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....
Telegraph Newspaper Co-Owner David Barclay Dies
Guardian: David Barclay, one of the two billionaire brothers who own the UK Telegraph newspaper group, died unexpectedly after a short illness at age 86. Working in partnership with his identical twin, Frederick, the pair became two of the most successful British...
Conde Nast Cuts PR Staffers, Podcasting Producers
WWD: Conde Nast has laid off a few members of its US-based public relations team. The publisher confirmed that there had been a small number of layoffs, but did not provide specific numbers. The Verge: Former Conde Nast Audio producers and editors allege the company...
Hearst Preps Single Sign-On Solution for Magazines
Digiday: Hearst magazines have been integrating a revamped identity resolution system called Mylo, which is operated by subsidiary CDS Global, in a bid to acquire more first-party data about their audiences. A user who registers to read content on Esquire's website...
Vice Media to Pull the Plug on Art-Fashion Magazine
Business of Fashion: Vice will cease to publish the biannual art-meets-fashion magazine Garage after the release of one more issue this spring. "As our company continues to expand, it is critical to focus on opportunities aligned with our strategy,” said a Vice rep....
Hollywood Reporter Alum Writes for Time Magazine
Time PR: Janice Min, a former co-president of the Hollywood Reporter–Billboard Media Group, has become a contributing editor for Time magazine. "She will write occasional pieces for Time and contribute to special projects across our platforms, with a particular focus...
Conde Nast Addresses To-Do at Vogue, New Yorker
WWD: Anna Wintour has spoken for the first time about the controversial Vogue cover featuring Kamala Harris that some social media users labelled "disrespectful," "poor quality" and "a washed-out mess." New York Post: The American Society of Magazine Editors will...
Media, Tech Giants Suspend Political Contributions
CNET: Microsoft, Google and Facebook have frozen contributions to their political action committees in the wake of last week's riot on Capitol Hill, where supporters of President Trump tried to prevent Congressional certification of the 2020 election results....
Amazon Hit with Lawsuit After Suspension of Parler
Politico: Parler hit back at Amazon, filing a lawsuit accusing the tech giant of violating antitrust law by cutting off the conservative-friendly social media site's presence on the web. Parler said Amazon's decision was "motivated by political animus" and designed to...
Facebook Staffers Avoid Company-Branded Apparel
The Information: Facebook told employees to avoid wearing or carrying company-branded clothing and other items in public following its suspension last week of President Trump's account and its more recent crackdown on content mentioning "Stop the Steal," an online...
Google Faces Lawsuit in Search by Rival of YouTube
Wall Street Journal: Video-sharing site Rumble accused Google in a lawsuit of abusing the power of its search engine and mobile operating system to boost its YouTube video service over rivals, the latest allegation of anti-competitive conduct against the Alphabet...
Verizon CEO Announces Pacts with NFL, Live Nation
Variety: Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg has revealed several new and expanded 5G-related partnerships, including with the NFL, UPS, Live Nation, the Smithsonian Institution and the Metropolitan Museum of Art for an interactive virtual gallery project called "The Met...
Netflix to Sign Film, First-Look Deal with Kevin Hart
Hollywood Reporter: Kevin Hart is poised to make an enormous, Adam Sandler-type deal with Netflix. The deal calls for Hart to star and produce four features for the streamer and then enter into a first-look deal via his production banner, HartBeat Productions. The...
Disney Cuts Price of Hulu to $2 a Month for Students
USA Today: Hulu has a new subscription offer for college students — pay just $1.99 monthly for the streaming home of shows such as "The Bachelor" and originals including "The Handmaid's Tale." Students over the age of 18 can signup now for the $1.99 monthly access to...
Comcast’s NBC Drops Sports Analyst After Remarks
USA Today: Mike Milbury, a long-time NBC sports analyst who had become controversial over misogynistic and insensitive comments he made in the past, will not be returning. "We are grateful to Mike for all of his contributions to our coverage for 14 years, but he will...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Shifts Program Lineup at CNN
Mediaite: CNN announced a number of new assignments for their top anchors and correspondents in Washington. Most notably, Jake Tapper's daily afternoon show, "The Lead," will expand to two hours. It will now air from 4-6 pm, shortening Wolf Blitzer's "The Situation...
Fox Corp Chief Adds More Opinion to News Channel
CNN: Rupert Murdoch, the executive chairman of Fox Corp, was said to be directly involved in the decision to replace a nighttime hour of news coverage on Fox News with another right-wing opinion show. The 7 pm hour, anchored by Martha MacCallum and called "The Story,"...
Twitter Purges 70,000 Accounts with Ties to QAnon
Washington Post: Twitter said it purged more than 70,000 accounts affiliated with conspiracy theory QAnon following the deadly riot at the US Capitol last week. The company said it began suspending the accounts on Friday afternoon, citing an increased risk of harm...
Cumulus Forces Radio Hosts to Tone Down Rhetoric
Washington Post: Talk-radio giant Cumulus Media, which employs some of the most popular right-leaning hosts in the United States, has told its on-air personalities to stop suggesting that the election was stolen from President Trump — or else face termination. The new...
New York Times Expects Biden Redo of News Media
TheHill: Joe Biden's administration is likely to reshape how reporters present news coverage and party conflict to their audiences, according to New York Times media columnist Ben Smith. "Biden ran on the promise to kind of do things in an old-fashioned way. I think...