digital news

Google cut dozens of jobs in its news division this week, downsizing at a particularly sensitive time for online platforms and publishers. An estimated 40 to 45 workers in Google News have lost their jobs, according to an Alphabet Workers Union spokesperson, who didn’t know the exact number.

Brooke Singman’s star is rising at Fox News Digital — and it’s causing some envy inside the Murdoch empire.

The third Republican presidential debate is set for Nov. 8 in Miami. NBC News, which will produce the debate for its linear TV, streaming and digital platforms, takes over from Fox News and Fox Business, which hosted the first two Republican primary debates. The third tangle between GOP candidates organized by the Republican National Committee will be held at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County from 8 to 10 p.m. on Nov. 8.

Deepfake news segments that appear to be delivered by top journalists and TV networks are going viral across the internet. It’s an inflection point for manipulated media that experts see as troubling just a year out from an historic election.

CNN Chief Executive Mark Thompson told staff that the network needs to step up its digital game, saying conventional TV “can no longer define us,” and said its journalists shouldn’t be distracted by debates about balance or false equivalency. Speaking to employees in a video message on Monday, his first official day at CNN, Thompson said he would draw on his earlier experience as CEO of the New York Times to modernize the network.

Capitol Broadcasting’s WRAL Raleigh, N.C., launched a news streaming channel so popular out of the gate that the company carried it over to linear TV and radio simulcasts. A quick turn to profitability followed.

Who’s doing it better — Kristen Welker or Jake Tapper? The two journalists, one the new moderator of NBC News’ Meet The Press, the other the anchor of the weekday The Lead and a co-anchor of State of the Union at CNN, aren’t typically pitted against one another. But there they were on a recent Thursday afternoon around 4:30 p.m., duking it out for the future of their medium.

Her exit indicates how Meta’s priorities around news and its relationships with media companies have changed.

CNN Max, which debuted Wednesday, has been touted as a way to get news giant’s content out to a increasing number of cord-cutters and consumers who no longer view cable as their primary way to get video entertainment and information. And parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, in the belief, perhaps, that a streaming subscription is just as good as one to a cable or satellite service, is making the bulk of its linear lineup available to the broadband crowd.

The streaming news network is now available on more than 500 Gray Television station websites, connected TV apps and mobile apps.

Cox Media Group’s NeighborhoodTV project in Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C., aims to bring viewers hyperlocal content that harkens back to TV’s earlier, less rigidly structured days.

The investment firm led by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker is in talks to back newsletter startup Front Office Sports, sources say. Discussions are ongoing and may not result in a deal. It’s the latest newsletter upstart being eyed by Zucker, who manages a $1 billion investment fund called RedBird IMI.

Misattributed videos, recycled lies and warped fears are fueling unfounded claims about the recent record-breaking heat, floods and wildfires.

Under Armour’s Kevin Plank shared nonpublic financial details with Stephanie Ruhle, and she gave advice on how to address negative publicity. Pictured: Ruhle, then with Bloomberg, conducted a 2014 interview with Plank.

While a shot has yet to be fired, some of the nation’s largest newsrooms are actively taking defensive measures to safeguard their content from ChatGPT, the groundbreaking artificial intelligence chatbot that is seen as a potential aggressor to an already struggling news industry.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has reportedly made up his mind about who will replace Chris Licht as the next chairman of CNN. Zaslav has been trying to convince former New York Times boss Mark Thompson to take the reins at Hudson Yards, according to the news site Puck.

CHCO-TV relied heavily on social platforms to reach news audiences in vastly underserved New Brunswick, Canada. A recently enacted news ban on those platforms has had a chilling effect on democracy to which U.S. broadcasters need to tune in. (Shannon May Pringle photo)

Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have decided they don’t need the news industry. That’s causing problems when natural disasters strike.

Warner Bros. Discovery is planning to launch new original programs from CNN that will stream on its Max streaming service, according to three people familiar with the matter. Jim Sciutto, Bianna Golodryga, Rahel Solomon and Christiane Amanpour are among the CNN journalists who have been tapped to take part in the effort, according to two of these people.

Cox Media Group said it has launched Neighborhood TV, a free ad-supported streaming service that focuses on neighborhoods in the markets where it owns broadcast stations. The service was tested on desktop and mobile devices in 70 neighborhoods around Atlanta and 30 neighborhoods in the Charlotte area, two markets where GMG owns broadcast stations. It is already generating more than 100 million impressions monthly.

Twitter’s owner plans to strip headlines from news articles shared on X (ex-Twitter). Right now, links to news articles are displayed as “Cards,” consisting of an image, a link, a headline, and a summary of the article, which doesn’t count against X’s post character limits. If Musk goes through with his idea, links to news articles would be stripped from all text, leaving just the lead image and the URL as the links to the actual article.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday accused Facebook of putting profits over people’s safety during the emergencies created by Canada’s record wildfire season. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced earlier this summer it would keep its promise to block news content from Canada on its platforms because of a new law that requires tech giants to pay publishers for linking to or otherwise repurposing their content online.

Meta is facing severe criticism for its policy of blocking news content in Canada while wildfires rage in British Columbia. “Right now, while wildfires are causing evacuations in the NWT and endangering lives, Meta is blocking news about them on Facebook and Instagram,” tweeted Chris Bittle, Liberal MP for St. Catharines, Ontario. “They did this in Australia, and it made dangerous situations worse. Meta’s actions to block news are reckless and irresponsible.”