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CPJ says police have assaulted “more than 20” journalists, including by less-lethal projectiles, since LA protests began on June 6, echoing the 2020 US protests — Reporters say they were struck with less-lethal rounds fired by law enforcement. Advocates worry it will inhibit vital journalism.
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First Amendment Coalition, BBC, The Guardian, USA Today, The Guardian, Reporters Without Borders, Committee to Protect …, Mediaweek, @scottnover.bsky.social, @yousefbaig.bsky.social, @mekkaokereke@hachyderm.io, @scottnover.bsky.social, @abbeyr28.bsky.social, @tracyjan.bsky.social, @hbwhbwhbw.bsky.social, MediaPost, Committee to Protect …, PetaPixel, Grabien, NBC News, CBS News, The Guardian and r/Journalism

Disney closes its deal with Comcast to buy out NBCUniversal's 33% stake in Hulu, paying an additional $439M, after agreeing in 2023 to pay $8.61B — Disney agreed to buy Comcast's 33 percent stake in Hulu in 2023, after an extended appraisal process, the deal is finally set to close.
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Variety, Reuters, Proactive, The A.V. Club, @thedclblog, @mattbelloni, @aagave, MarketWatch, @loudmouthjulia, @kathycook.bsky.social, Sports Business Journal, Axios, Los Angeles Times, CNBC, Wall Street Journal, Deadline, Cord Cutters News, The Wrap, The Information, TVNewsCheck, Benzinga, Philadelphia Business Journal and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

WPP Media expects ad revenue from user-generated content and platforms like YouTube and TikTok to surpass that from traditional media for the first time in 2025 — User-generated material to surpass advertising income from professional media amid change in viewing habits
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, VideoWeek and campaignlive.co.uk, more at Techmeme »

Q&A with Maggie Haberman about covering Trump's second term, how the media is separating “the signal from the noise”, Trump's threats, Biden's decline, and more — The New York Times' stalwart Trump chronicler, who's out this week with a new afterword to Confidence Man …
Discussion:
@nataliekorach

The Orlando Sentinel got a cease-and-desist from Florida's DCF that claims its reporter coerced families for a story on a foundation tied to Gov. DeSantis' wife — Florida's child welfare agency sent a letter to a Florida newspaper telling it to “cease and desist” its reporting on foster families …
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Orlando Sentinel, Florida Politics, @joekrulder.bsky.social, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, @dangillmor@mastodon.social, @nytpitchbot.bsky.social, @zuma888.bsky.social, @michaelsderby.bsky.social, @willbunch.bsky.social, @jestastrophy.bsky.social, @skippyoz.bsky.social, @anthonylfisher.bsky.social, @SteveThompson@mastodon.social, @mmasnick.bsky.social, Alternet.org, Raw Story and Mediaite

CPB CEO Patricia Harrison says three board members that President Trump tried to fire in April remain directors, after a US judge recognizes CPB's independence — Correction: A previous version of this article gave incorrect names of the fired CPB board members. They are Laura Ross, Diane Kaplan and Thomas Rothman.
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Current, CPB, Inside Radio, TV Tech, Reuters, Radio Ink, Deadline, Radio & Television … and Diane Ravitch's blog

SAG-AFTRA reaches a tentative deal with Activision, EA, Epic, Take-Two, and other game companies on the Interactive Media Contract, after months of strikes — The video game actors' strike may soon come to an end. — The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists …

A UK High Court judge dismisses green energy industrialist Dale Vince's data protection lawsuit against Daily Mail publisher ANL — Green energy industrialist Dale Vince's High Court data protection claim against the publisher of the Daily Mail has been thrown out by a judge.
Discussion:
Irish News

Roblox hires Paramount's Naveen Chopra as CFO starting June 30; Chopra previously held senior roles at Amazon and served as CFO at Pandora and TiVo — Samsung's Galaxy S25 Edge Shows the Limits of Impressively Thin Phones … Explainers
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PocketGamer.biz, Variety, Reuters, Business Wire, TVNewsCheck, The Information, Reuters, Deadline, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Tech in Asia and Media Play News

WBD splits into two publicly traded companies: Global Networks, with CNN and other cable channels, and Streaming & Studios, with HBO Max and its studio business — The entertainment company is contending with a hefty debt load and a sagging stock price
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WBD says David Zaslav will be CEO of the new Streaming & Studios business, and current WBD CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels will become CEO of the Global Networks business
Discussion:
Broadband TV News, The Verge, Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc., Digital Journal, Screen, Deadline, Barry Dan on LinkedIn, MarketWatch, Gamereactor UK, @radiodeadair.com, Variety, New York Sun, Adweek, RetailWire, The Hollywood Reporter, @kristenlopez88.bsky.social, NPR, Entrepreneur, Front Office Sports, Le Monde, Pocket-lint, Tom's Guide, PR Daily, The Business Times, UPI, The Streamable, Proactive, @thacalebdume.bsky.social, Los Angeles Times, Quartz, @robpegoraro.com, ZeroHedge News, WORLD SCREEN, Barrett Media, Times of India, @jeffjarvis.bsky.social, Sports Business Journal, The Wrap, NBC News, Yahoo Finance, Cord Cutters News, Advanced Television, TVNewsCheck, Mediaite, Reuters, TVBEurope, Bloomberg, CBS News and Semafor
Tony Maglio / The Hollywood Reporter:
WBD's split is set to close in mid-2026; CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels says he assumes “the majority” of WBD's ~$37B debt will exist with the spun off Global Networks
WBD's split is set to close in mid-2026; CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels says he assumes “the majority” of WBD's ~$37B debt will exist with the spun off Global Networks
Discussion:
@sherman4949, CNBC, @sherman4949, @sherman4949, Deadline, Kotaku, Sportico, Engadget, @mhwilliams.bsky.social and MarketWatch

A US federal judge dismisses Justin Baldoni's $400M defamation claim against Blake Lively, finding Lively's sexual harassment claims were legally protected — Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni's entire lawsuit — which also alleged extortion and other claims — but allowed him to amend …
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People, Page Six, @aceglancemv, The InSneider, ELLE, @girlsreallyrule, Daily Mail, HELLO!, HotAir, Mirror, @taylorlorenz, @sippingaugust, @iwasenchantedt, Vanity Fair, @popcrave, One America News Network, UPI, Lawyer Monthly, The Hollywood Gossip, Real Deal News, The Sun, Screen, TMZ.com, Star Magazine, The Guardian, Global News, Entertainment Weekly, The Daily Caller, Just Jared, TODAY.com, WWL-TV, Us Weekly, RADAR, Daily Star, The Hill, CNN, NBC News, Suggest, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, HOLA!, Rolling Stone, Metro.co.uk, E! Online, Business Insider, WPXI-TV, The Wrap, IndieWire, New York Daily News, @kateaurthur.bsky.social, Consequence, New York Times, Fox News, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, NPR, Extra, CBS News, Oh No They Didn't! and Reason

Sources: Sony Music has acquired Hipgnosis Songs, three months after it was rebranded as Recognition Music — News of Sony's acquisition comes three months after Hipgnosis rebranded itself as Recognition Music Group. … Emails obtained by Billboard under the subject line …
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Variety, Digital Music News, David Dunn on LinkedIn, CMU, The Hollywood Reporter and Music Ally

A look at the tensions between the BBC and the UK Foreign Office over World Service funding; sources: the BBC wants funding to rise from ~£137M to £200M in 2026 — Executives argue broadcaster is key to efforts in countering Russian and Chinese propaganda
Discussion:
@sellathechemist …