Technology • Innovation • Publishing — Issue #141

Innovation

NFT Canon — Andreessen Horowitz — a16z.com
The a16z NFT Canon is a curated list of readings and resources on all things NFTs, organized from the big picture, what NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are and why they matter… to how to mint, collect, and do more with them — including how they play into various applications such as art, music, gaming, social tokens, more.

NFTs Were Supposed to Protect Artists. They Don’t. — www.theatlantic.com
When we invented non-fungible tokens, we were trying to protect artists. But tech-world opportunism has struck again.

Topps is releasing official NFT baseball cards on April 20th — www.theverge.com
Topps has announced that it will release official NFT baseball cards with the MLB on April 20th. It’s a similar approach to the NBA’s incredibly popular Top Shot basketball clips.

Microsoft open-sources tool to use AI in simulated attacks — venturebeat.com
Microsoft released CyberBattleSim, an open source toolkit to let researchers create attack simulations and use AI to develop network defenses.

Technology

The new video editor in TikTok’s ad manager dashboard makes it easier to create ads with a native feel on the platform — www.tiktok.com

ICYMI HT @TheTiltNews #TikTok

TikTok says it has 732M MAUs globally, 100M+ in the US, 59% of its users are under 24 — www.socialmediatoday.com

@adhutchinson

The Thriving Ecosystem of Podcast Media — bellocollective.com

by @erikthejones #podcasting

Amazon is launching Kindle Vella, mobile first serialized fiction — goodereader.com

via @goodereader

Live Nation is wiring more than 60 venues in a high-tech plan to bring concerts to everyone — www.fastcompany.com

MT @michellemanafy To do it, they’ll leverage Veeps, the livestreaming platform launched by Good Charlotte’s Benji and Joel Madden, which Live Nation acquired earlier this year.

Spotify’s $80 Car Thing device for drivers is actually real and — for now — free — www.cnet.com
Yes, that’s really the name. No, you probably can’t get one.

Apple Is Said to Be Developing New Smart-Home Products — www.thestreet.com

Reports suggest that Apple is developing new smart-home products after discontinuing its HomePod speaker last year. #Apple

Google’s Secret ‘Project Bernanke’ Revealed in Texas Antitrust Case — www.wsj.com

A Google program used past bid data to boost the tech company’s win rate in digital-ad auctions, according to a court filing in a Texas antitrust lawsuit.

Microsoft buys AI speech tech company Nuance for $19.7 billion — www.theverge.com
Microsoft has announced it’s buying AI speech tech firm Nuance. The acquisition will bolster the Redmond, Washington-based software giant’s prowess in voice transcription, complementing its suite of enterprise and cloud software services.

You can finally ask Facebook’s oversight board to remove bad posts. Here’s how. — www.vox.com

HT @TheTiltNews If Facebook & Instagram’s review channels don’t work to remove offending posts, users have new option-an oversight board. Originally, appeals board only reviewed posts that were removed. Now they can revisit decisions made to keep content up

Mark Zuckerberg is urged to scrap plans for an Instagram for children — www.nytimes.com

An international coalition of children’s and consumer groups called on Instagram to scrap its plans to develop a version of the app for users under age 13. It could hook children on endless scrolling and body-image shame, the groups warned.

How much are US brands using Amazon and Amazon advertising?

fv.feedvisor.com

HT @benedictevans

How Amazon Strong-Arms Partners Using Its Power Across Multiple Businesses

www.wsj.com
A heavyweight in retail, cloud computing, digital advertising, streaming and smart speakers, the tech giant compels vendors in one market to engage with it in others. “Most businesses can’t afford to say no.”

Amazon is finally realizing it has a labor problem — www.theverge.com

HT @publishingtrend Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is taking on a new tone in his final letter to shareholders — one that makes it sound like maybe he’s gotten the message about labor. Platformer’s Casey Newton explains.

6 Steps to a 5-Figure Income on Clubhouse — www.entrepreneur.com
Everything you need to know about monetizing the popular app.

Facebook’s first crack at a Clubhouse competitor is a new Audio & Video Q&A platform called Hotline — www.theverge.com
Facebook’s NPE Team, its experimental app division, today revealed a new project called Hotline, a take on Clubhouse with elements of live-streaming technology built in. The app is just in the testing phase, with only a website with a waiting list and no mobile apps just yet.

The Prototype for Clubhouse Is 40 Years Old, and It Was Built by Phone Hackers — onezero.medium.com

Interesting to think that the party lines I was obsessed with growing up was a precursor to Clubhouse!

Hours watched on Twitch are up 97%, but Facebook is poised to overtake YouTube — www.gamesindustry.biz

Interesting tip HT @TheTiltNews In Q1 2021, Twitch viewers watched 754 million hours in the “Just Chatting” category — a 44% jump over Q1 2020. Pay attention to the growth opportunity — Q&As w your audience or talking about things without doing anything.

A Twitch streamer made $16,000 filming himself asleep and letting viewers disturb him with alarm clocks and fake dog barks — www.businessinsider.com
The influencer Asian Andy made $16,000 in eight hours on his Twitch livestream as people watched him sleep and sent messages to disturb him.

Publishing & Media

Condé Nast leverages photo collection in partnership with Shutterstock — whatsnewinpublishing.com

Conde Nast has entered a partnership with Shutterstock to represent the Conde Nast Collection of some 30,000 photographs

‘It was immediate’: The New York Post has started personalizing its commerce content recommendations — digiday.com

Over the past month, The New York Post has been displaying a widget across its pages filled with posts published by its commerce team. #ecommerce

Spanish-Language Media Giants Univision and Televisa to merge; Google among investors — www.latimes.com
The longtime partners, based in Miami and Mexico City, plan to finally tie the knot. Google and SoftBank Latin America Fund will become investors.

Bonnier launched a platform to provide diversity services to companies

www.mediapost.com

The launch is the result of a merger between Working Mother Media (WMM), Diversity Best Practices, Culture@Work + Working Mother Institute. Subha V. Barry, former President of WMM, will be CEO.

ESPN Readies NBA Basketball ‘BetCast’ for Fans of Sports Wagering — variety.com

As more states allow residents to take part in sports wagering, ESPN has come up with a new game presentation just for them.

A New Platform Brings Silicon Valley to Book Clubs — www.publishersweekly.com
Fable is a new platform for online book clubs that allows users to join a book club moderated by an expert, author, or influencer, or start their own club.

Vox Media to Buy Owner of Preet Bharara’s Podcast

www.wsj.com
Vox Media is acquiring Cafe Studios, publisher of a podcast hosted by the former Manhattan U.S. attorney, part of a bid to expand its growing audio business.

Luminary, NYT, Athletic veterans raise VC cash for new media startup

www.axios.com

Three digital media veterans are launching a new paid subscription media company with a multi-million dollar Series A funding round led by 40 North Media, a related investment business of Standard Industries, and private equity giant TPG Growth.

Alden Clashes With Billionaire Over Future of Tribune — and of Local News — www.wsj.com

If the deal is successful, Stewart Bainum Jr intends to invest in the Baltimore Sun, then give the paper to a nonprofit foundation. #newsbusiness

Germany’s Bild newspaper to launch television channel

apnews.com

Axel Springer’s Bild Newspaper Plans TV Channel — Germany’s biggest-selling daily newspaper plans to launch a television channel ahead of the country’s election in September

Media venture Air Mail outlines growth plans as it recreates print in the online era — going from newsletter to podcast to print

www.axios.com

Substack cofounders discuss $1 million local news plan — www.vox.com
Your local newspaper is dying. Can newsletters replace it?

Ingram Content Group Announces Agreement for Francisco Partners to Acquire VitalSource Technologies

www.businesswire.com

Reuters Puts Its Website Behind a Paywall

www.nytimes.com

Reuters, one of the largest news organizations in the world, will put its website behind a paywall after a redesign, it announced on Thursday. A subscription will cost $34.99 a month after a free preview period.

Reuters names Alessandra Galloni as its next editor-in-chief

www.reuters.com

Alessandra Galloni will be the next editor-in-chief of Reuters, the first woman to lead the news agency in its 170-year history.

On the heels of its successful Kidlit Against Anti-AAPI Racism Fundraiser, which raised more than $53,000 to fight anti-AAPI racism, Asian Authors Alliance has announced its second annual AAPI Book Month, in May — www.publishersweekly.com

RT @CynLeitichSmith “Asian Authors Alliance has announced its second annual AAPI Book Month. The slate of virtual events featuring Asian American and Pacific Islander children’s book creators will kick off in May….” @sarahcyung @PublishersWkly @diversebooks @asian_authors

From the Sidelines to the Spotlight: LGBTQ Books 2021 — www.publishersweekly.com
Publishers pass the mic to queer and trans authors whose work highlights their intersecting identities.

Decades After His Death, Richard Wright Has a New Book Out — The New York Times — www.nytimes.com
“The Man Who Lived Underground,” a novel publishers rejected in the 1940s, is about an innocent Black man forced to confess to the murder of a white couple.

$40,000 Swindle Puts Spotlight on Literary Prize Scams — www.nytimes.com
The organizers of at least five British awards received emails asking them to transfer prize money to a PayPal account. One of them paid out.

How have reading groups changed the theater-going experience during the pandemic? — www.nytimes.com

ICYMI HT @publishingtrend

Village Voice is Back

www.villagevoice.com

RT @mikeymusto The Village Voice is back. And I am back. Discussing the Oscars, which are back.

Resources & Opportunities

Mover & Shaker — The Bronx is Reading

www.thebronxisreading.com

RT @bronxisreading We need your help! We are launching the Mover & Shaker of the Year Award and we need your help in honoring a literary revolutionary within the Bronx community. #thebronxisreading #thebronx #moverandshaker

DVdebut Program — Call for Mentors

diversevoicesinc.org

RT @beth_phelan Our #DVdebut mentorship program needs mentor volunteers! Please apply if you’re a marginalized creator that’s already debuted (whether a while back or just a few months ago) &want to help marginalized debuting creators on their path! Especially in romance!

Call for pitches on diversity work for the June installment of Black & Asian Feminist Solidarities

twitter.com

MT @aaww Help us spread the word! Call for pitches on DIVERSITY WORK for the June installment of Black & Asian Feminist Solidarities, a collab with @aafcollective + @blkwomenradical on The Margins.

Hearst Creates Media Scholarships, Internships for Minority Students

www.tvtechnology.com
Endowment, created in partnership with Emma Bowen Foundation, is named after Jeana Stanley

Executive Director/Publisher (Administrative Executive Officer) Feminist Press

cuny.jobs

MT @jamiaw My friends at @FeministPress are looking for a new ED to lead its next chapter. If you love books + feminism, this is the job for you.

Free Webinar: Battling Deep Fakes and Misinformation — Media’s Role and Responsibility

us02web.zoom.us

With John Avlon (Sr Political Analyst, CNN), Sara Fischer (Media Reporter, Axios), David Kirkpatrick (Founder, Techonomy Media), Brian Karem (Author @ Free the Press & Sr White House Reporter @ Playboy), Aaron Kwittken (Founder/CEO, PRophet).

NYC COVID-19 Vaccine Finder

vaccinefinder.nyc.gov

HT @nycshotslots These sites are expanding walk-ins to 50+ New Yorkers. A companion can also get vaccinated without an appointment.