A look at Amazon Prime Video's election night show, with former NBC News anchor Brian Williams, a wide array of news team members and guests, and a surreal set (Lili Loofbourow/Washington Post)

Mediagazer: A look at Amazon Prime Video's election night show, with former NBC News anchor Brian Williams, a wide array of news team members and guests, and a surreal set (Lili Loofbourow/Washington Post)

Top News:

Axios:

How Trump and his allies could go after the media in his second term through harassment campaigns and lawsuits, draining the companies of time, money, and trust— - “The regulatory threat is on the edges at most,” said Andrew Jay Schwartzman, a veteran communications lawyer.
Discussion: @maxwelltani, Politico, Freedom of the Press …, @karlbode.bsky.social, Columbia Journalism Review, @freedomofpress, @trevortimm, Alternet.org, @benmullin, KDFX-TV, @perspectvortex, @mehdirhasan, Deadline, @matthewkeyslive, @robeno, @kittypurrzog, @matthewkeyslive, Freedom of the Press …, Boing Boing and Sara Fischer on LinkedIn

Discussion:

Josh Gerstein /
Politico: Trump promised to get revenge. Here are his targets.

Lauren Harper /
Freedom of the Press Foundation: Trump's reelection puts us in uncharted territory over secrecy. Now what?

Karl Bode /
@karlbode.bsky.social: You're gonna love the Trump FCC run by lickspittle sycophant Brendan Carr — once they've butchered the FCC's entire broadband consumer protection authority with the help of a corrupt court, they'll pivot toward threatening broadcasters and tech companies that don't adequately bend the knee to fascism [image]

Kyle Paoletta /
Columbia Journalism Review: Trump Wins, the Press Loses @freedomofpress: Donald Trump will almost certainly roll back limits on his power to spy on journalists and sources. That's why the Senate must pass the PRESS Act NOW. https://freedom.press/...

Trevor Timm /
@trevortimm: Trump has spent the last year calling for more leak investigations, imprisoning journalists, and censoring news outlets he doesn't like. Lawmakers and the White House must act—before it's too late. Pass the PRESS Act! Our statement at @FreedomofPress: https://freedom.press/...

David Badash /
Alternet.org: The list of who Donald Trump has ‘pledged to punish’ — according to one of his targets

Ben Mullin /
@benmullin: https://vox.com/ uses Trump's victory as an occasion to remind readers to donate: [image]

Brian Stelter /
KDFX-TV: Trump's return to power raises serious questions about the media's credibility @perspectvortex: A lesson Rush Limbaugh learned 30 years ago. Being the opposition is better for your grift

Mehdi Hasan /
@mehdirhasan: People - including top US journalists, perhaps especially top US journalists - don't quite get how bad it's going to be. How beyond term one it'll be. How bad the Musks and RFKs will be. I don't think even I fully accept how bad it's going to be and I have been shouting how bad

Matthew Keys /
@matthewkeyslive: “Donald Trump ran a campaign based on retribution. Now he is perfectly positioned to carry it out.”

Rob Eno /
@robeno: I give @brianstelter a lot of shit. And have for years. But if this is a truly sincere effort to turn the page and self reflect. Let's do it. This is worlds different from his tone in 2016 the day after the election. https://view.newsletters.cnn.com/ ...

Katie Herzog /
@kittypurrzog: Congratulations to the New York Times, cable news, the ACLU, GLAAD, and much of the nonprofit industrial complex. Next few years gonna be flush.

Matthew Keys /
@matthewkeyslive: The media has a major opportunity to course correct over the next four years. Or they can stay the course and repeat the same mistakes. Not sure which path the industry will take.

Ellsworth Toohey /
Boing Boing: Trump revenge list: politicians, prosecutors and journalists targeted for retaliation

Sara Fischer /
Sara Fischer on LinkedIn: 💡 Even if #DonaldTrump wins the election, he won't have as much political power to go after the media as you might think, thanks to strong legal and regulatory protections …

RELATED:

CNN:

Reporters from Politico, Axios, and more were denied credentials to Trump's election night event; a source says Politico's were revoked after critical coverage— New York CNN — — Journalists from multiple news organizations have been denied credentials to former President Donald …

Discussion:
@lacivitac, @justin_b_smith, Washington Post, Fortune, Voice of America, TVNewsCheck, @noahpollak, @hadas_gold, @byajperez, The Daily Beast, New Republic, RADAR, New York Daily News, New York Times, Mediaite, Alternet.org, @jowens510.bsky.social and New York Magazine, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:

Chris LaCivita /
@lacivitac: Actually this bullshit tweet is a result of the fact that “famed” gossip columnist @tarapalmeri was DENIED credentials to enter Mar-a-largo to cover election night due to her “proclivity” to write bullshit. well well well

Justin B. Smith /
@justin_b_smith: “Reporters at Politico, Axios, Puck, Voice of America and Mother Jones were among those denied credentials” https://www.cnn.com/...

Chris Morris /
Fortune: Trump denied and disinvited news outlets that were critical of him from his election night event

Jocelyn Mintz /
Voice of America: Bangladesh interim government revokes credentials of 50 journalists

Stephen Battaglio /
TVNewsCheck: NewsNation Is First TV Network To Call Presidential Race For Trump Thanks To Decision Desk HQ

Noah Pollak /
@noahpollak: The sense of entitlement that MSM journos have is epic. They shamelessly lie and manipulate every day about Trump and then complain when he doesn't invite them to his election night party. Incredible.

Hadas Gold /
@hadas_gold: Multiple reporters from major outlets have been denied credentials to tonight's Trump campaign election night watch event in Florida - and it's because of their coverage https://www.cnn.com/...

Hadas Gold /
@hadas_gold: .@tarapalmeri on her pod, who was supposed to in Palm Beach for the Amazon special: “I have been honest and fair this entire time covering this election and I will be now broadcasting in studio with Brian Williams from LA.”

A.J. Perez /
@byajperez: “Reporters at Politico, Axios, Puck, Voice of America and Mother Jones were among those denied credentials.” A downside of access journalism is getting shut out when journos stop sanewashing.

David Gardner /
The Daily Beast: Trump Bans Amazon Reporter From Election Party Despite Bezos Kissing the Ring

Malcolm Ferguson /
New Republic: Trump Spends Election Night Taking Revenge on the Media

Haley Gunn /
RADAR: Trump Campaign Revokes Reporters' Press Credentials on Election Night Over Negative Coverage — After Former Advisers Brand Him a ‘Fascist’

Theresa Braine /
New York Daily News: Trump campaign bans journalists from election night event over critical coverage

Katie Robertson /
New York Times: Trump Team Revokes Election Party Access for Some Journalists

Charlie Nash /
Mediaite: Trump Campaign Denies Major Outlets Access to Election Watch Party After They ‘P*ssed’ Them Off With Coverage

Maya Boddie /
Alternet.org: ‘Retaliation’: Trump camp ‘punishing reporters’ by denying credentials to Mar-a-Lago election event

Jeremy C. Owens /
@jowens510.bsky.social: The most remarkable news org on this list is Voice of America. Seriously? [embedded post]

Charlotte Klein /
New York Magazine: Trump Campaign Finishes the Election by Taking Revenge on the Media

New York Times:

Experts say news outlets could see a “Trump bump 2.0”, but it would be more muted than in his first term due to news fatigue and changing consumption habits— News fatigue and changing consumption habits could sap some of that enthusiasm over time, several news media experts said.

Discussion:
@harrymccracken@mastodon …, @benmullin, @brendancarrfcc, @zammer.bsky.social and TVNewsCheck

Discussion:

Harry McCracken /
@harrymccracken@mastodon.social: Every ounce of effort the media puts into predicting what's going to happen could be put to better use. https://www.nytimes.com/...

Ben Mullin /
@benmullin: new: in the aftermath of Donald Trump's election, experts expect a short-term increase in news subscriptions, philanthropic giving to news nonprofits and cable news ratings. But news fatigue may sap that enthusiasm over time https://www.nytimes.com/...

Brendan Carr /
@brendancarrfcc: NBC knew the FCC's Equal Time rule. SNL even said that they could not bring any candidates on, while still complying with that law, given the number of other candidates that would have Equal Time rights. Nonetheless, NBC and SNL decided to bring just one candidate on less

Benjamin Mullin /
TVNewsCheck: Trump Bump 2.0? Experts Expect Another Audience Surge, With Caveats

New York Times:

In the election run-up, TV networks had prepared for a long wait, like in 2020, that didn't come; around 2:30AM ET, every network covered Trump's victory speech— Anchors were ready to camp out in the studio for days on end. Instead, Donald J. Trump declared victory in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Discussion:
DNyuz, @davidoatkins, Variety, Poynter and The Guardian

Discussion:

David Atkins /
@davidoatkins: You cannot cede the information environment and algorithmic influence to the far right, and then make up for it with billions in paid media and ground volunteers.

Brian Steinberg /
Variety: As Trump Gained Election Lead, TV Anchors Tried to Convince Viewers to Keep Watching

Tom Jones /
Poynter: Who won the 2024 presidential election coverage?

GeekWire:
Jeff Bezos, who ended the WaPo endorsing political candidates, congratulates Donald Trump on his “political comeback and decisive victory” in a rare X post

Discussion:
@jeffbezos, Townhall, San Francisco Business Times, @davill, CNN, @bgrueskin, @mattdpearce, @jbendery, VentureBeat, @eriksherman, @drericding, TMZ.com, Mediaite, @jstein_wapo, The Independent, Reuters, @canteverdie, @nickdaly.bsky.social, New York Times, Variety, @teddyschleifer, @markmobility, GB News, The Gateway Pundit and Daily Kos, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:

Jeff Bezos /
@jeffbezos: Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has bigger opportunities. Wishing @realDonaldTrump all success in leading and uniting the America we all love. San Francisco Business Times: Sam Altman, Tim Cook and other tech leaders had this to say about Trump's victory

Dave Limp /
@davill: Echoing Jeff's congrats here. Exciting times for space exploration are ahead of us.

Liam Reilly /
CNN: Jeff Bezos congratulates Trump for ‘extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory’

Bill Grueskin /
@bgrueskin: Wow, that's quite an, um, endorsement!

Matt Pearce /
@mattdpearce: good stuff

Jennifer Bendery /
@jbendery: Jeff Bezos last week: “What presidential endorsements actually do is create a perception of bias. A perception of non-independence.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...

Emilia David /
VentureBeat: Tech leaders congratulate Trump on winning 2024 election, pledge to work together on innovation

Erik Sherman /
@eriksherman: Yup, really bad look and strategy. The grift economy is alive and well.

Eric Feigl-Ding /
@drericding: Now we know why Washington Post was muzzled by Bezos.

Jeff Stein /
@jstein_wapo: From a story I did recently on billionaires, including Bezos, signaling their openness to Trump pre-election: “Trump has had no issue calling out political enemies by name and threatening to use the force of government for retribution, and apparently that is intimidating a lot of

Katie Hawkinson /
The Independent: Bezos gushes over Trump's ‘extraordinary political comeback’ after reportedly killing Harris endorsement @canteverdie: billionaires blatantly bought this last election via purchase of media spaces, of flooding the internet strategically with their influence, and democrats are holding onto the past. they're not grappling with the current political landscape that the right is operating in

Nick Daly /
@nickdaly.bsky.social: Which reminds me, I haven't canceled my WaPo subscription yet [embedded post]

Benjamin Mullin /
New York Times: Jeff Bezos Congratulates Trump on Victory

Todd Spangler /
Variety: Jeff Bezos Praises Donald Trump's ‘Extraordinary Comeback’ After Tech Mogul Spiked Washington Post's Presidential Endorsement

Teddy Schleifer /
@teddyschleifer: Hmmmmm

Mark Elliott /
@markmobility: WaPo's endorsement finally drops.

Holly Bishop /
GB News: Kamala Harris finally concedes in phone call to Donald Trump hours after victory declared

Anthony Scott /
The Gateway Pundit: Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos Congratulates Trump on “Extraordinary Political Comeback”

Emily Singer /
Daily Kos: Washington Post owner ditches ‘independence’ for fawning congrats to Trump

Drop Site News:
In a November 3 internal email, Patrick Soon-Shiong cites Trump and Harris' stance on the Israel-Hamas war among the reasons the LAT didn't endorse a candidate

Discussion:
Columbia Journalism Review, The Guardian, @petersterne, @dropsitenews, Washington Examiner and Scroll.in

Discussion:

Jon Allsop /
Columbia Journalism Review: At War, Because We're at Work — At 2:16am, Eastern time, Eric Trump, son of Donald …

Robert Tait /
The Guardian: Los Angeles Times owner cites Gaza war as a reason not to endorse Harris

Peter Sterne /
@petersterne: This seems like a principled stand to take, though it's somewhat undermined by the fact that he repeatedly and publicly insisted this wasn't the reason for his decision. @dropsitenews: In an internal email dated November 3, Patrick Soon-Shiong, the billionaire owner of the Los Angeles Times, explained his decision for the newspaper not to endorse a presidential candidate this year. The email, addressed to the Times' top editor and the president and COO, was

Jenny Goldsberry /
Washington Examiner: Chris Christie teases meager bet on 2024 race

Washington Post:

A look at Amazon Prime Video's election night show, with former NBC News anchor Brian Williams, a wide array of news team members and guests, and a surreal set— The former NBC News anchor's deeply strange (and ambitious) live stream captured the surrealism of the night.

Discussion:

Melanie McFarland /
Salon: Brian Williams held our hand, giving us a way to check out from cable news - and the election @thr: Brian Williams Brings Standard Election Night Coverage to Streaming With Live Amazon Special https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ... @estellasrevenge@threads.net: Brian Williams election coverage on Prime is repub heavy. Ugh. What streaming will you watch tonight?

Chase Manning /
@chaseman777@threads.net: Highly disappointed in Amazon Prime's election coverage with Brian Williams. They just had Ben Shapiro on as if he were any old intelligent, unbiased, reliable expert correspondent and not the hate-filled bigoted tool bag with zero percent journalistic integrity that he is.

Baratunde Thurston /
@baratunde@threads.net: When James Carville isn't on tv he's on the phone. Sometimes he's doing both at the same time. A little behind the scenes form this Brian Williams election night special on Amazon prime https://www.amazon.com/...

Rick Porter /
The Hollywood Reporter: Brian Williams Brings Standard Election Night Coverage to Streaming With Live Amazon Special

Brian Steinberg /
Variety: Brian Williams Goes Long on Talk, Short on Flashy Graphics in Amazon Election-Night Streaming Debut

Garrett Searight /
Barrett Media: Is Brian Williams Ready for a Television News Comeback After Amazon Prime Video Election Night Special?

Erik Pedersen /
Deadline: Brian Williams Leads Prime Video's First Live Election Night Special - Watch The Cold Open

Raquel ‘Rocky’ Harris /
The Wrap: How to Watch Brian Williams' Live Election Special on Amazon for Free

Taylor Soper /
GeekWire: Amazon makes its live news debut as TV vet Brian Williams hosts election night coverage

Josh Sorokach /
Decider: Where To Watch Brian Williams' Election Night Coverage: Channel, Start Time, Streaming Info

Christopher Tremoglie /
Washington Examiner: Will Brian Williams be dodging enemy fire in a helicopter on his way to a new election coverage gig?

George Winslow /
Tv Technology: Brian Williams Returns to Election Coverage With Prime Video Special

RELATED:
Deadline:

Nielsen: 42.3M viewers watched election night coverage across 18 US TV networks, down 25% from 2020; Amazon Prime Video was not included in the measurement— The measurement was in the 7 p.m. - 11 p.m. ET period, which was hours before the final tally of Trump's win and Vice President Kamala Harris' loss was in.

Discussion:

Sara Fischer /
Axios: 42 million tune into election night coverage

Joe Otterson /
Variety: Election Night 2024 Coverage Draws 42.3 Million Viewers, Down Over 25% From 2020

Mark Mwachiro /
Adweek: 42.3 Million Viewers Watched Presidential Election Night Coverage

Jeremy Barr /
@jeremymbarr: What's also wild is that 67 million people watched the Trump/Harris debate two months ago. That's a massive drop in TV interest.

Alex Weprin /
@alexweprin: @jeremymbarr ... I don't know for sure, but I will note that for a debate you want to watch the event, for Election Day you want the analysis, and there are a million places to get real time analysis.

Stephen Battaglio /
Los Angeles Times: Fox News leads election night ratings as MSNBC tops CNN for the first time

David Bauder /
Associated Press: Four years make a big difference for Donald Trump — and for Fox News

Rick Porter /
The Hollywood Reporter: TV Ratings: Election Night Viewing Drops Sharply in Early Nielsen Numbers

Isabella Simonetti /
Wall Street Journal: Fox News Led Election Night Ratings Amid Lower Cable Viewership

Loree Seitz /
The Wrap: Election Night 2024 Ratings: Fox News Dominates With 9.8 Million Viewers, MSNBC Beats CNN for First Presidential Election Ever

Ben Mullin /
@benjaminmullin@threads.net: Inbox: more than 42 million viewers tuned in to watch 2024 presidential election coverage, down *25 percent* from 2020, per Nielsen: Barrett Media: SEC on ABC Scores Most-Watched Afternoon Game and Most-Watched Primetime Game in Week 10

Bloomberg:

US filing: Paramount Global talked to WBD about a merger for months before giving up after receiving no offer; Paramount held talks with at least 12 bidders— - Comcast also took an early look but wanted a streaming deal — Skydance ultimately emerged as winning bidder for CBS parent

Discussion:
The Desk, The Streamable, Cord Cutters News, Business Insider and Variety

Discussion:

Luke Bouma /
Cord Cutters News: Paramount Almost Merged With Comcast & Warner Bros. Discovery Before Both Deals Fell Apart

Reuters:

Canada orders TikTok's business in the country to be dissolved, citing national security risks, and says it's not blocking Canadians' access to the app— Canada on Wednesday ordered the wind up of TikTok's business in the country citing national security risks, but added the government …

Discussion:

Tyler Jenke /
Billboard: TikTok Banned From Operating In Canada

Michaela Zee /
Variety: TikTok Ordered to Shut Down Canadian Business by Country's Government, App Access to Continue Globe and Mail: Ottawa orders shutdown of TikTok's Canadian arm - but citizens can keep using popular app

Rob Gillies /
Associated Press: Canada orders TikTok's Canadian business to be dissolved but won't block app

Karissa Bell /
Engadget: Canada orders TikTok to shut down its business operations in the country due to ‘national security risks’ Government of Canada: Government of Canada orders the wind up of TikTok Technology Canada, Inc. following a national security review under the Investment Canada Act

David T.S. Fraser /
@privacylawyer: In another remarkably stupid move, the Gov't of Canada orders TikTok to shutter its Cdn subsidiary (which presumably writes the cheques to Cdn creators), but the app will still be available in Cda. I can't see how this does anything but harm creators. https://www.canada.ca/...

Geoffrey Gertz /
@geoffreygertz: This is also curiously almost the exact inverse of another social media policy trend, which is requiring platforms to have a local presence, someone to be accountable to gov't regulators. If I understand this order, Canada is compelling TikTok not to have a local presence? 🤷

John Mark Taylor /
@prairiecentrist: Idk what this means.

Mackenzie Gray /
@gray_mackenzie: The Canadian Government just announced they're ordering the wind up of TikTok Technology Canada, Inc. after a national security review but Tik Tok itself is not being banned in Canada. So the company is banned, the Tik Tok itself will still be accessible in Canada #cdnpoli [image]

Scott /
@scott_dlb: So zero security concerns are resolved but we lose the ability to tax and regulate it. The Liberals really are the masters of finding the dumbest possible middle ground on an issue

Press Gazette:

In a letter to a UK parliamentary committee, the FT says news organizations are forced to accept Google's AI crawlers due Googlebot's presence on most websites— News organisations don't have a “genuine choice” about whether to block Google from scraping their content for its AI services, one publisher has warned.

The Hollywood Reporter:

Sinclair reports Q3 revenue up 20% to $917M, net income of $94M, vs. a $46M loss YoY, political ad revenue up 31% over 2020 but slightly below its guidance— Sinclair reported $5 million in lost revenue due to late ad cancellations during the quarter. — TV broadcasting and media company …

Discussion:
StreamTV Insider, The Desk, TVNewsCheck and Sinclair, Inc

Discussion:

Daniel Frankel /
StreamTV Insider: Sinclair lauds Charter's SVOD packaging strategy, heralds start of ‘the great rebundling’

Matthew Keys /
The Desk: Sinclair sees political revenue jump 31 percent in Q3

Mark K. Miller /
TVNewsCheck: Sinclair Q3 Revenue Rises 20%

Variety:

In his second term, Trump may replace top FTC and DOJ officials who have chilled dealmaking, making 2025 a breakout year for media mergers and acquisitions— Analysts expect new administration to replace top FTC, DOJ officials who have chilled dealmaking activity

Discussion:
@sherman4949 and Deadline

The Hollywood Reporter:

UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy unveils plans to broaden the scope of media merger laws to include the purchase of UK online news outlets and news magazines— The goal is “scrutiny in the public interest” of deals that include U.K. online news publications and magazines …

Discussion:
Advanced Television

Discussion:

Colin Mann /