Top News:

The White House launches White House Wire, a website that looks similar to the Drudge Report, to promote pro-Trump news stories — The White House has launched a new Drudge Report-like website devoted to promoting pro-Trump news stories. — Why it matters: The site, called “White House Wire …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Status, The White House, The Guardian, The Hill, HuffPost, @whitehouse, Townhall, Newser, The Post Millennial, @amandamarcotte.bsky.social, @owillis.bsky.social, @125sapphire, @mail4ufromme1, @jackshafer, @kylewilsontharp, @jimhansondc, @noturtlesoup17.bsky.social, @donaldjtrumpjr, @axiosalex, @axiosalex, @willharrisinva.bsky.social, @lauraloomer and @mattcameron.bsky.social

WaPo plans to overhaul its events business, moving away from virtual events to 30 to 40 in-person experiences, including 10 major franchise-style gatherings — The new approach will focus on franchisable gatherings catering to business audiences — The Washington Post is overhauling …
Discussion:
@washpostcomms and @markstenberg3
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BBC Studios and the Agatha Christie estate partner to launch a writing course on education streaming service BBC Maestro, using AI to recreate Christie's voice — Actress Vivien Keene and the technology will bring the iconic mystery author to life in the result of a partnership between BBC Studios and the Christie estate.
Discussion:
The Guardian, Deadline, The Times, Engadget, The Independent, BBC, BBC Maestro, Mirror, @marygillis.bsky.social, SlashFilm and The Verge

Steve Doocy says he will move to a new role as the dedicated host of Fox & Friends remote assignments; the show will continue to be hosted from its NYC studios — After 6,828 days of waking up at 3:30 a.m., Fox & Friends co-host Steve Doocy decided he wanted to sleep in a bit.

Google begins showing AdSense ads in conversations with AI chatbots; sources say Google tested the ads in 2024 with startups, like AI search apps iAsk and Liner — Google's ad network has begun showing advertising within the flow of conversations with chatbots — part of Alphabet Inc.'s efforts …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, @michaelmartinez.co and The Hill, more at Techmeme »
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Study: UK ad spend hit a record £42.6B in 2024, with Meta and Google capturing ~£25.4B; online display ads grew 15.1% to £16.7B, and search rose 12.8% to £16.9B — Google and Meta accounted for at least half the record £42.6bn spent on UK advertising last year, according to Press Gazette estimates.
Discussion:
Dominic Ponsford on LinkedIn

NBCU starts another round of layoffs, hitting the unscripted teams the hardest, with at least two reality SVPs impacted and several at NBC, Peacock, and Bravo — It appears that its unscripted teams were the hardest hit with this latest round of redundancies with at least two SVPS …
Discussion:
Deadline, Cord Cutters News and The Wrap

Filing: Smartmatic says Fox News' “pivot” to amplify 2020 election fraud claims came after backlash from Trump and supporters for calling Arizona for Biden — In a new legal filing, the election technology company says backlash from Trump and supporters spurred false accusations …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, @patrickdmarley, Raw Story, The Desk, Los Angeles Times, New York Post and Washington Examiner

Sources: Shari Redstone asked CBS CEO if it would be possible to delay sensitive 60 Minutes stories about Trump until after the Skydance deal is closed — Amid Trump's legal torture of CBS, Shari Redstone has played the role of a spineless placater—a desperate seller eager to settle and liquidate her position in the family heirloom.

MoviePass launches Mogul, a daily fantasy platform for movie enthusiasts, and says 400,000+ people have already signed up for its early-access waitlist — MoviePass, the startup that made its mark with its movie theater subscription service, has always been known for shaking things up, and its latest venture is no exception.
Discussion:
The Hollywood Reporter and Fortune

Court document: Rebekah Brooks took a “deeply concerning interest” in the phone hacking campaigner Tom Watson, and one journalist wrote that he “must die” — Exclusive: Sun reporter also wrote that former MP ‘must die’, according to claims in newly disclosed document

Mark Zuckerberg says Threads has 350M MAUs, having added 30M in Q1 2025, compared to 20M in Q4 2024 — Instagram Threads, Meta's X competitor, has now grown to over 350 million monthly active users, CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed during the company's Q1 2025 earnings call on Wednesday.
Discussion:
@carnage4life@threads.com, @crumbler@threads.com, @jwang815@threads.com and @sdw@threads.com
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FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, the sole Democrat after Geoffrey Starks left, is set to offer a dissenting voice against FCC Chairman Brendan Carr's media policies — She'll soon be the lone Democrat on the commission, which is supporting the president's combative stance against the media.
Discussion:
TVNewsCheck and The Dispatch