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Rumors that the Hollywood star Lindsay Lohan was in rehab. A lawsuit by Hulk Hogan, the former pro wrestler, against the gossip website Gawker for publishing a tape of him having sex. Testimony on Thursday at former President Donald J. Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan dove deeply into the celebrity-obsessed digital media environment of the past fifteen years or so that helped fuel Mr. Trump’s rise to political prominence. In his testimony, particularly as he was cross-examined, Mr. Davidson and a defense lawyer, Emil Bove, together led the jurors on a whirlwind tour of several gossipy and tawdry deals he had a hand in. Prosecutors say that the former president’s efforts to continue to keep the story hidden were criminal.

Persons: Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Lohan, Hulk Hogan, Donald J, Keith Davidson, Davidson, Emil Bove, Karen McDougal, Stormy Daniels, Trump, Michael D, Cohen Organizations: Hollywood, Prosecutors Locations: Manhattan, Los Angeles

☆ Here are Thursday's biggest analyst calls: Ferrari, Netflix, Tesla, Nvidia, TJX, Carvana & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

UBS upgrades Burlington to neutral from sell UBS said the outlook for Burlington is improving. Jefferies reiterates Netflix as buy After a change in analyst coverage, the firm says it's standing by its buy rating. UBS upgrades TJX Companies to buy from neutral UBS says the off-price retailer is a "growth stock with surprising upside." UBS downgrades CVS to neutral from buy UBS said it sees too much uncertainty for shares of CVS. JPMorgan upgrades Carvana to overweight from neutral JPMorgan upgraded Carvana following earnings on Wednesday.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Ferrari, Mizuho, C27E, BURL, Jefferies, Rosenblatt, TD Cowen downgrades Wolfspeed, Cowen, Raymond James, Parsons, Ziff Davis, KBW, Piper Sandler, Cantor Fitzgerald, Tesla, Cantor, it's bullish Organizations: Nvidia, Mizuho, UBS, Netflix, Networks, Enterprise, Jefferies, CTV, TJX Companies, Department Stores, CVS, JPMorgan, Susquehanna, MGM, Bank of America, Community Bank, Piper, NYCB, ~$ Locations: Burlington, Las Vegas

☆ We allow our kids screen time at home, and they go to a tech-free school. It's a good balance.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Melissa Petro | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But at our son's tech-free school, there isn't so much as a smart board — and that's just the way we like it. We let our kids use screens at home, but they don't overindulgeLike most Waldorf schools, Otto Specht suggests limited media exposure at home. But in our house, our kids have free rein when it comes to screen time. AdvertisementSome people argue that it's necessary to introduce kids to technology because it makes them "workplace-ready." In the meantime, let's let kids be kids.

Persons: —, Daniel Tiger's, Oscar, that's, Otto Specht, Melissa Petro's, Melissa Petro, Minecraft, He's, let's Organizations: Service, Business, Waldorf Schools, Otto Specht School, Waldorf, Disney

“You did everything you could to get as close to that line as possible without crossing it, right?” Mr. Bove said. “I did everything I could to make sure that my activities were lawful,” Mr. Davidson replied. Mr. Davidson, who had a niche practice representing people with often salacious claims against celebrities, began the day by describing his unpleasant relationship with Michael D. Cohen, Mr. Trump’s former fixer and personal lawyer, who ultimately paid Ms. Daniels to keep silent. Mr. Trump is charged with 34 felonies for what prosecutors say were his attempts from the White House to disguise reimbursements to Mr. Cohen. The testimony from Mr. Davidson on Thursday, his second day on the stand, painted a vivid portrait of fevered efforts by the witness, Mr. Cohen and others to keep allegations of extramarital affairs by Mr. Trump out of the public eye.

Persons: Bove, “, Mr, Davidson, Trump, Michael D, Cohen, Trump’s, Daniels, reimbursements

☆ The $21 billion influencer industry has gone completely off the rails
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Influencer marketing is booming, and brands spend billions to promote products with a personal touch. But these days, the industry of influencer marketing is completely off the rails. Since 2016, the dollars driving the influencer marketing industry have ballooned from $1.6 billion a year to an estimated $21.1 billion in 2023, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. Marketers, brands, influencers, and platform companies all have opportunities to exploit one another to varying degrees of harm." It's not great for consumersDespite the money flying around, the FTC only provides basic guidelines about disclosure requirements for influencer marketing to protect consumers of their content.

Persons: —, Emily Hund, Hund, David Camp, Michael Jordan, George Foreman, Brooke Shields, Calvin Klein, isn't, It's, Kim Kardashian, influencer Chiara Ferragni, Lindsay Lohan, DJ Khaled, Naomi Campbell, Kardashian, Dylan Mulvaney, Bud Light, Ben Shapiro, Donald Trump Jr, Camp Organizations: Service, Business, Social Media, Harvard Business, CBS News, Nike, Salton, FTC, SEC, Consumer, NBC Locations: influencers, California

☆ Pedro Sanchez: Spanish PM refuses to quit, vowing to fight ‘unfounded’ attack on his wife
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Al Goodman | Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“I have decided to continue, with more force if possible, as the head of the Spanish government,” the 52-year-old prime minister said. Sanchez thanked his Spanish Socialist Party members for their support. Manos Limpias acknowledged on the same day that it had relied on press reports for its court complaint. Javier Soriano/AFP/Getty ImagesSanchez’ Socialist party performed strongly in recent regional elections in Spain’s northern Basque region. Sanchez became prime minister in 2018 after winning a no-confidence vote against the conservative Mariano Rajoy.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Begoña Gomez, Sanchez, Gomez, Manos Limpias, “, ”, it’s, Gomez “, Manos, General’s, Hazte, Javier Soriano, Mariano Rajoy, “ Pedro, –, we’ve, Español’s Pau Mosquera Organizations: CNN, Spanish, Spanish Socialist Party, Madrid, Superior Court of Justice, AFP, Getty, Socialist, Socialist Party, Español, Español’s Locations: Madrid, Spanish, Spain’s, Basque, Catalonia, Ukraine, Kyiv, Spain, ”

☆ The Onion Is Sold by G/O Media
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

G/O Media announced on Thursday that it had sold The Onion, a satirical news site, to a group of digital media veterans. The Onion, which started in 1988 in Wisconsin as a weekly satirical newspaper and later became a website, is known for its parodies of current events. For the last decade, it has republished the same headline after nearly every mass shooting: “‘No Way to Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens.”In an email to G/O Media staff that was obtained by The New York Times, Jim Spanfeller, the chief executive, said the company was “undergoing an extensive review of our portfolio with the intention of coring down to our leading sites in terms of audience and revenues.” He said G/O Media had agreed to sell to “a new Chicago-based firm called Global Tetrahedron.”“This company is made up of four digital media veterans with a profound love for The Onion and comedy-based content,” Mr. Spanfeller wrote. “The site’s new owners have agreed to keep The Onion’s entire staff intact and in Chicago, something we insisted be part of the deal.”

Persons: ’, Jim Spanfeller, Mr, Spanfeller, ” Organizations: O Media, The New York Times Locations: Wisconsin, Chicago

☆ Twilio cofounder Jeff Lawson appears to have just bought The Onion
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Katherine Long | Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Satirical news website The Onion was sold to a company called Global Tetrahedron. Global Tetrahedron is also the name of a fictional evil megacorporation in a long-running Onion gag. But it's a real company, and Twilio founder Jeff Lawson appears to be behind it. AdvertisementJeff Lawson, the cofounder of cloud computing company Twilio, appears to have purchased the satirical news website The Onion from G/O Media. When asked whether he had purchased The Onion, Lawson played coy.

Persons: Jeff Lawson, —, Lawson, Jim Spanfeller, Katie Robertson, Spanfeller, coy, O Organizations: Service, O, New York Times Locations: San Francisco, Chicago

☆ Pedro Sanchez: Spanish leader says he will ‘reflect’ on whether to remain prime minister, as court probes wife
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Al Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Madrid CNN —Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced Wednesday that he was cancelling his public duties until next week to “reflect” on whether to continue leading the government, just hours after a Spanish court said it had opened a probe against his wife. In the surprise move, Sanchez said on X that he would announce his decision on whether to remain as prime minister next Monday, in an appearance before the news media. Sanchez said “I need to stop and reflect” about “if I should continue leading the government” or step down. Sanchez, head of Spain’s Socialist Party, leads a coalition government with a narrow parliamentary majority. And a poll predicts the Socialist Party will also fare better than conservatives and the far right in regional elections in Catalonia next month around Barcelona.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Begoña Gomez, “, Manos, ” Sanchez, Begoña Gomez “, Javier Maroto, Spain’s Organizations: Madrid CNN, Spanish, Wednesday, Madrid, Superior Court, Justice, Spain’s Socialist Party, Popular Party, Socialist Party, Vox Locations: Madrid, Basque, Catalonia, Barcelona

☆ OJ Simpson's TV moment is never going to be replicated
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But also a true thing: In 1994, when Simpson fled police in his white Bronco, 95 million people watched the slow-motion chase on TV, in real time. In 1994, AOL, the service that popularized the "World Wide Web," had a little more than a million subscribers. AdvertisementAnd the notion that we're never getting a TV event like the Simpson affair is not a new one, either. Digital media can certainly focus a lot of people's attention on one thing, but it can't compel everyone to watch one thing. Now I'm going to go stream June 17th, 1994 — ESPN's documentary about the Simpson chase.

Persons: —, OJ Simpson, Simpson, We're, Rupert Murdoch's Fox, Kato Kalein, Lance Ito, Rick Maiman, Here's, Joanna Robinson, Robinson, Addison Rae, They're, It's, I've Organizations: Service, Bronco, Business, AOL, Getty Locations: America

☆ A UPenn student started a YouTube channel. In weeks, her face was stolen on China's social media.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

That message included a link to a video on Xiaohongshu, a social media platform rapidly gaining steam in China. The student started her self-empowerment channel in November and has so far published eight videos and seven YouTube Shorts. The Xiaohongshu deepfakes of other YouTubers do the same. In a matter of about 10 minutes, BI found deepfake videos of at least five caucasian women on Xiaohongshu. But at least one Chinese deepfake version of Blakely has a different agenda to share on Xiaohongshu.

Persons: —, Olga Loiek, Loiek, Vladimir Putin, Loeik, Weibo, someone's, Lyu Siwei, it's, Haibing Lu, they've, Xiaohongshu, Natasha, she's, Annie, Sophia Elena, Katyusha, China, Lana Blakely, Blakely, Elizabeth Filips, Serbia, Filips, Lyu, Vincent Conitzer, Conitzer, Lu, Lyu who's, he's, Roy, Ari Lightman, she'll Organizations: Service, Business, Kremlin, YouTube, WhatsApp, Facebook, Media, University at Buffalo, Santa Clara University, University of Pennsylvania, BI, Russia, Institute for, Oxford University, Social, Carnegie Mellon University Locations: Munich, China, Moscow, Ukraine, Santa, China's Heilongjiang, Germany, Xiaohongshu, Russian, Russia, Stockholm, Xiaohongshu London, Pakistan

Sports Illustrated will continue operations after the company that owns the brand agreed with a new publisher for its print and digital products. Minute Media took over on Monday after reaching a licensing agreement with Authentic Brands Group. Authentic had been in negotiations with Arena, Minute Media and other publishing entities over the past two months. Authentic will acquire an equity stake in Minute Media, which also publishes the online sites The Players’ Tribune, FanSided and 90min. “In Minute Media, we have found a partner that will honor SI’s lauded legacy and exceed fan expectations for the future.

Persons: Asaf Peled, Stephen Cannella, ”, Emma Baccellieri, Ross Levinsohn, Meredith, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Muhammad Ali, “, SI’s, ” Daniel W, David Bauder, ___ Organizations: Media, Authentic Brands, Minute Media, Players ’ Tribune, FanSided, “, SI, Associated Press, Sports, Group, Meredith Publishing, Time Inc, Reebok, Sports Illustrated, Associated Press Media

☆ Why the big winner in the Reddit IPO is ... a magazine publisher
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AdvertisementIt's easy to write gloomy stories about the state of the media business. The media business is often pretty gloomy! This one is about a very Old World Media Company that has struck gold in digital media — one of the very few times that has ever happened. (While we're in disclosure mode, I should note that Business Insider itself is a digital media company acquired by German media conglomerate Axel Springer in 2015. AdvertisementMaybe a worthwhile playbook the next time — and there will be a next time — a big media company opens its wallet for a digital upstart again.

Persons: Condé Nast, —, Reddit, Time Warner, Axel Springer Organizations: Advance, Service, World Media Company, Vogue, Yorker, Big Media, News Corp, MySpace, Penguin, YouTube, Maker Studios, Disney, Fox, Time, Comcast, NBC, Vox Media Locations: Reddit

☆ Sports Illustrated to avert shutdown as it gets a fresh start under new publisher
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

In January, The Arena Group, which had published Sports Illustrated since 2019, stopped paying Authentic its licensing fee for publishing rights. Minute Media said that while it will continue the print edition of the magazine, it hopes to also usher Sports Illustrated into a lucrative digital future. “The weight and power of that distinction cannot be understated.”Minute Media will work to retain most of the Sports Illustrated staff, a person familiar with the matter said. “We have said from the start that our top priorities are to keep Sports Illustrated alive, uphold the legacy of the institution and protect our union jobs. We look forward to discussing a future with Minute Media that does that,” Emma Baccellieri, staff writer for SI and vice chair for the SI Union, said in a statement.

Persons: Asaf Peled, ” Peled, Peled, ” Emma Baccellieri Organizations: New, New York CNN —, Authentic Brands, The New York Times, Sports Illustrated, Group, Media, Players ’ Tribune, FanSided, Minute Media, SI, Arena, Sports Locations: New York

☆ Adobe shares drop 13% on weak quarterly revenue guidance
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Alex Koller | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Adobe shares fell 13% on Friday morning after the company reported first-quarter results that beat estimates but delivered a light quarterly revenue forecast. Its revenue of $5.18 billion exceeded the $5.14 billion analysts estimated. "No change to our view that Adobe is a major AI beneficiary," the analysts wrote in a Thursday investor note. Barclays dropped its price target for shares of Adobe to $630 from $700 while maintaining an overweight rating for the stock. "A smaller than expected beat in Digital Media Net New ARR likely increases investor concerns around competitive pressures," the analysts wrote.

Persons: Shantanu Narayen, Morgan Stanley Organizations: CNBC, New York Stock Exchange, Adobe, Bank of America, Barclays, Creative, Digital Media Locations: New York City

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, Rivian, Micron, Microsoft, Eli Lilly, Amazon & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Citi upgrades Thor Industries to buy from neutral Citi said it see a "favorable event path" for the RV company. " Citi initiates Pure Storage as buy Citi said in its initiation of Pure Storage that the data storage company is an AI beneficiary. Citi reiterates Apple as buy Citi said it's standing by its buy rating on shares of Apple. Bank of America reiterates Amazon as buy Bank of America said it's bullish heading into Amazon's Spring Sales event next week. Citi reiterates Micron as buy Citi raised its price target on the stock to $150 per share from $95 and says it's bullish heading into earnings next week. "

Persons: Piper Sandler, Piper, Morgan Stanley, RSG, Cummins, Baird, Nvidia, JPMorgan, Tesla, Telsey, Todd Vasos, it's, Stellantis, Five9, PBF, DINO, Truist, Eli Lilly, LLYs, Dave Ricks, Patrik Jonsson Organizations: EV, Bank of America, Adobe, Citi, Thor Industries, Morgan Stanley downgrades Republic Services, UBS, Cummins, CMI, Microsoft, Nvidia, JPMorgan, Guggenheim, Apple, Worldwide, " Bank of America, Micron, Catalyst Watch, RBC, UFC, WWE, Inc, Valero Energy, Sinclair, of America, Entertainment, Golden Entertainment, Diabetes, Obesity Locations: Snowflake, F4Q24, China, Nevada

☆ Adobe shares slip 10% on soft sales forecast
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen speaks during an interview with CNBC on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Feb. 20, 2024. During the quarter, Adobe abandoned its $20 billion acquisition of design software startup Figma after U.K. regulators found competitive concerns. Adobe will work with OpenAI around Sora, David Wadhwani, president of Adobe's digital media business, said on the earnings call. Adobe sees fiscal second-quarter earnings of $4.35 to $4.40 per share on an adjusted basis, with $5.25 billion to $5.30 billion in revenue. Leaving out the after-hours movement, Adobe shares have fallen 4% so far this year, while the S&P 500 index has gained 8% over the same time period.

Persons: Shantanu Narayen, OpenAI, Sora, David Wadhwani, LSEG, Wadhwani Organizations: CNBC, New York Stock Exchange, Adobe, LSEG, Firefly Services Locations: Sora

☆ Ad insiders are buzzing about industry power broker Michael Kassan's messy split with UTA and what it means for the future of MediaLink
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

After falling out with Kassan, UTA may think twice about buying another agency. The media and ad industry will be watching to see what, if any, leadership changes UTA makes at MediaLink. The end of the ad industry schmoozefest? One industry veteran said they saw Kassan's exit as an opportunity to change how ad industry consultants operate and charge for services. At the center of the dispute between UTA and Kassan is the MediaLink founder's $950,000 annual expense account.

Persons: Michael Kassan, MediaLink, Kassan, Jeremy Zimmer, Kassan wasn't, Vianney Tisseau, headhunting, Jon Miller, Sanford Michelman, Michelman, Robinson, Ethan Miller, Julian Jacobs, David Anderson, WME, Kassan's, Wenda Harris Millard, wasn't, what's, There's, Lou Paskalis, Marc Sternberg's, Lady Gaga, Elton John, Mariah Carey, Tom Brady, Rob Norman, WPP's Organizations: UTA, Cannes Lions, Consumer, Business, Los Angeles Superior Court, Los, Judicial, Mediation Services, Variety Cannes Lions Studio, Integrated Media, Getty, Talent, Accenture, General Motors, Netflix, JUV Consulting, Madison, Endeavor, Writers Guild of America, Zimmer, Western Initiative Media Worldwide, Interpublic Group, Bank of America, AJL, Marc Sternberg's Brand, Kassan, Southwest, NFL Locations: MediaLink, Cannes, France, Madison, Droga5, Hollywood, Kassan, California, South, Austin

☆ Sprouts of Hope in a Gloomy Media Landscape
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Katie Robertson | Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But there are some signs of hope. The new class of news start-ups — Puck, Punchbowl News, The Ankler and Semafor are among the most prominent — have kept spending down and hired carefully. They have attracted top journalists by putting them at the heart of the enterprise, sometimes as part owners in the companies. “There was possibly a mismatch 10 or 15 years ago between funding structures and media companies,” said Jon Kelly, the co-founder and editor in chief of Puck, whose 14 reporters write about topics including politics, finance and media. “And I think that the entire industry has learned from that.”

Persons: —, fatefully, ”, Jon Kelly, Puck Organizations: Punchbowl News Locations: Punchbowl

☆ Deadspin’s entire staff has been laid off after the sports site was sold to a startup
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Liam Reilly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Deadspin, the irreverent sports and news site best known for its commentary and analysis, laid off all of its staff on Monday after the outlet was sold to a startup firm. A G/O Media spokesperson confirmed that 11 Deadspin staffers were impacted by the move on Monday. Last year, G/O Media also sold Jezebel to Paste Magazine after briefly shutting down the publication and laying off its entire staff. The slashing of Deadspin’s staff is the latest in what so far has been a tumultuous year for the news media. TIME also laid off 15% of its unionized editorial staff and The Los Angeles Times cut over 20% of its newsroom staff.

Persons: CNN — Deadspin, Jim Spanfeller —, —, Spanfeller, ” Spanfeller, “, Deadspin’s, ”, Condé Nast, Forbes Organizations: CNN, Publishing, Media, O Media, Magazine, Vice Media, TIME, Los Angeles Times, Condé, The New York Daily News Locations: newsrooms

☆ Kara Swisher warns news organizations need to ‘reinvent’ themselves amid existential crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

We spoke to Swisher on Monday to get her insight on some of the challenges facing the media and tech landscape today. And they didn’t anticipate that these tech companies were going to get into media. If so, why haven’t legacy media companies been able to lure in top tech talent to improve their products? Media companies do not get to live by the same anti-gravity rules that tech companies have been able to. But media companies didn’t offer the same kind of upside.

Persons: New York CNN — Kara Swisher, ” Swisher, Swisher, it’s, BuzzFeed, they’ve, Steve Jobs, Rupert Murdoch, “, Donald Trump’s, Joe Biden’s, It’s, You’ve, Elon Musk, Bill Ackman, I’m, Elon, Tyler Perry, Sora, everyone’s, Adrian Chen, …, AllThingsD, Uber, We’ve, haven’t Organizations: New York CNN, Craigslist, . Media, Big Tech, New York Times, Harvard, The New York Times, Google Locations: New York

☆ Wait. Why is Reddit losing so much money?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Last year, according to Reddit's newly filed IPO documents, the company generated $804 million in revenue and lost nearly $91 million. But it's still a lot of money to lose selling a free product. AdvertisementOne big, obvious answer: It has been hiring a lot of engineers and spending a lot of money on their salaries. (Note: There are some dumb stories floating out there about Reddit CEO Steve Huffman getting paid $193 million last year. The best argument I can make in their defense is that Reddit is still adding a lot of users and that more users equals more ad money.

Persons: —, it's, Condé Nast, that's, Steve, Greg Doherty, Steve Huffman, Elon Musk, Reddit, they're, Alex Heath Organizations: Service, Facebook, Business, Twitter, Google

☆ The hollowing out of Vice and BuzzFeed marks the end of the digital media revolution
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —The digital media revolution is over. Its two leaders, Vice Media and BuzzFeed , are in a frenetic retreat, surrendering much of their online empires as they try to protect what remains of their core assets. The demise of Vice Media as we know it is a particularly hard pill to swallow. Ahead of the announcement, the mood inside Vice Media was grim. Dixon said in his note that Vice Media had determined it was “no longer cost-effective” for the company to distribute its digital content on its own.

Persons: “, ”, they’re, I’m, Bruce Dixon, Benjamin Mullin, Dixon, Shane Smith Organizations: New York CNN, Vice Media, Media, Big Tech titans, Fortress Investment, Sports Locations: New York

☆ Vice to lay off hundreds of staffers, stop publishing content on its website
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Ahead of the announcement Thursday, the mood inside Vice Media was grim. Vice Media, once a high-flying digital media startup valued at billions of dollars, has struggled immensely in recent years. The radical strategic shift announced by Dixon effectively marked the end of Vice Media as the industry has known it. Once held up as the future of the business, Vice Media has rapidly contracted over the last 12 months, ending several news programs and laying off staffers. Vice Media joins a long list of digital publishers that have announced painful layoffs in recent months.

Persons: Bruce Dixon, ” Dixon, Dixon, ”, Shane Smith, Nancy Dubuc, BuzzFeed Organizations: CNN —, Media, CNN, Vice Media, Fortress Investment Group, “ Locations: “

☆ BuzzFeed sells Complex Networks for less than half of what it paid and slashes 16% of staff
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“This is also an opportunity to unlock greater value for the Complex brand by combining it with NTWRK’s expansive, commerce-driven business.”The uniting of NTWRK and Complex is, indeed, something of a natural marriage. NTWRK serves as a marketplace for many of the items that Complex covers, such as sneakers. BuzzFeed has been something of an avatar for such struggles among digital publishers. In April, BuzzFeed shut down BuzzFeed News, its award-winning news division that once boasted hundreds of employees and bureaus around the world. Reuters reported last week that The Independent is in talks to take control of the company’s UK operations.

Persons: BuzzFeed, Jonah Peretti, ”, Peretti, NTWRK, ” Peretti, Jimmy Iovine, Goldman Sachs, TikTok Organizations: New, New York CNN, Networks, Digital, New York Times, CNN, Reuters, ”, Universal Music Group, Main Street Advisors, Universal Locations: New York

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