Discovery Inc. has announced an executive leadership team to head WarnerMedia as a major merger between the two companies is finalized this month, reports The Hill.
Channing Dungey will continue as chairman of Warner Bros. Television Group, while Casey Bloys continues as chief content officer of HBO & HBO Max, the company announced. Kathleen Finch will assume a newly created role of chairman and chief content officer, US Networks Group, a new, consolidated organization comprising the company’s more than 40 U.S. networks.
“We are so excited to bring the heritage and legacies of these two great companies together by creating Warner Bros. Discovery, and I am proud that our new executive management team blends world-class leaders from both organizations as we take our first step toward one single cohesive, collaborative culture,” David Zaslav, future CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement.
“Today’s announcement combines a strong team of professional managers in a simpler organizational structure, with fewer layers, more accountability and a singular strategic focus as a global pure-play content company. I look forward to rolling up my sleeves with this team so that, together, we can write this next exciting chapter.”
Discovery earlier this year announced that Chris Licht, formerly an executive producer for CBS’s “The Late Show” and “Morning Joe” visionary at MSNBC, would take over as the president of CNN Global, following the departure of Jeff Zucker.
WarnerMedia’s previous CEO, Jason Kilar, announced earlier this week he would be stepping down from his position upon completion of the merger with Discovery.
Fox News correspondent Benjamin Hall, who was seriously wounded after he was shot outside Kyiv while reporting on the war in Ukraine, said he is feeling “pretty damn lucky” to be alive despite losing limbs in the conflict, reports The NY Post.
“To sum it up, I’ve lost half a leg on one side and a foot on the other. One hand is being put together, one eye is no longer working, and my hearing is pretty blown… but all in all I feel pretty damn lucky to be here – and it is the people who got me here who are amazing!” Hall tweeted along with a photo of himself Thursday evening.
Hall was traveling inside of a vehicle on March 14 alongside cameraman and friend Pierre Zakrzewski, 55, and a Ukrainian fixer, journalist Oleksandra Kuvshynova, 24, when Russian troops opened fire on the car.
Fox News confirmed that Zakrzewski and Kuvshynova died of their wounds. Hall was evacuated out of the country and transported to a hospital in Texas where he underwent several surgeries for his injuries.
Hall paid his respects to his two colleagues in another tweet on Thursday with a photo of Zakrzewski, who was reportedly a close friend to the journalist.
“It’s been over three weeks since the attack in Ukraine and I wanted to start sharing it all. But first I need to pay tribute to my colleagues Pierre and Sasha who didn’t make it that day,” he wrote. “Pierre and I traveled the world together, working was his joy and his joy was infectious. RIP”
Zakrzewski was a veteran conflict photographer, having worked for Fox in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. He helped Afghans who had worked for Fox News during the US military campaign in Afghanistan flee after the Taliban seized control, according to FNC CEO Suzanne Scott.
Press Communications classic rock 107-1 The Boss (WWZY/WBHX) Monmouth Ocean has added Cane Peterson to its on air line up nights and weekends.
Peterson has been heard in the market for over 20 years on Z100, 92.3 KROCK, Fresh 102.7 and Alt 92.3. He also spent six years at SiriusXM’s Octane, Boneyard, and Alt Nation. As a television host, Cane fronted “The Rock Show” and “Top 20 Countdown” on VH1, and “Cold Pizza” on ESPN2. Cane is also a part-time actor, his most notable role playing Carrie Bradshaw’s love interest, Wade “Power Lad” Adams, during season 3 of “Sex and the City.” He hosts the live weekday morning “Cane and Corey Show” podcast.
Program Director Robby Bridges states, “I’ve been a fan of Cane’s work on radio and on screen for years, he’s a great fit for the high energy, personality driven content we are creating on the air at 107-1 The Boss”
Peterson comments, “Excited to join friends at 1071 Boss to do some real radio! Robby is a programmer who just gets it. He knows talent is the difference maker, and he believes in being live and local! Crazy, right? So thank you Robby for bringing me to the Jersey Shore, and lets have some damn fun!”
New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet sent a memo to its journalists yesterday about what he called a "reset" in its stance on Twitter, emphasizing that having a presence on it or on other social media is, quote, "purely optional for Times journalists," and encouraging those who do use Twitter to "meaningfully reduce" their time on the platform.
In the memo obtained by other news organizations, Baquet wrote, "We can rely too much on Twitter as a reporting or feedback tool -- which is especially harmful to our journalism when our feeds become echo chambers."
Mediaite notes there have been concerns both internally at the Times and from outside the organziation that it had become too reactive to Twitter. Baquet also said that "off-the-cuff" tweets can, quote, "damage our journalistic reputations," and called out subtweets of other colleagues, which is a way of attacking them.
He wrote, "[T]weets or subtweets that attack, criticize or undermine the work of your colleagues are not allowed. Doing so undercuts the reputation of The Times as well as our efforts to foster a culture of inclusion and trust."
He also announced a new initiative to support journalists who are threatened or harassed online.
CNN's left-wing media correspondent Brian Stelter was visibly uncomfortable when confronted by a college freshman about his network being a "purveyor of disinformation," reports Fox News.
Stelter visited the University of Chicago on Thursday to participate in a panel discussion at the "Disinformation and the Erosion of Democracy" conference.
Christopher Phillips, a college freshman at the university and writer at the conservative and libertarian newspaper The Chicago Thinker, confronted the CNN star, who has accused others of pushing "disinformation."
"They push the Russian collusion hoax, they push the Jussie Smollett hoax, they smear Justice Kavanaugh as a rapist, and they also smeared Nick Sandmann as a White supremacist. And yes, they dismissed the Hunter Biden laptop affair as pure Russian disinformation," Phillips told Stelter. "With mainstream corporate journalists becoming little more than apologists and cheerleaders for the regime, is it time to finally declare that the canon of journalistic ethics is dead or no longer operative?"
Phillips continued, "All the mistakes of the mainstream media and CNN, in particular, seem to magically all go in one direction. Are we expected to believe that this is all just some sort of random coincidence or is there something else behind it?"
Stelter responded nervously by quipping, "It's time for lunch."
"There's a clock that says 30 seconds, but I think my honest answer to you, and I will come over and talk in more detail after this… I understand that that is a popular right-wing narrative about CNN," Stelter said. "I think it's important, when talking about shared reality and democracy, all these networks all these news outlets have to defend democracy. And when they screw up, admit it."
Freshman Christopher Phillips CALLS OUT Brian Stelter and CNN for being a "purveyor of disinformation." He points to the Russian collusion hoax, Jussie Smollett, the smears of Justice Kavanaugh and Nick Sandmann, and their dismissal of Hunter Biden's laptop. pic.twitter.com/eHxqAWqVSC
Phillips later thanked Stelter for following up with him after the panel discussion, but tweeted, "I am STILL wondering: if CNN is truly unbiased, WHY is every mistake they make an overstep in favor of Democrats and against Republicans??"
The House Judiciary Committee has voted to pass H.R. 4330, the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying (PRESS) Act, legislation introduced by MD Congressman Jamie Raskin, KY Congressman John Yarmuth and CA Congressman Ted Lieu that would safeguard a free and independent press by establishing a federal statutory privilege to protect journalists from being compelled to reveal confidential sources and prevent federal law enforcement from abusing subpoena power.
“I’m delighted that the House Judiciary Committee passed my PRESS Act on a unanimous bipartisan voice vote,” said Rep. Raskin. “The constitutional promise that no law shall abridge the freedom of the press instructs us to protect journalists from government overreach and abuse of the subpoena power, and today this committee has made good on that promise.”
“The First Amendment is essential to our democracy and to ensuring both a free press and an informed public,” said Rep. Yarmuth. “I’m so proud that our PRESS Act cleared the Judiciary Committee today and is one step closer to passage in the House. As the first Society of Professional Journalists member to be elected to Congress, I know how important it is that we protect journalists and their ability to speak truth to power without fear of retaliation or retribution.”
PRESS Act, introduced by Reps. Raskin, Lieu, and Yarmuth, would provide a shield against governmental efforts to undermine acts of truth-telling as weaponized through the subpoenaing of confidential journalistic information, providing reporters with a legal protection available in most states but not yet against the federal government.”
The PRESS Act has the endorsement of Demand Progress, National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), News Media Alliance (NMA), News Leaders Association, MPA – The Association of Magazine Media, Protect the 1st, Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ).
➦In 1961…The BBC banned the Top 40 hit 'A Hundred Pounds of Clay' by Gene McDaniels. The ban arose because the censors interpreted the song as suggesting women were created simply to be sexual beings, and the BBC felt something that was considered blasphemous should not air to avoid controversy.
➦In 1981...Radio personality Larry "Snortin" Norton completed a publicity stunt. Norton spent 20-plus days on the air at WGRQ-FM in Buffalo.
Larry Norton
Norton launched his virtually sleepless quest March 19, grabbing only two hours of shut-eye per night to break the record. Norton officially ended with 484 hours on the air, shattering the previous listing in the Guinness Book of World Records of 367 hours.
➦In 1985…John Frederick Coots died at age 78 (Born - May 2, 1897). He was a songwriter, who composed over 700 popular songs and over a dozen Broadway shows. In 1934, Coots wrote the melody with his then chief collaborator, lyricist Haven Gillespie, for the biggest hit for them both "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town." The song became one of the biggest sellers in American history.
In 1934, when Gillespie brought him the lyrics to "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", Coots came up with the skeleton of the music in just ten minutes. Coots took the song to his publisher, Leo Feist Inc., who liked it but thought it was "a kids' song" and didn't expect too much from it. Coots offered the song to Eddie Cantor who used it on his radio show that November and it became an instant hit. The morning after the radio show there were orders for 100,000 copies of sheet music and by Christmas sales had passed 400,000.
➦In 1987...WFIL 560 AM, Philadelphia ended it's run as "Famous 56". Capturing The True Sound Of Famous 56! Click Here To Listen.
In February 1964, Triangle moved the WFIL stations to a new state-of-the-art broadcast center at the corner of City Line and Monument Avenues in Philadelphia, from which WPVI continued to broadcast.
Starting on September 18, 1966, WFIL began playing "Top 40" rock and roll. It quickly became the most successful non-RKO "Boss Radio" formatted station, known locally as "The Pop Music Explosion".
The original line up of air personalities, or "Boss Jocks" were scheduled as follows:
6-10am: Chuck Browning
10am-2pm: Jay Cook ("Captain Jay Cook")
2-6pm: Jim Nettleton ("Diamond Jim" Nettleton)
6-10pm: George Michael ("King George" Michael)
10pm-2am: Long John Wade
2-6am: Dave Parks ("Dave the Rave" Parks)
Weekends: Frank Kingston Smith
WFIL announcers heard in later years of the Top 40 era included Dr. Don Rose, Jim O'Brien(who later also became a WPVI-TV reporter and station personality), Dan Donovan, J. J. Jeffrey, Dick Heatherton, Tom Dooley, "Tiny" Tom Tyler, Mitch "K.C." Hill, "Big" Ron O'Brien, Kris Chandler, Geoff Richards, Joel Denver, Brother Lee Love (Alan Smith), and Banana Joe Montione.
The format evolved into an adult contemporary sound in the fall of 1977. At some point after that, the WFIL studios were relocated to Domino Lane in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia; they moved into the building of FM station WUSL, which WFIL owner LIN Broadcasting had acquired in late 1976. Growing competition from FM stations in this period did serious damage to WFIL's ratings. In September 1981 country music was tried, but this failed to reverse the downward trend. The station switched to an "oldies" format in September 1983, called "The Boss is Back," with a new line up of "Boss Jocks," playing the hits of 1955 through 1973.
This format lasted until April 8, 1987, when new owner WEAZ Inc. discontinued locally originated music programming in favor of Transtar's "Oldies Channel," a satellite-delivered service. The end of live programming was marked by a production piece consisting of a portion of the song American City Suite by Terry Cashman and Tommy West interspersed with old WFIL airchecks. The "Epilogue to WFIL" was produced by Charlie Mills, who at the time was working cross-town at WPEN, and had been an avid fan of WFIL during his teen years.
Its 5000-watt transmitter enabled its signal to be heard as far away at times as Staten Island, the southernmost borough of New York City. During its top 40 years, WFIL also consistently showed strongly in the ratings books in nearby Wilmington, Delaware, where it has an excellent signal. In addition, WFIL was a popular listening choice in Reading and Allentown, both in Pennsylvania.
Today, WFIL is locally co-owned with Salem Media's WNTP 990 AM. Interestingly, WNTP is the former WIBG. WIBG was WFIL's main rock 'n roll rival in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The studios, offices and transmitters of both stations are located at the former WIBG complex on Ridge Pike in Whitemarsh Township, PA.
➦In 2004...Clear Channel Communications (now iHeartMedia) fired Howard Stern for airing sexually explicit material.
''Clear Channel drew a line in the sand today with regard to protecting our listeners from indecent content, and Howard Stern's show blew right through it,'' Clear Channel Radio's president, John Hogan, said in a statement. The statement did not specifically describe the content but said it ''was vulgar, offensive and insulting, not just to women and African Americans but to anyone with a sense of common decency.''
Clear Channel did not disclose how many of its stations carry the show, which is produced and distributed by the Infinity radio unit of Viacom. Since he was syndicated by Infinity Broadcasting his programs continued uninterrupted.
➦In 2004...Eugene Klavan died at age 79 (Born - May 4, 1924). He was a radio personality, columnist and author
His radio career began with brief stints at Baltimore's WITH and WCBM, followed by WTOP in Washington, D.C., where he would remain until moving to WNEW New York in 1952. Klavan was best known for being one-half of the successful morning show, "Klavan & Finch". The program ran for many years on WNEW 1130 AM.
Klavan and Finch
Gene Klavan was first as half of the radio show “Klavan and Finch” and then as a solo performer, brought slicing wit, a knack for voices and peppery irreverence to New York morning radio audiences for 25 years.
From 1952 to 1968, Mr. Klavan was the comic half of Klavan and Finch, heard on WNEW, then one of the leading AM radio stations in New York. With Dee Finch as straight man, Mr. Klavan changed into the voices of wacky characters like Trevor Traffic, Mr. Nat, Sy Kology, Victor Verse and Emilio Percolator. The sound of a slamming door signaled a character’s arrival.
Finch retired in 1968 and Mr. Klavan continued the show alone as “Klavan in the Morning.” In 1977 he moved to WOR-AM and left radio in 1980. Finch died in 1983.
Darlene Gillespie is 81
🎂HAPPY BIRTHDAYS:
Comedian Shecky Greene is 96.
Original Mouseketeer Darlene Gillespie is 81.
Singer Peggy Lennon of the Lennon Sisters is 81.
Songwriter Leon Huff of Gamble and Huff is 80.
Actor Stuart Pankin (“Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Not Necessarily The News”) is 76.
Guitarist Steve Howe of Yes (and of Asia) is 75.
Bassist Mel Schacher of Grand Funk Railroad is 71.
Patricia Arquette is 54
Singer-actor John Schneider (“The Dukes of Hazzard”) is 62.
Guitarist Izzy Stradlin (Guns N’ Roses) is 60.
Singer-guitarist Donita Sparks of L7 is 59.
Singer Julian Lennon is 59.
Actor Dean Norris (“Breaking Bad,” ″Under the Dome”) is 59.
Actor Robin Wright is 56.
Actor Patricia Arquette is 54.
Actor JR Bourne (TV’s “Teen Wolf,” ″Revenge”) is 52.
Singer Craig Honeycutt of Everything is 52.
Drummer Darren Jessee of Ben Folds Five is 51.
Actor Emma Caulfield (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) is 49.
Actor Katee Sackhoff (“Battlestar Galactica”) is 42.
Actor Taylor Kitsch (“True Detective,” ″Friday Night Lights”) is 41.
Singer-guitarist Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend is 38.
Actor Taran Noah Smith (“Home Improvement”) is 38.
NBC News journalists are troubled by and have expressed dismay to network executives about MSNBC's intention to hire White House press secretary Jen Psaki when she exits the Biden administration, reports CNN citing people familiar with the matter.
Noah Oppenheim, the NBC News president, even held an impromptu phone call Friday so that he could address the matter with vexed staffers from the Washington bureau, some of whom have complained to their superiors that the tentative hiring tarnishes the NBC News brand.
Oppenheim, attempting to quell the anger, reaffirmed the distinction on the call between NBC News and MSNBC's opinion programming, some of the people familiar with the matter said.
Oppenheim, who does not oversee MSNBC, told the journalists that NBC News did not have a role in hiring Psaki. And he noted to those on the phone that they work for the NBC News brand and that the hires made for MSNBC's opinion arm should be viewed as unrelated to their work, the people said.
"Here's what he was saying: They have perspective programming. This was done on the perspective programming side. Not anything that reflects on NBC News," one of the people, who was on the call, explained.
"People wanted answers on what NBC's role was in this and NBC News had no role in this," the person added. "This is MSNBC's perspective programming."
Psaki, Oppenheim
It is not unusual for politicians and government officials to sign deals with news organizations when they exit their positions. But Psaki's tentative deal with MSNBC perturbed staffers because news of the negotiations between her and the network came while she is still in her post as White House press secretary.
Additionally, instead of hiring Psaki into the more typical post-White House role, such as a political analyst offering opinion and analysis on another person's program, MSNBC intends to make her a host for a show that will stream on its Peacock platform.
iHeartMedia’s Newsradio WTAM 1100, The Big One, announced today the debut of “The Jimmy Malone Show,” launching on Tuesday, April 12. “The Jimmy Malone Show” will broadcast weekdays from 9 – 10 a.m.
Malone will host conversations with politicians, community and business leaders, journalists and more, all with the goal of making a difference in Northeast Ohio. In addition, Malone will feature fun and entertaining segments including his signature feature, “Knuckleheads In The News.” The program will feature veteran producer Rob Rozycki and contributor Cache Roberts.
“We’re thrilled to launch ‘The Jimmy Malone Show’ on WTAM,” said Keith Kennedy, Regional Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartMedia Cleveland. “Jimmy is a passionate talk show host, a generous philanthropist, and lover of all things Cleveland. We are thrilled to add yet another powerful local voice to a station that means so much to the community.”
“I’m thrilled with the opportunity to connect with the WTAM audience,” said Malone. “WTAM is the news and information leader in the market, and it’s humbling to have the opportunity to join such a legendary radio station. I simply can’t wait to get started.”
Malone began his radio career in 1985, at first doing his signature “Knuckleheads in the News” segment in weekly appearances on WMJI’s “Lanigan and Webster Morning Show.” In 1991, Malone became a full-time co-host on the program, where he remained a fixture until 2021when he launched “The Jimmy Malone Show” on 1350 AM WARF.
Malone is an NAB Marconi Award winner for Large Market Personality of the Year and inductee into both the Cleveland Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the Ohio Broadcasters Hall of Fame. Malone’s most prized accomplishment, however, is the Malone Scholarship Program at College Now of Greater Cleveland, which annually provides college scholarships to deserving students. Since its inception, the Malone Scholarship Program has raised nearly five million dollars for scholarships.
Marv Nyren, vice president and market manager of Cumulus Chicago, confirmed that talk host Bruce St. James was no longer hosting mornings. The development was first reported by Chicago Media expert Robert Feder.
St. James was brought in from Phoenix in November 2020 to anchor morning on N/T WLS 890 AM. His last day was Wednesday.
Chicago radio veteran Ramblin’ Ray Stevens will be filling in “until we find a permanent replacement.” according to Nyren. Judy Pielach continues as morning show contributor on WLS
“Arizona, I’m coming home,” St. James posted on Facebook. “Chicago is an amazing city and I truly enjoy it here (even with the snow!), but for a variety of reasons I need to be back in the Valley.” He added he was “looking at some different opportunities, some in radio, some not.”
According to Feder, the move up to WLS marked a career pinnacle for St. James, a native of Washington, D.C., who grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and spent more than 20 years as a host and program director in Phoenix. Earlier he worked for stations in Los Angeles and San Diego.
In the latest Nielsen Audio survey WLS ranked 27th in mornings with a 0.9 percent share and a cumulative weekly audience of 93,200. The morning show St. James inherited from Erich Mancow Muller in December 2020 was in 14th place with a 2.4 share and 133,200 weekly cume.
Nielsen has released its inaugural State of Play report, which highlights the increasing boom of video content in both linear and streaming in recent years. Overall, Americans increased their average weekly time streaming video by 18%, with a year-over-year increase from 143.2 billion streamed minutes to 169.4 billion between February 2021 and February 2022.
The report reveals two other key takeaways: streaming service consumption is expected to grow, with 93% of Americans reporting they will increase their paid streaming services or make no changes to their existing plans over the next year, and over the last three years there was an 18% increase in all available video content.
However, due to a nearly 20% increase in unique program titles over the past three years, nearly half of audiences (46%) feel overwhelmed by the growing number of services and platforms that makes it more difficult to find the content they’re looking for. The State of Play report leverages Nielsen TV measurement and streaming data, insights from Gracenote, a Nielsen company, and findings from an online custom survey of U.S. video streamers.
Amid the seemingly overwhelming choices provided by new streaming platforms, subscription video on demand (SVOD) now accounts for 53% of minutes streamed. Of the 4 hours, 49 minutes per day that the average American spends watching content, 1:22 of that is through connected TV (CTV).
In addition to providing streaming consumption trends and consumer sentiment, State of Play details how the streaming landscape has broadened beyond traditional SVOD services. Ad-supported VOD, multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and virtual MVPDs (vMVPDs) have grown to account for 35%. And, the percentage of homes with YouTube TV—the vMVPD with the highest household penetration—has grown by over 160% since 2020.
Nielsen’s State of Play report shows consumers now have over 817,000 unique program titles as of February 2022 vs. more than 646,000 as recently as December 2019. The increase in content also comes with an increase in consumption, as 18% of Americans are now paying for four streaming services vs. the 7% who did so in 2019. In February of this year, content from streaming platforms accounted for just under 29% of consumers’ total time with TV, ahead of broadcast programming (26.4%) for the fourth straight month, according to Nielsen’s The Gauge, its monthly total TV and streaming snapshot. In total, Americans watched nearly 15 million years’ worth of streaming video content last year.
When asked about whether bundled streaming services might make it easier for consumers to find the content they are seeking, 64% of respondents indicated they wish there was a bundled video streaming service that would allow them to choose as few or as many video streaming services that they wanted.
“The inaugural State of Play really underscores the fact that we’ve entered the next phase of streaming, based on the trends we have been detailing about streaming over the past few years,” says Brian Fuhrer, SVP, Product Strategy, Nielsen. “We’ve moved from infancy into adolescence, and all the complexities that one would expect at that point. It’s not just that streaming is increasing year over year. Now consumers want access simplified and the explosion of services has renewed discussions around bundling and aggregation. Ultimately, these challenges signal an opportunity as the industry harnesses streaming for long-term
Alpha Media has announced the promotion of Bryan Hendry to VP/Market Manager of it’s Columbia, SC cluster where he will oversee some legendary brands in The Big DM, Fox 102.3, Hot 103.9, Live 93.5, Alt 99.7, and 94.9 The Palm, plus a very robust Digital Sales and Marketing operation.
Bryan Hendry
Bryan has held a leadership position with the group for the last 16 years as a DOS and most recently as VP, Station Manager which makes this a very seamless move.
Bryan commented on the promotion, “I am privileged to have the opportunity to lead Alpha Media’s Columbia cluster. I look forward to guiding our talented team as we continue to find ways to improve serving our valued listeners, advertisers, and community at large.”
Alpha Media’s Chief Revenue Officer and Regional President Mike Hartel also added, “It has been such a pleasure working closely with Bryan, and I have so much respect for the way he leads and the way he treats his teams and our community. We have so much talent and so much opportunity in the Columbia market and there is not a better person to lead that team than Bryan Hendry!”
Beginning on Thursday, May 5th, 2022, Amazon Prime customers will pay $8.99 per month (up from $7.99) for Amazon Music Unlimited, higher-ups disclosed, or $89 annually (an increase from $79), reports Digital Music News.
Amazon upped the cost of Prime itself to $14.99 per month or $139 per year in February.
Additionally, the price of Amazon Music’s single-device plan – which enables customers to stream music on a lone Echo device or Fire television – is poised to jump from $3.99 to $4.99 on the same date. For non-Prime members, Amazon Music will still cost $9.99 per month, or the same price that Apple Music, Spotify, TIDAL, and most other streaming platforms charge in the United States.
Amazon Music, which has hosted all manner of livestreams (and debuted other exclusive content) in an effort to stand out in the ultra-competitive streaming space, stated that the price boost will “help us bring you even more content and features.”
And while Amazon Music Unlimited’s Prime-discounted cost will still be a bit lower than Spotify’s stateside price, a number of fans are taking to social media to express their dissatisfaction with the development, which arrives one day after Forbes named Jeff Bezos the second-richest person in the world, with a net worth of $171 billion.
Longer-term, it remains to be seen whether services such as Amazon Music and Spotify will raise their monthly price past $9.99 for individuals in the U.S.
Spotify experimented with increases in certain markets (and for select plans) last year, but CFO Paul Vogel in March of 2022 struck a noncommittal tone when discussing the possibility of further hikes.
“I think over time, we’ll continue to figure out what we want to do with pricing,” said Vogel. “I don’t think we necessarily know right now how consistent we will be. … I think what we do believe is we continue to add more and more value into Spotify, right?”
Pay television service YouTube TV added the Weather Channel and several other networks on Wednesday.
The Desk reports the Google-owned streaming service said the Weather Channel, Justice Central, Comedy.TV and Recipe.TV are immediately available to customers who pay $65 a month for the company’s base package of service.
Those channels were added after YouTube TV reached a deal with Allen Media Group to distribute the networks. The company is owned and operated by comedian and media mogul Byron Allen, who has sued other pay television platforms in the past who have refused to carry his networks. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, nor was it clear if adding the channels would result in a price increase for subscribers.
The Weather Channel has been one of the most-requested networks from YouTube TV’s subscribers, according to a person familiar with the company’s strategy. Before Wednesday, streaming households had few choices to get the channel, with Frndly TV and Fubo TV among the few streaming services to carry it.
In addition to the Allen Media Group channels, YouTube TV said it would immediately start carrying G4 TV, a technology and videogame-centric network revived by Comcast last year.
Ukraine is bracing for a renewed Russian offensive in the eastern part of the country after Russia withdrew its forces from the areas around Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv to regroup and shift its focus east, particularly to the Donbas region. Ukrainian authorities are urging people in the Donbas to evacuate immediately, saying they won't be able to help them once the battle begins. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address to his country Wednesday (April 6th) that Ukraine is also readying for the fight in the east, saying, "We will fight and we will not retreat. . . . This is our land. This is our future. And we won’t give them up." AP cited a Western official, however, as estimating that it will take Russia three to four weeks to regroup its forces for a major offensive in eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is warning that the Russian military continues to build up its forces in preparation for a new offensive in the east. He says Ukraine, too, is preparing for battle. https://t.co/pICQESRyBD
The mayor of Mariupol said yesterday that more than 5,000 civilians had died in the southern port city during weeks of Russian bombardment and street fighting, 210 of them children. Mayor Vadym Boichenko said that Russia bombed hospitals, including one where 50 people burned to death, and that more than 90 percent of the city’s infrastructure was destroyed. A humanitarian relief convoy has been trying to get into the city for days, where some 160,000 people remain trapped of its prewar population of 430,000, AP reported, citing British defense officials.
After the focus in recent days on accused war crimes against civilians discovered in areas from which Russia pulled out, most prominently in the city of Bucha, Zelenskyy last night accused Russia of removing bodies and trying to hide other evidence. He said, "This is only an attempt to hide the evidence and nothing more." Russia has denied the war crimes accusation and accused Ukraine of staging the scenes of murdered civilians.
New Sanctions Announced: In the wake of the alleged atrocities carried out by Russia, the U.S. announced more sanctions yesterday, including on President Vladimir Putin's two adult daughters, as well as on all of Putin's close close family members, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the wife and children of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavov, and members of Russia's Security Council. The U.S. also toughened penalties against two key Russian banks. The U.K. also announced fresh sanctions and the European Union is expected to take more steps soon.
Pope Francis holds up Ukrainian flag sent from Bucha and kisses it as he met with refugee children from Ukraine during a General Audience session on Wednesday. "Let's not forget the Ukrainian people.'' https://t.co/3xXdlJT1Ukpic.twitter.com/H4iEu4VDoc
Pope Kisses Flag From Bucha, Denounces 'Massacre': Pope Francis yesterday (April 6th) kissed a dirtied Ukrainian flag that he said he been brought to him from Bucha, which he called a "martyred city," and denounced the, quote, "massacre" there. Francis held the flag as he welcomed six Ukrainian refugee children at the Vatican audience hall, and again urged an end to the war.
➤SACRAMENTO MASS SHOOTING WAS BETWEEN GANGS: Sacramento police said Wednesday that the downtown shooting early Sunday morning that six people dead and wounded 12 others was a gunfight between members of at least two rival gangs. Police said they had identified at least five shooters, but there may have been more. So far, only two suspects, who are brothers, have been arrested. There were more than 100 gunshots in the crowded streets as bars were letting out.
CBS News has learned that +150 transactions involving either Hunter or James Biden’s global business affairs were flagged as concerning by U.S. banks for further review. @ChuckGrassley spoke exclusively @CBS_Herridge about newly public bank records. pic.twitter.com/N31x5XtbZ5
➤SENATE SET TO CONFIRM JACKSON TO SUPREME COURT TODAY: The Senate is set to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court today in what will make her the first Black woman on the nation's highest court. Three Republican senators in the 50-50 Senate have said they will support Jackson, Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Jackson will be replacing Justice Stephen Breyer after he retires this summer.
A fox that bit a congressman and at least eight other people near the U.S. Capitol was euthanized and found to have rabies, city health officials say. https://t.co/v1kso350xC
➤EX-TRUMP ADVISERS NAVARRO, SCAVINO HELD IN CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS: Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino, who were advisers to former President Donald Trump, were held in contempt of Congress yesterday for refusing to comply with subpoenas from the House committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. The vote was almost entirely along party lines, with the only two Republican votes coming from the two Republicans on the committee, Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. The vote sends the criminal referrals to the Justice Department for possible prosecution. These are the third and fourth contempt referrals from the House related to the probe that have been sent to the Justice Department, after two late last year for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former Trump ally Steve Bannon. Bannon has been indicted, with a trial set for July. The Justice Department has not yet acted on Meadows' referral.
DeSantis vows to send illegal immigrants 'dumped' in Florida to Biden's home state of Delaware https://t.co/42iVJdSRjP
🐶STUDY..ARE PEOPLE MORE WILLING TO EMPATHIZE WITH ANIMALS OR OTHER HUMANS?Are you more likely to empathize with another human or an animal? Penn State researchers found when people are deciding to engage in empathy, context matters. Study leader Daryl Cameron says, “It’s possible that if people are seeing humans and animals in competition, it might lead to them preferring to empathize with other humans. But if you don’t see that competition, and the situation is just deciding whether to empathize with an animal one day and a human the other, it seems that people don’t want to engage in human empathy but they’re a little bit more interested in animals.” He also says there’s a theory that it may be more difficult for people to feel true empathy for animals since their minds are different than those of humans.
👩WHAT’S BEHIND THE TREND OF WOMEN POSTING MAKE-UP FREE SELFIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA?: There’s now a trend of older women posting make-up free selfies on social media. The Wall Street Journal notes that social media platforms don’t just harm teenagers, but can be harmful to women as they age, and so women are fighting back with these selfies to embrace their age. Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman says of the photos, “It’s satisfying to feel connected and not so alone in how you look, so I think there is a generosity in that when it’s authentic.” She also cautions that the natural look might be staged at times with products, treatments and injectables, or even ring lights, secret makeup, or a filter. Some brands such as Milk, Dove, and Olay are also supporting the trend by using real photos that are not retouched across a wide spectrum of ages to showcase women’s beauty at their stage in life.
🛫NYC TO PARIS FLIGHT HAS 'SERIOUS INCIDENT': An Air France flight from New York City to Paris had what was described as a "serious incident" as it was making its final approach to Charles de Gaulle Airport Tuesday. French aviation safety officials are investigating the incident, in which the pilot could be heard telling traffic controllers "the airplane was just kind of out of control" and "the plane did just about anything." The Boeing 777 ascended again, circled the airport for about 10 minutes, and then came back in and landed safely. Passengers reported feeling some "sudden jolts" during the incident.
➤ALEX JONES APPEARS FOR QUESTIONING IN SANDY HOOK LAWSUIT: A week after a Connecticut judge imposed daily fines on Infowars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones for each weekday he didn't appear for a deposition in a lawsuit brought by relatives of some victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting, Jones showed up Wednesday (April 6th) and was questioned by lawyers for the families. The lawsuit charged Jones with defamation for saying the Sandy Hook massacre never happened, and a judge found Jones liable for damages. A trial on how much he should pay the families is set for August. Jones had been defying a judge's order to appear for a deposition in the case, claiming he was too sick. But a judge said there wasn't enough evidence that he was too sick to appear and fined him $25,000 per weekday, increasing by $25,000 per weekday. He paid $25,000 in fines for Friday and $50,000 in fines for Monday, according to court records. Jones said on his show that the deposition actually began on Tuesday.
🥛SCIENCE...BUTTER AND FULL-FAT DAIRY MAY BE HEALTHIER THAN WE THOUGHT: Full-fat dairy and butter might be healthier than originally thought. Public health researcher Stephanie Venn-Watson says her company, Fatty 15, has found that a type of saturated fat called C15:0 found in butter and full-fat dairy may be good for you in moderation. A study on Navy dolphins revealed consuming the specific type of fat may reduce risk of disease and improve health and well being. Watson says this suggests that getting more C15:0 in your diet, with foods such as grass-fed butter in moderation, may help you be healthier. Research suggests C15:0 is an essential fatty acid similar to other healthy fats like omega-3, which can help prevent heart disease and other chronic illnesses. More research is needed to determine the optimal levels of C15:0 humans need and the best way to get it.
⚾BASEBALL'S DELAYED OPENING DAY FINALLY ARRIVES: It's opening day for baseball today (April 6th), one week later than the original March 31st date, pushed back because of the MLB lockout that delayed the start of spring training before it ended on March 10th with an agreement between the owners and players. The season will kick off with an afternoon game between the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, one of seven games today. One of them will be between the Kansas City Royals and the Cleveland Guardians, playing under their new name after changing it from the Indians. Among some changes this season, the National League now has the designated hitter and the postseason field will be expanded to 12 teams from 10.
🏌MASTERS BEGINS TODAY WITH ALL EYES ON TIGER WOODS: The Masters golf tournament gets underway today at Augusta National in Georgia, where all eyes will be on Tiger Woods, playing in his first regular PGA tournament since a February 2021 car crash in which his right leg was severely injured. Despite the focus on Tiger, there are a couple of other storylines at the Masters. If he wins, Rory McIlroy would become just the sixth player to have won all four majors, and while the tournament is beginning with Scottie Scheffler as the world Number 1, there are five other players that could potentially replace him according to the results.
🏈SIX STATES' ATTORNEYS GENERAL WARN NFL TO TREAT FEMALE EMPLOYEES BETTER: The attorneys general of six states have written to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell expressing concern over the league’s treatment of female employees, and warning of potential legal action if there's isn't improvement. The letter from the attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington State talks about concerns of gender discrimination, including the NFL’s treatment of women who have experienced domestic violence to the hiring and promotion of women in NFL offices.
⚾RAMIREZ AGREES TO $124 MILLION, FIVE-YEAR DEAL WITH GUARDIANS: All-Star third baseman José Ramírez agreed to a $124 million, five-year contract with the Cleveland Guardians yesterday, the day before today's start of the season, AP reported. The deal is the biggest in franchise history, more than double the $60 million given to Edwin Encarnacion five years ago. Ramirez has been with the Guardians for his entire nine-year career, and has finished in the top three in MVP voting three times in the past five seasons.
🏈DIGGS AGREES TO FOUR-YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH BILLS: Buffalo Bills receiver Stefon Diggs has agreed to a four-year, $96 million contract extension, AP reported Wednesday. The 28-year-old Diggs had two years remaining on his current contract, with the extension keeping him through the 2027 season. Diggs tweeted a video clip from the movie The Wolf of Wall Street in which Leonardo DiCaprio says, "I’m not leaving."
