 Janice Min |
Janice Min, former Hollywood Reporter co-president and chief creative officer, has been enlisted by NBCUniversal to advise E! and other female-skewing NBCU cable networks. Min, who edited US Weekly before she served as editor-in-chief of the Hollywood Reporter, will serve a consultant to NBCUniversal while also remaining in her capacity with Valence Media, the newly formed parent company of The Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group, Dick Clark Productions and MRC. “I can think of no one better to collaborate with as we create new initiatives that enhance and move forward our commitment and connection to women,” said E! president Adam Stotsky.
 |
The Denver Post responded to the latest round of staff cuts demanded by its owner, Aldus Global Capital, by giving its Sunday Perspectives section over to articles protesting the move. Aldus has control over Digital First Media, which also owns the Boston Herald, as well as the Long Beach Press-Telegram and St. Paul Pioneer Press. The Post has undergone several previous rounds of staff reductions since Aldus took control in 2010, with 20 employees being offered buyouts in 2015, 26 either laid off or offered buyouts in 2016 and ten laid off last November. With a newsroom staff that currently numbers less than 100, the new round of cuts would axe another 30 positions. Chuck Plunkett, the Post’s editorial page editor, told the New York Times that he did not give Aldus or Post editor-in-chief Lee Ann Colacioppo any notice the articles criticizing Aldus would run. “I had to do it because it was the right thing to do,” he said.
 Frank Baker |
The Associated Press has launched a beat covering marijuana legislation and the issues surrounding it. The team, led by AP California news editor Frank Baker, will be responsible for producing marijuana-related stories in addition to keeping up with other breaking news. “Whether they love, hate or are ambivalent about marijuana,” Baker said, “people want to read about it.” The move comes as content centered on marijuana is proving to be a sweet spot in the current publishing environment. High Times Media just shelled out $6.9 million in cash and stock for Green Rush Daily and ENTtech CEO Tom Florio has announced plans to partner with recreational marijuana company MedMen to put out Ember, a custom-published print title.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is being bought by the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, a nonprofit that is the parent organization of the Baltimore Banner... The British Broadcasting Corporation is axing approximately 2,000 jobs, about 10 percent of its work force... Snap, the company behind Snapchat, is also succumbing to layoff fever, announcing plans to lay off 16 percent of its employees, about 1,000 people.
CBS News Radio will go off the air on May 22, part of the axe-swinging managerial plan put into play by CBS editor-in-chief Bari Weiss... The Economist, which was first published in 1843, is changing hands. Canadian billionaire Stephen Smith has agreed to acquire a 26.9 percent stake in the publication from Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild, her family and family foundation... Nexstar Media Group says it has closed its acquisition of TEGNA, the broadcast, digital media and marketing services company that was formed in 2015, when the Gannett Company split into two publicly traded companies.
USA TODAY brings on Jamie Stockwell as VP of news, effective March 30. Stockwell was most recently deputy managing editor of news for the Washington Post... YouTube expands its likeness detection capabilities to a pilot group of government officials, journalists and political candidates... The AP Fund for Journalism adds 50 news organizations to its local news program, bringing the total number of participating newsrooms to 100. 
Versant Media Group, the NBCUniversal cable TV spin-off, today reported its first financial results as 2025 revenues dipped 5.3 percent to $6.7B and standalone EBITDA dropped 9.1 percent to $2.2B.
Trump Media & Technology Group is discussing a spin-off of the Truth Social platform following the expected closing of its $6B merger deal with TAE Technologies... Condé Nast sells off Them, the digital LGBTQ-focused platform it launched in 2017, to Equalpride, publisher of Out, The Advocate, Out Traveler, Health PLUS Wellness and Pride.com... CBS News has parted ways with longevity influencer Peter Attia, one of the 19 contributors that editor-in-chief Bari Weiss brought on as part of her plan to present a wider variety of voices on the platform. 
