Conde Nast’s New Yorker ‘Parenting Tips’ to Become a Film
Deadline: Universal Pictures is developing Simon Rich's satirical New Yorker magazine short story "Everyday Parenting Tips" into a family action comedy starring Ryan Reynolds. Rich, who will write the script, has written an array of humorous New Yorker...
Vox Media Preps New York Magazine’s ‘Boss’ for TV Series
Deadline: Searchlight Television, along with Darren Aronofsky and his Protozoa Pictures, have won the television rights to David Gauvey Herbert's New York magazine article "Boss of the Beach" for series development. Herbert's article was published in...
Politico Plans Live Streaming Series ‘Plug In with Playbook’
Deadline: Politico is launching a new streaming series during the Democratic and Republican conventions tied to its popular Playbook newsletter and franchise. "Plug In with Playbook" will be streamed at 9 a.m. ET each morning of both...
Craigslist Founder Spends $170 Million to Help Journalism
Forbes: Craig Newmark says misinformation is destroying America's democracy and he wants to help stop it. Since 2016, Newmark has given $170 million to journalism, countering harassment against journalists, cybersecurity and election...
Study: Journalists Talk in Microbubbles When Using Twitter
University of Illinois: Journalists' interactions on Twitter show them congregating in "microbubbles," says a recent study. These journalists communicate more among themselves than with journalists outside the group. These journalists "raise concerns about...
New York Journalist Legend Pete Hamill Dies at 85 After Fall
Daily News: Pete Hamill, the Brooklyn-born bard of the five boroughs and eloquent voice of his beloved hometown as both newspaper columnist and best-selling author, died Wednesday morning. Hamill, who worked at five New York newspapers and outlived three, was...
Disney Shakes Up Streaming After Huge Pandemic Losses
MarketWatch: Disney will release "Mulan" as a $30 pay-per-view on Disney+ in areas where theaters are not open, and launch a new international steaming offering under the Star brand, after losing nearly $5 billion because of the coronavirus...
Fox Corp Pins Hopes on News Channel, Return of Football
Wall Street Journal: Fox News Channel delivered a very strong quarter. Although some of its prime-time hosts experienced advertiser boycotts, the Fox News Media unit saw overall ad revenue rise. "We're seeing tremendous demand in news," said Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan...
Sony Forecasts 40 Percent Profit Drop in Film-TV Division
New York Post: Sony said it expects to log a 40 percent decline in full-year profit at its film and TV studio unit due to the pandemic. Sony Pictures, like its rivals in Hollywood, has been throttled by the impact of the coronavirus, as movie and TV projects have been...
AT&T, Comcast to Begin Layoffs Across Media Operations
Wall Street Journal: NBCUniversal has begun making staff cuts across its entertainment portfolio. WarnerMedia is expected to begin staff reductions as early as next week. New York Post: Black SUVs lined up outside 30 Rockefeller Center to haul away laid off staffers...
ViacomCBS Launches Digital Platform to Lure Advertisers
Ad Age: ViacomCBS is introducing a new ad platform to help simplify buying inventory across its digital channels. EyeQ, which will debut in the fall, comes as ViacomCBS goes to market in the upfront for the first time as a combined entity with multiple digital...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Says ‘Ellen’ to Continue Amid Furor
NBC News: Ellen DeGeneres will return to the stage to host the 18th season of her namesake talk show, despite an investigation into what current and former employees called a toxic workplace environment, Telepictures has...
ViacomCBS ‘Late Show’ Staffer Fired in Misconduct Claim
Variety: Giovanni Cianci, music producer of "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" since 2017, has been let go from the show after a woman accused him of sexual misconduct in a 2010 incident. "Gio is no longer employed by the show," says a...
Comcast MSNBC Staffer Quits, Posts Scathing Open Letter
Daily Mail: MSNBC producer Ariana Pekary shared a scathing open letter after quitting the network, claiming it is a "cancer" because it "blocks diversity of thought" and "amplifies fringe voices." Pekary spent seven years working as a producer on various...
Fox Corp News Host Offers New Book as Trump Fundraiser
HuffPost: Sean Hannity is under fire for crossing ethical lines after President Trump's team offered signed copies of the Fox News host's book in exchange for donations to the campaign. The campaign offered to send signed copies of Hannity's book to supporters who...
Study: Half of Americans See News Media as ‘Very Biased’
Associated Press: The distrust many Americans feel toward the news media, caught up like much of the nation's problems in the partisan divide, only seems to be getting worse. That was the conclusion of a "sobering" study conducted by Knight Foundation and...
Amazon, Disney, Fox News Among ‘Most Patriotic’ Brands
Fast Company: Amazon, Netflix, Disney, Fox News, MSNBC and the New York Times are considered among the most patriotic brands in the United States, according to the 18th annual Brand Keys consumer survey. "We're all in this together, but these brands were more in this...
Bloomberg Media Bundles Subscriptions with The Athletic
Axios: Bloomberg Media will launch a bundled subscription with The Athletic beginning this month. Bloomberg Media sees value in partnering with niche media outlets that it thinks can compliment its coverage. In February, it announced a subscription bundle with The...
Hearst in No Rush to Replace Ousted Magazines President
New York Post: Hearst is refusing to search for a candidate to replace ousted magazines president Troy Young in hopes that his temporary successor becomes permanent. Headhunters contacting Hearst to offer their services have all been rebuffed at the behest of CEO...
Conde Nast Mulls Office Move Out of 1 World Trade Center
Variety: Conde Nast is trying to renegotiate or get out of the lease on its headquarters at 1 World Trade Center just six years after moving in. Reps have been quietly touring possible space in New York City and its environs. New York Post: CEO Roger Lynch prefers...
McClatchy Newspaper Sale Nearly Derailed by Major Storm
New York Post: Chatham Asset Management's $312 million takeover of McClatchy was nearly waylaid by tropical storm Isaias. Federal bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles approved the deal as expected at a remote hearing by flashlight after the power failed in his Westchester...
News Corp Finds Most Value in Digital Real-Estate Ad Firm
Australian Financial Review: News Corp.'s 61.6 percent stake in REA Group is responsible for about 85 percent of its market value. That means the rest of its assets – including the entire transnational newspaper empire – are worth between $1.66 to $3.29 a...
Conde Nast Says Ta-Nehisi Coates to Guest Edit Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair: Vanity Fair editor in chief Radhika Jones announced that Ta-Nehisi Coates is serving as guest editor for the September issue, a special edition exploring art, activism and power in America. "There's no one better suited than Ta-Nehisi to illuminate this...
Vox Media Inks Deal with 100+ Bloggers Over Wage Claims
Bloomberg Law: Vox Media has agreed to settle a lawsuit involving more than 100 SB Nation sports bloggers. Both parties declined to comment on the deal’s terms but said those details will be made public "soon" in a forthcoming motion for preliminary court...
Apple Signs Overall Film, TV Deal with Leonardo DiCaprio
Hollywood Reporter: Leonardo DiCaprio is expanding his relationship with Apple. The actor-producer's Appian Way has inked a first-look film and TV deal with the tech giant. Under the pact, the production company he runs alongside Jennifer Davisson will develop new...
Netflix Ready to Buy ‘Woman in the Window’ from Disney
Deadline: Netflix is finalizing an acquisition deal that will move "The Woman in the Window" out of Disney-owned 20th Century Studios and into a new window, as a global streaming event film. The thriller stars Amy Adams and is directed by Joe...
Disney’s ESPN Arrives on Sports-Heavy Streamer FuboTV
The Verge: ESPN and many other Disney channels are now live on FuboTV. Users should now be able to watch ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN 3, ABC, ABC News Live, FX, FXX, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Freeform, National Geographic and more on the streaming...
Google’s YouTubers Eye Subscriptions in Coronavirus Era
Bloomberg: Not long ago, trying to charge viewers to watch your videos on YouTube would have been a career-ender. But a growing breed of YouTube creators are now making most of their income on the site by charging fans...
Microsoft Says Deal to Acquire US TikTok ‘Moving Quickly’
Campaign: Microsoft said it is "moving quickly" on a deal with TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance to buy its US operations. The proposed deal aims to keep the video-sharing platform alive in markets where governments have serious security concerns over user...
Facebook Leases Massive Former Post Office in New York
New York Post: Facebook closed on a long-awaited deal for 730,000 square feet at the Farley Building, the former post office site between Madison Square Garden and the Hudson Yards district. Skeptics doubted Facebook would go ahead with the deal in the midst of the...