Playgirl Magazine Sells Out in Return to Newsstand
New York Post: Playgirl returned to newsstands last month and like the original that debuted in 1973, it quickly sold out. The current incarnation is owned by Jack Lindley Kuhns, who two years ago tapped Skye Parrott to be editor-in-chief of the...
Megyn Kelly Celebrates 50th Birthday, Top Podcast
Daily Mail: Megyn Kelly celebrated a milestone birthday with an intimate surprise party at her New York home this weekend. But her birthday isn't the only reason for celebration. Kelly's podcast, "The Megyn Kelly Show," debuted at No.1 for the month of...
Katie Couric Media Inks Editorial Deals with Brands
Adweek: Katie Couric is calling her own shots these days at the helm of a media company that bears her name, Katie Couric Media. The former NBC News and CBS News anchor is reinventing the business model around content creation and...
Social Media Threaten US Democracy, Obama Says
Recode: Barack Obama worries that the internet and social media have helped create "the single biggest threat to our democracy." He's clearly sounding an alarm, but it's not exactly clear what he thinks we should do about it. "They are making editorial choices,...
Facebook, Twitter CEOs to Testify on Election News
Multichannel News: Senate Republicans appear to be continuing to put the pressure on Big Tech, with a couple of the biggest names in tech testifying this week. The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing for Tuesday with Twitter's Jack Dorsey and Facebook's...
AT&T Streamer to Finally Arrive on Amazon Fire TV
CNBC: HBO Max will begin rolling out this week on Amazon Fire TV and Fire tablets, roughly six months after its launch. HBO Max debuted in May for phones and a variety of smart TV platforms, but was notably absent from two of the largest streaming TV platforms: Amazon...
Comcast Enters Pact to Change Release of Movies
Bloomberg: Universal Pictures struck a deal with Cinemark to allow its films to go to home video after a shorter period of time. Under the new accord, Universal can sell its films to online audiences as soon as 17 days after they're shown by Cinemark, the...
Disney’s Hulu to Hike Price of Live TV Subscription
Fast Company: Hulu + Live TV has become the latest live-streaming service to raise prices as the cost of cable channels keeps going up. Starting December 18, Hulu's live TV service will start at $65 per month, an increase of $10 per month from...
Netflix Poaches NBC Exec for New Head of Comedy
Deadline: NBC scripted programming exec Tracey Pakosta is leaving the broadcast network to join Netflix as head of comedy. Pakosta will oversee both development and current programming for Netflix’s slate of scripted comedy series including adult animation and...
Fox Corp Hints of Expansion for Opinion News TV
TheWrap: Tucker Carlson said he has no plans to abandon Fox News for further-right pastures. In fact, Fox News is "working on a project to expand the amount of reporting and analysis we do in this hour across other parts of the company. This show is not going...
Disney Family’s Ex-Firm Buys Taylor Swift Masters
Axios: Shamrock Capital is the mystery buyer of Taylor Swift's master recordings for her first six albums. Swift has been feuding with music magnate Scooter Braun since he acquired her former record label, Big Machine, and its assets last...
Endeavor Taps Conde Nast Veteran for Streaming
Business Insider: Endeavor has hired Fred Santarpia to run its high-profile streaming unit. Santarpia will oversee global expansion at the direct-to-consumer streaming operation, which conducts front and back end operations for a host of top-notch sports leagues...
Hearst TV Promotes Exec to Lead Streaming Video
TVNewsCheck: Andrew Fitzgerald has been promoted to senior vice president, streaming video services, at Hearst Television, overseeing the company’s effort to expand its breadth of content over emerging platforms. He had been Hearst Television’s chief digital content...
Thomson Reuters Readies Hybrid Model for Events
Talking Biz News: In 2021, Reuters plans to roll out a hybrid events model, which will delve further into region-based networking without losing the benefits of virtual that the Reuters team has discovered over the past eight...
Conde Nast Stirs Debate Over New Cover of Vogue
Daily Mail: Harry Styles made history as the first ever solo male cover star of US Vogue, and opted to shake things up with by wearing a dress. However, conservative commentator Candace Owens took umbrage: "There is no society that can survive without strong...
Hearst Nabs Digital Magazine Pro from Conde Nast
Business of Fashion: Harper's Bazaar new editor in chief Samira Nasr announced a major hire on Monday, poaching GQ deputy fashion director Nikki Ogunnaike to become the Hearst publication's digital director. The appointment marks a return for Ogunnaike to...
A360 Media Sees Big Declines at National Enquirer
Slate: The Enquirer's circulation has plunged "from over 4 million weekly to around 100,000 today. It's to the point now where it's losing money hand over fist. It's a sad story, and people don't hold out much hope that the Enquirer will last much...
The Atlantic Eyes 100 Media Pros for CEO Position
Business Insider: How many people does it take to find the next CEO of The Atlantic? Over 100, apparently. That's the number of people David Bradley, the publication's minority owner, has said he's met with to find the right person for the job. Bradley's hunt has gone...
Quartz Enjoys Best Week Ever for New Subscribers
Talking Biz News: Quartz enjoyed its best week ever for membership last week, adding nearly 1,200 new members. The signups came after Quartz announced it was being acquired in a buyout by CEO and co-founder Zach Seward. Quartz now has 25,000 paying members...
Study: Digital Publishers Face Hurdles Amid Covid
MediaPost: Billing, data management, communication and fraud are some of the biggest challenges for digital publishers amid the global pandemic, according to a new survey by media measurement company DoubleVerify. Publishers say ad fraud is one of their top inventory...
US Media Giants Wary on TV Ad Future Amid Covid
CNBC: The TV ad market is on the mend after getting hit by a broader pandemic ad slowdown. But with Covid-19 cases on the rise, some networks are cautious about the coming quarters, even with a big boost from political ads this...
Disney CEO Hints of More Premier Streaming Films
Entertainment Weekly: Disney CEO Bob Chapek has hinted that more films could receive the premier access streaming treatment in the near future. "From a studio content standpoint, we were very pleased with the results of 'Mulan' as a premier access...
AT&T’s Warner Streamer Looks to ‘Wonder Woman’
Bloomberg: "Wonder Woman 1984," the only big movie still scheduled to debut in theaters this year, may appear on AT&T's HBO Max just a week or two after its release, a move that could help the new streaming service add subscribers quickly and keep cinemas open at...
Comcast to Fold Venture Capital Arm Into Business
CNBC: Comcast Ventures, the corporate venture capital firm, is folding into Comcast's business development division and shifting its strategy to focus only on strategic investments. Comcast Ventures will no longer invest in a broad array of...
Netflix’s ‘The Crown’ Includes Warnings on Bulimia
Daily Mail: Royal experts have criticized graphic scenes in "The Crown," which portray Princess Diana's struggle with bulimia. Some of the scenes are so graphic that viewers are given an on-screen warning at the beginning of the three episodes where her bulimia is...
Fox Corp Chief’s Daughter Donates to Arts Diversity
Reuters: Elisabeth Murdoch is giving 3 million pounds to promote racial diversity in the British visual arts as part of a $100 million endowment. The daughter of Rupert Murdoch has adopted a lower profile than her brothers Lachlan and James and held back from the race...
Newsmax Says Right-Wing News Outlet Isn’t for Sale
Variety: Newsmax may be focused on conservative audiences, but it has very liberal views of where its business can go in the future. Wall Street Journal: A private-equity firm with ties to a co-chair of the Republican National Committee has held talks about acquiring...
Endeavor Eyes Cost Cutting, Asset Sales Amid Covid
New York Post: Hollywood superagent Ari Emanuel, desperate to survive the pandemic, is quietly hatching plans to trim the fat at Endeavor. The entertainment conglomerate is exploring selling investments in profitable startups and exiting low-growth...
Bloomberg QuickTake Staffer in Gender Pay Lawsuit
WWD: Bloomberg LP is again being accused of discriminatory workplace practices, this time by a current employee who is joining the lawsuit of a former reporter. Naula Ndugga, a news producer for Bloomberg QuickTake, is now part of a discrimination lawsuit filed in...
Hearst Lays Off About 60 Staffers at Oprah Magazine
WWD: As Hearst Magazines prepares to reduce the frequency of O, The Oprah Magazine from 12 issues to four next year, it is implementing layoffs. Some 59 staffers will be laid off, starting in February. The layoffs are thought to impact mainly the print...