Mediagazer: Sources: top X executives hinted to Interpublic and other ad firms that not spending on X could lead to legal woes, due to X's lawsuit against some advertisers (Suzanne Vranica/Wall Street Journal)

Oliver Darcy / Status:

40 news organizations signed a letter delivered to the White House this week, asking the White House to lift its AP ban immediately in support of press freedom — News outlets across the political spectrum have united behind the AP, signing a WHCA-backed letter urging the White House …

Discussion: @susangardner.bsky.social, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, @brianstelter, The Wrap, @mattgoerzen.bsky.social, @sharonwaxman.bsky.social, @chathamharrison.bsky.social, @alansunderland.com, @oliverdarcy.bsky.social, @charliebeckett.bsky.social, The Atlantic, RADIO ONLINE, The Rio Times, Inside Radio and Deadline

Suzanne Vranica / Wall Street Journal:

Sources: top X executives hinted to Interpublic and other ad firms that not spending on X could lead to legal woes, due to X's lawsuit against some advertisers — Interpublic recently signed an advertising agreement with the platform; other agencies are also in negotiations

Discussion: @wsjbusiness, Sarah Thompson on LinkedIn, Arielle Garcia on LinkedIn, @harrymccracken.com, @ryanbarwick, @proggrrl.bsky.social, @rani.bsky.social, @jtoonkel, @whetmoser.com, @chronotope.aramzs.xyz, @pppgrifter.bsky.social and @baymama.bsky.social, more at Techmeme »

Georg Szalai / The Hollywood Reporter:

TelevisaUnivision reports Q4 revenue down 1% YoY to $1.3B, operating expenses flat at $892M, and says its DTC business generated $1B in annual revenue — “2024 was a year of continued momentum for TelevisaUnivision, and my early days at the helm have reinforced the tremendous opportunity ahead of us," says CEO Daniel Alegre.

Discussion: Deadline and TelevisaUnivision

Financial Times:

Mathias Döpfner calls Trump's Politico attacks a “misunderstanding” and says many Europeans had “intentionally misunderstood” JD Vance's speech in Munich — Mathias Döpfner says many Europeans had ‘intentionally misunderstood’ the US vice-president's speech that caused widespread horror

Discussion: @shakeelhashim and @jonworth.eu

Abid Rahman / The Hollywood Reporter:

MPA: Max added 1.4M subscribers in Q4 2024 in Southeast Asia, capturing 26% of net customer additions for streaming services, while Netflix accounted for 48% — A new report from Media Partners Asia reveals that Warner Bros. Discovery's streamer added 1.4 million subscribers in Q4 2024 in five key SEA markets.

Discussion: Deadline and Variety

PEN America:

The DOD's schools for children in US military families are flagging some books, including Vance's Hillbilly Elegy, for “compliance review” after Trump's EOs — Oscar winner Julianne Moore's Freckleface Strawberry, a picture book about a redhead who learns to live with her freckles …

Discussion: @kma500@sfba.social, @penamerica.bsky.social, Cele|bitchy, Mock Paper Scissors and The Forward

Lawrence Bonk / Engadget:

Twitch rolls out changes to its violation enforcement system: minor infractions expire after 90 days and serious ones, like hateful conduct, in one or two years — Depending on severity, this will take 90 days to two years. — Twitch has rolled out a number of changes to its violation enforcement system.

Discussion: Game Rant, Tech Times, Dexerto and Twitch Safety Center, more at Techmeme »

Nellie Andreeva / Deadline:

Apple says Severance has become the most-viewed series on Apple TV+ globally, surpassing Ted Lasso; the series also helped bump subscription signups in January — According to the streamer, Severance has broken Apple TV+ records, launching as the platform's #1 series in history based on number …

Discussion: Inverse, Dexerto, @benstiller.redhour.com, @carlquintanilla.bsky.social, BGR, Comic Book, Forbes, 9to5Mac, Screen Rant and Just Jared

Deadline:

The BBC added a clarification to its documentary Gaza: How To Survive a Warzone and apologized, after failing to declare the narrator was a Hamas leader's son — The BBC “had not been informed of this information” by the independent producers behind the doc, the corporation added …

Discussion: One America News Network, The Guardian and New York Post

Matt Tamanini / The Streamable:

FanDuel Sports, the renamed regional sports network that succeeded Bally Sports, is now available on Amazon Prime Video, offering channels for $19.99/month — After well over a year, the in-market sports streaming service is finally available through Amazon's streaming hub.

Discussion: TVNewsCheck, Business Wire, Barrett Media, Awful Announcing, Bloomberg, The TV Answer Man! and Cord Cutters News

Winston Cho / The Hollywood Reporter:

A US federal judge declined to dismiss an investor lawsuit alleging Bob Chapek aimed to hide Disney+ costs and make forecasts it would be profitable by 2024 — A judge declined to dismiss a lawsuit from investors who claimed former CEO Bob Chapek aimed to hide Disney+ costs and make forecasts that it would be profitable by 2024.

Discussion: TVNewsCheck

Austin American-Statesman:

Gannett signs a deal to sell the Austin American-Statesman and related publications to Hearst Corporation; the sale is expected to close by March 31 — American-Statesman staffAustin American-Statesman — Gannett Co. has signed an asset purchase agreement with Hearst Corp. to divest …

Discussion: Gannett Co., Inc., TVNewsCheck, @mcpli.bsky.social, mikemcguff.com, @caseyseiler.bsky.social, Houston Business Journal, @abigailrosenthal.bsky.social, @jswatz.bsky.social and MediaPost

Bron Maher / Press Gazette:

ABC: 50%+ of 164 audited UK magazines saw their print circulation decline by 10%+ in 2024; 13 increased their print circulation, with Homes & Gardens up 8% — More than half of the magazines audited by ABC saw their print circulation decline by 10% or more in 2024, the latest data show.

Discussion: Press Gazette and ABC

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette: ABC: 55% of the combined 2024 digital magazine circulation in the UK came from “all you can read” services like Apple News+, Kindle Unlimited, and Readly