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Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Hello there! Quick housekeeping note: This newsletter will likely be off tomorrow, as I have suddenly fallen under the weather. We'll be back on Monday. Now, onto the news.

Disney announces it will acquire NBCU's Hulu stake, Condé Nast to slash workforce, 28 countries sign The Bletchley Declaration at A.I. summit, Donald Trump rages at the New York Post, Rolling Stone reveals HBO boss Casey Bloys directed staff to zing TV critics anonymously online, SAG-AFTRA continues negotiations with studios, and more. But first, the A1.

THE A1

Auditing the Airstrikes

CNN Photo Illustration/Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty Images

News organizations are assuming a more aggressive posture toward Israel Defense Forces as it escalates its military operations in the Gaza Strip.

While civilian deaths mount and the humanitarian crisis grows more severe in the Palestinian territory, spokespersons for Israel's military are being confronted by anchors on live television, pressed to answer for the deaths of innocent families caught in the heavy crossfire.

The more critical stance has been particularly pronounced over the last 24 hours, following two blasts at the densely populated Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza, which was established in 1948 when Palestinians fled what is now the current state of Israel. The IDF said it was responsible for both blasts, having targeted a senior Hamas commander and dozens of other militants.

The killing of civilians — accompanied by horrifying stories and images from the ground — has prompted global outcry, and television news networks noticeably adjusting their demeanor in kind, putting the IDF in the hot seat during interviews that have taken place after the explosions.

CNN's Wolf Blitzer, notably and repeatedly, pressed two IDF spokespersons on Tuesday evening, bluntly asking the military figures whether they carried out the first strike knowing that women and children would be among the casualties. In a blunt and revealing answer, Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said, "This is the tragedy of war."

The tough questions have not stopped there. In the hours since, IDF representatives have been grilled for answers by ABC's Ian Pannell, MSNBC's Symone Sanders, and CNN's Dana Bash.

Pannell asked Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus how he could be certain that dozens of Hamas combatants were killed in the operation, but had no confirmation at the time on whether civilians were also killed.

"I'm slightly confused," Pannell candidly said.

Meanwhile, Bash asked Major Doron Spielman twice if the IDF could provide evidence supporting its claims that a senior Hamas leader was killed. Spielman did not offer any direct evidence, saying "it will become clear" when "that terrorist does not surface."

As scrutiny of the attack grew, the United Nations' Human Rights Office expressed concern that the airstrikes on the refugee camp "could amount to war crimes."

"Given the high number of civilian casualties and the scale of destruction following Israeli airstrikes on Jabalya refugee camp, we have serious concerns that these are disproportionate attacks that could amount to war crimes," it said.

With Israel's ground operation in the Gaza Strip continuing to expand in the days and weeks ahead, and with the deaths of even more civilians tragically in the cards, journalists will play a key role in holding military and government officials to account for their actions.

ISRAEL AT WAR

At least 33 journalists have now been killed since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war, according to the Committee to Protect journalists. (CPJ)
Reporters Without Borders called on the International Criminal Court to investigate the deaths of journalists. (AP)
A social media post that spread online cited a supposed Haaretz story as evidence "Israel lied to justify genocide." The referenced Haaretz content doesn't exist and the outlet said the post "contains blatant lies." (Poynter)

——— BELOW THE FOLD ———

CNN Photo Illustration/Chris Delmas/AFP/Getty Images

Hulu in the House of Mouse: It's official: Disney announced Wednesday that it will acquire NBCU's one-third stake in Hulu, for which it said it expects to pay $8.61 billion. Disney said it will fork over the money, which represents the minimum value of $27.5 billion the two sides agreed on in 2019, to NBCU by December 1. "The acquisition of Comcast's stake in Hulu at fair market value will further Disney's streaming objectives," the company said in a short statement. Of course, Disney will likely ultimately end up paying more than the $8.61 billion, depending on the outcome of an appraisal process that is expected to wrap up in 2024. Here's my full story with Liam Reilly.

THE INDUSTRY

CNN Photo Illustration/Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Cuts at Condé: Publishing giant Condé Nast said on Wednesday it will implement cost cuts and lay off some 270 jobs, or roughly 5% of its staff, amid digital advertising woes and a broader shift in the online environment. Chief executive Roger Lynch said the staff "reductions," which he acknowledged will be painful, will occur over the next few months. In his memo, Lynch alluded to the problems associated with the fact that Condé "can't control platform algorithms or how AI may change search traffic." But he said "long-term success will be determined by growing the many areas that we can control." The NYT's Katie Robertson and Ben Mullin have more here.

THE FOURTH ESTATE

Dylan Byers reports that Josh Steiner has "taken his name out of the running" for the position of chief executive and publisher of The WaPo. That leaves the other finalist, Will Lewis, "in the catbird seat," Byers writes. (Puck)
What is going on in Alabama? The publisher of the small-town paper Atmore News, Sherry Digmon, was arrested again on Wednesday, this time for alleged ethics violations. The arrest comes after Digmon and reporter Don Fletcher were arrested Friday. The Committee to Protect Journalists has expressed alarm at the arrests and called on authorities to fully explain their actions. A representative for the district attorney's office declined comment on the arrests when I called Wednesday. A lawyer for Digmon and Fletcher did not respond either. (Brewton Standard)
Dennis Bailey, general counsel for the Alabama Press Association: In over 40 years handling media law matters, I have "never seen a reporter arrested for publishing truthful information about the existence of a grand jury subpoena." (AP)
T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach are back — sort of. The duo announced a new iHeartMedia podcast deal. (THR)
Heather Dietrick announced in a memo to employees that she would leave her post as chief executive of The Daily Beast.
The Hill announced a partnership with Decision Desk HQ. (The Hill)
NewsNation said it nabbed its highest-rated dayside week ever. The network averaged 67,000 total viewers and 13,000 in the key 25-54 demo. (TV News Check)
Noel Clarke said he will move forward with his libel lawsuit against The Guardian, which has said it will "robustly" defend itself. (BBC)
RIP: Arnold Diaz — a prolific on-air New York correspondent who worked at WCBS, Channel 2; WPIX-TV, Channel 11; ABC News, and WNYW, Channel 5— has died at 74. (NYT)

IN THE MARKET

Netflix's ad tier now boasts 15 million monthly active users worldwide. (TheWrap)
Paramount Global will merge Pluto TV and My5 in the U.K.. (THR)

MEDIA MOVES

Speaker Mike Johnson tapped Raj Shah, the former Fox Corp. executive who pushed Fox News in an even more pro-Trump direction after the 2020 election, to oversee his communications. (POLITICO)
Disney promoted Paul Roeder to executive vice president of communications. (TheWrap)
Vox promoted Libby Nelson to editorial director. (Vox)
SmartNews named Wendy Bounds vice president of content. (TBN)
The NYT hired Jason Stallman as editor at large for The Athletic. (NYT)

THE VALLEY

CNN Photo Illustration/Leon Neal/Getty Images

The Bletchley Declaration: Representatives from 28 countries, including the U.S. and China, on Wednesday The Bletchley Declaration on A.I., a statement that warns of the existential threats posed by the rapidly advancing technology. "There is potential for serious, even catastrophic, harm, either deliberate or unintentional, stemming from the most significant capabilities of these A.I. models," it said, adding that they all vowed to "work together in an inclusive manner to ensure human-centric, trustworthy and responsible A.I." Of course, the words carry little weight, given that no specific guardrails have been agreed to by the international community. The NYT's Adam Satariano and Megan Specia have details.

TOO MANY TABS

Hillary Clinton joined the chorus of former diplomats calling on the international community to work together on A.I. (Messenger)
China announced it wanted to cooperate with international partners to structure the supervision of A.I. (Reuters)
LinkedIn announced its new A.I.-powered tool that will assist premium users in finding the right job. (The Hill)
Collins dictionary called "A.I." the most notable word — well, term — of 2023. (Guardian)
Changing gears from A.I.: "TikTok's internal workplace collaboration platform, which hosts some of the company's most sensitive information, was inspected by the Chinese government ahead of the Chinese Communist Party's 20th National Congress," Emily Baker White reports. (Forbes)
Meta "will soon be forced to seek European users' consent before using their personal information to deliver those users targeted advertisements on Facebook and Instagram," Brian Fung reports. (CNN)
Is Instagram developing an "A.I. friend" for users? (TechCrunch)
During an appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast, Elon Musk took swipes at Mark Zuckerberg and claimed Threads is "eerily quiet." (The Street)

THE INFO WARS

IN THE BATTLEFIELD

Tucker Carlson launched a missile at Brian Stelter over his forthcoming book, "Network of Lies." The right-wing extremist claimed in a text message to Insider that Stelter is a "sad little moron" who "knows nothing." In response, Stelter quipped, "I know that Carlson will want to read the rest of my book. He can preorder a copy at NetworkOfLies.com." (Insider)
The hosts of "The View" mocked Carlson's post-Fox News career, joking he's ended up like others, "in somebody's basement with a podcast." (Mediaite)
Donald Trump's new media target: Rupert Murdoch's New York Post. "For whatever reason, and I guess it's radical left or the RINO stuff, they have gotten really bad and it's ridiculous," Trump said. (Mediaite)
The right-wing channel Newsmax launched its Newsmax+ streaming service for the "low monthly price of $4.99."
Jason Aldean, the musician behind this summer's divisive "Try That in a Small Town," told Jan Crawford that he stands by the controversial song, saying, "I know what the intentions were," but added that "knowing what I know now, obviously," he would not film the video outside a courthouse where a Black teenager was lynched in 1927. (CBS News)
Hungary's government, which some right-wing media figures love to praise, decided that people under the age of 18 can't visit the World Press Photo at Budapest's National Museum given the presence of LGBTQ+ content on display. (AP)

CURTAIN CALL

HOLLYWOOD HELL

SAG-AFTRA boss Fran Drescher hit back at critics: "I don't have to emulate male energy to lead." (Deadline)
The actors union and studios were set on Wednesday to meet yet again, as the two parties work to iron out a deal to end the historic strike.

OFF STAGE

Not the best look: HBO boss Casey Bloys directed staff to fire back at television critics online, Cheyenne Roundtree reports, citing text messages obtained as part of a lawsuit. (Rolling Stone)
HBO is not disputing the fake accounts, Winston Cho reports. (THR)
Bloys will appear before reporters on Thursday for a previously planned event, Peter Keifer and Claire Atkinson report. (Ankler)
Between on-screen disappointments and concerns about the brand's strategy, Marvel Studios isn't as confident as it once was. Tatiana Siegel reports that Marvel execs have even started mulling bringing back some of the original Avengers. (Variety)
"Hackney Diamonds," The Rolling Stones' new album, charted at No. 3 of Billboard's top albums — making the Stones the first band to have a new album in the Top 10 in every decade since the '60s. (BBC)
Scarlett Johansson has taken legal action against an A.I. company that used her likeness in an advertisement. (Variety)
The cast of "Mean Girls" banded together to star in Walmart's Black Friday marketing campaign. (THR)

Thank you for reading! This newsletter was edited by Jon Passantino and produced with the assistance of Liam Reilly. Have feedback? Send us an email. You can follow us on Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn. We will see you back in your inbox next week.