Netflix Says Almost Half of Its Employees Are Female
Bloomberg: Netflix has made gains in adding women and minorities to its workforce over the past three years, vaulting it past Silicon Valley peers, according to the company's first-ever report on diversity and inclusion. Women made up 47% of its workforce in 2020, up...
Disney Silent on Trump’s Future in Hall of Presidents
Orlando Weekly: Disney has faced renewed calls to close the Hall of Presidents attraction at the company's Florida theme park in the aftermath of the riot at the US Capitol. The President Trump animatronic figure has been subjected to protest and derision since it was...
Lionsgate Film Star Slams Online ‘Bull–t’ in Departure
Deadline: Armie Hammer has responded to the salacious news on social media about him, and his recent departure from Lionsgate's Jennifer Lopez movie "Shotgun Wedding." In a statement, the actor said: "I'm not responding to these bullshit claims but in light of the...
Comcast’s NBC Helps Create Ads for Tokyo Olympics
Adweek: NBC is currently working with marketers to craft more effective ads for the Tokyo Olympics. It's creating an Olympics Ad Engine that uses past Games' spots and data to make suggestions on how their new spots can be modified to achieve different marketing...
Fox Corp Won’t Air Broadcast TV Inauguration Show
Politico: Joe Biden’s team is planning an inauguration celebrity TV special to air on broadcast channels ABC, CBS and NBC — but not Fox. Cable news networks CNN and MSNBC will carry it live. A spokesperson for Fox News says they will not carry the entire special but...
Lupa, from Murdoch, Plans Venture with Disney Alum
Financial Times: James Murdoch is embarking on an ambitious new media venture in India after reuniting with Uday Shankar, the executive who helped build the Murdoch family's Star television empire before leading Disney's Asia arm. The project brings back together one...
Twitter CEO: Internet Companies Are ‘Too Powerful’
CNBC: Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said on Wednesday that banning President Trump was the "right decision for Twitter," but admitted that the internet shouldn't be controlled by a handful of private companies. In a series of 13 tweets, Dorsey said that online speech...
Snap Permanently Bans Trump Account on Snapchat
Axios: Snapchat will permanently ban President Trump's account, after locking it indefinitely last week following the siege at the US Capitol. The Trump campaign and digital team relied on Snapchat as a key platform to reach younger audiences before the company...
Spotify Seeks More Joe Rogans in Push for Podcasts
Bloomberg Businessweek: In the past two years, Spotify has spent close to $900 million acquiring podcast production and technology companies. And it's spent millions more on exclusive rights to shows from celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and TikTok star Addison Rae....
News Corp Picks the News Outlets Off-Limits to Staff
New York Times: The New York Post instructed staff members this week not to use reporting from CNN, MSNBC, the New York Times and the Washington Post as the sole basis for any article. The order was handed down by Michelle Gotthelf, the editor in chief of nypost.com,...
Forbes CEO Doesn’t Support Ban of Trump ‘Fabulists’
Fox News: Steve Forbes, the chairman and CEO of Forbes Media, denounced blacklists of Trump administration officials in his defense of a controversial op-ed in his magazine threatening companies who hire Trump "fabulists." Said Forbes: "Unlike Twitter, media giants...
Meredith Touts Online Record at Digital Publications
MediaPost: Meredith said its digital group last month saw a record number of online sessions and higher viewership metrics. Meredith Digital's online sessions grew 13% to 685 million in December from a year earlier, surpassing the prior record of 680 million in April....
Penske to Part with Longtime Fashion Critic at WWD
The Cut: Bridget Foley, the executive editor of Women's Wear Daily, and a pillar of the paper's fashion coverage for more than 30 years, was laid off from her position. "It's a huge part of my life,” Foley said. "I was privileged as a chronicler, and also as a...
Clarim Names Business Journalist as Content Officer
Talking Biz News: James Ledbetter has been hired as chief content officer of Clarim Media, the parent company of Worth magazine and Techonomy. Ledbetter said that Clarim will continue the fintech newsletter he started last year. "The fact that the leadership at Clarim...
Quartz Promotes Sales Exec to Chief Revenue Officer
MediaPost: Quartz has named Natalie Diamond as chief revenue officer, charged with overseeing the publication's advertising business. Previously, Diamond, who has been with the company since 2014, was VP of partnerships and managed the global sales team. She has also...
Google Drops Trump After Violating Policy on YouTube
Reuters: YouTube said on Tuesday it has suspended Donald Trump's channel as it violated policies for inciting violence after last week's assault on the US Capitol by the president's supporters. Trump's channel is now prevented from uploading new videos or livestreams...
Netflix Unveils Plan to Release 70 New Movies in 2021
Bloomberg: Netflix said it will release 70 original movies in 2021, the streaming service's most ambitious slate yet as the theatrical movie business remains stuck in limbo. Netflix's lineup of movies includes one of its most expensive to date, "Red Notice," an action...
Disney Bests Netflix in Most Popular Streaming Films
Los Angeles Times: Disney+ represented 6% of the average amount of time consumers spent streaming weekly in December, a significant achievement for the subscription service that launched November 2019, according to data released from Nielsen. Meanwhile, the most...
AT&T, Comcast Stir Chatter of Mega Media Mergers
Business Insider: Media insiders have been speculating about potential industry-shaking deals in 2021, like a merger of AT&T's WarnerMedia and Comcast's NBCUniversal or a tech takeover of MGM or Lionsgate. "Firms like Comcast and AT&T already dismantled...
Sheldon Adelson, Casino Mogul and Influencer, Dies
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Sheldon Adelson, one of the most successful luxury resort developers and political influencers of his generation, died Monday night at his home in Malibu, California. He was 87. Adelson founded and served as chairman and CEO of Las Vegas...
Fox Corp Taps President for News Streaming Service
Deadline: Jason Klarman has been named president of Fox Nation, the streaming service from Fox News, where he will oversee all operations, content and subscription acquisition. Klarman has been EVP of marketing for Fox News, where he oversees brand strategy, and he...
ViacomCBS Revives MTV Books for TV, Film Projects
Broadcasting & Cable: MTV said it is relaunching MTV Books and named Henry Holt veteran Christian Trimmer to lead the unit. MTV Books will work with Simon & Schuster, the publisher being sold by MTV parent ViacomCBS, to build up a young adult book-to-TV and...
Univision Enters Streaming Wars with Free PrendeTV
Axios: Univision, the largest US Spanish-language broadcaster, announced the launch of PrendeTV, a free, ad-supported streaming service, becoming the latest major broadcaster to jump into the streaming wars. The service will feature both live, linear channels and...
AT&T to Whittle Down Packages of Live Streaming TV
Fast Company: AT&T is winding down its AT&T TV Now live streaming service, and will push customers toward its similar-but-different AT&T TV service instead. While existing AT&T TV Now customers can keep using the service, it's no longer available to...
Disney to Become a ‘Super’ Covid Vaccine Distributor
NBC Los Angeles: Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif. will be the first super site for COVID-19 vaccinations in Orange County later this week when the theme park becomes part of the fight against the global pandemic, officials announced. The site will have the ability...
ViacomCBS Scores with NFL Simulcast on Nickelodeon
CNBC: The National Football League came out the gate swinging for its playoff openers, led by ViacomCBS Sports and Nickelodeon's simulcast, which attracted more than 30 million viewers combined. The version on Nickelodeon drew about 2 million viewers, becoming the...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia to Ground CNN Airport Network
Los Angeles Times: CNN Airport Network, the service that beams the cable news channel's content into US terminal waiting areas, plans to shut down March 31. The end of the service launched in 1990 was announced Tuesday in a staff memo from CNN president Jeff Zucker....
FuboTV to Acquire Vigtory in Bet on Sports Gambling
Wall Street Journal: FuboTV said it is in the process of acquiring Vigtory, an online sportsbook, in a deal that makes the over-the-internet TV provider the latest sports-rich media company to invest in sports gambling in an effort to attract and retain viewers....
New York Times Admits Mistake in Handling Podcast
Washington Post: The New York Times acknowledged errors in how it rolled out the retraction of key episodes in its 2018 "Caliphate" podcast series. "We believe we've handled what was a significant journalistic lapse with accountability," said Sam Dolnick, who oversees...
Gannett Taps Digital Media Pro for Creative Director
USA Today Press Room: Spencer Mandell, a veteran of The Cut and Refinery29, has joined Gannett as its first creative director. In this new role, Mandell will ensure a consistent end-to-end brand experience across all touchpoints for Gannett's consumer and b2b brands....