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☆ E-Commerce and the Influencer Economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Annemarie Conte | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Wirecutter, The Times’s product recommendation service, tests many of the wares that clog Americans’ social media feeds. In today’s newsletter, I’ll explain how e-commerce, a $6 trillion global industry, became choked with junk. Paid to sellOnline shopping can expose people to a greasy influencer economy. When an influencer’s follower clicks a link and buys something, the influencer makes money. That’s why people on your social media feed are crowing about their 10 favorite Amazon finds or talking about how an expensive gizmo has changed their life.

Organizations: Brands

☆ That security camera and smart doorbell you’re using may have some major security flaws
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

… I’m completely done with smart devices like that.”24-year-old Heather Hines is among the Wyze users whose personal camera footage was viewed during a recent security breach. Henderson, who owns 10 Wyze cameras, said he is starting to replace them with other brands. It also raises the question about whether the value of smart devices is worth the risks. Amazon and Google have experienced security breaches with Ring and Nest security devices in recent years. People can also reconsider how many smart devices they actually need in the home.

Persons: Heather Hines, Hines, ”, “ I’m, ” Hines, I’m, Eddie Henderson, Henderson, Dave Cosby, Tuck, Paddy Harrington, That’s, Michela, Michela Menting, “, ” Harrington, It’s, you’ve, they’ll, ” Menting Organizations: CNN, Wyze, Consumer, Amazon, Walmart, Sears, Federal Communications Commission, US, Forrester Research, Attackers, Google, ABI Research, Consumer Product Safety, White, FBI Locations: Southern California, Nova Scotia, Canada, China, ” Haddington

☆ Inside The New York Times' big plans for its Cooking app
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

She joined the Times in 2007 as a web producer and later helped launch the Cooking app in 2014. Rachel Vanni via The New York TimesWhile many media companies have struggled recently, The New York Times has been a big digital success story. The Cooking app, along with Games, The Athletic, and Wirecutter, have bolstered the company's subscription business by providing different entry points. The "All Access" bundle strategy also lets the Times leverage upticks in demand for different types of content depending on the time of year (such as the winter holidays, which are peak cooking times) or news cycles. Cooking has learned that newer users perceive Times recipes as taking longer than they say.

Persons: foodies, Emily Weinstein, weren't, Rachel Vanni, Camilla Velasquez, Cooking's, Weinstein, Eric Kim, Melissa Clark, Clark, Matthew Tom, Wolverton, Adam Nagourney, Meredith Levien, Los Angeles Times haven't, they're, It's, Wirecutter, Condé, Bon Appétit, Carla Lalli, Molly Baz, Alison Roman, David Lebovitz's Organizations: The New York Times, Times, Business, New York Times, Games, The Athletic, Food, NYT, YouTube, longtime, Journalism, Athletic, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times Locations: America, TikTok

☆ Security camera startup Wyze apologizes for a breach that allowed 13,000 customers to see into other people's homes
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Wyze says a breach has allowed 13,000 customers to view others' camera feeds. The incident follows a 2019 data breach, which exposed 2.4 million Wyze users' data online. AdvertisementSecurity device company Wyze has apologized to customers after a camera breach let an estimated 13,000 users see into other people's homes. In 2019, a Wyze data breach was discovered by cybersecurity firm Twelve Security and reported on by The New York Times. The personal information of 2.4 million Wyze customers was exposed on the internet for 23 days.

Persons: Wyze, —, cybersecurity Organizations: Service, Business, Security, The New York Times, Times Locations: Seattle

☆ New York Times Co. Adds 300,000 Digital Subscribers in Quarter
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Katie Robertson | More About Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The New York Times Company added 300,000 paid digital subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2023, the company said on Wednesday, helping to push annual revenue for digital subscriptions above $1 billion for the first time. The Times reported total revenue of $676.2 million in the last three months of the year, essentially flat compared with a year earlier. Adjusted operating profit increased 8.5 percent, to $154 million. It was “a strong year for The Times that showcased the power of our strategy to be the essential subscription for every curious person seeking to understand and engage with the world,” Meredith Kopit Levien, the company’s president and chief executive, said in a statement. The company has focused in recent years on pushing a bundle of products to subscribers: its core news report as well as games like Wordle and Spelling Bee; its product review site, Wirecutter; a recipe app; and The Athletic, its sports news website.

Persons: ” Meredith Kopit Levien Organizations: New York Times Company, The Times, Athletic

Nearly half of all flash flood deaths are vehicle-related, experts say, which is why you should never drive into a flooded street. Here’s what to do in advance — and in the moment — to get through a flash flood safely. A “flash flood warning” means a flash flood is imminent or already occurring, and you should immediately move to higher ground if you’re outside or in a basement apartment. The most dire alert is a “flash flood emergency,” which indicates that not only is flooding occurring, but it’s posing a severe threat to human life. “People need to realize that most people who lose their footing in a flash flood don’t get out,” she said.

Persons: there’s, ”, Bonnie Schneider, Schneider, it’s, Hurricane Ida, You’ll, Ready.gov, David Markenson, ‘ It’s, Sabine Marx, I’m, Julie Munger, Munger, “, Dr, Markenson, you’re, don’t, they’re, Ms, Lynn Burttschell, Burttschell, Eugene Resnick, ’, ” Susan Shain Organizations: National Weather Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Cross Training Services, Columbia University’s National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Sierra Rescue, FEMA, Wimberley, Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New York Times Locations: United States, New York City, New York, Madison, Wis

☆ The New York Times Passes 10 Million Subscribers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Katie Robertson | More About Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The New York Times now has more than 10 million subscribers, the company said on Wednesday, edging closer to its goal of 15 million by the end of 2027. In its third-quarter report, The New York Times Company said it had added 210,000 net digital-only subscribers in the three months through September, giving it 9.41 million along with 670,000 print subscribers. The Times Company has focused on getting subscribers to sign up for more than one of its offerings, which include the core news report, Cooking, Games, the Wirecutter review site and the sports news site The Athletic. Nearly 3.8 million of the 9.41 million digital-only subscribers are subscribed to at least two products, the company said. Meredith Kopit Levien, the company’s president and chief executive officer, said in a statement that the third-quarter results showed that The Times’s “multiproduct bundle” was performing well and would “further us down the path to building a larger, more profitable company.”

Persons: Meredith Kopit Levien, ” Organizations: New York Times, New York Times Company, The Times Company

☆ Two childhood friends wanted better, cooler earplugs—their startup brought in $44 million last year
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Maarten Bodewes, left, and Dimitri O are childhood friends and the co-founders of Loop Earplugs. Maarten Bodewes Co-founder, Loop EarplugsEach co-founder spent roughly $40,000 to get Loop off the ground — "as far as I could go on my money," says Bodewes. "[We] 3D printed different prototypes, different shapes, different lengths of canals, sound entries, different filters that we tested," he adds. "The nightlife part is still driving a lot of our sales," Bodewes says. Source: Loop Earplugs

Persons: Maarten Bodewes, Dimitri O, you've, Taylor Swift, They're, ’, ‘, Bodewes, Wired, Loop's earplugs Organizations: CNBC, Microsoft, Saturn, Belgian Locations: Belgian, Brussels, U.S, Europe

☆ Daniel Varghese — Gear and Gadgets Editor at The Wall Street Journal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( Daniel Varghese | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Daniel VargheseDaniel Varghese is the Gear and Gadgets editor of Off Duty, the weekend lifestyle section of The Wall Street Journal. He currently writes The Fixer, an advice column for the gadget curious. Before joining the Journal in 2022, Daniel worked at New York Magazine, GQ and Wirecutter.

Persons: Daniel Varghese Daniel Varghese, Daniel Organizations: Street, New York Magazine, GQ

☆ Mark Thompson named CNN chief executive and chairman at critical juncture in news network’s history
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

I am confident he is exactly the leader we need to take the helm of CNN at this pivotal time,” David Zaslav, the chief executive of CNN parent company Warner Bros. At the Times, Thompson successfully transformed the newspaper into a digital powerhouse. CNN+, which launched last year as the network’s ownership changed hands from AT&T to Warner Bros. The standalone streamer also didn’t fit into Warner Bros. Discovery’s larger plans to house all content inside a single super-streamer. The streaming service will be located inside the Max app, alongside content from HBO, Discovery, and Warner Bros. Pictures.

Persons: Mark Thompson, “ Mark, ” David Zaslav, Thompson, Donald Trump, Trump, Jeff Zucker, Chris Cuomo, Don Lemon, Chris Licht, nosediving, Licht, Zaslav, Amy Entelis, Virginia Moseley, Eric Sherling, David Leavy, ”, CNN Max, Jake Tapper ” Organizations: CNN, The New York Times, BBC, Warner Bros, Discovery, Times, MSNBC, Atlantic, CNN Digital, The Times, CNN.com, U.S, Warner Bros . Discovery, HBO, Warner Bros .

☆ Crispy Rice, Spicy Tuna, Easy Dinner
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Mia Leimkuhler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Speaking of smashing things (and having rough days) — here’s Hetty Lui McKinnon’s recipe for crispy potato tacos. Also comforting — in that it’s built on a pantry staple and comes together in a half-hour — is Kay Chun’s linguine and clams with fresh red sauce. It’s the base for all sorts of easy desserts and beverages, like blueberry cream Popsicles and no-churn olive oil ice cream, Brazilian lemonade and Thai iced tea. And if I’ve sold you on the virtues of a rice cooker, here’s Wirecutter’s guide to the best rice cookers out there. My Zojirushi model has been going strong for over a decade; it sings “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” when it’s done doing its thing.

Persons: —, Hetty Lui McKinnon’s, Kay Chun’s, Dee, they’ll, Melissa, I’ve, it’s Organizations: New York Times

☆ New York Times Revenue Rises 6.3%
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Katie Robertson | More About Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Meredith Kopit Levien, the company’s president and chief executive, said in a statement that more than a third of the nearly 10 million subscribers were now subscribed to more than one Times product. She said more than half of the new digital subscribers added in the last quarter subscribed to the entire bundle of products that The Times offers. Advertising revenue more than doubled in that period, to $5.4 million. At the end of the quarter, there were more than 3.6 million subscribers with either a stand-alone Athletic subscription or who can access the sports site through a Times bundle subscription. Last month, The Times said it would disband its sports desk in the coming months and instead integrate more sports coverage from The Athletic.

Persons: Meredith Kopit Levien, ” Ms, Levien Organizations: Times, Athletic, The Athletic

☆ How a ‘Swole Woman’ Lifted Her Way to a New Outlook and Online Influence
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Joshua Needelman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“It’s often guilt, guilt, guilt. You’re never doing enough,” Ms. Johnston said of the mainstream fitness climate. They’re about building a basic skill that is accessible to everybody.”In Ms. Johnston’s experience, that difference, in turn, can lead to better emotional and mental health. Ms. Johnston, who was an editor at Wirecutter, a New York Times Company that reviews products, from 2014 to 2018, began writing her Ask a Swole Woman column for the site Hairpin in 2016 (“swole” means very muscular). She found that her writing resonated with readers hungry for more accessible fitness writing, and after the site shut down in early 2018, her column bounced around before becoming part of the paid version of her newsletter.

Persons: “, You’re, Ms, Johnston, ” Organizations: New York Times Company

☆ A Quick One-Pot Pasta to Make the Most of Summer Zucchini and Basil
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Melissa Clark | More About Melissa Clark | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Speaking of which, have you baked up a loaf of zucchini bread yet this summer? Or for something unexpected and savory, how about Zuni Café’s zucchini pickles with turmeric and mustard seeds? David Tanis adapted the recipe, which the restaurant serves with its burgers; the pickles will be a hit with yours, too. Today is day two of Amazon’s Prime Day sales, and our colleagues at Wirecutter have collected the best kitchen deals for you. If you’re splashing out on that pizza oven you’ve been coveting, then we have the recipes ready for you.

Persons: David Tanis, Rebekah Peppler, Krysten Chambrot, you’ll, Naz Deravian’s Organizations: cham, New York Times, Amazon’s

The move represents a further integration into the newsroom of The Athletic, which The Times bought in January 2022 for $550 million, adding a publication that had some 400 journalists covering more than 200 professional sports teams. Online access to The Athletic, which is operated separately from the Times newsroom, is included for those who subscribe to two or more of The Times’s bundle of products. A group on the business desk will cover money and power in sports, while new beats covering sports will be added to other sections. When The Times bought The Athletic, executives said the deal would help the company appeal to a broader audience. They added it to a subscription bundle that includes the main Times news site as well as Cooking, the Wirecutter product review service and Games.

Persons: Kahn, Drake Organizations: The, The Times, The Athletic, Times, Journalists, Athletic

☆ A Tech Checklist for the Dark Side of Summer Weather
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( J. D. Biersdorfer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Emergency, which consolidates information from older Red Cross apps, also offers checklists, first-aid tips, information about nearby shelters and downloadable guides that work offline. Wirecutter, a product review site owned by The New York Times, has guides for alternative chargers, emergency radios and other equipment to help you through hurricanes, wildfires and earthquakes. Stuff Your Digital WalletLosing your physical wallet in a catastrophe can be highly disruptive, but if you have credit or debit cards saved to the digital wallet app on your phone, you have a backup for businesses with contactless payment terminals. Digital versions of your health care cards and driver’s license may also be options. (Four states now offer official digital driver’s licenses or state ID cards for the Apple and Google wallet apps, but more are coming, including New York; some states also have their own digital ID apps.)

Persons: checklists Organizations: The New York Times, Apple Locations: New York

☆ Microsoft keyboard users are ‘so devastated’ after discontinuation of accessories
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

He switched newspapers in 1998 and bought the newer model, the Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite. A study had shown that 22 out of 23 people preferred the geometry of the Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 over the older Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro. In 2022, he bought a Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard for his house in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and another one for when he was working at a client's office. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards From top to bottom, Matt Steinhoff's home collection includes the Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard he uses every day, a Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000 keyboard someone gave him and his old Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000, which he keeps around as a backup. The model costs $129.99 on Amazon, twice the price of the discontinued Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard.

☆ Ask Wirecutter: How Do I Block Out Annoying Sounds?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Annemarie Conte | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

If you want to stay aware of your surroundings but bring down the volume of the world, you can try musician earplugs or invest in noise-cancelling headphones, which reduce the intensity of sustained nuisance noises. You can augment the effect by listening to masking sounds like music or white noise, too.

Persons: earplugs

☆ Opinion | The Tyranny of ‘The Best’
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Rachel Connolly | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

“I think the really important thing to me — which is probably not a healthy thing — is I want to make sure the people I’m with have the best time possible,” Dan told me. Some version of the “hottest new restaurants of the year” could be found in local newspapers and magazines for decades — not to mention the best dentists, doctors, schools. Listicles proliferated as a kind of content that was easy to produce, easy to attract attention to, easy to sell ads against. The best easy-to-assemble tents, the 30 softest midrange nightgowns, the 17 smoothest razors under $50, the top seven waterproof briefcases. There are best-of lists of less concrete things, too: the 100 best novelists of the past 100 years; rich lists; the 30 under 30.

☆ 7 things the Class of 2022 wish they knew before graduating from college: 'Don't be afraid to take time off'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Morgan Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

One of the most exciting parts of leaving college is leaving behind the scripted, predictable rhythm of school. After college, your friends change, your responsibilities change, your routine and habits change. If I could go back, I would tell myself to enjoy life a little bit more. Now is the time to enjoy life – don't be afraid to take time off from work, travel and take advantage of every opportunity to explore new places. Kalidas Shanti, 23, Cambridge, MassachusettsShanti graduated from Amherst College in May 2022 and started working as a data analyst at Mathematica in October.

☆ The Times Added 190,000 Subscribers Last Quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The New York Times Company on Wednesday said it added 190,000 digital subscribers last quarter, driven partly by subscriptions to a bundle of products that includes The Athletic sports site, bringing the company’s total digital subscriber base to nine million. Adjusted operating profit was $54 million, a drop of 11 percent from a year earlier, as the new subscription revenue was offset by higher operating costs and lower advertising revenue. “In the first quarter, we made steady progress on our essential subscription strategy, with clear signs of substantial runway ahead,” Meredith Kopit Levien, chief executive of The Times, said in a statement. Over the last decade, The Times has tried to offset declines in its print business — which is profitable but fading — with new revenue from digital subscribers. In recent years, the company has honed that strategy by offering readers a bundle of online utilities including a cooking app, the Wirecutter online shopping service, games like Wordle and The Athletic, pitching itself to subscribers as a guide to the wider world.

☆ The tech we couldn’t live without in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Bone conduction headphones, TV streaming devices and Bluetooth speakers are among the tech gadgets topping holiday wish lists this year. Other notable products – ahem, the new 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max – are near impossible to find. Since my move to New York, I’ve had to find all new favorite spots for good food and drinks. – Victor Blackwell, co-anchor of CNN NewsroomHBO MaxNow that I commute home at the ungodly hour of 1 a.m., I lean heavily on my HBO Max app (starts at $9.99 a month). – Samantha Kelly, CNN senior tech writerRev.comI remember being an intern over a decade ago logging half hour long interviews for producers.

One highly recommended and inexpensive treatment is light therapy, which mimics the elements found in sunlight. Light therapy, in a nutshell, includes siting by or working near a light-emanating device that essentially mimics the elements of bright, natural light. When looking for a light therapy box, you want to search for something with 10,000-lux light. To use it most effectively, the light from the light box needs to enter your eyes indirectly. You should not replace regular in-person therapy sessions with light therapy, but it may be an affordable supplement.

☆ How Recurrent Ventures went from media darling to another publisher hit by layoffs and struggles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Recurrent Ventures made a digital-media splash with acquisitions like The Drive and Popular Science. In May of last year, Recurrent Ventures announced its flashiest deal yet: a $300 million fundraising round led by the private-equity giant Blackstone. To make a more appealing parent brand to house a growing fleet of media properties, they eventually created a new entity called Recurrent Ventures. Recurrent Ventures expanded as it acquired well-known publishers like the 150-year-old Popular Science. Recurrent Ventures shut down MEL Magazine, the men's lifestyle publication it once planned to make the centerpiece of a new lifestyle vertical of sites.

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