Fox Corp Faces $2.7 Billion Voting Tech Lawsuit
Associated Press: A voting technology company is suing Fox News, three of its hosts and two former lawyers for Donald Trump — Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell — for $2.7 billion, charging that the defendants conspired to spread false claims that the company helped...
Comcast to Expand Franchise for ‘Dateline NBC’
Associated Press: After the format worked for HBO and Netflix, "Dateline NBC" is trying its own version of a multi-part true crime drama this month. The newsmagazine premieres "The Widower," about a Las Vegas man who had four of his six wives die under mysterious...
Vice Media Says Its Staff is Now Majority Female
Variety: A seismic shift in the work culture and make-up of Vice Media under CEO Nancy Dubuc appears to be paying dividends, as per the company's new diversity and inclusion report. It reveals that women now comprise over half of the Shane Smith-founded company's...
iHeartMedia Debuts New Podcast with Bill Clinton
Rolling Stone: Bill Clinton has launched a new podcast called "Why Am I Telling You This?" via IHeartMedia. In the 46-minute first episode of the interview series, the former president — a saxophone player and jazz aficionado —chatted with Wynton Marsalis about that...
SAG Delivers Parting Shot on Trump Resignation
Los Angeles Times: Donald Trump resigned from SAG-AFTRA and lashed out at the performers' union after it revealed plans last month to expel him. "Who cares!" Trump said in his letter, to what he described as the "so-called" union. He touted his cameo appearances in...
Apple, Netflix Spend Big Bucks at Sundance Fest
Bloomberg: Apple and other buyers threw cash at independent films at the Sundance Film Festival as they jostled for movies they thought could bolster their streaming platforms. Apple spent $25 million for “Coda,” a drama about a woman with a deaf family, in a sale...
Facebook Postings Dim Career of Armie Hammer
Variety: Armie Hammer's Hollywood career is in freefall as his sex scandal explodes on social media. Hammer made a statement that confirmed content surfacing on the internet was "stolen from my private Instagram." Hammer’s legal team is in the process of subpoenaing...
Clubhouse Social Audio App Attracts Zuckerberg
@melodyhahm: Mark Zuckerberg made a surprise appearance on Clubhouse, the invite-only social audio app, on Thursday night. The app was "glitching and having technical difficulties," with the "room at capacity." of 5,000. The Facebook CEO is said to have discussed...
Snap, Pinterest Log User Growth Amid Pandemic
Wall Street Journal: Snap and Pinterest added millions more new users than expected in their latest quarters, showing strong growth in social-media use during the Covid-19 pandemic. Snap, the parent of ephemeral-messaging platform Snapchat, ended the quarter with 265...
Google Launches Showcase for News in Australia
Guardian: Google has launched its News Showcase product in Australia with seven Australian publishers the internet giant will pay to host content. The initial deals cover 25 mastheads, including the Canberra Times, the Illawarra Mercury, the Saturday Paper and Crikey....
News Corp Reports Rare Profit at New York Post
New York Post: News Corp recorded its most profitable quarter since it spun off its publishing assets into a separate company from its TV assets more than seven years ago — including record earnings at the New York Post. "History also made at the New York Post, which...
New York Times Says Digital Dominates Revenue
New York Times: The New York Times set a record for its subscription business in 2020, a year when a pandemic, social unrest and a bitterly contested presidential race made headlines, the company said in an earnings report. After adding 2.3 million digital-only...
Meredith Says Digital Ad Revenues Surpass Print
WWD: Meredith, the owner of People and InStyle, said digital advertising in its magazine division outperformed its print component for the first time as it reported better-than-expected results for its fiscal second quarter. The publisher recorded a 22 percent...
Conde Nast Stirs Reaction from British GQ Cover
@Olivianuzzi: The new cover of British GQ Hype features an image of Joe Biden's head photoshopped onto a body double. But several observers have asked if the photo is authentic — including people who work in the media. Britishgq: "Everyone is hating on this," said one...
Hearst, Conde Early Magazines in New Exhibition
NY1: A new exhibit, "Magazines and the American Experience," explores how print magazines from the 18th through 21st centuries have shaped life in the US. Using approximately 200 rare and unique magazine issues, the free exhibit runs through April 24 at the Grolier...
G/O Media Denies Firing Editor for Union Activism
Bloomberg: G/O Media told employees of its tech-news website Gizmodo that it fired a co-worker because of her union activism, the Writers Guild of America East alleged in a complaint filed with a US regulator. The move violated federal labor law, the union said. In...
Apple Accelerates Deal to Manufacture Apple Car
CNBC: Apple is close to finalizing a deal with Hyundai-Kia to manufacture an Apple-branded autonomous electric vehicle at the Kia assembly plant in West Point, Georgia. The so-called "Apple Car," which is being developed by a team at Apple, is tentatively scheduled to...
Amazon Plans Bold, New Headquarters in Virginia
CNET: Amazon's plans for its new headquarters in Arlington, Virginia include a unique, double helix-inspired building that will feature walkable paths of landscaped terrain spiraling up the outside of the building. The Helix will sit alongside three new 22-story...
Yahoo Former CEO Eyes Subscriptions for Startup
The Information: Marissa Mayer's first startup, Sunshine, plans to charge consumers for subscriptions to generate revenue for its products, which will start with a contact management app and evolve to include appointment scheduling, event hosting and other apps....
Netflix Faces Lawsuit Over Covid Work Conditions
Hollywood Reporter: Timothy Hearl is the first actor to sue entertainment employers over Covid-19 working conditions. Unexpectedly, Netflix is one of the defendants in his lawsuit. The case may foreshadow other pandemic-era litigation in Hollywood. Associated...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Insiders Gossip About CNN
Vanity Fair: Jeff Zucker is enjoying broad newsroom support at a network that "has never been defined by its leader like it is right now," said one employee. "It's like Roger Ailes without the sexual abuse and hush money." CNN insiders are now more inclined to believe...
Comcast Preps Tech-Style Event for NBCUniversal
Deadline: NBCUniversal has scheduled an event in March, looking to emulate the approach of tech companies' developer conferences. The "One21" gathering will be a complement to the upfront events traditionally hosted by the company, and will not preclude any...
ViacomCBS Grapples with Racism in New York TV
Los Angeles Times: ViacomCBS is confronting a widening crisis over allegations of mistreatment in its TV stations group. Employees of CBS's flagship station, WCBS-TV Channel 2 in New York, have alleged that they worked in a "hostile environment" where Black, Latino,...
Charter Resolves $10 Billion Spat with Byron Allen
Broadcasting & Cable: Byron Allen's Entertainment Studios Networks said it has "resolved and withdrawn" its lawsuit against Charter Communications. Allen sued Charter in 2016 claiming that the cable company's refusal to carry Entertainment Studio's channels was...
iHeartMedia Joins Big Snub of Country Music Star
New York Times: Morgan Wallen, one of country music's biggest new stars, was swiftly rebuked by major radio stations, streaming services, record labels, fellow artists and the CMT network after a video surfaced of him using a racial slur. Wallen currently has the No....
Spotify Touts Joe Rogan as Success in Podcasting
New York Post: Spotify added more users than expected at the end of last year as people stuck at home due to the pandemic tuned in to streaming music and podcasts like "The Joe Rogan Experience," the company said. CEO Daniel Ek gave a shout-out to podcasts like "Joe...
Parler Ousts CEO as Social Network Stays Offline
Fox Business: Parler has terminated John Matze, according to a memo the CEO sent to staffers. "On January 29, 2021, the Parler board controlled by Rebekah Mercer decided to immediately terminate my position as CEO of Parler. I did not participate in this decision,"...
Axel Springer’s Insider CEO Reveals Bezos Advice
CNBC: Insider CEO Henry Blodget said that Jeff Bezos offered an invaluable piece of advice when the Amazon founder invested in his upstart media company. "He said, 'I am going to beg you to stay CEO. If you bring in somebody else, you're going to want to give them a...
New York Times Employees ‘Outraged’ by Bosses
Daily Beast: New York Times staffers sent a letter to the paper's top bosses criticizing their handling of complaints that journalist Donald McNeil Jr. used racist language while on a Times-sponsored student trip. McNeil had shown "bias against people of color in his...
Los Angeles Times Courts ESPNer for New Editor
TheWrap: The Los Angeles Times is courting Kevin Merida, the editor in chief of ESPN's The Undefeated, for its open executive editor role. At least seven members of the newsroom have personally contacted Merida to convince him to come to Los Angeles. Another candidate...