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Meta plans to launch a California-focused PAC that will benefit state-level candidates who are in favor of lighter regulation of technology, especially artificial intelligence. Mobilizing Economic Transformation Across (Meta) California will work with candidates, regardless of their political party, who “advocate AI innovation over stringent rules,” the company said. Meta vice president of public policy Brian Rice will head the PAC alongside public policy VP Greg Maurer as principal officers, according to a company spokesperson. California’s government has aggressively pursued consumer protection regulations that Meta says could impact tech companies' products. "Sacramento's regulatory environment could stifle innovation, block AI progress, and put California's technology leadership at risk," said Rice.
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The Chicago Reader, an alternative newspaper that has been in operation since 1971, is acquired by Noisy Creek, a media company that includes The Stranger in Seattle and the Portland Mercury in Portland, OR. As part of the acquisition, the paper is introducing Noisy Creek’s event discovery platform, EverOut, as well as entertainment ticketing service Bold Type Tickets. In January, non-profit organization Reader Institute for Community Journalism, which has owned the paper since 2022, announced a round of layoffs due to "a combination of financial losses, operational challenges, and external pressures [that] has brought the Reader to an imminent risk of closure." At that point the Reader was forced to turn to its readers for support. “By diversifying our revenue sources, we will create the foundation for us to thrive in the long-term,” according to a post on the Reader web site.
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YouTube’s ‘Hype’ feature, which is meant to raise the visibility of videos from creators with fewer than 500,000 subscribers, launches globally. The feature, which was launched as a test in Brazil, Taiwan and Turkey last September, is now available in 39 countries including the US, UK, India, Japan and South Korea. It lets viewers choose up to three videos to “hype” per week. When a video is hyped, it receives points. The videos that get the most points wind up on a new ranked leaderboard that is part of YouTube’s Explore menu. To give smaller creators more of a boost, those with fewer subscribers, get a bigger bonus, which according to the YouTube official blog, gives “the most authentic emerging creators a better opportunity to get noticed.”
Boston Globe Media acquires InstaTrac, a company that provides subscription-based services aimed at making government information easier to find, track, and understand... AARP names former New Republic CEO and publisher Michael Caruso as its SVP and chief content officer, unifying the organization's portfolio of media, live events and digital platforms... The Fund for American Studies, an educational nonprofit, awards its inaugural Journalism Excellence Fellowships.
Trump Media and Technology Group Corp. has replaced CEO and former California Congressman Devin Nunes with Kevin McGurn, a seasoned media sales executive.
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. 
