INVESTOR FEARD BY CEOs TAKES STAKE IN TRIBUNE MEDIA
The man dubbed "the investor CEOs fear most" has taken a stake in
Tribune Media, the Chicago broadcast company that runs 42 local TV
stations nationwide and cable operator WGN America. New York hedge fund
Starboard Value disclosed today in a filing with the Securities and
Exchange Commission that it has acquired a 6.6 percent stake in Tribune
Media, and noted that it may "engage in communications with management
and the board of directors.
FALLEN CONSERVATIVE WRITER AND SPEAKER MILO YIANNOPOULOS PLANS TO LAUNCH HIS OWN MEDIA VENTURE
Following a bizarre 24 hours that lead to him being removed as a speaker
from CPAC, his book deal being canceled by Simon *& Schuster and
losing his job, Milo Yiannopoulos was defiant during a press conference
yesterday and even vowed to launch his own media venture being that no
one will touch him following disturbing comments he made about young
children. He also insists that his book will still be published and will
include a whole new chapter about his current ordeal.
FACEBOOK IS IN TALKS WITH MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL ABOUT LIVE STREAMING GAMES
Facebook Inc is in talks with Major League Baseball to live stream one
game per week during the upcoming season, which could be a key win as
the social media platform works to offer more live sports, according to
two people familiar with the situation. Facebook has pushed to sign
deals with owners of sports rights to live stream their games, going
after an audience that competitor Twitter Inc is also trying to capture,
VICE LAUNCHING FUNDRAISING EFFORT TO FINANCE SCRIPTED SHOWS AND MOVIES
Led by Chief Executive Officer Shane Smith, Vice dipped its toe into
scripted programming last year with the release of the film “The Bad
Batch” and the acquisition of a stake in Pulse Films, a U.K.-based
production company that made the movies “American Honey” and “Who is
Dayani Cristal?” Vice would use any additional money to ramp up internal
production. The fundraising process is in the very early stages. It’s
not immediately clear how much Vice would seek to raise. Vice declined
to comment, as did Raine and Morgan Stanley.
RUPERT MURDOCH IS ACTIVELY CAMPAIGNING AGAINST THE AT&T TIME WARNER DEAL
Rupert Murdoch — a never-Trumper who has worked his way back into the
new president's graces — now regularly lobbies Trump against AT&T
and Time Warner's tie-up, urging the president to move review of the
deal from the Justice Department's antitrust division, with its high
hurdles to blocking a deal, to the FCC, which needs only to find the
deal not in the public interest in order to block it.
VIACOM SETS UP INTERIM COMMITTEE TO LEAD PARAMOUNT PICTURES UNTIL A NEW CHIEF IS NAMED
The internal committee that will lead the studio in the wake of
Brad Grey’s departure includes Andrew Gumpert, the Sony alum who joined
Paramount as chief operating officer in November; Megan Colligan,
president of distribution and marketing; Evans, president of the motion
picture group; and Powell, president of TV and digital. There are
expected to be other members of the committee appointed, according to an
insider. Among the current crop of major studio chiefs, Grey had been
one of the longest-serving, having been at his post for 12 years.
ABOUT.COM IS SWITCHING FROM SEARCH ENGINE TO MEDIA HUB
About.com is busy unbundling itself, moving from a one-stop shop for
search visitors to a collection of vertical media brands. Next up: The
Spruce, a new home and food site, slated for launch on Feb. 22. The
Spruce is the latest branded vertical site to come from About.
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