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| Kevin Delaney |
Quartz editor-in-chief and co-CEO Kevin Delaney, one of the business news platform’s founders, is stepping down. His departure is part of an overall realignment of Quartz’s executive team. Co-CEO Jay Lauf will now serve as chairman of Quartz, while Zach Seward moves from chief product officer and executive to the CEO position. Chief commercial officer Katie Weber will be president. Quartz, founded in 2012 by Atlantic Media, was purchased last year by Japanese company Uzabase for between $75 million and $100 million, according to the New York Times. While Quartz says that it averages about 20 million unique views per month, that has not yet resulted in profits. The Times says that financial filings indicate that the platform has lost $16 million on nearly $12 million in revenue in the first six months of 2019. Delaney will remain at the company through the end of the month and subsequently become an adviser to the company. A replacement as editor-in-chief has yet to be named.
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Thomson Reuters is moving into the events sector with its acquisition of FC Business Intelligence. The London-based company will rebrand as Reuters Events and operate as part of the Reuters news division. FCBI, founded in 1990, is a global producer of exhibitions and conferences in such sectors as pharmaceuticals, energy, transport, insurance and technology. It has worked with such clients as MasterCard, Pfizer, Best Buy and Target. According to Reuters president Michael Friedenberg, FCBI has 130 employees and is growing at a rate above the industry average. He indicated that Reuters is open to other acquisitions in the events business, as well as pursuing organic growth by expanding into additional sectors.
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When Disney’s new streaming service, Disney+, makes its debut on Nov. 12, that debut may not include Amazon’s Fire TV streaming device. According to the Wall Street Journal, a battle over ads is a major reason why Amazon has yet to sign a deal to carry the new service. Amazon wants the right to sell what the Journal calls a “substantial percentage” of the ad space for the Disney apps that run on the platform. While Disney+ will not carry advertising, several of the other Disney apps currently available via the Amazon Fire TV device (including those for ABC, ESPN and the Disney Channel) do, and that could lead to a decision to ban all of the company’s apps from the device. Apple’s new entry, Apple TV+, which is set for a Nov. 1 release, hasn’t firmed up a deal to appear on Amazon’s device, either. According to Apple, Apple TV+ will appear on Amazon Fire TV, LG, Roku, Sony and VIZIO platforms “in the future.”
Michael Kaminer, who was responsible for the Observer’s “Power List” for the past 13 years, has cut ties with the publication... The New York Times Company continues the march toward its goal of 15 million subscribers by the end of 2027... The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is providing more than $6 million in funding to eight organizations working to address the challenges local news and information environments face along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Conservative outlets Fox News, Newsmax and the Daily Caller are holding back from signing Pete Hegseth’s edict restricting press access in the Pentagon... CBS News sees the first executive departure of the Bari Weiss era as head of standards and practices Claudia Milne exits... Indiana University shuts down the print version of The Indiana Daily Student.
Rothschild family plans to unload 26.7 percent stake in The Economist... STAT, a digital media company that focuses the life sciences, brings back Damian Garde, who anchored its biotech newsletter and podcast from 2016 to 2024... High Times officially resumes print publication (following its 2024 shutdown) with the release of a limited-edition, collectible 50th anniversary issue. 
CBS News is set to hand over its reins to The Free Press co-founder Bari Weiss as Paramount acquires her site for $155M... C-SPAN comes on board as an official media partner of the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, which is charged by Congress to lead the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence... A new Gallup survey says that the level of trust that US audiences have in the media has hit a new low.
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison has named Kenneth Weinstein, former head of the conservative Hudson Institute, as ombudsman for CBS News.
