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☆ Disney slams Peltz for lack of media experience, but its board is light on it, too
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Disney directors unanimously rejected activist investor Nelson Peltz's request to join the board this month, in large part due to his lack of media industry expertise. That would be a stronger argument if Disney's current board members had ample media and entertainment experience when they joined. Peltz's strongest claim for a board seat is probably ensuring that succession planning finally happens in an organized and coherent way – which doesn't appear to be the primary argument he's making. According to a company filing Tuesday, Disney decided not to offer Peltz a board seat because he didn't suggest any specific strategic ideas and had minimal industry experience. But Disney's board is filled with directors whose prior experience have little to do with streaming services, legacy pay TV, theme parks or films.

☆ I asked ChatGPT to write my resignation letter but instead I got career coaching
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

My editor asked me to see whether ChatGPT, an AI chatbot, could write a decent resignation letter. But I hadn't expected that the personalized resignation letter would prompt self-reflection. What I didn't expect was that the effect of seeing ChatGPT's personalized resignation letter in black and white would be so jarring. My request was straightforward and so was the reply:Can you write me a resignation letter for my job as Senior Correspondent at Insider? If you change your mind and decide that you do not want to resign, you can try to retract your resignation letter.

☆ Republicans ignored Rep. George Santos' red flags as he propelled himself to a House victory deceiving voters, NYT reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An NYT report revealed that at least some of the GOP knew of Rep. George Santos' lies. "I guess unfortunately we rely on the person to be truthful to us," the GOP Nassau County chairman told The Times. According to the Times, Santos hired an unnamed Washington research firm to conduct a vulnerability study in connection to his campaign towards the end of 2021. But the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee failed to follow up on red flags when looking into Rep. George Santos because researchers were encumbered with other researching dozens of other candidates, per the Times. Santos has faced multiple calls to resign but has remained steadfast in his conviction to complete his term despite deceiving 142,000 voters.

☆ How WWE’s Vince McMahon ruthlessly got his job back despite allegations of sexual assault and misuse of company funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Kyle Feldscher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

WWE has always been a family business – Vince McMahon, Sr., handed over the reins to his son in the 1980s – and it seemed set to continue that way. Why was Vince McMahon stepping aside such a big deal? Vince McMahon was more akin to a king than a business executive in the world of WWE, his fingerprints on everything. Once considered a wrestling genius, critics have more recently come to consider Vince McMahon a creative liability. McMahon,” Vince McMahon’s devious on-screen character, who served as wrestling’s greatest heel for years in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

☆ Disney board exposed itself to activist intervention, but Peltz may be overreaching
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Disney's share price spike in 2021 was caused by the same phenomenon — investors charging into streaming services with significant subscriber growth. Activist investor Nelson Peltz spent about 30 minutes Thursday morning speaking with CNBC's Jim Cramer and David Faber in a wide-ranging interview about why he wants a Disney board seat. Now Iger's back, and the Disney board has tasked him with finding a successor in the next two years. It's a far easier case to be made that Disney's board and Iger have consistently bungled succession planning. As Trian noted in its presentation (on Slide 28), the Disney board extended Iger's retirement date five different times between October 2011 and December 2017.

☆ Cesar Conde consolidates power at NBC with network shakeup
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —On paper, Cesar Conde is the chair of NBCUniversal News Group. But on Wednesday he also appointed himself as the effective president of NBC News. But the NBCU News Group boss notably declined to select a single successor to oversee the sizable portfolio of Oppenheim. Leist will continue to oversee “Today” and Rodriguez will oversee “Nightly” and NBC News NOW. All three executives — Blumenstein, Leist, and Rodriguez — will report directly to Conde, making him the ultimate network boss.

☆ Disney names Nike executive Mark Parker as new chairman
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —The Walt Disney Company has named Nike executive chairman Mark Parker as its new board chair, replacing longtime director Susan Arnold, whose term limit is expiring. Parker, a Disney board member since 2016, takes over Disney’s board at a time of transition for America’s largest media company. Disney said among Parker’s qualifications as board chair is that he navigated a successful CEO transition at Nike. And Disney’s media networks are struggling as cord cutting accelerates and once lucrative outlets like ESPN lose viewership. She praised Parker for helping lead Disney through a difficult period for the company and the broader media industry.

☆ LinkedIn is having a moment thanks to a wave of layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Some LinkedIn users affected by recent layoffs have formed groups on the site aimed at providing assistance, coordinating around signing exit paperwork and aiding with connections for new jobs. Suddenly, the normally staid professional network has become both a vital lifeline for recently laid off workers and a surprisingly lively social platform. “There’s been an uptick in [LinkedIn use] since the pandemic,” said Jennifer Grygiel, an associate professor and social media expert at Syracuse University. Layoffs and upheaval in social media industryEven apart from the layoffs, the social media landscape has been through a volatile year. But lately it appears users have more than enough reason to use LinkedIn amid a wave of thousands of layoffs.

☆ Bernard Kalb, former CNN anchor and correspondent for NBC and CBS, is dead at 100
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Jon Passantino | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Bernard Kalb, the long-time journalist and founding anchor of CNN’s “Reliable Sources” program, died on Sunday at his home in North Bethesda, Maryland, his family said. Kalb’s death was caused by complications from a recent fall, his younger brother, Marvin Kalb, told CNN by phone. Kalb then became the first anchor of CNN’s “Reliable Sources” program from 1992 to 1998. “We were so fortunate to have Bernie host Reliable Sources from its launch and during all those years. “We are all grateful for the many years we have been able to spend with a truly remarkable human being,” Marvin Kalb told CNN.

Rita Moreno was hooked when she was tapped to play a ghost in the television comedy "Lopez vs. Lopez," starring comedian George Lopez and his daughter, Mayan Lopez. "I loved why she comes back from the dead," Moreno said about her character on the show, which airs on NBC (NBC News and NBC are part of NBCUniversal). George Lopez and Rita Moreno in "Lopez vs. In her view, "Lopez vs. Lopez" has “all the makings of a successful family comedy,” Moreno said. Brice Gonzalez and George Lopez in "Lopez vs.

Ulloa had been discussing ways to work with Latino Media Network's owners Stephanie Valencia and Jess Morales Rocketto, Castro said. Valencia and Morales Rocketto called Ulloa "a true trailblazer in Latino media." "He saw the value and promise of the Latino media industry before many others did. He's got that kind of money and he's very committed to the community,'" Castro said. “I am heartbroken by the sudden passing of my friend, Walter Ulloa, a trailblazer who has helped transform Spanish-language media,” Ruiz, the outgoing chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said in a tweet Tuesday.

☆ Warner Bros. Discovery signs audience measurement deal with startup Nielsen rival VideoAmp
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Discovery has signed a deal with VideoAmp to measure its audience as an alternative means of data for advertisers, the companies announced Tuesday. Firms like Nielsen and VideoAmp offer audience estimates and data that TV networks and streamers use to sell slots for commercials. The merger between Discovery and Warner Media closed in 2022, amassing a portfolio of TV networks including the Discovery Channel, TLC, TNT, TBS and others. The merged company plans to roll out a revamped streaming platform in the spring, combining its Discovery+ with Warner's HBO Max. "Traditional media measurement has not kept pace with how consumers are engaging with streaming and linear content.

☆ 2022 was tough for media stocks like Netflix and Disney, and 2023 doesn't look good, either
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

On top of that, companies are contending with lower ad revenue and more cord cutting. Tightening ad marketOn top of this, the ad market has worsened. Paramount missed third-quarter estimates after its ad revenue dropped, with its stock hitting a low in the following days. "We also anticipate that advertising streaming will become more important in the year to come," Solomon Partners' Boidman said. For media companies like Comcast and Charter Communications , lagging subscriber growth on the broadband front, rather than the pay-TV business, weighed more significantly on their stocks.

It's been another record year for the creator economy. Influencer-marketing spend, which in part fuels many creators' businesses, is expected to exceed $6 billion by next year, according to Insider Intelligence data. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, there is a new class of rising stars. These rising stars have spent the past year making tangible change through their work on products, content, or initiatives at social-media giants like YouTube or Meta. Here are 22 rising stars in the creator economy, listed alphabetically based on their company:

☆ She says she was fired in retaliation. Hearst Magazines says she was insubordinate. Here's how Delish's hit YouTube show 'Budget Eats' came crashing down.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

Produced by the Hearst-owned food brand Delish, "Budget Eats" was the kind of digital success story that traditional magazine giants crave. As Xie worked her day job developing recipes, "Budget Eats" was morphing from a pandemic experiment to a bonafide hit. A career recipe developer at work, the "Budget Eats" Xie doesn't even measure out ingredients. "It felt like she was afraid that putting 'Budget Eats' from her kitchen onto this cable network might dilute the honesty," Lennon-Simon said. As for "Budget Eats," Delish recently posted what is presumably the last episode.

☆ 12 media executives anonymously predict 2023's biggest deals, trends and changes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Candle Media has acquired intellectual property assets including Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine production company and Moonbug, which owns the animated kids series "CoComelon." Executive 3: Iger extends his contract There's been lots of speculation over who Iger will choose as his successor. History suggests he has a hard time leaving the role of Disney CEO. Christine M. McCarthy, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer The Walt Disney Company. "I love Shari [Redstone], but ViacomCBS is not long for this world as it stands today," said a media executive last year.

☆ Retail advertising surged in 2022 — but in 2023, these new ad businesses will need to steal TV ad budget to survive
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Lauren Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Retailers will face more competition for ad dollars with smaller ad budgets from marketers in 2023. WPP's media buying unit GroupM said that retail media brought in $110 billion this year and is on track to generate $160 billion by 2027. But 2023 will be the year that determines which retail ad businesses will win and which will lose. But some retailers are trying to grow their retail media businesses by separating those two, so retail ads are no longer part of the distribution deal. Retailers are coming for TV budgetsIf retail media budgets increase, other types of ad budgets must get cut.

☆ 'The mood is really grim': Washington Post staffers lived at publisher Fred Ryan after layoff announcement
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Staffers at The Washington Post are livid at publisher Fred Ryan. Video posted on Twitter by national reporter Annie Gowen showed Ryan walk off stage as staffers peppered him with questions. In fact, I haven’t spoken to a single person at The Post yet who has gone to bat for the publisher. Buzbee indicated to staffers on Wednesday that she had only learned about the layoff situation the night before. “The mood is really grim,” one staffer candidly told me.

Ahmad Abouammo had been found guilty by a jury in August following a trial in federal court in San Francisco. Abouammo's attorneys had asked U.S. District Judge Edward Chen for a probationary sentence at his home in Seattle with no prison time. The case focused on Abouammo's efforts to look up information on two Twitter users, a $42,000 watch he received from a Saudi official and a pair of $100,000 wire transfers. Twitter, recently acquired by Elon Musk, and the Saudi Embassy in Washington also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The attorneys also said Abouammo's actions paled in comparison to those of Ali Alzabarah, another ex-Twitter employee, who was accused of accessing thousands of Twitter accounts on behalf of Saudi Arabia.

☆ The golden age of streaming TV is over
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Paris Marx | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

That August, the streaming analyst Eric Schiffer told The Verge that the "golden age" was over as competition increased, and Netflix was putting creators on a shorter leash. But just as Netflix was pulling back from its most creative content, the streaming wars were heating up. Netflix is now churning out cheap and broadly appealing reality TV shows like "Is It Cake?" Despite positioning itself for years as the ad-free way to watch TV, Netflix in October launched a lower-cost, ad-supported tier in many of its major markets. As the cheap money disappears, we're starting to get a better picture of the actual price of streaming media.

☆ Why Have Netflix, Hulu, and the Rest of Streaming TV Gotten so Boring?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Paris Marx | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

As a result, Netflix and other streamers are retreating from any sort of creative risk in favor of humdrum, lowest-common-denominator shows. But just as Netflix was pulling back from its most creative content, the streaming wars were heating up. Netflix is now churning out cheap and broadly appealing reality TV shows like "Is It Cake?" Despite positioning itself for years as the ad-free way to watch TV, Netflix in October launched a lower-cost, ad-supported tier in many of its major markets. As the cheap money disappears, we're starting to get a better picture of the actual price of streaming media.

☆ An ex-Twitter employee was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison after spying for Saudi Arabia and handing over user info
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ex-Twitter employee Ahmad Abouammo was sentenced to over 3 years in prison after spying for Saudi Arabia. He was found guilty of sharing confidential information about Twitter users with Saudi officials. 45-year-old Ahmad Abouammo was found guilty of sharing confidential information about Twitter users with Saudi officials, and receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange, the attorney's office said. This sentence sends a message to insiders with access to user information to safeguard it, particularly from repressive regimes, or risk significant time in prison." Abouammo was convicted alongside another ex-Twitter employee Ali Alzabarah, who fled the US before being charged, per Reuters.

☆ The Washington Post will conduct layoffs as it reorients company for future, its publisher says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —The Washington Post will conduct targeted layoffs in the coming year as it reorients itself for the future and reinvests in other areas, publisher Fred Ryan told staffers in a contentious town hall Wednesday, people familiar with the matter told CNN. Ryan’s Wednesday town hall had been hotly anticipated in the newsroom after the decision to cut the Sunday magazine. “Democracy Dies in Darkness, right?”Ryan, however, walked off stage as he was peppered with questions, people familiar with the matter told CNN. “We are not going to turn the town hall into a grievance session,” Ryan said. “I’m sorry, thank you.”When one staffer asked for additional details about the impending layoffs, Ryan said, “We will have more information as we move forward.”

[1/2] Media mogul Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, leaves the Court of Final Appeal by prison van in Hong Kong, China February 9, 2021. REUTERS/Tyrone SiuHONG KONG, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Pro-democracy Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced on Saturday to five years and nine months in prison for fraud, convicted of violating a lease contract for the headquarters of a liberal newspaper he used to run. Lai's lawyer, Derek Chan, had urged the judge to consider Lai's age and contributions to Hong Kong's media industry. A separate, landmark national security trial involving Lai is scheduled to resume on Tuesday. ($1 = 7.7854 Hong Kong dollars)Reporting by Jessie Pang and James Pomfret; Editing by William MallardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ CBS-owned stations added to free, rapidly growing local news streaming service VUit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

He added: "It's a double-edged sword when making the transition to the [streaming] TV world." TV and streaming services are crawling all over each other for more content that retains viewers. Some companies like Sinclair have created their own free streaming services, and many affiliates use their websites and build their own apps to offer newscasts. VUit aims to work with CBS's local stations to boost their hyperlocal events on the platform and attract more eyeballs. A recent Iceman Challenge mountain bike race in Traverse City, Michigan, available only from local station WWTV on VUit's platform, garnered thousands of viewers.

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