Latest Digital
Electronic Arts Cancels Upcoming ‘Star Wars’ Game, Plans to Cut More Than 650 Jobs
Video game publishing giant Electronic Arts is the latest gaming company to slash its workforce. The company announced the restructuring plan Wednesday, telling employees that it would be shedding about 5 percent of its workforce, or more than 650 jobs. “While not every team will be impacted, this is the hardest part of these changes, […]
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After MSNBC Exit, Mehdi Hasan Launching Media Company Zeteo
Mehdi Hasan is going independent. The former MSNBC host will launch a new publication called Zeteo, combining video, podcasts and text journalism that Hasan says in a video introduction “will bring you hard-hitting interviews and unsparing analysis that you won’t find elsewhere.” Hasan is working with Substack on the launch, with subscription prices set at […]
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Sony Lays Off 900 Employees in Gaming Division
Sony is the latest tech and gaming giant to undergo a significant round of layoffs. The company’s Sony Interactive Entertainment unit is cutting 8 percent of its workforce, or about 900 people, its CEO Jim Ryan told employees Tuesday morning. The division includes Sony’s PlayStation devices, as well as multiple game development studios. “Through discussions […]
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Whoopi Goldberg-Backed Streaming Service Blkfam Launches, Targeting Black Families
A new streaming service is launching Monday, one with a very specific focus and a very famous investor. Blkfam, which is targeting Black family audiences, is founded by WarnerMedia veteran Larry Adams, with Whoopi Goldberg on board as an equity investor and a creative force. “I’m the marketing, distribution, business guy, she’s the creative powerhouse […]
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Joel Kim Booster Says AI Would Be Better Suited to Replace Executives Rather Than Creators
Joel Kim Booster is sharing his thoughts on the future of artificial intelligence as a creator in Hollywood. Ahead of the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards Sunday afternoon, the writer-actor-comedian spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about the controversial technology that had sparked fears across the entertainment industry (and beyond) about AI displacing people from their jobs. […]
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Amazon Set to Invade TV’s Upfront Week
Another streaming giant will join TV’s upfront week this year. Amazon will host an upfront event the morning of Tuesday, May 14, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The upfront will be held at New York’s Pier 36 event space, with a reception to follow. Amazon is expected to tout its media offerings at the event, […]
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BuzzFeed to Lay Off 16 Percent of Its Workforce In Major Cuts
The media meltdown continues, with BuzzFeed being the latest company to slash its workforce. The Jonah Peretti-led digital media outlet says that it will cut its workforce by 16 percent amid a challenging environment. “Digital publishers are facing multiple headwinds in the current market, and our recent revenue performance reflects the fact that a bundled […]
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BuzzFeed Sells Complex to Live Stream Shopping Platform NTWRK in $109M Deal
The digital media landscape is shifting further, with BuzzFeed selling its Complex division to the livestream shopping platform NTWRK in a $108.6 million all-cash deal (plus an additional $5.7 million tied to office space and severance costs). The deal marks a retreat for BuzzFeed, which acquired Complex Networks in 2021 for just under $300 million, […]
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Apple Sports: Tech Giant Launches Data-Focused iPhone App for Fans
The tech giant Apple is seeking a bigger piece of the live sports market, leaning into the iPhone’s status as the primary second screen to launch a new app dedicated to real-time sports data. Called Apple Sports, the free app launches today in the U.S., U.K. and Canada and is focused on live scores, as […]
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Walmart Takes on Roku With $2.3B Deal to Buy TV Maker Vizio
In a major move into the connected TV space, retail giant Walmart is acquiring the smart TV maker Vizio via a deal that values the company at $2.3 billion. Walmart said in a press release Tuesday morning that Vizio would help the company grow its nascent advertising business and give it a foothold in “innovative […]
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‘The Very Worst Thing that Could Possibly Happen’ Podcast Tops Ambies Nominations List
The Very Worst Thing that Could Possibly Happen, a fictional podcast from Wolf at the Door about a man who can write letters to his favorite deceased author, topped the Ambies 2024 nominations list with five nods, including podcast of the year. Other contenders for the podcast of the year award include 50 Years of […]
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Tonya Mosley to Launch ‘She Has a Name’ Family Mystery Podcast With APM Studios
Fresh Air radio co-host Tonya Mosley is set to launch the She Has a Name podcast next month, about a young Detroit mother lost amid that city’s economic collapse and crack cocaine epidemic. The 10-part documentary podcast from APM Studios will kick off March 28. Mosley, who grew up in Detroit in the 1980s and […]
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After Spotify Deal Ends, Brené Brown Moves Podcasts to Vox Media
Brené Brown has found a new podcasting home at Vox Media. Brown, a bestselling author and research professor, will bring her podcasts, Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead to the Vox Media Podcast Network. Vox will lead sales, marketing and distribution for the podcasts and distribute prior episodes and as well new seasons across all […]
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Hollywood Is “Inherently Financially Unstable” for Writers, Survey Finds
A new community survey from Humanitas is offering a first-of-its-kind look into the state of food insecurity within the TV and film writing industry. Published by the nonprofit behind the Humanitas Prizes, New Voices, College Screenwriting Awards, and a slate of public programs, the Groceries for Writers Food Insecurity Survey Results are some of the […]
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Meghan Markle Strikes New Podcast Deal With Lemonada Media
Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has formed a creative partnership with Lemonada Media to develop a new podcast series. As part of the partnership, Lemonada Media, which is behind shows such as Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, will also distribute the first season of Markle’s podcast Archetypes across all audio platforms and oversee […]
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How Millions Paid to Celebrities for Super Bowl Ads Can Pay Off
Beware that if you step away during ad breaks while watching Sunday’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers, you may miss a mini-Friends reunion in an Uber Eats ad starring Ross and Rachel — well, actually David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston, playing themselves. Another, actual super-couple appear in the ad […]
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