Liberty Media Among High Profile SPACs to Watch
Business Insider: A growing number of execs and investors are looking to cash in on media through special-purpose acquisition companies. Some $82.8 billion was raised by 248 SPACs in 2020, up from the $13.6 billion raised by just 59 SPACs the prior year. Big media...
Comcast Nabs ABC Veteran for Role at NBC News
New York Post: Tom Llamas, the weekend anchor of ABC's "World News Tonight," has dramatically quit the network to move to rival NBC. Llamas, 41, is being lined up for a wide-ranging role across NBC News that involves work across the network's news shows, streaming...
Disney, Comcast Share Sitcom Across Streamers
Bloomberg: Comcast's Peacock and Disney's Hulu have struck a deal to share the rights to the sitcom "Modern Family," an unusual move at a time when streaming services are paying top dollar to air old network comedies exclusively on their platforms. All 11 seasons of...
Fox Corp Eyes Trump Aides for News Channel Gigs
Associated Press: Trump administration alumni Larry Kudlow is joining Fox News amid reports that a colleague, former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, will soon be joining him. Fox announced that Kudlow, a former CNBC personality who was national economic...
Prediction: Trump to Create a Subscription Product
Vanity Fair: Some Wall Street professionals think Donald Trump will further tap into a subset of his army of 74.2 million voters and ask its members to give him, say $100 a year to continue to receive his pithy utterances, now that he has been removed from most of the...
Twitter Acquires Newsletter Publishing Firm Revue
Axios: Twitter has acquired Revue, a newsletter platform for writers and publishers. The deal marks Twitter's first step into building out long-form content experiences on Twitter, and its first foray into subscription revenue. While deal terms weren't disclosed,...
Conde Nast Expat Mag Domino Finds a New Owner
Axios: North Equity, a venture equity firm that acquires and invests in media brands, is acquiring Domino Media Group, the home magazine and digital company launched by Conde Nast in 2005. The deal is expected to close this week. It's the latest example of a niche...
Meredith Names AP Exec as New Head of Diversity
PR Newswire: Meredith has named Diane L. Parker as VP of diversity and inclusion, effective January 28. Parker will lead Meredith's diversity and inclusion initiatives and programming across all locations and businesses. She succeeds Shona Pinnock, who left Meredith...
New York Times Opinion Alum Joins the Economist
Talking Biz News: James Bennet, the former editorial page editor at the New York Times, is joining The Economist. Bennet will be a visiting senior editor for one year. He starts on Feb. 1. Bennet resigned from the Times in June 2020 after it published a...
Washington Post Plans ‘Inclusive’ Search for Editor
Bloomberg: The Washington Post, which has expanded quickly under the ownership of billionaire Jeff Bezos, is seeking a new executive editor after longtime newsroom boss Marty Baron announced plans to step down. The search for Baron's successor "will be a broad and...
McClatchy in Flap Over Firing Editor After a Tweet
KTVB: The top editor of the Idaho Statesman was fired after she criticized the newspaper's parent company for withholding resources while encouraging people to support the daily newspaper. Christina Lords posted in a since-deleted tweet Friday that publishing company...
Bustle Digital Preps Major Makeover for Zoe Report
WWD: Almost two years after its acquisition of the Zoe Report, Bustle Digital will unveil a relaunch of the fashion site, presenting a more modern look and a new TZR logo. New editor in chief Kathy Lee, who joined the brand from Hearst last year, has been focusing on...
Axios CEO Seeks a Workable Model for Local News
AdExchanger: Axios CEO and co-founder Jim VandeHei is turning his attention to branching out into local news. The challenge in local news isn't just trust, but a workable business model. Believing a key problem with local news is that “the costs were just too damn...
Washington Post Editor Announces Plan to Retire
Washington Post: Martin Baron, one of the most highly regarded editors in American journalism and an outspoken advocate for the value of a free press, announced Tuesday he would step down as executive editor of the Washington Post on Feb. 28. The Post has not yet...
Google Stops Donations to US Congress Members
Reuters: Google said it will not make contributions from its political action committee this election cycle to any Congress member who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election. Earlier this month, following the violent storming of the US...
Facebook Inks Deals to Launch News Service in UK
Guardian: Stories from news outlets including the Guardian, the Daily Mail and the Financial Times will appear in a dedicated Facebook feed. The UK launch of the Facebook News service is the first outside the US. In addition to already-inked deals, Facebook announced...
Comcast in NBCUniversal Content Pact with Twitter
CNBC: Exclusive looks into the Golden Globes, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and other live NBC events are headed to Twitter. Comcast's NBCUniversal and Twitter have announced a multi-year global content partnership, in an effort to expand both the media company's and...
AT&T Former CEO Lands $1 Million Consulting Gig
Hollywood Reporter: Randall Stephenson, AT&T's former chairman and CEO, has made good on his retirement from the telco giant, but with a one-year consultancy agreement in hand as he leaves the company's boardroom. For his consulting services, Stephenson will be...
Fox Corp’s News Channel Echoes Owner Murdoch
Mediaite: Tucker Carlson on Fox News touted remarks made by Rupert Murdoch over the weekend condemning "awful woke orthodoxy," telling viewers, "We don't quote our boss on this show very often — ever, actually — but that is exactly right." New York Times: Rupert...
ViacomCBS Suspends Leaders of TV Station Group
Los Angeles Times: ViacomCBS has suspended the two powerful heads of its TV station group, Peter Dunn and David Friend, amid widening allegations that the pair cultivated an environment that included bullying female managers and blocking efforts to hire and retain...
Comcast Wrestles $1 Billion WWE Deal for Peacock
Wall Street Journal: NBCUniversal streaming platform Peacock has struck a deal for exclusive rights to World Wrestling Entertainment content, the two companies said. Terms of the pact weren' disclosed. A person familiar with the deal said it runs five years and is...
AT&T’s Warner Says No TV Series for ‘Harry Potter’
Variety: A "Harry Potter" series is said to be in very early development at HBO Max, despite denials from Warner Bros. "There are no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform," Warner Bros. and HBO Max said in a statement. The move...
Nexstar Rebranding Says So Long to WGN America
Chicago Tribune: WGN America, the Chicago-based cable network, is expanding its prime-time news programming and rebranding as NewsNation, beginning March 1. The decision, announced by Dallas-based owner Nexstar Media, cuts ties to the network's local TV roots, going...
Twitter Hopes ‘Birdwatch’ Will Stop Misinformation
NBC News: Twitter unveiled a feature meant to bolster its efforts to combat misinformation and disinformation by tapping users in a fashion similar to Wikipedia to flag potentially misleading tweets. The new system allows users to discuss and provide context to tweets...
Spotify Eyes Large Market with Test of Audiobooks
Hollywood Reporter: Spotify has released a small collection of exclusive audiobook recordings on its platform, a move that signals its interest in continuing to broaden its library of non-music programming. The company is characterizing the release as one of many...
IAC’s Vimeo Raises Funding at $6 Billion Valuation
Bloomberg: Barry Diller’s IAC/InterActive Corp said its video software company Vimeo is valued at about $6 billion after a recent funding round, nearly doubling the valuation before the unit is scheduled to be spun off early in the second quarter. Vimeo raised $300...
Taboola Digital Ad Company to Go Public via SPAC
CNBC: Digital ad outfit Taboola plans to go public via a merger with ION Acquisition Corp, a special acquisition corporation. The company places content boxes on sites across the internet with headlines such as "8 Celebs Who Have Severe Illnesses" or "Look Who's Going...
Axel Springer Avoids Distress at Business Insider
Wall Street Journal: Business Insider generated 30% revenue growth in 2020 despite the Covid-19 crisis, thanks to subscriptions and automated ads. The company is said to have generated over $150 million in revenue. Insider was able to continue a hiring spree despite...
New York Times Media Columnist Takes On Social
Digiday: "The sort of pure social media era is over," according to Ben Smith, media columnist at the New York Times. "There are these new, encrypted platforms that are going to be much harder to see inside for journalists, for anybody. It's a very different world...
McClatchy Offers Podcast Series with iHeartMedia
Deadline: The mysterious death of former NFL player Jim Duncan is the subject of a new narrative podcast series from McClatchy and iHeartMedia. The two companies are launching "Return Man," an eight-part documentary series that is to be the first in an anthology of...