For the Record

USAGM Political Appointees Investigated Alleged Bias at Voice of America:

Two political appointees at the U.S. Agency for Global Media allegedly investigated Voice of America White House Bureau Chief Steve Herman "to make the case he was biased against President Trump," David Folkenflik of NPR reported Sunday. By compiling a report "based on their conclusions from Herman's social media postings," the officials "appear to have violated laws and regulations intended to protect the federally funded news outlet from political interference or influence." Folkenflik added that it is not clear if Voice of America Director Elez Biberaj has read or acted upon the report.

Sports Illustrated Returns to Profitability:

Sports Illustrated "is profitable and its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) has more than doubled" since its May 2019 acquisition by Authentic Brands, Kayleigh Barber of Digiday reported Thursday. Over the past year, Authentic Brands has signed 15 licensing agreements with various vendors, including a photography reprint business and a ticket sales business for meet-and-greets with athletes. The company intends to expand into esports and sports betting endeavors n the near future. "The everyday conversations around sports now includes gambling and esports, things that weren’t in the conversation 10 years ago," said Executive Vice President Marc Rosen.

Facebook Foregrounds Groups at Conference:

Facebook "outlined several updates, including changes that make it easier for people to find new groups and content from groups" at its first virtual group administrator conference Thursday, according to Kaya Yurieff of CNN. In the coming months, the Related Discussions feature will enable non-members to participate in discussions contingent on administrator approval. The platform "wouldn't explicitly say if political posts from public groups would be recommended, but said topics would include entertainment, lifestyle, sports, consumer and human interest news, major cultural moments and holidays."

Google Unveils News Licensing Program:

Google "will spend $1 billion over the next three years paying publishers for their news" to "license publishers’ content for a new feature in Google News called Google News Showcase," Joshua Benton of NiemanLab reported Thursday. Benton added that the publishers (centered in Germany, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, the U.K. and Australia) are located in countries where Google has faced "antitrust efforts or other attempts to rein in its market power."

Axios Attains Profitability, Expands Into Local News:

Axios has taken in $58 million in revenue in 2020 (largely due to the "success of its sponsored-newsletter business") and is "on target with its prepandemic projections" of profitability, according to Lukas I. Alpert of The Wall Street Journal. Additionally, the news organization "plans to establish two-person newsletter teams in several local markets" under the imprimatur of Axios Local, including Minneapolis, Denver, Tampa and Des Moines. "This is a big bet — a bet that you can hook local readers on a daily basis with a morning newsletter and build up from there," said CEO Jim VandeHei, a former member of the Pulitzer Prize Board. "It's a risk worth taking because if we are right, it’s superscalable and part of a solution to the high-stakes local news puzzle."

Essence Furloughs Staff:

Essence magazine will furlough some of its staff for as long as six months "due to revenue losses as a result of the coronavirus pandemic" and will pay salaries only through the end of the week, Maxwell Tani of The Daily Beast reported Wednesday. In a statement, the magazine noted that it would continue to cover medical benefits premiums through the duration of the furloughs.

Whistleblowers Allege Misconduct at USAGM:

Six officials at the U.S. Agency for Global Media "have filed a whistleblower complaint with the State Department’s inspector general and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, alleging that they were retaliated against for raising concerns about the new political leadership installed earlier this year by President Donald Trump," Daniel Lippman of Politico reported Wednesday. In a 32-page complaint, the officials allege that CEO Michael Pack or an aide "ordered a senior USAGM official to conduct research on the voting history of at least one employee at the media agency — a violation of laws protecting civil servants from undue political influence or reprisal," while a spending freeze allegedly put Hong Kong-based employees of the agency in danger. "The allegations listed in the complaint are without merit and completely false," the agency said in a statement. "All actions taken by the U.S. Agency for Global Media are in accordance with the law."

Start-Ups Offer Hope for Local News:

Although they have embraced different funding models, Tennessee's The Daily Memphian and the Santa Cruz, Calif.-based Lookout Local both embody the new wave of local media, Rick Edmonds of Poynter reported Tuesday. While the former publication has positioned itself as a nonprofit alternative to the struggling Commercial Appeal, it has depended on "less than fully transparent" financing throughout its two-year history despite attracting nearly 14,000 paid subscribers. Lookout, which will launch in mid-November, has been established as a public benefit corporation and intends to offer a "replicable model for digital-only news startups" in other communities. "Every aspect of our industry is risky right now, and the benefits of being part of something that can grow and prosper far outweigh the risk of trying something new," said former Chicago Sun-Times editor Paul Fusco, who will serve as Lookout's executive editor.

Wilson Leaves Dallas Morning News:

Mike Wilson "is stepping down as editor of The Dallas Morning News, ending a nearly six-year run where he guided the newsroom through a series of history-making news events," Business Editor Paul O'Donnell reported Tuesday. A past Pulitzer juror and the former managing editor of FiveThirtyEight, Wilson became the first external candidate in 35 years to ascend to the position in 2015. Managing Editor Keith Campbell "will take over newsroom leadership effective immediately" and Editor of Editorials Brendan Miniter will assume leadership of the editorial board as Publisher Grant Moise "decides on next steps." 

Verizon To Sell HuffPost:

Verizon "has been quietly scrambling to unload HuffPost as it grapples with continued losses" at the news site, Alexandra Steigrad of the New York Post reported Tuesday. The telecommunications conglomerate has allegedly "pitched the property to prospective buyers including Thrillist-owner Group Nine Media, Rolling Stone publisher Penske Media Corp., Bustle Digital Media and J2 Global," although all of the outlets have declined to comment on the matter. The site is expected to bring in $40 million in revenue this year (a decline of up to $10 million due to the COVID-19 pandemic) against as much as $70 million in expenses.