A reporter who fought a seven-year legal battle to protect sources says Julian Assange's case sets a dangerous precedent that may severely hurt US press freedom (James Risen/The Intercept)

Mediagazer: A reporter who fought a seven-year legal battle to protect sources says Julian Assange's case sets a dangerous precedent that may severely hurt US press freedom (James Risen/The Intercept)

Top News:

The Verge:

Redbox's owner, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, files for bankruptcy protection; Chicken Soup took on $325M in debt when it acquired Redbox in 2022— Redbox's owner, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, filed for bankruptcy protection overnight.
Discussion: Deadline, Fortune, Cord Cutters News, @carnage4life@mas.to, @jank0@sfba.social and Engadget, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:

Dade Hayes /
Deadline: Redbox Owner Chicken Soup For The Soul Entertainment Files For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

Jeremy Hill /
Fortune: The owner of Redbox DVD kiosks just filed for bankruptcy, saying results 'failed to meet management's expectations'

Luke Bouma /
Cord Cutters News: Redbox Reportedly Files For Bankruptcy

Dare Obasanjo /
@carnage4life@mas.to: Redbox is an example of how technology transitions can completely wipe out a company. They lost out in the transition from DVDs to streaming, got bought by the Chicken Soup for the Soul company and have now filed for bankruptcy after missing payroll and debt payments. …

Janko Roettgers /
@jank0@sfba.social: Redbox is bankrupt https://www.theverge.com/...

Cheyenne MacDonald /
Engadget: The owner of Redbox has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Variety:

Arnaud Lagardère returns as French publishing group Lagardère SA chair and CEO, after appealing an April 29 management ban by a court over embezzlement charges— Arnaud Lagardere, who had stepped down from his executive roles of chairman and CEO of the listed French media …

Discussion:
Le Monde.fr, Deadline and The Bookseller

Discussion:

Jesse Whittock /
Deadline: Arnaud Lagardère Returns To CEO Duties; Nine Network Axes 200 Roles; ‘Big Brother Canada’ Evicted — Global Briefs

Barbara Casassus /
The Bookseller: Arnaud Lagardère returns to executive role at Lagardère

Variety:

Nielsen: the Biden-Trump debate drew an average audience of 51.3M viewers across 17 networks in the US, down from 2020's first debate, with nearly 73.1M— Networks include CNN, which originated the debate, as well as ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Scripps News, Telemundo, Univision, BET …

Discussion:
Adweek, @dylanbyers, @brianstelter, New York Times, @antonej@threads.net, @parkerortolani@threads.net, Nielsen, MediaPost, CNN, Matthew Keys on LinkedIn, Politico, CBS News, The Desk, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, CNN, Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter

Discussion:

Mark Mwachiro /
Adweek: CNN Presidential Debate Scores 51 Million Viewers Across All Networks [Final Numbers]

Dylan Byers /
@dylanbyers: CNN Debate *fast national* (not final) ratings in detail: Fox News: 8.82 million CNN: 8.75 million ABC: 8.70 million NBC: 5.17 million CBS: 4.81 million MSNBC: 3.94 million FOX: 3.48 million Fox Business: 372,000 HLN: 251,000 CNN Espanol: 46,000

Brian Stelter /
@brianstelter: This just in from CNN: “A combined 47.9 million total viewers watched the CNN Presidential Debate on television last night” across all the networks where it appeared.

Michael M. Grynbaum /
New York Times: 51.3 Million Viewers Tuned In for Shaky Biden and Boisterous Trump

Antone Johnson /
@antonej@threads.net: So 85% of Americans didn't watch it.

Parker Ortolani /
@parkerortolani@threads.net: oh hey nobody watches debates no one cares no one will remember, said a delusional person

Wayne Friedman /
MediaPost: First Presidential Debate Earns 51.3M Viewers, Down 30%: Nielsen

Matthew Keys /
Matthew Keys on LinkedIn: CNN initially published an article claiming it had the highest-rated coverage of the presidential debate on Thursday. …

Jared Mitovich /
Politico: 47.9 million people watched Biden and Trump debate, a steep decline from 2020

Matthew Keys /
The Desk: Fox News grabs highest ratings for CNN Presidential Debate

Ariel Zilber /
New York Post: CNN says Biden-Trump debate draws nearly 48M viewers — most in network's history

Stephen Battaglio /
Los Angeles Times: CNN Biden-Trump debate draws 51.3 million TV viewers, a major drop from 2020

Ross O'Keefe /
Washington Examiner: Biden's nightmare debate brought in 48 million viewers — 25 million fewer than 2020's first matchup

Ted Johnson /
Deadline: CNN Says 47.9 Million Watched Presidential Debate; TV Viewership Drops Considerably From 2020

Wired:

Quora-owned AI chatbot platform Poe is providing users with downloadable HTML files of paywalled articles from outlets including NYT, Forbes, and The Atlantic— WIRED was able to download stories from publishers like The New York Times and The Atlantic using Poe's Assistant bot.

Discussion:
@thekenyeung, @l0uryn, @carnage4life, @steve_e and @timmarchman

Discussion:

Louryn Strampe /
@l0uryn: all hail @DefectorMedia https://www.wired.com/... [image]

Dare Obasanjo /
@carnage4life: People say chatbots are a solution looking for a problem but it turns out you just didn't realize the problem was getting to read paywalled articles for free. [image]

Steve Evans /
@steve_e: The open web argument doesn't matter anyway, when AI companies are crawling through paywalls. https://www.wired.com/...

Reuters:

In a parliamentary hearing, Meta says it is considering blocking news content from Facebook in Australia if the government makes it pay licensing fees— Facebook owner Meta (META.O) is considering blocking news content from the platform in Australia if the government makes it pay licensing fees …

Discussion:
Bloomberg

Discussion:

Ainslie Chandler /
Bloomberg: Australia PM Says Arrogant Meta Should Pay Outlets for News

Nieman Lab:

Spain's El País launched a digital edition to cover the US in Spanish in May with 11 bilingual correspondents; as of April, the outlet had ~366K subscribers— “The best reader is the one who reads you a lot.” — For years and with various levels of success, U.S. news outlets …

Discussion:
@hanaatameez, American Press Institute and LatAm Journalism Review

Discussion:

Hanaa' Tameez /
@hanaatameez: 🇺🇸 New from me: I talked with @jmahrens about the launch of @ELPAIS_USA, the latest edition of @el_pais that aims to cover the US for Spanish-language news consumers. This is likely where I'll be getting my election news through November 🗳️ https://www.niemanlab.org/...

Semafor:

The Wall Street Journal EIC Emma Tucker says she felt vindicated by the debate, after previously facing criticism for coverage of Biden's age and mental acuity— The News — Prominent liberal columnists are calling for President Joe Biden to step aside following a widely-panned debate performance …

Discussion:

Jeremy Barr /
Washington Post: CNN debate moderators didn't fact-check. Not everyone is happy about it.

Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing /
Politico: Some Democrats are doubling down despite growing calls for Biden to step aside

Sammy Gecsoyler /
The Guardian: New York Times first US paper urging Biden to drop out of presidential race Fox News: Jill Biden must convince her husband to bow out of race following ‘catastrophic’ debate: Liberal columnist

Zachary Faria /
Washington Examiner: Liberal media lied to voters and themselves over Biden mental state

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: I asked WSJ EIC Emma Tucker if she felt vindicated after tonight by the publication's recent piece about Biden's age, which was the subject of a lot of partisan complaints https://www.semafor.com/... [image]

Ben Smith /
@semaforben: Remember how much shit WSJ took for the Biden age story? https://www.semafor.com/... [image]

Ben Smith /
@semaforben: Media wrap from @maxwelltani -Liberal media turns on Biden -WSJ EIC Emma Tucker takes a victory lap -Interview with CNN chief Mark Thompson https://www.semafor.com/...

Steven Nelson /
New York Post: Biden admits 'I don't debate as well as I used to' but ‘I can do this job’ in NC rally

Dave Goldiner /
New York Daily News: Democrats openly panic over Biden's debate versus Trump, though some allies insist he's still up to job Associated Press: Biden tries to quell concerns after an unsteady debate showing as he and Trump head to swing states

Peter Wehner /
The Atlantic: Biden's Loved Ones Owe Him the Truth

Robert Kuttner /
American Prospect: A Tarnished Silver Lining

The Intercept:

A reporter who fought a seven-year legal battle to protect sources says Julian Assange's case sets a dangerous precedent that may severely hurt US press freedom— When Julian Assange abruptly found himself back in Australia and freedom this week after reaching a plea deal with the U.S. government …

Discussion:
@theintercept, South China Morning Post, The Guardian and Voice of America

Discussion:
@theintercept: “The most dangerous precedent in the case against Assange is the idea that the U.S. government can decide how to define journalism,” writes @JamesRisen1. https://theintercept.com/...

Su-Lin Tan /
South China Morning Post: As Assange walks free, multifaceted threats to journalism and the truth are bigger than ever

Margaret Simons /
The Guardian: Debating whether Julian Assange is a journalist is irrelevant. He changed journalism forever

The Hollywood Reporter:

Several current and former Daily Mail employees describe a leadership vacuum in its US newsroom, following the mysterious departure of online EIC Gerard Greaves— Its online editor is MIA (he was last seen frantically deleting emails), his self-appointed replacement is said to be equally erratic …

Discussion:
@mediaevan, @brenbrenchie and @mediaguy19

Discussion:

Evan DeSimone /
@mediaevan: “Greaves, an old-school Fleet Street editor who had been parachuted into the U.S. to help steady the site in 2022...was last seen in the New York newsroom in late February frantically asking staff for help to delete emails off his computer.” https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ... @brenbrenchie: As Brits claim top postings in U.S. media at CNN, WaPo and WSJ the events that have played out at the Daily Mail may serve as a cautionary tale of imports arriving from across the pond with a lack of understanding of American news, practices or audience. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ...

The Guardian:

Three journalists were turned away from an Azerbaijan energy conference earlier in June, prompting concern over media access ahead of UN climate talks there— Incident reignites concerns over crackdown on media before crucial UN climate talks in Baku later this year

Discussion:
@glynmoody@mastodon.social

Advanced Television:

JustWatch: Netflix led the UK streaming market in Q2 with a 28% share; Prime Video had 27%, Disney+ had 20%, Apple TV+ had 8%, ITVX had 6%, and Now TV had 6%— Netflix continues to hold the reins of the UK streaming market in Q2 2024 with Prime Video closely following behind a 1 per cent gap …

TechCrunch:

The White House will host the first-ever White House Creator Economy Conference in August to “emphasize the Administration's commitment to creators”— President Joe Biden's administration is doubling down on its interest in the creator economy.

Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Fast Company, MediaPost and Gizmodo

Discussion:

Taylor Lorenz /
Washington Post: White House will host creator economy summit in August

Sarah Bregel /
Fast Company: White House to expand its influencer engagement efforts with its first-ever Creator Economy Conference

Colin Kirkland /