Amazon Lands Naming Rights to New Stadium in Seattle
CNBC: Amazon has bought the naming rights to downtown Seattle's arena which will house a new NHL team and the Women's National Basketball Association’s Seattle Storm. The KeyArena will now be renamed to Climate Pledge Arena, in reference to Amazon's ambitious climate...
ByteDance’s TikTok CEO Sheds Light on Leaving Disney
Deadline: Kevin Mayer said he will "always have a huge amount of fondness for Disney." The new CEO of TikTok added: "I'm not getting any younger. If you really want to make a big splash, there's just a timing factor to that. And there aren't many companies like...
Disney Silences ‘Song of the South’ in Redo of Park Ride
CNBC: Disney's iconic Splash Mountain is getting a makeover. The Imagineers at Disney announced that the Splash Mountain ride at both Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida will be redesigned to feature characters from its animated movie "The Princess...
Fox Corp’s Murdoch Wives Donate to Biden, Democrats
Forbes: Jerry Hall, the former supermodel who is married to Rupert Murdoch, has donated $500 to Joe Biden's presidential campaign. Bloomberg Government: Kathryn Murdoch, the wife of James Murdoch, has given $1 million to help Democrats win control of...
News Corp Murdoch Daughter Invests in LeBron Venture
Bloomberg Businessweek: Basketball star LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter have raised $100 million to grow their media empire. Their new company, SpringHill Co., is backed by investors including Guggenheim Partners and News Corp. heir Elisabeth...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Delays ‘Tenet’ Film Release Again
Bloomberg: Warner Bros. has delayed the release of the movie "Tenet" again, setting back efforts by theater chains to save the summer blockbuster season. The film will now debut Aug. 12, two weeks later than expected. In an unusual move, the studio plans to put the...
ViacomCBS Makes Moves to Become a Streaming Power
Barron's: Analyst Richard Greenfield said he believes that with the merger of Viacom and CBS now closed, the company has turned its focus to making a true mark in the industry, making its subscription service all the more attractive with high-profile films and live...
Quibi Founder’s Video Start-Up from 1999 Offers Lessons
Fast Company: Quibi isn't Jeffrey Katzenberg's first start-up offering "quick bites" of video made by A-list stars. Katzenberg had tried this same idea about 20 years ago with Pop.com, a site he dreamed up with his then partners at DreamWorks SKG and pals at Imagine...
Google’s YouTube Tests Mobile Feature to Take On TikTok
TechCrunch: YouTube said it will test a new feature on mobile allowing users to record 15-second long multi-segment videos. That’s the same length as the default on TikTok. YouTube apparently has in its sights the short-form video format popularized by...
Conde Nast Suspends Video Editor During Internal Probe
Business Insider: Conde Nast has suspended Bon Appetit video editor Matt Hunziker "pending investigation" by the company. Employees suggested that Hunziker's social-media posts critical of Conde Nast and Bon Appetit led to the suspension. "There have been many...
Hearst Acquires Online Auction Platform for Auto Brands
Autoweek: Hearst has acquired Bring a Trailer, a digital auction platform and auto enthusiast community. "At its core, Bring a Trailer is about curation, which is what our brands have always been about," said Hearst magazines head Troy Young. Hearst titles include Car...
News Corp Absent in Google’s New Plan to Pay for News
Digiday: Google's initial deals to pay for news are with media groups in three countries: Australia, Germany and Brazil. Industry experts note it's a strange trio of debuts. Absent is Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, which is heavily negotiating directly in...
Tribune Rattled by Next Week’s Likely Takeover by Alden
New York Post: Newsrooms across the Tribune Publishing newspaper empire are growing anxious as the standstill agreement that has kept cost-slashing hedge fund Alden Global Capital from increasing its stock holdings gets set to expire next...
Poynter to Help Older Americans Figure Out Fake News
USA Today: Older Americans are the target of a new initiative designed by the journalism nonprofit Poynter Institute to help decipher the facts online. Poynter is launching a program to equip people 50 and older with the skills to navigate...
Analysis: Right-Wing Media Misleads on Pandemic Info
Washington Post: Three studies have focused on conservative media’s role in fostering confusion about the seriousness of the coronavirus. Taken together, they paint a picture of a media ecosystem that amplifies misinformation and entertains conspiracy...
Survey: Americans Say News Outlets ‘Don’t Understand’
The Hill: Nearly 6 in 10 Americans said in a new poll that they believe news organizations "do not understand people like them." The findings from the non-partisan Pew Research survey include similar results across racial...
Disney Hits Pause in California as Florida Workers Protest
CNBC: Disney is delaying the opening of its California-based theme parks as state officials will not be issuing reopening guidelines until after July 4. The move comes as Disney workers in Florida have petitioned the company to reconsider the reopening of Disney...
AT&T Brings Back ‘Gone with the Wind’ with Disclaimers
Reuters: Movie classic "Gone with the Wind" has returned to the HBO Max streaming platform, along with two extra features discussing its depiction of race in the Civil War era. The Oscar-winning 1939 film was pulled two weeks ago amid a mass reckoning with US...
Comcast’s MSNBC Eyes Joy Reid to Anchor Nightly Show
Wall Street Journal: MSNBC is expected to tap political analyst Joy Reid to anchor a 7 p.m. daily news and opinion program, filling the vacancy created at the cable news channel when Chris Matthews resigned abruptly in March. Reid currently hosts "AM...
Facebook’s Zuck Talks with Top Advertisers Amid Boycott
Business Insider: Mark Zuckerberg personally addressed a group of top executives from agency holding companies and advertisers as Facebook faces mounting pressure and an intensifying advertiser boycott over its content moderation after George Floyd's...
CAA Forms $100 Million Fund for Investing in Media, Tech
Bloomberg: Creative Artists Agency has teamed up with venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates to form Connect Ventures, a fund that will invest in media and technology companies. CAA and NEA have each put in $50 million to start, and plan to increase their...
Scripps Explores Sale of Top Podcasting Service Stitcher
The Information: E.W. Scripps is shopping podcasting service Stitcher, in an effort to cash in on a surge of interest in the podcasting industry from companies such as Spotify and SiriusXM. Stitcher is one of the biggest podcast apps not owned by sector giants Apple...
Vice Media Retools Operation with Debut of ‘World News’
Deadline: Vice Media has set the premiere for Vice TV's "Disruptors," a new series with sports journalists Jemele Hill and Cari Champion, announced a major global news expansion and a new investigative series with iHeartMedia....
Discovery Plans Big Lifestyle TV Push for Martha Stewart
The Wrap: Martha Stewart is set to return to the “Chopped” judges’ table — but that’s not all. Stewart has also landed a new holiday-themed series on Food Network and outdoor projects show “Martha Knows Best” on...
Goop, from Gwyneth Paltrow, Cancels Cruise Over Covid
WWD: Voyagers paying thousands of dollars to mingle with actress turned lifestyle guru Gwyneth Paltrow on the high seas have had their vacation plans hampered by the coronavirus. Paltrow had partnered with Celebrity Cruises to launch Goop at...
Barnes & Noble Lays Off Staffers at New York Head Office
Wall Street Journal: Barnes & Noble said it has laid off a number of employees at its New York head office, a move the bookseller said was an effort to mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. B&N declined to provide specific numbers about the...
Bloomberg Media CEO Talks Up Big Plans for QuickTake
Nieman Lab: Bloomberg Media's Justin Smith is investing in QuickTake, with a staffing up to 100, and big plans for fall. "Starting in September, we're creating full streaming programming with anchors and shows and new series. We're going to be unveiling a whole slate...
Dennis Publishing Thinks Mobile in Redesign of Kiplinger
MediaPost: Personal finance website Kiplinger has relaunched with a mobile-first approach. The brand based its new look on the change in usage and traffic patterns it's seen across its digital property, with the majority of its visitors coming to the site from mobile...
Meredith Veteran Leads Financial Site in Tie-In with Time
MediaPost: Time has revealed the details behind its partnership with Red Ventures to launch a new finance website called NextAdvisor. The site will be led by former Money editor in chief Adam Auriemma, editorial director John Puterbaugh and contributing editor...
McClatchy’s Creditors Seek to Bring Claims Against CEO
McClatchy DC: McClatchy creditors have filed a motion that seeks to expose the company’s board, its CEO and chief counsel and some former senior leaders to civil claims, adding a new complication just days before a scheduled auction of the bankrupt local news...