Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Netflix and WBD say Netflix revised its WBD offer to an all-cash deal for $27.75/share, with the same $82.7B value; its original bid had $59B in debt financing — Netflix and WBD announced Tuesday that they amended their definitive agreement for Netflix's proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. assets …
Clare Malone / New Yorker:
A profile of Bari Weiss and an in-depth look at her hostile takeover of CBS News; a source says Weiss has said she is pursuing a “de-Baathification of CBS” — The network's new editor-in-chief has championed a press free from élite bias, while aligning herself …
Discussion:
Poynter, @jaec.bsky.social, @dinfontay.com, @ethangach.bsky.social, naked capitalism, @jayrosen.bsky.social, TV Insider, @claremalone.bsky.social, @alexbronzini, @justinbaragona.bsky.social, @carlquintanilla.bsky.social, @scarylawyerguy, @zaidjilani, @jamellebouie.net, @ericschultz, @djtalkstrash.bsky.social, @jimswift.bsky.social, @elliotkaufman6, @sorayanadiamcdonald.com, @davidklion, @rcobooth, @agoldmund, The Wrap, @nkulw, @tkovach.bsky.social, @brofromanother, @willsloanesq, @claremalone, @nick_field90, @jeremiahdjohns, @brianstelter, @edroso.bsky.social, @robertscotthorton.bsky.social, @seankuhn.bsky.social, @jonahallon, @brianstelter, @brianstelter and Mediaite
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Washington Post:
CBS airs 60 Minutes' CECOT segment, which Bari Weiss shelved in December as it lacked an on-camera interview with a Trump official, without such an interview — After accusations of “corporate censorship,” CBS aired a postponed “60 Minutes” segment about the CECOT prison that was largely unchanged.
Discussion:
@brianstelter, Deadline, The Guardian, CNN, Mediaite, Too Much TV Newsletter, @ericumansky.bsky.social, Salon, Awful Announcing, TV Insider, @newsguyusa@flipboard.social, New York Times, @scottnover, Forbes, Yahoo Finance, Newsbusters, Newser, The Wrap, Reuters, Filmogaz.com, The Independent, Bloomberg, Bleeding Cool News, Fox News, Variety, Raw Story, Bloomberg Law and The Present Age
Isabella Simonetti / Wall Street Journal:
CBS News airs the delayed 60 Minutes CECOT segment with new introductory and closing remarks; the core of the piece was untouched — CBS News Editor in Chief Bari Weiss's decision to hold the segment in December ignited a firestorm within the network — A “60 Minutes” segment that was held …
Discussion:
CBS News, Associated Press, CNN, Newsbusters, Yahoo Finance, Mock Paper Scissors, Washington Examiner, @jeremymbarr, @banikarim, @60minutes, @60minutes, @60minutes, @mlcalderone, @matthewsitman, @mlcalderone, @dylanbyers, HuffPost, RealClearPolitics, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @brianstelter.bsky.social, @jaymesl.bsky.social, Paramount Press Express, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Raw Story, Mediaite, The Hollywood Reporter and The Wrap
New York Times:
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told CBS News that President Trump would sue the network if it didn't air his interview with Tony Dokoupil unedited
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told CBS News that President Trump would sue the network if it didn't air his interview with Tony Dokoupil unedited
Discussion:
Deadline, The Guardian, @dagrtnpwrflmrfixit …, Emma Thwaites on LinkedIn, BizPac Review, Baller Alert, The Gateway Pundit, The Indian Express, @susanmcp.bsky.social, @socialmedialab.ca, @doctoralex.bsky.social, RedState, @jayrosen.bsky.social, MS NOW, RADAR, People, TV Insider, @Nonilex@masto.ai, The Independent, Fox News, TMZ.com, @grynbaum, KYMA-TV, @cdarwin@c.im, @newsguyusa@flipboard.social, Too Much TV Newsletter, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, The Hill, @michaeljstern.bsky.social, Washington Post, IJR, @crampell.bsky.social, Just Jared, The Hollywood Reporter, Mediaite, New York Post, @jenk3.bsky.social, The Wrap, Variety, @nickfield.bsky.social, @passantino.bsky.social, @davidrlurie.com, @deanbaker13.bsky.social and @joshsternberg.com
Jack Dunn / Variety:
On Joe Rogan's JRE, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck discuss Hollywood and AI; Damon says Netflix wants movies to restate the plot because viewers are on their phones — Matt Damon and Ben Affleck recently appeared on the “Joe Rogan Experience” to promote their new Netflix film “The Rip,” …
Discussion:
PowerfulJRE on YouTube, National Enquirer, @clairlemon, @zymazza, @pourfairelevide, @forrestpknight, @barondestructo, @thecinesthetic, @tom_lsoo, @freightalley, No Film School, @bearlyai, @lynaldencontact, @lookatmymeat1, @nowplaying.cool, @danielrpk, @khuze_elikhulu, CinemaBlend, @mattzeitlin, Gizmodo, @ross__hendricks, @lthomasnews, @ctachio83984, Breitbart, @andthatsbb, @dead_baseball, International Business Times, @trungtphan, @carnage4life@mas.to, KARE-TV, NME, al.com, Semafor, Collider, Screen Rant, The Independent, Business Insider, Whiskey Riff, RADAR, World of Reel, Just Jared, Deadline, Dexerto, Forbes and Yahoo Finance
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Similarweb: Threads had 141.5M DAUs on iOS and Android as of January 7, driven by Instagram promotions, while X had 125M DAUs; X continues to lead on the web — A report from market intelligence firm Similarweb suggests that Meta's Threads is now seeing more daily usage than Elon Musk's X on mobile devices.
Discussion:
Engadget, @theandreboso, @wongmjane, Android Headlines, @dikaiosvne@threads.com, @gmiller, The Overspill, @jeremiahdjohns, 9to5Google, WebProNews, MacRumors, @clairlemon, The Mac Observer, Moneycontrol, @briannawu, @thespacemechanic@threads.com, PhoneArena, @calbucci@threads.com, @theandreboso, @aziz0nomics, @aziz0nomics, @tomgara@threads.com, Social Media Today, @boredelonmusk, @jeremiahdjohns, 9to5Mac, Proactiveinvestors UK, Ukrainian National News, Digit, @cameronwilson.bsky.social, The Verge, PYMNTS.com, Analytics Insight, Gizmodo and Irish Independent
Yue Stella Yu / Los Angeles Times:
Gov. Newsom's 2026 budget proposal contains no funding for the California Civic Media Fund, despite a 2024 deal to provide $175M to newsrooms over five years — - 6 min Click here to listen to this article — Gov. Gavin Newsom's budget proposal includes no money for a fund formed last year …
Discussion:
@adamrose.bsky.social and @torrleonard.bsky.social
Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
Sources: Jan Philipp Burgard, Welt EIC and a top Axel Springer editor, was ousted after an investigation into inappropriate behavior toward female employees — Jan Philipp Burgard was one of Axel Springer's most prominent editors, overseeing its influential German broadsheet Welt.
Discussion:
@kakape@mas.to, Michael Lamberty on LinkedIn and Semafor
Matthew Keys / TheDesk.net:
Study: local broadcast TV supported 1.5M+ US jobs in 2025 and had a $748B annual GDP impact, with advertising accounting for the largest share at $628B — The local television broadcast industry saw another year of strong contributions to the American economy, with more than 1.5 million jobs supported …
Discussion:
Woods & Poole Economics
Zach Vallese / CNBC:
Sensor Tower: Reels accounted for 50%+ of all Instagram ads in 2025, up from 35% in 2024; Reels accounted for 46% of time spent on Instagram in the US in 2025 — More than half of all ads on Meta's Instagram ran in the service's short-form video Reels product in 2025, up from 35% in 2024 …
Saahil Desai / The Atlantic:
As news outlets treat prediction markets like news, especially heading into US elections, every dip and swing in the odds may end up wildly misleading people — Why is the media obsessed with prediction markets? — For the past week, I've found myself playing the same 23-second CNN clip on repeat.
Discussion:
NOTUS, Newsweek, @thebluenami.is.democrat, @zacheverson.com, Event Horizon, New York Times, Fox Business and NPR
Wall Street Journal:
A profile of Gerry Cardinale, head of RedBird, Paramount's second-largest shareholder, as he lobbies regulators and shareholders to accept Paramount's WBD bid — RedBird's Gerry Cardinale will tell anyone who will listen why the hostile $77.9 billion bid is superior
Discussion:
Gizmodo and Los Angeles Business Journal
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Jess Weatherbed / The Verge:
Sony and TCL sign a non-binding agreement to spin off Sony's TV and home audio hardware business into a new joint venture, aiming to finalize the deal by March — The two companies are planning to form a new joint venture that will carry the ‘Sony’ and ‘Bravia’ branding.
Discussion:
Digit, Engadget, Dow Jones Newswires, Business Today, Bloomberg, Sony Corporation and Nikkei Asia, more at Techmeme »
Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:
A look at lessons from Wikipedia for journalism, including setting a clear set of standards and practices, preventing link rot, and using detailed documentation — It's not a news site. But there's a lot to learn from how Wikipedia constructs shared knowledge about what's happening in the world.
Discussion:
New Scientist, @niemanlab.org and WebProNews
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