Saudi Arabia will host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2025, as part of a newly announced 12-year partnership with the Olympic Committee (Cecilia D'Anastasio/Bloomberg)

Mediagazer: Saudi Arabia will host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2025, as part of a newly announced 12-year partnership with the Olympic Committee (Cecilia D'Anastasio/Bloomberg)

Top News:

Ars Technica:

A House committee report claims the Global Alliance for Responsible Media colluded to cut Twitter revenue after Musk's acquisition; GARM guidance is non-binding— Congress accused advertisers group of colluding to tank X's revenue. — After the House of Representatives Committee …
Discussion:

Javier Espinoza /
Financial Times: EU accuses Elon Musk's X of deceptive practices over blue ‘checkmark’

Bruce Mirken /
@BruceMirken@mas.to: “Free speech absolutist” #ElonMusk wants to prosecute those who use their free speech rights to urge a boycott of his Nazi bar. #Twitter — https://arstechnica.com/...

Dan Gillmor /
@dangillmor@mastodon.social: Musk is inviting his red-state pals to prosecute people who dare advise advertisers to stay away from his toxic swamp. — https://arstechnica.com/... This is what right-wing extremists like Musk actually think about free speech. (They hate it when it's directed, unfavorably, at them.) …

Bret Carmichael /
@bretcarmichael@mastodon.social: #Musk's businesses have long benefited from government subsidies. He now wants government to mandate that other businesses pay subsidies to his #Twitter / #X. Musk said of boycotting advertisers, “Hopefully, some states will consider criminal prosecution.” …

Mike Masnick /
Techdirt: Fool Me Thrice: ExTwitter's Empty Brand Safety Promises

Steven Nelson /
New York Post: Bombshell report details how a little-known corporate cartel targets outlets — including The Post — claimed to be spreading ‘misinformation’

RELATED:

Bloomberg:

After X hyped shows with Paris Hilton, Tucker Carlson, and others in January 2024, the deals have fizzled, a source says due to a lack of advertiser interest— X is having a tough time cracking into the TV business, but first... Promises, promises — Six months ago, executives …

Discussion:

Nails Nathan /
@chadstanton.bsky.social: Launching a show hinging on Paris Hilton 's star power in 2024 is just an incredibly bad read of the moment. [embedded post]

Braak /
@braak.bsky.social: Don't worry Musk has a solution to this it's called “Put companies in jail until they agree to advertise on Paris Hilton's Twitter tv show” [embedded post]

Rudeboy Tomjanovich /
@aceanbender.com: lmaoooooooo seeing this after seeing the headline that elon wants to sue companies that boycott advertising on twitter made my morning [embedded post]

Chris Dobbertean /
@chrisdobbertean.net: LOL. No wonder Elno is threatening advertisers. [embedded post]

Financial Times:

Sources: Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner and KKR are in talks to break Axel Springer in two, separating media assets from its digital classifieds business— Deal would separate group's media assets from its digital classifieds operation — German billionaire Mathias Döpfner …

Discussion:
Axios, Reuters, Bloomberg, Reuters, @froomkin, @semaforben and The Information

Discussion:

Dan Primack /
Axios: Axel Springer reportedly weighs company breakup

Dan Froomkin /
@froomkin: “The possible split comes as Döpfner [who once asked colleagues to pray for Trump's reelection] has been stepping up his efforts to build influence in the US media.” [my brackets]

Ben Smith /
@semaforben: Wow — big @ArashMassoudi scoop on Axel Springer: The company would split, giving the media assets to CEO Matthias Dopfner, the real estate and job sites to KKR https://www.ft.com/...

Jessica E. Lessin /
The Information: Why Women Are Disappearing From Tech

Journal Sentinel:

Civic Media says its decision to make two pre-broadcast edits to a Biden interview on Earl Ingram's WAUK show fell short of “journalistic interview standards”— Jessie Opoien Molly BeckMilwaukee Journal Sentinel — MADISON — Civic Media, a Wisconsin-based progressive talk-radio network …

Discussion:
Fox News, Civic Media, Mediaite, Poynter, Newser, @corbinbolies, @grynbaum, @peterbakernyt, KNSD-TV, Breitbart, Inside Radio, New York Times, The Wrap, New York Post, CNN, The Daily Beast, Deadline and @toussaint@newsie.social

Discussion:

Sage Weil /
Civic Media: Civic Media — Statement regarding edits to the July 4th interview with President Biden

Jamie Frevele /
Mediaite: ‘Outrageous!’ Fox's Dana Perino Scolds Biden Administration Over Asking For Interview Edits

Evann Gastaldo /
Newser: Radio Network Admits Portions of Biden Interview Were Cut

Corbin Bolies /
@corbinbolies: Biden campaign says: “Hosts have always been free to...air the segments they think will best inform their listeners.” Doesn't explain why they made the request. When I called host Earl Ingram to chat, he promised a call back...and then ignored follow-ups. https://www.thedailybeast.com/ ...

Michael M. Grynbaum /
@grynbaum: What a disaster Biden's two under-the-radar radio interviews last week turned out to be. His campaign was caught planting questions (which got one host fired) and asking one station to cut lines they felt were embarrassing. And Biden still had gaffes like “first Black woman.”

Peter Baker /
@peterbakernyt: Biden has given fewer interviews than any president in modern times and not a single one to a major newspaper. Instead he prefers friendly interviewers — and it turns out that his campaign has long fed some of them softball questions to ask. @kenbensinger https://www.nytimes.com/...

Zoë Richards /
KNSD-TV: Wisconsin radio network said it edited out portions of Biden interview at his campaign's request

Paul Bois /
Breitbart: Milwaukee Radio Station Says it Agreed to Edit Joe Biden Interview, Removed Embarrassing Statements

Ken Bensinger /
New York Times: Biden Campaign Has Long Fed Softball Questions to Friendly Interviewers

Jacob Bryant /
The Wrap: Biden Campaign Asked Wisconsin Radio Station for Edits to President's Interview

Victor Nava /
New York Post: Milwaukee radio station admits it scrubbed multiple Biden remarks from interview — at campaign's request

Corbin Bolies /
The Daily Beast: Radio Station ‘Sorry’ for Editing Biden Interview at Campaign's Request

Ted Johnson /
Deadline: Milwaukee Radio Station Says It Made Edits To Joe Biden Interview At Request Of Campaign @toussaint@newsie.social: Biden's first interviews after the debate were with tiny radio stations to practice for the ABC interview. Biden got one lady fired for being given the questions by the campaign and not telling anyone until after the fact. The other was carefully edited to take out a phrase black PEOPLE hate to hear; ‘the blacks’ or ‘more blacks’. …

Bloomberg:

Saudi Arabia will host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2025, as part of a newly announced 12-year partnership with the Olympic Committee— Saudi Arabia will host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2025 under an agreement announced Friday by the International Olympic Committee and the kingdom.

Discussion:
Engadget, Olympics.com and Deadline

The Verge:

Q&A with Nick Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic and former EIC of Wired, on the magazine's two-year OpenAI deal, AI lawsuits, the future of search, and more— CEO Nicholas Thompson discusses the deal: 'AI is coming. It is coming quickly. We want to be part of whatever transition happens.'

Discussion:
MediaPost and @fionabradley@fediscience.org

Discussion:

Laurie Sullivan /
MediaPost: OpenAI Search Is Coming, ‘The Atlantic’ CEO Says

Fiona Bradley /
@fionabradley@fediscience.org: So many interesting points in this interview with The Atlantic about their OpenAI deal. I think this point from the interview is particularly salient for those of us still pushing for open access to quality information: “we're getting to a place where the high-quality work is behind the paywall …

The Verge:

How Ben Faw, co-founder of BestReviews and Advon, allegedly led a scheme to add affiliate links to product reviews that benefited companies Faw had a role in— The man behind the AI gaffes at Sports Illustrated and USA Today has a yearslong history of filling the internet with garbage.

Discussion:
@miarsato, @dannygroner, @daisandconfused and @miarsato

Discussion:

Mia Sato /
@miarsato: NEW: Ben Faw is an Army vet who went to Harvard Business School + worked at Tesla and LinkedIn. He's well-connected in media. He was also behind the disastrous Sports Illustrated AI incident. And he's been pushing garbage out on the internet for years: https://www.theverge.com/...

Danny Groner /
@dannygroner: “As publishers stare down the barrel of Google Search traffic drying up to zero, outlets big and small, trustworthy and less so, are leaning into product review content, hoping it will buoy a sinking ship. But the ecosystem of online reviews is essentially the Wild West.”

Daisy Alioto /
@daisandconfused: I will never understand why mercenaries enter the media industry and try to make money. Go make easy, dumb money in literally any other industry.

What I'm Reading:

CNN says it has integrated its Race and Equality team of reporters in other areas across its platforms, instead of the team existing in an “organizational silo”— The news comes as CNN leader Mark Thompson announced that the cable news channel will lay off 100 employees as it restructures its newsgathering operations.

Discussion:

Terrance A. Sullivan /
@tasullivan: @Phil_Lewis_ Me..here..shocked So frustrating all the fake commitments made in 2020

Duke Of Pan-Africanism /
@tiergawd: @Phil_Lewis_ CNN has lost their credibility quite some time now @tap3000: @Phil_Lewis_ First of all CNN got rid of the one journalist who covered Being Black in America and some of the other Black journalists who were panelists for various elections. @traprecruiter: For all intents and purposes, the team is not a team anymore... “They're assigned to different areas so that [their] perspective and work is brought into all of our types of programming...but [Race and Equality] is very much still their focus.” Is DEI ☠️? https://www.whatimreading.net/ ...

Tess Garcia /
@hithisistess: CNN just cut its Race and Equality team, created in 2020 as a “significant, sustained commitment to ensure race coverage is a permanent part of our journalism” https://www.whatimreading.net/ ...

Dr. Stephen G. Hall /
@historianspeaks: @Phil_Lewis_ Talking about doublespeak. Shameful noncommittal posture. They were never truly interested in the issue from the outset.

Philip Lewis /
@phil_lewis_: CNN has disbanded its Race and Equality team that was formed during the summer of 2020, I'm told A spokesperson says that while the team no longer exists, “the investment is still 100% there” https://www.whatimreading.net/ ...

Sara Fischer /
Axios: CNN boss lays out plans for digital future, layoffs to come

RELATED:
Wall Street Journal: Memo: Mark Thompson says CNN is cutting about 100 jobs, plans to launch its first CNN.com subscription product later in 2024, but offers few details, and more

Discussion:
@b_fung, CNN, @farhip, @simondowens@threads.net, @heysamantha, Adweek, Media Nation, Broadband TV News, @mattdpearce, @kevincollier, @sfiegerman, @iyengarish, Associated Press, Nieman Lab, Media Voices, @rasmus_kleis, @pressgazette, @alexweprin, @bristei, @brianstelter, @bristei, Breitbart, The Verge, The Wrap, Talking Biz News, The Media Mix, Brian Steinberg on LinkedIn, Mediaite, Deadline, MediaPost, Variety, Jeremy Moore on LinkedIn, The Media Mix, Hartford Courant, Variety, New York Times, Reuters, The Media Leader, The Information, New York Post, Cord Cutters News and The Hollywood Reporter

Discussion:

Brian Fung /
@b_fung: After 5 amazing years at CNN, I'm being laid off as part of a wider re-org. I'm so grateful for the whole team here. We broke news and helped people make sense of it. I'll stay a few months, then take time to rest and reflect. Call if you need a tech/telecom policy person!

Oliver Darcy /
CNN: CNN chief Mark Thompson announces sweeping overhaul of news network, cuts 100 jobs

Paul Farhi /
@farhip: Numerical context: CNN's overall viewership rose just 2 percent in the April-June quarter vs same period a year ago, and fell 10 percent among people aged 25-54. Election years (and presidential debates) usually bring big increases.

Simon Owens /
@simondowens@threads.net: Given CNN's new focus on digital subscriptions, it makes sense that it's cutting its budget for opinion columns given that the political opinion niche is incredibly saturated and unlikely to drive paid conversions. https://www.themediamix.co/...

Samantha Murphy Kelly /
@heysamantha: I was among the CNN reporters laid off today as part of the company's restructuring. I loved CNN and I'm so proud of the work we did. If you're looking for a tech reporter to cover AI, social media, trends, Big Tech, gadgets, tech anything, please send a message! I'd love to chat

Dan Kennedy /
Media Nation: CNN's dicey reinvention plans: Layoffs, AI and another attempt at paid digital

Kevin Collier /
@kevincollier: This damn industry [image]

Seth Fiegerman /
@sfiegerman: Breaking my year-plus streak of not tweeting to say Sam is absolutely incredible and any newsroom would be lucky to have her. Trust me: I've worked with her longer than anyone.

Rishi Iyengar /
@iyengarish: Adding my voice to the literal dozens of people who have already said what a brilliant journalist, colleague, friend, and human being Sam is. Any publication would be lucky to have her.

Joshua Benton /
Nieman Lab: Are you willing to pay for CNN.com? Prepare to be asked before year's end

Rasmus Kleis Nielsen /
@rasmus_kleis: CNN is “nowhere near ready for the future” CEO Mark Thompson told colleagues. Dose of cold realism in an industry that often manages to continue business-as-usual serving aging, shrinking audiences and dwindling number of advertisers while rhetorically insisting they are digital @pressgazette: CNN chief executive Mark Thompson has told staff that the organisation is cutting around 100 jobs, equivalent to approximately 3% of its total workforce https://pressgazette.co.uk/...

Alex Weprin /
@alexweprin: Major changes coming to CNN. A subscription product launching this year, with others to follow. A total reorg of its newsrooms. “strategic” push into AI. And layoffs, with about 100 staff to be cut today. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ...

Brian Steinberg /
@bristei: CNN will cut 100 jobs as it seeks to move more readily into digital, and will launch a subscription product via its website by the end of the year https://variety.com/...

Brian Stelter /
@brianstelter: “CNN said it is cutting about 100 jobs and will launch its first CNN·com subscription product later this year as it looks to lessen its dependence on its cable-TV channel.” https://www.wsj.com/...

Brian Steinberg /
@bristei: This story about CNN has it all: *100 job cuts? ✅ *New digital ideas? ✅ *Pages of prose from CEO? ✅ ^A vague sense primetime needs help? ✅ https://variety.com/...

Andrew Liszewski /
The Verge: CNN announces more layoffs as it preps for a future beyond cable TV

Sharon Knolle /
The Wrap: Veteran Media Critic Brian Lowry Among CNN's 100 Layoffs

Chris Roush /
Talking Biz News: CNN senior tech writer Kelly among the layoffs

Claire Atkinson /
The Media Mix: CNN Memo outlines new strategy and 100 job losses.

Brian Steinberg /
Brian Steinberg on LinkedIn: This story about CNN has it all: — *100 job cuts? ✅ — *New digital ideas? ✅ — *Pages of prose from CEO? ✅ …

Diana Falzone /
Mediaite: CNN Staff in a State of ‘Resignation’ as CEO Announces Revamp of Network, Job Cuts

Ted Johnson /
Deadline: CNN To Reduce Staff By About 100 As CEO Unveils New Details Of “One Newsroom” Strategy; Layoffs Include Media Critic Brian Lowry — Update

Ray Schultz /
MediaPost: CNN Will Debut Subscription Products This Year: Report

Brian Steinberg /
Variety: Brian Lowry, the veteran Hollywood reporter, critic, and a contributor to CNN's Reliable Sources newsletter, is set to leave in the new round of CNN job cuts

Jeremy Moore /
Jeremy Moore on LinkedIn: This doesn't seem to be a recipe for success. Beyond the damage to the professionals who will be laid off, the overarching narrative seems …

Claire Atkinson /
The Media Mix: Sources: CNN lays off the team producing its Opinion section, with an end date of August 9; a source says Senior Editor Sheena McKenzie is among those leaving

Brian Steinberg /
Variety: CNN Plans Launch of Digital Subscription Product by End of 2024 Amid Newsroom Layoffs

John Koblin /
New York Times: CNN Cuts 100 Jobs, and Announces Plan for Digital Subscription Product

Sabrina Quagliozzi /
The Media Leader: CNN to cut 100 jobs and launch digital subscription product

Taylor Herzlich /
New York Post: CNN CEO Mark Thompson to lay off 100 employees as he discloses fresh turnaround plans

Luke Bouma /
Cord Cutters News: CNN Will Layoff About 100 Employees & Launch a Free Streaming Channel Plus a Digital Subscription Service This Year

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: comedian Dax Shepard signs an $80M podcasting deal with Amazon, shifting his Armchair Expert show to Amazon's Wondery service from Spotify— New deal includes video episodes, gives Amazon's Wondery exclusive distribution and ad-sales rights — Comedian Dax Shepard has signed …

Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter, @kerrymflynn, Inside Radio, The Wrap, Deadline, Chris Peterson on LinkedIn, Variety and RAIN News

Discussion:

Alex Weprin /
The Hollywood Reporter: Dax Shepard's ‘Armchair Expert’ Podcast Jumps to Amazon's Wondery In $80M Deal

Kerry Flynn /
@kerrymflynn: 👀 “Amazon plans to launch video episodes — a new feature for ‘Armchair Expert’ — and create translated versions of the podcast to distribute globally. ... Amazon also plans to exclusively create and sell all merchandise related to the show.” https://www.wsj.com/...

Raquel ‘Rocky’ Harris /
The Wrap: Dax Shepard's ‘Armchair Expert’ Podcast Inks $80 Million Deal With Amazon's Wondery, Leaving Spotify

Jill Goldsmith /
Deadline: ‘Armchair Expert’ Podcast Host Dax Shepard Signs Big Distribution, First-Look Deal With Amazon's Wondery

Chris Peterson /
Chris Peterson on LinkedIn: Another big licensing deal in podcasting! In addition to selling the audio podcast inventory, Amazon will distribute video episodes and translate them for global distribution. …

Todd Spangler /
Variety: Dax Shepard Inks $80 Million Exclusive Podcast Pact With Amazon's Wondery, Which Encompasses New Shows, Merchandise and More

The Verge:

YouTube announces new Shorts features, including TikTok-like text-to-speech video narration, in-app auto-generated captions, and a set of Minecraft effects— YouTube has announced a set of new features for YouTube Shorts, some of which are available now, like a new text-to-speech video narration …

Discussion:
Music Ally, WinBuzzer, @sarahpereztc, @edwardchampion@mastodon …, TechCrunch and Engadget

Discussion:

Stuart Dredge /
Music Ally: New YouTube Shorts tools: Auto layout, remix-remixing and more @sarahpereztc: YouTube tempts creators with a half dozen new features for Shorts https://techcrunch.com/...

Edward Champion /
@edwardchampion@mastodon.social: @Mediagazer “like indoor plants jockeying for the same sunbeam” You don't often encounter a Chandleresque simile in a tech article!

Sarah Fielding /
Engadget: YouTube Shorts gets Instagram's ‘Add yours’ prompt stickers

The Wrap:

The LAist Union says the nonprofit newsroom lost at least 21 staffers to layoffs and buyouts this week; LAist announced a voluntary buyout program in May— The nonprofit newsroom announced its intended buyouts in May, citing mounting expenses and declining revenue

Discussion:
@hexpositive, @caitlinherdez, @mybackyardpara1, @laistunion, @rainey_l, @hearinladotcom, @busblog, @hearinladotcom and Press Gazette

Discussion:

Suzy Exposito /
@hexpositive: Layoffs at CNN, Entertainment Tonight and now LAist... In the past 24 hours alone! Do I need to host another media layoff survival workshop???

Caitlin Hernández /
@caitlinherdez: As a steward at LAist, I'm incredibly disappointed to share that we're losing valuable colleagues today. @mybackyardpara1: @hearinladotcom ... Don't rage at LAist. What's happening there is not mismanagement. It's happening everywhere at every news outlet. And don't think that Twitter is so goddamn important. It's not. @laistunion: @LAist announced layoffs this week & began notifying employees who will be let go today. We aren't sure yet how many union members will be affected. But we are already losing 11 unit members and 10 more members of our staff to voluntary buy-outs. We'll have more to say soon.

Libby Rainey /
@rainey_l: I'm a union steward at @LAist. We went through layoffs last year too. We all deserve better. @hearinladotcom: If @LAistUnion went on strike and listed why and added all the fucked up reasons and struggles the once-beloved station and blog has been going through, it would make national news and save jobs. It would finally echo the spirit of its namesake LAist. Or the union could do [image]

Tony Pierce /
@busblog: There's nothing I love more than ppl who have never met me telling me - not to rage - especially over the painfully slow demise of the best thing I was ever involved with: The Meteoric Rise of LAist. That's like telling a victim of abuse, “just take it. Stop resisting.”

@hearinladotcom:
For those of you too young to remember, @LAist rose to the top via courage, sass, edge and having its finger on the pulse of younger Angelenos. At the same time @KPCC established themselves as being the radio station your smart, older Obama-voting friends listened to. When [image]

Bloomberg:

Audible proposes a new royalties model where Audible pays publishers and authors from a pool of revenue to be divided up among titles users listen to each month— The Amazon subsidiary wants the industry to make more audiobooks available for bottomless consumption — Hello, and welcome back to Soundbite.

Discussion: