Category Archives: Media

Elon Musk to strip headlines off news links on Twitter in latest overhaul

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Move by the billionaire owner of the social media site may be an attempt to drive up subscription of the app’s premium service

Social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, is poised to rework how news links appear on the platform, the latest change spearheaded by owner Elon Musk to impact news publishers on the site.

The news was first reported by Fortune on Monday and confirmed in a post from Musk later in the day: “This is coming from me directly. Will greatly improve the esthetics [sic],” he wrote. The platform will no longer display headlines and other text from news links and show only the main image, limiting a user’s ability to see the contents before clicking.

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‘This power is reaching a natural end’: Michael Wolff’s new book predicts the fall of Fox News

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The Fall will be published next month and promises to chronicle the rightwing network and the Murdoch family’s downfall

The author Michael Wolff, whose bestselling books have chronicled the rise and fall of Donald Trump, promised on Tuesday to tell readers how Fox News will end.

“I have been telling the story of the great power of Rupert Murdoch and Fox News for many years,” Wolff said, announcing his new book, The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty. “This power is now reaching a natural end and The Fall brings the story to its closing act.”

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Reality show The Traitors inspired by murderous 17th-century mutiny

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Maritime horror, after Dutch sailing ship Batavia wrecked off western Australia, set TV show in motion

The hit TV reality show The Traitors was originally going to involve a recreation of a real-life murderous mutiny onboard a 17th-century Dutch ship, with programme contestants pushed into the sea when voted out.

Jasper Hoogendoorn, who oversaw the programme’s development, said the show was inspired by the voyage of the Batavia, a Dutch ship which was shipwrecked off Australia in 1629.

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Meta launches web version of flagging Threads app

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‘Twitter killer’ social media platform experienced initial boom in sign-ups when it launched in July

Meta has launched a web version of its “Twitter killer” social media platform Threads that can be used without an app, as it attempts to revive itself after a recent drop in usage.

The parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp launched the microblogging site in July, widely understood as an alternative for users disillusioned with Elon Musk-owned Twitter, which has since rebranded as X.

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Indian writer says Amazon Prime series character seems to be based on her

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Yashica Dutt accuses makers of Made in Heaven of failing to acknowledge her contribution to story of bride from low caste

An Amazon Prime series on Indian wedding planners has been accused of failing to acknowledge the contribution of a Dalit journalist who says that the main character appears to be based on her own life, as recounted in a book she wrote.

Yashica Dutt, 37, has been based in New York for a few years but grew up in India amid the daily contempt to which people who belong to her caste are subjected.

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Location, Location, Location star Phil Spencer’s parents killed in car crash

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News of death of Anne and David Spencer confirmed by co-presenter of long-running Channel 4 series, Kirsty Allsopp

The parents of TV presenter Phil Spencer have been killed in a car accident near their home, his co-star, Kirstie Allsopp, has confirmed.

Location, Location, Location presenter Allsopp told fans to join her in “sending so much love” to costar Spencer, following the death of his mother, Anne, and father, David, on Friday.

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George Soros foundation’s retreat from Europe could ‘turn off the lights’ for human rights

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Activists fear the billionaire’s legacy will be lost as his Open Society Foundations curbs its activities across the EU

He survived the Nazi occupation of his native Hungary, made a fortune on Wall Street and became one of the most steadfast backers of democracy and human rights in the eastern bloc.

But human rights activists and independent media fear the legacy of billionaire philanthropist George Soros, 93, could be about to be undone in his homelands, as his donor network announced it will curb its activities across the EU from 2024.

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Russia bans dozens of UK journalists, media figures and politicians

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List of 54 Britons includes Guardian reporters and executives, a defence minister and the culture secretary

Russia has banned dozens of British journalists, media representatives and senior UK politicians from entering the country, including five Guardian journalists and executives, the foreign ministry said on Friday.

In a statement published on the foreign ministry’s website, Moscow said the sweeping action was a response to UK sanctions and the “spreading of false information about Russia”, as well as “London’s unrelenting military support for the Kyiv neo-Nazi regime”.

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RTÉ’s axing of Ryan Tubridy divides public opinion in Ireland

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Sacking of star presenter over pay scandal stirs debate about his treatment by Irish broadcaster

Ireland’s national broadcaster faces an uncertain future after axing its star presenter, Ryan Tubridy, in a scandal over under-declared payments.

RTÉ surprised the public and divided opinion by announcing Tubridy would not return to the airwaves, capping two months of turmoil over accounting and governance practices that has cast doubt on the organisation’s future funding.

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England fans to splash out on food, drink and TVs for Women’s World Cup final

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Supermarkets, pubs and advertisers the winners as supporters prepare for match against Spain

Supermarkets, pubs and TV advertisers are preparing to enjoy a bumper weekend as football fans rush to celebrate the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday morning.

As many as 13.7 million people are expected to tune in when the Lionesses take on Spain in the highly anticipated fixture in Australia – the first time a senior England football team has appeared in a World Cup final since 1966.

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RTÉ says Ryan Tubridy will not return to radio show after salary controversy

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National broadcaster’s director-general says negotiations for star presenter’s return ended after breakdown of trust

The Irish national broadcaster, RTÉ, has announced Ryan Tubridy will not be returning to his presenting role after a controversy over the under-declaration of his salary.

The RTÉ director-general, Kevin Bakhurst, said negotiations with the 50-year-old about returning to his radio show had concluded, after stating that trust between the parties had “broken down”.

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Thursday briefing: Vice took millions from Saudi Arabia – but has its deal backfired?

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In today’s newsletter: As the upstart media company faces bankruptcy, it has developed strong ties with the country, leaving some to question what compromises companies are willing to make to do business

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It’s hard to put into words the transformation that Saudi Arabia has undergone in the past six years.

Mohammed bin Salman, commonly referred to as MBS, was appointed the crown prince in 2017 and is now the de facto ruler of the kingdom. There have been notable reforms under his new regime. Women are allowed to drive; the guardian system – under which men have legal powers over women – has been relaxed; and cinemas reopened after 35 years.

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CEO regrets her firm took on Facebook moderation work after staff ‘traumatised’

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Outsourcer Sama facing legal cases brought by Kenya-based employees alleging exposure to graphic content

The chief executive of a company contracted to moderate Facebook posts in east Africa has said she regretted taking on the work, after its staff said they were left traumatised by graphic content on the social media platform.

The US outsourcing firm Sama is facing a number of legal cases brought by Kenya-based employees, who alleged being exposed to graphic and traumatic content such as videos of beheadings, suicide and other material at a moderation hub.

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BBC’s Stephen Nolan accused of sending explicit images to colleagues

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Corporation under pressure to respond to claims presenter sent photos of reality star Stephen Bear

The BBC is under pressure to respond to allegations that Stephen Nolan, one of the corporation’s highest-paid presenters, sent sexually explicit images to colleagues and was the subject of a bullying claim.

Political parties in Northern Ireland called on the BBC to provide a full response to the allegations about the region’s most influential and controversial broadcaster.

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Vice blocked news stories that could offend Saudi Arabia, insiders say

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Exclusive: Media company recently signed lucrative deal with Saudi government-controlled MBC Group

Vice has repeatedly blocked news stories that could offend the Saudi government, leaving its reporters unsure if they are still able to report freely on the kingdom’s human rights abuses, sources have said.

The media company recently signed a lucrative partnership deal with the MBC Group, a media company controlled by the Saudi government, to establish a joint venture in the Middle Eastern country. Of the 29 jobs currently advertised on Vice’s careers page, 20 are based in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh.

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‘Stressed beyond her limits’: co-owner of Kansas newspaper dies after police raid

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Police served a search warrant to the Marion County Record’s Joan Meyer, 98, after the paper’s investigation into local restaurateur

The co-owner of a small Kansas newspaper whose offices and staff were raided by local police officers conducting a leak investigation has died after the situation left her “stressed beyond her limits”, according to the publication.

Joan Meyer, 98, collapsed on Saturday afternoon and died at her home a day after she tearfully watched officers who showed up at her home with a search warrant cart away her computer as well as an internet router, reported the Marion County Record, which she co-owned. After officers also photographed the bank statements of her son, Record publisher Eric Meyer, and left her house in mess, Meyer had been unable to eat or sleep, her newspaper said.

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‘At what price?’: German press sceptical over Harry Kane’s £100m transfer

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Bayern Munich fans delighted but commentators question price tag and Germany’s failure to nurture homegrown talent

There may have been tens of thousands of Harry Kane fans tracking his Cessna flight’s path to Munich on Saturday, followed by standing ovations when he finally appeared before Bayern Munich supporters – many already wearing “Harry Kane – 9” shirts – to the stirring strains of Rock You Like a Hurricane by German rock band the Scorpions, but scepticism about the wisdom of the Tottenham Hotspur striker’s £100m transfer was rife among German commentators.

The affection for the 30-year-old striker was not in doubt. “Citizen Kane is now officially a Bavarian!” ran one typical headline, and the greetings servus (hello) and willkommen (welcome) towards “Herry” (as some Germans pronounce it) came thick and fast at his first press conference, at which he was flanked by bottles of water and Bavarian wheat beer.

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TikTok users in UK to be left with ‘more toxic’ version of app, say campaigners

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Activists call on tech giant to extend a change making personalised algorithm optional to comply with rules for EEA countries

TikTok users in the UK face being left with a “less safe” and “more toxic” version of the app than those in Europe after the tech giant was forced to make its personalised algorithm optional there to comply with EU rules.

From the end of August, TikTok users in 30 countries in the European Economic Area will be able to opt out of receiving personalised content recommendations, which are largely generated based on past activity. Instead, their “For You” and live feeds will include popular videos from the places they live and around the world.

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ABC clears Four Corners TV crew of wrongdoing during protest at Woodside CEO’s home

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Broadcaster’s managing director says crew did not collude with Perth protesters but corrects earlier claim they had no knowledge of action

An internal ABC inquiry has concluded that a Four Corners TV crew did not collude with or encourage Woodside protesters nor did they trespass on the home of CEO Meg O’Neill.

The ABC managing director, David Anderson, said the Four Corners investigation – about climate protests in Australia – would proceed despite the crew being heavily criticised by the fossil fuel company, the Western Australian government and the West Australian newspaper.

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Canada publishers urge Ottawa to stop Meta from blocking users’ news access

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Dust-up began after law passed requiring social media companies to compensate news publishers for posting their content

A group of Canadian news publishers and broadcasters has called on the country’s competition regulator to stop Meta from blocking access to news as the federal government and technology companies clash over revenue and content sharing.

News Media Canada, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and CBC/Radio‐Canada warned on Tuesday that Meta’s decision to bar Canadians from viewing news on Facebook and Instagram amounted to “anticompetitive conduct” and violates a provision of a federal law.

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