Top News:
Chris Morris / Variety:
Acclaimed actor and director Rob Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele Singer were found dead in their home; LAPD is investigating the deaths as a homicide — Rob Reiner, who segued from starring in “All in the Family” to directing movies including “This Is Spinal Tap,” “A Few Good Men” and …
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Major brands were replaced by direct-response advertisers during commercial breaks of CBS News' December 13 town hall with Erika Kirk, moderated by Bari Weiss — During a Saturday-night town hall led by Bari Weiss, the recently named editor in chief of CBS News, most of Madison Avenue sought an off-ramp.
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Status, CBS News, @dannygroner.bsky.social, @matthewkeyslive, @kennysmith.bsky.social, Raw Story, Salon, RedState, @bettycrackerfl.bsky.social, @jbflint, @5-2blue.bsky.social, @bristei, The Guardian, @mford.bsky.social, @newsjennifer.bsky.social, The Free Press, @chadloder.bsky.social, CBS News on YouTube, CBS News, The Gateway Pundit, @joshtpm.bsky.social, @bgrueskin.bsky.social, @joshuaerlich.bsky.social, The Hill, New York Post, @brandonfriedman.bsky.social, @swin24.bsky.social, Althouse, Deseret News, The Wrap and NewsMax.com
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
How media coverage of Trump's AI EO overstated federal authority over states and overlooked how the order's interstate commerce argument could backfire — The mainstream media just failed a basic civics test so badly that you'd think their brains have been pickled by the kinds of folks who spend all their time on X (oh, wait...).
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@haroldfeld.bsky.social, @jmiers230.bsky.social, @maxkennerly.bsky.social, @rpardee@hachyderm.io, The American Spectator, @BrideOfLinux@mastodon …, @techdirt.com, naked capitalism, The White House, AIwire, MS NOW, Above the Law, American Banker, Ars Technica, The Information, PCMag, Axios, CNET and Music Technology Policy, more at Techmeme »
Scott Fitzgerald / Wall Street Journal:
Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on antitrust, argues consumers stand to benefit from Netflix's acquisition of WBD — Consumers stand to benefit from Netflix's acquisition of Warner. — In a crossover event fit for Hollywood, Netflix is acquiring Warner Bros …
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Lauren Hirsch / New York Times:
Sources: WBD chose Netflix partly fearing limited recourse if Paramount's bid failed, since Larry Ellison has not provided a personal guarantee — Larry Ellison is backstopping Paramount's bid for Warner Brothers, but Warner Brothers is concerned that the billionaire has not provided a personal guarantee to pay.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, CBC News, Livemint, Front Office Sports, Fortune, Mobile World Live and Financial Times
Rohan Goswami / Semafor:
In a letter to the Trump administration, the GOP Senatorial Committee Chair Sen. Tim Scott said the Netflix-WBD deal raises “significant antitrust problems” — The Scoop — A key Republican senator Friday joined the mounting opposition in Washington to Netflix's takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Discussion:
Chris Heatherly on LinkedIn, Gizmodo, U.S. Senator Tim Scott … and The Wrap
Will McCurdy / PCMag:
Amazon rolls out Ask This Book to the Kindle iOS app, letting readers ask questions about plot or characters; authors can't opt out — Whether you're reading dense, challenging 19th-century classics or the latest thriller, sometimes even the best readers lose track of what's actually going on …
Discussion:
Engadget, Writer Beware, @carnage4life.bsky.social, @hypervisible.blacksky.app and Reactor, more at Techmeme »
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
A look at financial advice YouTuber Caleb Hammer, who has over 2M subscribers and 60K to 70K subscribers paying $9.99/month for exclusive content — Caleb Hammer, the host of Financial Audit, a top podcast on YouTube, is one of the online upstarts filling the void left by the decline of combative daytime TV
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@dannygroner.bsky.social
Lauren Edmonds / Business Insider:19 minutes ago
Filing: Reddit says in its lawsuit against Australia's social media ban that it's “a collection of public fora” and social interaction isn't its “sole purpose” — - Australia is now barring children under 16 from creating or maintaining social media accounts.
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BMI, @businessinsider.com, Breitbart, Gizmodo, iPhone in Canada, Engadget, Wall Street Journal, Telegraph, TechCrunch, Biometric Update, Benzinga, RTÉ, Semafor, The Indian Express and Reclaim The Net
Kanis Leung / Associated Press:
Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai is found guilty of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiring to publish seditious articles — Jimmy Lai, the former Hong Kong media mogul and outspoken critic of Beijing, was convicted in a landmark national security trial …
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Hong Kong Free Press HKFP, Reuters, Australian Financial Review, Al Jazeera, Reporters Without Borders, Wall Street Journal, Nikkei Asia, Sky News, The Independent, Washington Post, Globe and Mail, CBC News, New York Times, BBC, Reuters, Financial Times, Bloomberg, CNBC, France 24, Associated Press, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, UPI, @joshrogin, @lorak.bsky.social, @klustout@threads.com, @tomgrundy, The Japan Times, @frances_hui, NewsMax.com, @cpjasia, @hkdc_us, Kyodo News and Committee to Protect …
Pamela McClintock / The Hollywood Reporter:
Disney's Zootopia 2 surpasses $1B at the global box office, the fastest PG-rated film to do so after just 17 days in release — Disney's year-end holiday tentpole achieved the feat faster than any Holllwood animated film in history, as well as any PG-rated film.
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Variety, @disneyanimation, @discussingfilm, @drewdisneydude, The A.V. Club, Vulture, LAmag, Reuters, People, The Walt Disney Company, Forbes, Screen, Deadline, The Movie Blog, Deadline, CNBC, The Wrap, Variety and Comic Book
Sarah Holder / Bloomberg:
A look at Netflix House in Philadelphia, a new 100K sq. ft. location for in-person experiences, which resembles a Disneyland attraction and a Dave & Buster's — The entertainment company's new “Netflix House” experience is bringing the brand's shows into former department stores.
Discussion:
Esquire, Visit Philadelphia, The Hollywood Reporter and Sarah Holder on LinkedIn
