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Source: more than 75,000 Washington Post digital subscribers have cancelled their subscriptions following Jeff Bezos' overhaul of the paper's opinion section — More than 75,000 digital subscribers to The Washington Post have cancelled since its owner, billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Breitbart, BBC, Links I Would Gchat …, Stephan A. Schwartz on LinkedIn, @ctreese2.bsky.social, Slate, ZeroHedge News, Jacobin, Mock Paper Scissors, The Atlantic, The Wrap, @jayrosen.bsky.social, @sleavenworth.bsky.social, @ambientvisions.bsky.social, The National Pulse, New York Post, @kjephd.bsky.social, TVNewsCheck, @qitty1.bsky.social, Celeste Headlee on LinkedIn, @proddev.bsky.social, @timkarr.bsky.social, The Hill, @hammbear2024.bsky.social, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, @picardonhealth.bsky.social, @poohsdaddy.bsky.social, @amandabecker.bsky.social, @npr.org, @davidfolkenflik.bsky.social, @davidfolkenflik.bsky.social, Diane Ravitch's blog, Cafe Hayek, Cele|bitchy, @jeffbezos and Talking Biz News
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Trump says he had dinner with Jeff Bezos on February 26, the day Bezos announced that WaPo's opinion pages would focus on personal liberties and free markets
Discussion:
The Atlantic, @mehdirhasan.bsky.social, @shelleybwoke.bsky.social, @rewhan.bsky.social, @screw-reality.bsky.social, @cemck.bsky.social, @wagatwe.com, The Independent, The Wrap, American Prospect, Daily Mail, The Washington Free Beacon, Nieman Lab, @maxwelltani and Columbia Journalism Review


Sources: VOA's parent opened probes into VOA journalists for reporting on criticism of Trump or for comments seen as critical; Steve Herman was placed on leave — The broadcaster placed a longtime journalist on leave amid growing concerns about its editorial independence.
Discussion:
NPR, @tomaskenn, James Bruno on LinkedIn, @acarvin.bsky.social, @gentlegardener@mastodon.scot, @louishenwood.bsky.social, @matthewfraser.bsky.social, @kaedotcom, @mho@social.heise.de, @mareikeohlberg.bsky.social, Raw Story, @lizzieohreally.bsky.social, @noupside.bsky.social, @noupside.bsky.social, @kairyssdal.bsky.social, @pattyshea.bsky.social, @taniel.bsky.social, @ampersine@mastodon.online, @mattmihaly.com, @davidenrich.bsky.social, The Daily Signal, @leahmcelrath.bsky.social and Voice of America


Pinterest says it is building tools to label AI-generated or AI-altered content, amid an AI slop onslaught from SEO spammers that is making the site less useful — “Is this platform dead?” — Pinterest, the web's de facto mood board, has long been one of the best places for finding …


A TASS journalist gained access to Trump's meeting with Zelensky, even as AP and Reuters were barred; the White House says he was unauthorized and escorted out — A member of Russia's state-owned news agency gained access to the Oval Office on Friday to cover President Trump's sit …
Discussion:
HuffPost, The Bulwark, Reuters, The Kyiv Independent, Raw Story, Letters from an American, Le Monde, @nedprice, @bruce_arthur, @nanditab1, @altnatsecagency, @rodericka, Mock Paper Scissors, The Hill, New York Post, @ukaussiep.bsky.social, Daily Mail, @passantino.bsky.social, @briantylercohen.bsky.social, @marymcnamara.bsky.social, Politico, The Post Millennial, New Republic, @drewharwell.com, The Wrap, Mediaite, Baltimore Sun, @justinbaragona.bsky.social, @helenkennedy.bsky.social, @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social and Grabien


After AP was banned, some WH correspondents floated the idea of boycotting covering Trump events in protest, but members of TV networks pushed back on the idea — When the White House handpicks reporters to cover the president, the American public suffers. — Kim Jong Un stared blankly as I spoke.


LAT's De Los assistant editor Paloma Esquivel resigns, saying its leadership failed to address longstanding HR complaints against managing editor Hector Becerra — In a message on the Times' internal Slack Friday, Paloma Esquivel says she hopes the newsroom becomes a place where journalists …
Discussion:
@maryscottoconnor.com and New York Times


Golden Globes President Helen Hoehne tells about 50 paid voting members that they will no longer get salaries; they'll be offered severance of $102,500 — President Helen Hoehne informed an estimated 50 members that they'd receive severance for their deal as the awards show brand aims …
Discussion:
@mattbelloni, Business Insider, The Wrap, Los Angeles Times, Deadline and Variety


NBC News' digital newsroom union and its ~300 members, represented by the NewsGuild of NY, reach a tentative contract deal, its first since forming in 2019 — The union, first formed in 2019, is set to vote on a provisional deal covering issues of wages, layoffs and forced arbitration on Tuesday.
Discussion:
@nbcnewsguild, @kalhanr, @joemurph, @carlinmccarthy, Fox Business, The NewsGuild and @newsguild.org


Connected TV ad platform MNTN files for a US IPO; the company, which has actor Ryan Reynolds as chief creative officer, raised a $119M Series D in 2021 — MNTN Inc., a connected TV advertising platform that counts Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds as its chief creative officer …
Discussion:
Reuters


Amazon says it has cut “a small number” of jobs at its Wondery podcast unit; Wondery closed its operations in Brazil and Mexico earlier in February — Amazon.com (AMZN.O) cut “a small number” of jobs at its Wondery podcast unit, known for “Dr. Death” and “Business Wars,” …


NBCU Chair Cesar Conde says the company will launch a “mobile-first” news outlet in Q4 2025, featuring short- and long-form videos from NBC News talent and more — NBCUniversal is working on what its top news executive called a “mobile-first” news outlet that it expects to launch in the fourth quarter of this year.
Discussion:
Broadband TV News, Semafor, Adweek, NewscastStudio and Deadline


Sources: in a tense meeting with journalists, Pentagon Press Secretary Sean Parnell said he'll end the travel pool and implied reporters “trash the warfighter” — Inside a tense off-the-record meeting, the Pentagon's new press chief confronted reporters and indicated they will do away …
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The US political press has not dealt with autocrats working this hard to seize power; trading soft coverage for access could fail media audiences and democracy
Discussion:
MSNBC, @joeperticone, @fritschner, @dwass, @andrewfeinberg, @svdate, @brianstelter, @lizskalka, @arifleischer, Daily Kos, @afrakroon.bsky.social and @blueangie.bsky.social


FCC Chair Brendan Carr says the Skydance-Paramount merger review is far from finished and defends his solicitation of comments on a complaint about 60 Minutes — FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said that the agency's review of the proposed Skydance-Paramount Global merger is far from finished …