Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Byron Allen is taking a majority stake in BuzzFeed, investing $120M, and will become CEO; Jonah Peretti will move to a new role as president of BuzzFeed AI — BuzzFeed announced it has entered into a transaction agreement with Allen Family Digital, an affiliate of Byron Allen's family office …
Discussion:
New York Times, Axios, The Guardian, Reuters, The Wrap, The Information, Los Angeles Times, Dow Jones Newswires, Business Insider, @pkafka, Baller Alert, Just Jared, BuzzFeed, TheGrio, @matthewkeyslive, @alexweprin, @matthewkeyslive, @dylanbyers, @benmullin, Deadline, Bloomberg and The Hollywood Reporter
Scott Nover / Washington Post:
President Trump nominates Kari Lake, whom he tasked with dismantling USAGM and VOA, as US ambassador to Jamaica; a judge ruled in March she illegally ran USAGM — Lake was tasked with dismantling the U.S. Agency for Global Media and Voice of America, and became embroiled in contentious legal battles.
David Folkenflik / NPR:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution CEO Andrew Morse steps down after a three-and-a-half-year tenure, to be succeeded by Cox Media executive Paul Curran — Andrew Morse had helped usher ABC, Bloomberg and CNN into the digital age. In January 2023, he turned his sights on Atlanta …
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
NBC plans a game show based on the NYT's Wordle, hosted by Today Show anchor Savannah Guthrie; NYT and Jimmy Fallon will be production partners — The word puzzle published by The New York Times is the inspiration for a game show that will begin airing next year. Jimmy Fallon is a producer.
Discussion:
Mumbrella, Page Six, NBCUNIVERSAL MEDIA, Deseret News, Forbes, HELLO!, TODAY.com, Fast Company, CNET, IGN, TechCrunch, LateNighter, The Guardian, NBC News, Los Angeles Times, Digital Trends, WALV-TV, @aerocles, CNN, Polygon.com, @brianstelter, E! Online, Feed Me, Marc Lacey on LinkedIn, RADAR, Kotaku, The Cut, Cord Cutters News, StyleCaster, Axios, UPI, LaineyGossip, Us Weekly, HuffPost, C21Media, FemaleFirst, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Newser, The New York Times Company, The Wrap, SheKnows, The A.V. Club, Variety, @bsdtectr.bsky.social, The Hill, The Verge, IJR and Just Jared
New York Times:
A look at Israel's efforts to influence Eurovision as some broadcasters pushed to ban the country from the music competition and threatened to boycott the event — Israel's efforts to influence Eurovision's vote were broader and started years earlier than previously known. — TIMES INVESTIGATION
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Trump privately complained to acting AG Todd Blanche about media leaks tied to the Iran war; the WSJ has received subpoenas for records of reporters — President Trump privately complained to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche about media leaks in the wake of the Iran war last month …
Discussion:
Mediaite, NewsMax.com, Raw Story and @froomkin.bsky.social
Amanda Silberling / TechCrunch:
Peacock launches two unscripted microdramas made by Bravo, the first time that a major US streaming platform has added microdramas — It's about time that the microdrama trend has gone mainstream. — As microdrama apps like ReelShort and DramaBox quietly rake in billions …
Discussion:
The Wrap, CinemaBlend, MediaBrief, Variety, Deadline and MediaNews4U
Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Netflix for allegedly spying on consumers by collecting their data without consent, and designing its platform to be addictive — Netflix (NFLX.O) was sued on Monday by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who accused the streaming company of spying on consumers …
Discussion:
The Guardian, NBC News, MediaPost, Mediaite, Tech in Asia, NZ Herald, The Independent, Courthouse News Service, Media Play News, The Wrap, CNET, The Record, How-To Geek, Dallas Express, Texas Attorney General, @eriqgardner, Newser, The National Law Review, Forbes, Variety, Bloomberg Law, @carnage4life.bsky.social, Cord Cutters News, KEYE, Washington Examiner, CBS News, Politico, Reuters, KVIA-TV, Just The News, Fox Business, Sherwood News, Lyrie Research and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Chris Kay / Financial Times:
The Indian Premier League cricket tournament sees limited to no competition for its next media rights cycle after rivals Viacom18 and Disney's Star India merged — The commercial pitch has become tougher for teams amid less competition for streaming rights and an advertising crackdown
Discussion:
@christopherkay
Natalie Korach / Status:
Sources: some WaPo staff question Adam O'Neal's and Jeff Bezos' effort to embrace video for WaPo's opinion offerings, including $80K in new video equipment — On Monday, as The Washington Post celebrated its two Pulitzer Prize wins, the newspaper found itself scrambling to bring …
Emma Roth / The Verge:
Some high-profile publications have migrated from Substack to rivals like Ghost and Beehiiv citing Substack's high fees and increased focus on social features — Substack, the once buzzy newsletter platform, is losing a new swath of writers to rival platforms most people haven't heard of.
Kathryn Lundstrom / Adweek:
Amazon unveils Dynamic TV Creative, which lets Prime Video advertisers automatically tailor their ads based on the viewer's previous exposure to the brand — Amazon is expanding its creative tools for advertisers … Amazon's Prime Video advertisers can now automatically tailor …
Discussion:
Anna Yang on LinkedIn, Marketing Brew and AdExchanger
