Media Insider: BBC Cuts Jobs, Apple Launches Daily News Podcast, Chatham Wins at McClatchy Auction
Welcome to Media Insider, PR Newswire’s round-up of media stories from the week.
BBC
The Andrew Neil Show ends as BBC News unveils cuts
BBC announced it will cut 520 jobs and end The Andrew Neil Show. It also will cut original programming, such as BBC World Service, World Update, and The World This Week. With fewer reporters, BBC plans to focus on producing targeted news stories with a larger impact and said it will close most of its social accounts to focus on core services. It will create a new team to pursue under-reported and exclusive stories with a greater focus on digital storytelling. BBC said it is committed to its top political broadcasters like Andrew Neil and are in discussions about a new interview series on BBC One.
More newsroom cuts were announced by The Guardian and Vox Media.
CNN BUSINESS | KERRY FLYNN
Apple enters the crowded market of daily news podcasts
Apple has introduced a daily news briefing podcast called Apple News Today. WNYC veterans Shumita Basu and Duarte Geraldino will host the daily, 10-minute news briefing covering the day’s news. The Apple News Today podcast and its new audio stories will be available in Apple’s News app under the newly added Audio tab. Apple also is creating audio versions of print stories that will be available to subscribers of Apple News+. Apple’s team of editors will produce about 20 audio stories per week narrated by professional voice actors.
Spotify strives to keep up with Apple by expanding into Russia and 12 new European markets and debuting new top podcast charts feature.
THE WASHINGTON POST | PAUL FARHI
‘A lot of uncertainty’: Staffers at renowned McClatchy newspapers mull bankruptcy sale to tabloid-owning hedge fund
Chatham Asset Management won the bankruptcy auction for McClatchy. The agreement, subject to final court approval, makes Chatham the sole owner of the company’s 30 daily newspapers and elevates Chatham and its founder, Anthony Melchiorre, in the newspaper business. Chatham has been McClatchy’s largest investor for over a decade so McClatchy’s newsrooms have hope that Chatham will be interested in continuing to invest in the company rather than gaining profits from severe layoffs and the sale of assets. A price for the deal has not been agreed upon, but in an early filing, Chatham offered around $300 million in a combination of restructured debt and at least $30 million in cash.
ICYMI: Wall Street Journal Staff Members Push for Big Changes in News Coverage.
THE WASHINGTON POST
Zeus Performance to power adtech for broadcaster Graham Media Group
Zeus Technology, The Washington Post’s industry-leading revenue performance platform, announced it will license Zeus Performance to its first broadcast customer, Graham Media Group. Zeus Performance is one of three industry-leading monetization tools built in-house by The Post that comprise the Zeus Technology Suite. Graham will implement Zeus’s programmatic technology across its seven affiliate sites, reducing site latency, improving performance, and driving higher overall viewability. Catherine Badalamente, Graham Media Group’s Chief Innovation Officer, noted, “In addition, as a Zeus partner, we will be better positioned to focus our efforts on our audience, membership, and exclusive opportunities for our partners.”
Also read: Fox News Got a Big Boost on YouTube From an Algorithm Change.
THE NEW YORK TIMES | MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM
New York Times Will Move Part of Hong Kong Office to Seoul
The New York Times announced it will relocate its Hong Kong-based digital news operation to Seoul, South Korea. The announcement comes in response to a recently passed national security law, which was imposed on Hong Kong by China and threatens the city’s long-standing reputation as a friendly headquarters for English-language news outlets. The law aims to extinguish opposition to the ruling Communist Party and gives Beijing broad powers to crack down on a variety of political crimes. Just passed in June, the law has already created obstacles for journalists looking to obtain or renew work permits. Journalists also worry that Beijing will soon crack down on activism, speech, and free press due to the recent diplomatic standoff between China and the U.S. over media organizations. The New York Times says moving its digital news operations to Seoul is a contingency plan and a chance to diversify its editing staff around the region. NYT correspondents, print production team, and advertising and marketing staff will remain based in Hong Kong to cover the city and region.
More from NYT: Bari Weiss Is Leaving the New York Times.
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Erin Wade is a Senior Customer Content Specialist with PR Newswire. She is also an animal lover and aspiring world traveler. Tune into her insights as a social curator at @TotalCSR.
