Mediagazer

Emma Roth / The Verge:

Google adds a toggle in Gemini and Flow to remove visible watermarks from AI-generated images, videos, and music; SynthID watermarks and C2PA metadata remain — Google will still embed invisible SynthID and C2PA watermarks into AI-generated images, videos, and music.

Todd Spangler / Variety:

CBS News Chief Correspondent Matt Gutman is accused of harassment in a wrongful-termination lawsuit filed against ABC by one of his former coworkers at ABC News — Gutman was named in a lawsuit filed by Samira Said, who worked as a field producer for ABC News in its Los Angeles bureau from May 2021 until March 2025.

Discussion: Deadline, The Wrap, Us Weekly, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter, Daily Mail, CBS News, TMZ.com, The Sun, Breitbart, Fox News, The Daily Wire, RADAR and TV Insider

Jason Douglas / Wall Street Journal:

A profile of Sony CEO Hiroki Totoki, who aims to transform the company into a business focused on music, movies, video games, and the tech that underpins them — The company built its empire on electronics. CEO Hiroki Totoki says its future is entertainment

Discussion: Digital Trends, more at Techmeme »

Josh Gerstein / Politico:

The BBC is seeking to subpoena Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner in the defamation lawsuit the president is pressing against the broadcaster — The BBC is seeking to subpoena President Donald Trump's son Donald Trump Jr., his daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner …

CNBC:

Q&A with Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro: he's not interested in spinoffs of ESPN or ABC and says Disney will stand up for ABC's journalistic integrity against the FCC — Following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro on CNBC's “Squawk on the Street” (M-F, 9AM-12PM ET) today, Friday, August 14.

Discussion: Variety, TV Insider, Wall Street Journal, Deadline, Awful Announcing, Breitbart, The Wrap, Quartz, CNBC and Business Insider

Max Tani / Semafor:

An interview with Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl on the Suno deal, leverage over streaming platforms, Netflix's lost opportunity in music, and more — The Scene — Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl joins Mixed Signals — with Semafor business editor Liz Hoffman filling in for Ben …

Sophie Culpepper / Nieman Lab:

Chicago Public Media and New_ Public partner to launch chicago.com, which will host online communities for Chicago neighborhoods, starting in the fall — If a news outlet announces a website launch, you might think it's safe to assume it's a news website that's launching.

Discussion: @wearenew_public …, Don Marti, @roundabout.town, @newpublic.org, Ben Werdmuller and Chicago Sun Times

Steven Kurutz / New York Times:

A look at the long road from publication through Hollywood limbo to upcoming movie release for Ian Frazier's 1990 New Yorker humor piece “Coyote vs. Acme” — Ian Frazier, who has written for The New Yorker since the 1970s, in Montclair, N.J.Bryan Anselm for The New York Times

Discussion: @rwmead.bsky.social, @rnrkd.bsky.social, @harrymccracken.com, Hollywood in Toto, ScreenRant, Associated Press, The Guardian and Comic Book

Katie Kilkenny / The Hollywood Reporter:

California capped business tax credits at $5M/year in June and didn't exempt Hollywood, which is trying to fix the issue before the legislature ends August 31 — A new bill, signed into law on June 29, could persuade film and TV projects to take their business elsewhere.

Discussion: Variety

Dade Hayes / Deadline:

ABC and NBC plan to air a combined 90 NBA games in the 2026-2027 season, a 14% increase over last season, continuing the shift away from comedies and dramas — ABC and NBC will combine to air 90 NBA games during the 2026-27 season, a 14% increase over the broadcast networks' total of 79 in the prior season.

Discussion: The Hollywood Reporter, @tvgrimreaper, @alexweprin, Cord Cutters News, Awful Announcing, Sports Business Journal, Sports Media Watch, ESPN Press Room and Associated Press

Bryan P. Sears / Maryland Matters:

A Maryland court strikes down a state tax on some digital ads as a violation of the Internet Tax Freedom Act; Apple, Google, and Peacock TV challenged the tax — State court says first-of-its-kind tax violates federal Internet Tax Freedom Act — A first-of-its-kind state tax on some digital ads …

Discussion: Michael Cassidy on LinkedIn, Associated Press, WBFF-TV, Tax Foundation, NTU, The Banner, NetChoice, Bloomberg Law, Bloomberg Tax, Bloomberg Law and MLex

Max Tani / @maxwelltani:

New York Magazine says it will stop publishing Ross Barkan's column because his work did not live up to its standards and updates 67 of his columns in archives — Ross Barkan is no longer writing for New York Mag, per a statement. In a statement, the magazine says Barkan “did not adhere to our editorial standards,” cites 67 columns that did not have proper attribution.

Discussion: The Wrap, @maxwelltani, The Daily Wire, Fox News, @drewharwell, New York Post and @ndhapple.bsky.social