New York Times Daily Podcast Host Issues Apology
WWD: The star host of The New York Times podcast "The Daily" is attempting a mea culpa in the wake of some negative press. Michael Barbaro, host of the Times’ most popular podcast, which ranks consistently on lists of the country’s most downloaded and listened to...
Newsday Lays Off Staffers as Ads Drop During Crisis
Talking Biz News: Newsday Media Group is laying off employees as the pandemic accelerates a decline in advertising. The number of staff members being made redundant has not been disclosed. Publisher Debby Krenek said the layoffs will only impact non-newsroom...
Conde Nast Releases Shocking Video of Capitol Riot
USA Today: Chilling video captured by a New Yorker reporter circulating online shows a complicated mix of preparation and spontaneous violence during a riot at the US Capitol. "We decided that the footage in question had unique historical value that the American...
Bauer Magazines Return to Life Under New Owners
Guardian: Less than a year later, not only have Bauer magazines in New Zealand been brought back to life under new ownership, but also new titles have been launched – reflecting a flurry of investment and innovation in media precipitated by the pandemic. "People...
Atlantic Expands Column on Happiness Into Events
Adweek: The Atlantic's "How to Build a Life" column by author Arthur Brooks, launched in April 2020, is going from biweekly to weekly on Jan. 21 after audiences craved more ways to build resilience and happiness. In May, the magazine will host an event based on...
Politico Boosts Ad Rates Amid Revamp of Playbook
Vanity Fair: Playbook's advertising rates have more than doubled over the past year, now commanding $300,000 a week on average. With its influential list of some 300,000 readers, the franchise generated at least $10 million in 2020 and will be an even higher...
Axios Promises to (Mostly) Shun Paywalls, Opinions
Axios: Axios said it aims to broaden its mission to help restore trust in fact-based news with an "audience bill of rights." "Every item will be written or produced to inform, analyze and explain. We will never have an opinion section. We will be transparent about how...
BuzzFeed Former Staffer is Arrested in Capitol Riot
Reuters: Far-right media personality Tim Gionet, who goes by the handle “Baked Alaska,” was arrested on Friday by the FBI in Houston, Texas, and charged with participating in the violent riot on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6. Gionet, 33, launched his career at BuzzFeed in...
Craigslist Fills Airbnb Void for Inauguration Rentals
TMZ: Airbnb is blocking and canceling reservations in the Washington, DC area for Inauguration Day, but supporters and protesters looking for a crash pad have a plan B. They're flocking to Craigslist. The online classifieds site is fast becoming the place to go for...
Apple Plans Streaming Projects on Napoleon, Oprah
Deadline: Apple Studios will produce a new epic film directed by Ridley Scott about Napoleon Bonaparte, with Joaquin Phoenix in the lead role. Deadline: Oprah Winfrey is getting the biographical documentary treatment after Apple TV+ ordered a two-parter focusing on...
Google Under Fire for Test Blocking News Websites
Sydney Morning Herald: Google has been intermittently blocking some news sites in Australia from search users. The move comes in the middle of a battle between the Australian government and the tech giants over plans to force Google and Facebook to pay news publishers...
Facebook to Nab YouTube Superstar for New Videos
Forbes: YouTube creator PewDiePie, who has a massive 107 million subscribers, is now coming to Facebook. "It's a huge deal ... he's the biggest YouTube creator." While PewDiePie is coming to Facebook, he's not leaving YouTube. And his videos will continue to make...
Disney Enters New Era with Marvel Streaming Series
CNBC: "WandaVision," Marvel's first scripted series for Disney+, arrives on Friday, kicking off a stacked slate of interconnected superhero content. In total, Marvel has 10 Disney+ shows planned over the next few years. These shows are tied directly into the content...
Comcast’s Universal Says Expect More Movie Delays
Bloomberg: Many of the films slated for theatrical release in the first half of the year will likely be delayed again, according to Universal Filmed Entertainment chairman Donna Langley. And disruptions are likely to continue in some form through at least the...
Fox Corp’s Murdoch Plans a Return to New York City
@benyt: "The UK media newsletter @popbitch reports: 'Now he's had his second dose of the vaccine in the UK, Rupert Murdoch is preparing to make his way to NYC to oversee the difficult post-Trump positioning for Fox News. Should be...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Faces Complaint on Child Care
New York Post: Turner Sports host Casey Stern claims he was sidelined at work as he dealt with saving his kids from alleged abuse and because he asked for accommodations during the pandemic, a new discrimination charge alleges. Stern has worked for Turner Sports and...
Disney OKs Digital Rights to Departing Host at ESPN
Sportico: As part of his severance from ESPN, Dan Le Batard negotiated for the RSS feed to his podcast. By retaining it, Le Batard was able to maintain his loyal — and sizeable — audience. He has also kept the 23,000-plus reviews that give his podcast a valuable...
Snap Names New Content Head in Battle with TikTok
The Information: Snap has promoted executive Ben Schwerin to be its new senior vice president of content and partnerships, a move that signals the company's ambitions to compete more aggressively with TikTok and to cut more deals with media companies and app...
Gannett CEO Targets 10 Million Digital Subscriptions
USA Today: USA Today owner Gannett is aiming for 10 million paid digital subscriptions within five years, said CEO Mike Reed. The company surpassed the 1 million mark in the third quarter of 2020, marking a 31% increase from the same period in 2019. Online...
New York Times Eyes Conde Nast’s Niche in Cooking
Business Insider: The New York Times's cooking product is ramping up its investment in video and borrowing from rival Bon Appétit's playbook as it seeks to win over the coveted home chef audience. NYT Cooking has invested in a new kitchen studio and is expanding the...
Los Angeles Times Circles Media Veterans for Editor
New York Post: The team searching for a new top editor for the Los Angeles Times is still wading through a long list of potential candidates but expects to announce a permanent executive editor by the end of the first quarter. No frontrunners have yet to emerge, but...
Conde Nast’s Vogue Cover Helps Lift Sneaker Brand
WWD: After the divisive Vogue cover of Kamala Harris, online mentions of sneaker maker Converse multiplied more than tenfold, according to Launchmetrics. The data and analytics firm tallied $5.5 million in media impact value and more than 1,000 placements since...
A360’s Celeb Magazines in a Fuss Over Advertorials
New York Post: The latest issues of Star and In Touch magazines ran a full-page ad for cosmetics retailer Sephora that was designed to look like editorial copy without warning readers that it was paid advertising content. The error appeared to be the result of a...
Group Nine to Go Public Seeking Digital Media M&A
Variety: Group Nine Media's special purpose acquisition company announced pricing of its initial public offering of 20 million units at $10 apiece, for total gross proceeds of $200 million. Group Nine Acquisition Corp's securities will begin trading Jan. 15. Group...
Politico Staff Objects to Right-Winger on Newsletter
New York Times: Politico is facing a backlash from its staff after it handed its Playbook newsletter, a popular morning read in Washington, to the right-wing commentator Ben Shapiro for a day. More than 200 members of the staff joined a Zoom call with the editor in...
Axios Unveils $10,000 Tool to Help Companies Write
Wall Street Journal: Axios is launching AxiosHQ, a software tool that will enable businesses to update their employees — including through internal newsletters — in Axios's punchy, just-the-facts, bullet-point style. Axios said the tool will cost at least $10,000 a...
Medium to Acquire Platform for Talking About Books
CNN: Medium, launched in 2012 by Twitter cofounder Ev Williams, has been the platform of choice for public figures. Now through a new acquisition, Medium has another way to entice people to read its content and write for its network. Medium is acquiring Glose, a...
Google Pauses Political Ads After Riot at US Capitol
Axios: Google has informed its advertising partners that its platforms will block all political ads, as well as any related to the Capitol insurrection, "following the unprecedented events of the past week and ahead of the upcoming presidential inauguration." Google...
Amazon Ad Business is Forecast to Gain Most Share
CNBC: Amazon will be the leading share gainer among the major digital ads businesses in 2021 and 2022, according to a new ad buyer survey from Cowen. Amazon's ad business will continue to grow as more spend comes from TV, search and other digital platforms and as...
Facebook COO Deflects Blame for US Capitol Attack
Washington Post: Ahead of the US Capitol march, President Trump supporters promoted it extensively on Facebook and used it to organize bus trips to Washington. More than 100,000 users posted hashtags affiliated with the movement prompted by baseless claims of election...