remain crucial despite a challenging market, and more — It's no secret that corporations like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple have lost their appetite for current event documentaries that tackle politics.
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Addie Morfoot on LinkedIn, Hyperallergic, Deadline, Associated Press and The Hollywood Reporter
Jorge Mercado / Pacific Coast Business Times:
How the assets of the Santa Barbara News Press, which closed after bankruptcy in 2023, ended up with nonprofit NEWSWELL, as the nonprofit plans a relaunch — It has been a year and a half since the Santa Barbara News Press, the former longest running daily newspaper in Southern California …

Fubo raises prices on all of its English-language plans for new customers; its least expensive offering, its Essential plan, is now $85/month — Despite launching less than two months ago, Fubo is raising the price of its new Essential package alongside those of its other plans.
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Sources: Blackstone-backed IDG nears a deal to sell Foundry, which runs outlets like PCWorld and Macworld, to private equity firm Regent — The sources wished to remain anonymous because the deal is not yet public. — Terms of the agreement could not be determined.
Discussion:
@harrymccracken.com and @harrymccracken@mastodon …

ShopMy, which lets brands run influencer marketing efforts, raised a $77.5M Series B led by Bessemer and Bain, sources say at a $410M valuation vs. $80M in 2024 — Tech firms that speed up and automate brands' partnerships with social-media influencers are becoming hot commodities as advertisers scramble to reach consumers online

Flip, which lets shoppers share video reviews and earn cash based on engagement, launches a creator fund that grants up to $100M of equity over 5+ years — Flip is a social commerce app that lets shoppers become creators. They can share honest reviews and earn cash based on engagement on the platform.

Similarweb: RedNote's DAUs in the US fell by 54% on January 20 when the TikTok ban was put on hold, after reaching a high of 32.5M DAUs on the day of the ban — In the days leading up to the TikTok ban in the U.S. on Sunday, U.S. users flooded the Chinese app RedNote, which offered …

Meta begins a “limited, early test” of ads in Threads in the US and Japan, with the goal of making the ads “as interesting as organic content” — Meta's X rival Threads said Friday that it is now testing ads with select brands in the U.S. and Japan.
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