How sending fewer emails and giving paid subscribers early access to content improved The New Yorker's onsite page views and time spent from newsletter users (Sara Guaglione/Digiday)

Mediagazer: How sending fewer emails and giving paid subscribers early access to content improved The New Yorker's onsite page views and time spent from newsletter users (Sara Guaglione/Digiday)

Top News:

Sports Business Journal:

Sources: the NBA is formalizing deals with Disney, NBC, and Amazon, which may prompt WBD to sue; ESPN may pay $2.8B annually, NBC $2.6B, and Amazon $1.8B to $2B— NEW YORK — The NBA is formalizing written contracts with Disney, NBC and Amazon this week, with sources calling it the final stage …
Discussion: Awful Announcing, Mediaite, The Streamable, Next TV, New York Daily News, Cord Cutters News, New York Post, @dylanbyers, The US Sun, Sports Media Watch and UPROXX

Discussion:

Brandon Contes /
Awful Announcing: Charles Barkley says next season will be ‘tough lame duck year’ if TNT loses NBA rights

Ahmad Austin Jr /
Mediaite: JUST IN: NBA Reportedly Finalizes Blockbuster $2.6B Media Rights Deal With NBC, Cuts Ties With 40-Year Rightsholder TNT

David Satin /
The Streamable: NBA's New Broadcast Deals with ESPN, Prime Video, NBC Likely to Be Finalized This Week

Daniel Frankel /
Next TV: NBA Reportedly Set to Finalize Deals With ESPN, Amazon and NBCU, Leave TNT and ‘Inside the NBA’ Behind

C.J. Holmes /
New York Daily News: TNT's ‘Inside The NBA’ in jeopardy as league nears media rights deals with Disney, NBC and Amazon: report

Justin Tasch /
New York Post: TNT's beloved ‘Inside the NBA’ hangs in the balance as NBC a step closer to landing NBA rights

Dylan Byers /
@dylanbyers: NBA formalizing deals with Disney, Amazon, NBC, per @SBJ: * “NBC's proposed package is believed to be now worth $2.6B annually — up from a reported $2.5B... https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/ ...

David Scott /
The US Sun: Inside the NBA on TNT with Shaq and Charles Barkley to end next season as NBC, Amazon and ESPN ‘seal’ live TV rights

@maxwelltani:

— Washington Post CEO Will Lewis is introing the paper's new “Build It” plan today. In a meeting with staff, he noted that the paper lost $77 million over the past year, and saw a 50% drop off in audience since 2020: “To be direct, we are in a hole, and we have been for some time.”

Discussion:
@maxwelltani, @alttag.bsky.social, @cocktailhag.bsky.social, @natalieweiner.bsky.social, @missingthept.bsky.social, @jonastraxler.bsky.social, @dextrosity.bsky.social, @thatweissguy.bsky.social, @charles.littlegreenfootballs …, @benharris1.bsky.social, @cfaller96.bsky.social, @estarianne.bsky.social, @tomscocca.bsky.social, @hammancheez.bsky.social, @markshatraw.bsky.social, @tomscocca.bsky.social, @tcarmody.bsky.social, @erinannmcc.bsky.social, @852dude.bsky.social, @karlbode.bsky.social, @socio-steve.bsky.social, @eleanorofs.bsky.social, @nslayton.bsky.social, @andrewsshi.bsky.social, @vortexegg.regretfully.online, @wilson__valdez, @macktubs, @maxwelltani, @sarafischer, @maxwelltani, @froomkin, @mcoatney, @maxwelltani, @darrylmason, @scarylawyerguy, @jaycockburn and @reubenr80027912

Discussion:

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: Lewis says the says the three pillars of the new strategy are: great journalism, happy customers, and making money: “If we're doing things that don't meet all three...we should stop doing that.” He adds that the company will also be looking for ways to use AI in its journalism.

Tom /
@alttag.bsky.social: It's so weird what paywalls will do to readership. — If only we could understand why people don't read our stuff, which we mostly keep locked away. @cocktailhag.bsky.social: Bezos could come up with that from the couch cushions on his yacht. — Clearly, he bought the paper to kill it, and is succeeding. [embedded post]

Natalie Weiner /
@natalieweiner.bsky.social: oh, a 50% drop off in audience since the year when a global pandemic started and we needed to check the news constantly to avoid sickness and death? [embedded post]

Jonas Traxler /
@jonastraxler.bsky.social: So the daily Ashley Parker “Biden is old” stories aren't drawing enough eyeballs? @dextrosity.bsky.social: I really worry news rooms are looking at that post-2020 audience drop, thinking (perhaps correctly!) that Trump in charge is better for their bottom lines, and the resulting impact on democracy. [embedded post]

Andrew Otis Weiss /
@thatweissguy.bsky.social: National News $200 — Local News $150 — International News $50 — Smooth Brained Feature/Editorial Columnists $150,000,000 — Arts & Lifestyle $150 — someone who is good at the economy please help me budget this. my newspaper is dying [embedded post]

Charles Johnson /
@charles.littlegreenfootballs.com: So firing their liberal columnists and increasingly pandering to the right wing for clicks isn't working? Huh. [embedded post]

Ben Harris /
@benharris1.bsky.social: I'm going to keep this in mind the next time I see a story about the Iowa caucuses with 7 reporters on the byline, or an AI-generated story about how a deceased basketball player is now useless. [embedded post] @cfaller96.bsky.social: It's almost as if traditional outlets are producing garbage (at the direction of management/editors) and customers have moved on. It's almost as if “lol fuck you libs” as an outlet's market approach is fundamentally wrong. [embedded post] @estarianne.bsky.social: I will resubscribe if they stop doing right wing stenography. [embedded post]

Tom Scocca /
@tomscocca.bsky.social: It's a quarter of one percent of Bezos' gains this year. It's 1/5 of the amount of money his fortune fluctuated overnight. [embedded post] @hammancheez.bsky.social: CEO : in order to improve morale we are replacing you with LLMs trained on CSAM [embedded post]

Mark Shatraw /
@markshatraw.bsky.social: Couldn't Bezos have plopped like, a billion and a half in an index fund somewhere and literally funded the Post with the interest

Tom Scocca /
@tomscocca.bsky.social: Seventy-seven million dollars is less than 1/2,500 of Jeff Bezos' net worth

Tim Carmody /
@tcarmody.bsky.social: I am a fan of newsrooms and revenue teams working with AI. But you can't just sprinkle a little bit of it all over your company and expect your pockets to fill with money. You need a strategy. Ideally, one that doesn't erode your brand. Otherwise you're just doing the same things but it costs more $ [embedded post]

Erin A. McCarthy /
@erinannmcc.bsky.social: I just re-subscribed for a measly $20/year, and this makes me think that that was a good choice. [embedded post] @852dude.bsky.social: I dunno, but if I were the Washington post and it's owner I may consider editorial practices that could not be considered “money gobbling shit stirrers” — That could be the solution. — But I'm not in journalism and I'm not a smart man. So who knows. [embedded post]

Karl Bode /
@karlbode.bsky.social: surely the overpaid ivy league ivy league brunchlords actually in charge of strategy for WAPO will be the first to feel the firm repercussions for their missteps — (sad trombone, farting noises) [embedded post]

Stephen Nuñez /
@socio-steve.bsky.social: As @johnbrownstan.bsky.social has noted journalism has increasingly transformed from a club good (excludable, non-rivalrous) to a public good (non-excludable, non-rivalrous). Generally we do public funding/provision for public goods. because the markets don't work. [embedded post] @eleanorofs.bsky.social: Seems like the discourse on here is focused on this part of the thread. I agree it's stunning and worth talking about, but really: click the link and view the rest of the thread. — IMHO as a mere news consumer... this does not seem like a good plan. [embedded post]

Nicholas Slayton /
@nslayton.bsky.social: I thought the entire point of Bezos owning them was that they wouldn't have financial issues? [embedded post]

Andrew Reeves /
@andrewsshi.bsky.social: Wait wasn't the whole thing supposed to be Bezos's money-losing vanity project? [embedded post]

Mack Tubridy /
@macktubs: If democracy dies in darkness, then the Washington Post will die in whatever the hell this is

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: AI is a major component of the Post's internal strategy announcement today. WaPo's chief tech officer told staff that going forward, the paper has to have “AI everywhere in our newsroom.”

Sara Fischer /
@sarafischer: Today @washingtonpost CEO Will Lewis will unveil next phase of WaPo's turnaround strategy: “Build It” phase —"Say It" phase identified 10 focus areas: SEO; Print; Social, Data; Events; Habit; Consumer Journalism; DEI, Culture; Remote work —"Fix It" phase saw groups dvp solutions

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: Lewis says the company is focused on growing subscriptions organically but is open to growing them through an acquisition if it makes sense...

Dan Froomkin /
@froomkin: 50% drop in audience! Holy shit! That's even worse than they'd previously indicated. And it's probably too late to turn things around. Allow me to explain: https://presswatchers.org/... [image]

Mark Coatney /
@mcoatney: I really would love to see that number unpacked. How in the world did WaPo lose $77 million, exactly? What was driving that?

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: Lewis says the says the three pillars of the new strategy are: great journalism, happy customers, and making money: “If we're doing things that don't meet all three...we should stop doing that.” He adds that the company will also be looking for ways to use AI in its journalism.

Darryl Mason /
@darrylmason: The Washington Post lost 50% of its readership in just 4 years. Another successful ‘news brand’ sent down the shitter after hiring ridiculous conservative columnists and promoting them as “Premium Content Worth Paying For.” Truly extraordinary how they fukt it so fast. @scarylawyerguy: Boring old Joe Biden competently steering the ship of state might be good for little d democracy (not to mention American leadership in the world) but it's killing media outlets that got hooked on the chaos of Trump's presidency (which is why they want him back so badly!)

Jay Cockburn /
@jaycockburn: What's the point of being bought by one of the world's largest and most profitable companies if they aren't going to fund your operation? Why sell to Bezos in the first place?

Reuben Rodriguez /
@reubenr80027912: Again, the problem is not that the media is incorrectly reporting on the economy Ppl are just not reading the news like they used to McDonalds has doubled in price, they see Biden shuffling on TV and are amorphously annoyed w/o being very engaged. Don't overthink things!

Wall Street Journal:

As TV audiences get older, media executives are focusing more on the mass-market reach of TV, and playing down the importance of age for advertisers— With viewers in their 60s, networks aren't pretending to have youth appeal; they're touting the virtues of older audiences

Discussion:
@jeffjarvis, @jbflint and AdExchanger

Discussion:
@jeffjarvis: In other words, mass media and the mass are dying.... With the median age of TV viewers well into the 60s at many networks, media companies' new advertising pitch is that age doesn't matter https://www.wsj.com/...

Joe Flint /
@jbflint: Call it the “Balance of Nature” effect. With the median age of TV viewers well into the 60s at many networks, media companies' new advertising pitch is that age doesn't matter. W @thesimonetti https://www.wsj.com/...

Digiday:

How sending fewer emails and giving paid subscribers early access to content improved The New Yorker's onsite page views and time spent from newsletter users— The New Yorker has refocused its newsletter strategy in an effort to retain its cohort of 1.2 million paid subscribers and grow …

Semafor:

Email: WaPo newsletter editor Elana Zak asked writers not to link to a story on Prince Harry's allegations that new CEO Will Lewis helped with hacking coverups— The Scoop — A top Washington Post editor instructed editors Tuesday night not to promote a story about a controversy involving the paper's new CEO Will Lewis.

Discussion:

David Folkenflik /
@davidfolkenflik: Whoa at WaPo

Jeremy Barr /
@jeremymbarr: Statement from Post managing editor Matea Gold: “The Washington Post is committed to covering this topic - and all stories - independently, rigorously and fairly. We had routine discussions about the promotion of this piece across our platforms.”

Chris Sutcliffe /
@chrismsutcliffe: The story of phone hacking is the story of a lack of trust in the news media. @risj_oxford's Dr Amy Ross Arguedas told @mediavoicespod it is still regularly cited as a cause of mistrust. Burying stories about it will only do more damage in the long run https://www.semafor.com/...

David Folkenflik /
@davidfolkenflik: Good for the Wash Post newsroom to cover allegations involving its new CEO. The paper has been slow to do so. But intervening to downplay the coverage smacks of British tabloid rules rather than the paper of Graham, Bradlee, Downie and Baron. https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...

Max Tani /
@maxwelltani: New: The Washington Post sent out an email Tuesday night with a directive for editors: Don't link to a story about developments in Prince Harry's lawsuit involving the Post's CEO https://www.semafor.com/...

David Folkenflik /
@davidfolkenflik: My earlier story on new WaPo publisher & chief executive Will Lewis - and how he has emerged at core of accusations of a coverup of hacking at Rupert Murdoch's UK tabloids https://www.npr.org/...

David Folkenflik /
@davidfolkenflik: Wash Post Managing Editor @mateagold tells NPR the paper is committed to reporting fully & impartially on allegations in British court against its publisher Its story about Will Lewis was on paper's homepage and in print - tho an editor did advise not to promote in newsletters [image]

Richard Tofel /
@dicktofel: The Post publisher's problems on phone hacking ipose something of a test for the paper. This is not an encouraging development. https://www.semafor.com/...

Dan Froomkin /
@froomkin: If I were one of the reporters or editors who worked on this story, I'd be steaming mad. Stabbed in the back by management. https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...

Deadline:

Nexstar's NewsNation adds an early evening news block to its weekend schedule, completing its transformation into a 24/7 network— NewsNation is adding an early evening news block to its weekend schedule, completing its transformation into a 24/7 network.

Discussion:
Radio & Television …, Next TV, The Hollywood Reporter, TVNewsCheck and Cord Cutters News

Discussion:

Michael Malone /
Next TV: NewsNation Will Be 24/7 in June — Cable news net bolsters weekend content to fill out all day, every day schedule

Mark Miller /
TVNewsCheck: NewsNation Expands To 24/7 News On June 1

James Guttman /
Cord Cutters News: NewsNation Expands to 24/7 Cable News Network on June 1

Bloomberg:

Sources: Tata Group took full control of subscription TV broadcaster Tata Play after buying Disney's 29.8% stake, valuing Tata Play at about $1B— - Tata Group gains full control of Tata Play after Disney deal — Tata bought out Temasek's stake in platform earlier this year

Game Developer:

Rolling Stone launches RS Gaming, a game vertical in partnership with ESL FACEIT Group, which is owned by Saudi state-backed investment fund PIF— Rolling Stone is expanding its coverage of the video game industry with the launch of a dedicated gaming vertical.

Discussion:
Aftermath and Rolling Stone

Discussion:

Riley MacLeod /
Aftermath: Rolling Stone, Which Used To Have A Gaming Vertical, Launches Another Gaming Vertical

Christopher Cruz /
Rolling Stone: Welcome to Rolling Stone Gaming

TechCrunch:

TikTok launches its Symphony AI suite for brands, using generative AI to let marketers write scripts, produce videos, and enhance current assets— TikTok is the latest tech company to incorporate generative AI into its ads business, as the company announced on Tuesday that it's launching a new “TikTok Symphony” AI suite for brands.

Discussion:
Adweek, The Media Leader and Digiday, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:

Kathryn Lundstrom /
Adweek: TikTok Unveils New Self-Serve and AI-Powered Ad Automation Tools

Krystal Scanlon /
Digiday: TikTok moves toward ‘performance automation vision’ with latest machine learning ad tools

Variety:

UK-based studio Anton raised €100M led by BlackRock-managed funds and accounts to expand its feature film and TV series development and production— Anton, the European production, financing and sales group behind “Greenland,” is set to ramp up its output following a significant injection of funds.

Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline and WORLD SCREEN

Discussion:

Scott Roxborough /
The Hollywood Reporter: Anton Secures New $100M+ Production Facility for TV/Film

Jake Kanter /
Deadline: ‘Paddington’ Backer Anton Raises $108M Of Film & TV Financing In Partnership With BlackRock

Mansha Daswani /
WORLD SCREEN: Anton Secures €100 Million In BlackRock Financing

The Hollywood Reporter:

SEC filing: Vivek Ramaswamy owns shares and call options worth ~$4M in BuzzFeed, or a 7.7% stake, and seeks a shift in its strategy; BZFD jumps 10%+— Ramaswamy has acquired just under 8% of BuzzFeed, with plans to push for “a shift in the company's strategy.”

Discussion:

Chris Michael /
The Guardian: Vivek Ramaswamy acquires 7.7% activist stake in BuzzFeed

Sara Fischer /
Axios: Vivek Ramaswamy acquires activist stake in BuzzFeed

Diana Falzone /
Mediaite: ‘Anti-Woke Warrior’ Vivek Ramaswamy Acquires Activist Stake in BuzzFeed: ‘Stay Tuned’

Natalie Korach /
The Wrap: Vivek Ramaswamy Acquires 7.7% Activist Stake in BuzzFeed, Former GOP Hopeful Says Shares Are ‘Undervalued’

Rohan Goswami /
CNBC: Vivek Ramaswamy's stake in BuzzFeed sends shares up 20%, as he seeks strategic ‘shift’

Silvia Killingsworth /
@silviakillings: Vivek Ramaswamy has taken an activist stake in....Buzzfeed https://www.sec.gov/... @qkslvrwolf@mastodon.social: @Mediagazer oh good he's trying to create another super conservative propaganda outlet

Parker Ortolani /
@parkerortolani@threads.net: a right wing takeover of BuzzFeed would simultaneously be the funniest and saddest outcome for a company that I deeply loved working for https://www.bloomberg.com/...

Alex Sherman /
@sherman4949: To answer the question you're all asking, yes, I did have Vivek Ramaswamy becomes an activist shareholder in Buzzfeed on my 2024 Bingo card. Lower right.

Todd Spangler /
Variety: Vivek Ramaswamy Acquires 7.7% Activist Stake in BuzzFeed

Sean Griffey /
@seangriffey: Combined, Vivek and I own 7.7% percent of outstanding shares. While I don't want to speak for him, I think we both want a more aggressive 1st party data strategy.

The Atlantic:

OpenAI's Scarlett Johansson debacle is merely a reminder of AI's manifest destiny philosophy: “This is happening, whether you like it or not”, consent be damned— The Scarlett Johansson debacle is a microcosm of AI's raw deal: It's happening, and you can't stop it.

Discussion:
CNN, Dave Davis on LinkedIn, Fast Company, NPR, The Hollywood Reporter, Wired, Vox, @kathrynferreira, @dseetharaman, @othernedwin, @joshkraushaar, @mmitchell_ai, @richardlawler@threads.net, @cwarzel, @mikepepi, @cwarzel, @evanmcmurry, @cwarzel, Benzinga, @Dhmspector@mastodon.social, The Information, Deadline, New York Post, Vanity Fair, Slate, BGR, CNET, The US Sun, Business Insider, Digital Music News, Global News, CBS News, UPROXX, CMU, SheKnows, Forbes, GB News, HuffPost, Fox News, Us Weekly, The Register and New York Daily News, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:

Dave Davis /
Dave Davis on LinkedIn: Great article from Charlie Warzel for The Atlantic, pointing out that the recent Scarlett Johansson episode is just a microcosm of an overall worldview that AI momentum is inevitable and unstoppable. …

Mark Sullivan /
Fast Company: The Scarlett Johansson deception is part of a pattern for OpenAI and Sam Altman

Winston Cho /
The Hollywood Reporter: Scarlett Johansson's AI Legal Threat Sets Stage for Actors' Battle With Tech Giants

Kate Knibbs /
Wired: What Scarlett Johansson v. OpenAI Could Look Like in Court

Sigal Samuel /
Vox: The double sexism of ChatGPT's flirty “Her” voice

Kat Ferreira /
@kathrynferreira: “It is a technology that requires a mindset of manifest destiny, of dominion and conquest. It's not stealing to build the future if you believe it has belonged to you all along.” 🎯

Deepa Seetharaman /
@dseetharaman: “It follows that the company would plow ahead, consent be damned, simply because it might believe the stakes are too high to pivot or wait. When your technology aims to rewrite the rules of society, it stands that society's current rules need not apply.” Sharp piece.

Ned Whitman /
@othernedwin: If there's no system that enforces data ownership currently, does that mean we never owned our data before? It's always been up for the taking. You can steal something if there's no protection for owning it. This is what's been happening to our data for decades and is capitalist

Josh Kraushaar /
@joshkraushaar: “The situation is also a tidy microcosm of the raw deal at the center of generative AI, a technology that is built off data scraped from the internet, generally without the consent of creators or copyright owners.” https://www.theatlantic.com/ ... @mmitchell_ai: This is a great piece connecting some of the modern approaches to AI with the concept of “manifest destiny” (public be damned). Plainly unpacks the sense of nausea and unease many of us have. 10/10, recommended reading.

Richard Lawler /
@richardlawler@threads.net: Not just whether you like it or not Whether anyone ever asked for it Whether it actually improves things for anyone who isn't drawing spreadsheets on paper to scan them with ai devices

Charlie Warzel /
@cwarzel: wrote about open ai and manifest destiny https://www.theatlantic.com/ ... [image]

Charlie Warzel /
@cwarzel: i mean they just come out and say it man [image]

Evan McMurry /
@evanmcmurry: “It's not stealing to build the future if you believe it has belonged to you all along.” https://www.theatlantic.com/ ... [image]

Charlie Warzel /
@cwarzel: just a microcosm of the extractive ai training dynamic. 'we are building a thing that will bring us fame and fortune and maybe change the world (do you want that? well, it's not up to you) and here's the catch: it's trained off your human output. you have two options. partner

Ananya Gairola /
Benzinga: Scarlett Johansson Gets Backing From Actors Union In AI Voice Dispute With OpenAI

Dave Spector /
@Dhmspector@mastodon.social: This is a wild article. Its author, a usually pretty straight and sensible guy asserts “there's nothing we can do about it....” “It” being OpenAI's non-stop lawbreaking. — Sure we can. Treat OpenAI like they did Aaron Schwartz (except Schwartz, was, arguably, redistributing publicly funded research for the most part). …

Aaron Holmes /
The Information: Sam Altman's Naughty Side

Ted Johnson /
Deadline: Joe Biden Urges “Trustworthy” AI-Generated Audio; Statement Comes A Day After Scarlett Johansson Called Out OpenAI Over Use Of “Her”-Like Voice

Kirsten Fleming /
New York Post: Scarlett Johansson's fight against OpenAI exposes the absolute arrogance of Silicon Valley

Julie Miller /
Vanity Fair: Tracing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's Love for Scarlett Johansson's AI Romance Her

Nitish Pahwa /
Slate: Sam Altman Is Showing Us Who He Really Is

Andy Meek /
BGR: Sam Altman's lawyers probably wish this video clip of him raving about Her didn't exist

Sareena Dayaram /
CNET: Scarlett Johansson ‘Angered’ Over OpenAI's Chatbot Mimicking ‘Her’ Voice

Thomas Godfrey /
The US Sun: Scarlett Johansson accuses world's leading AI firm of copying her voice for flirty new chatbot

Eammon Jacobs /
Business Insider: Tangling with Scarlett Johansson is a move OpenAI may come to regret

Ashley King /
Digital Music News: Scarlett Johansson Lawyers Up After OpenAI ‘Mimics’ Voice for ChatGPT AI Assistant

Sarah Do Couto /
Global News: Scarlett Johansson ‘shocked, angered’ over ‘eerily similar’ ChatGPT voice

Aaron Williams /
UPROXX: Scarlett Johansson Wasn't Happy OpenAI's New ChatGPT System Sounds Like ‘Her’

Chris Cooke /
CMU: Scarlett Johansson accuses ChatGPT of stealing her voice

Giovana Gelhoren /
SheKnows: Scarlett Johansson's Latest Legal Battle Shows How Recent Technology Can Really Threaten Celebrities

Aaron Brown /
GB News: ChatGPT slams brakes on flirty chatbot voice after ‘shocked’ Scarlett Johansson makes serious complaint

Nick Visser /
HuffPost: Scarlett Johansson ‘Shocked, Angered’ After OpenAI Bot Has Voice Eerily Like Hers

Nicole Massabrook /
Us Weekly: Scarlett Johansson Speaks Out About ChatGPT's Sky, Declined Offer to Voice AI System

Simon Sharwood /
The Register: ScarJo voices anger at OpenAI's unauthorized soundalike

Theresa Braine /