Business of Media
Reports Elon Musk looking for new Twitter CEO after social media site users vote for him to go
Elon Musk appears to have moved the goalposts at Twitter after an online poll he set up to see if he should remain as CEO, the results of which he said he would abide by, resulted in more than 57 per cent of people saying he should step down as head of the social media site, reports News Corp.
Now, Musk has said he’ll only allow paying Twitter Blue subscribers to vote in future polls about how his $66 billion social media giant is run.
Twitter Blue subscribers, who pay up to $19 a month for little more than a blue tick by their name, could be more supportive of Musk.
Nonetheless, media reports have suggested that Musk is indeed looking for a new CEO to the tech firm which has gone through a turbulent time since the Tesla head begrudgingly bought it in October.
Jeremy Clarkson column on Meghan breaks watchdog’s complaints record
Jeremy Clarkson’s Sun newspaper column, in which he said he “hated” the Duchess of Sussex, has become the Independent Press Standards Organisation’s most complained about article, the regulator has said, reports The Guardian’s Jessica Elgot.
Ipso said the piece, which was removed from the Sun’s website on Monday at Clarkson’s request, had received more than 17,500 complaints as of 9am on Tuesday.
“We will follow our usual processes to examine the complaints we have received. This will take longer than usual because of the volume of complaints,” an Ipso spokesperson told the PA Media news agency.
The number surpassed the total number of complaints the media regulator received in 2021, 14,355.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard settle defamation claims
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard have finally settled their defamation claims against each other, ending their years-long battle in the courts, reports News Corp.
The former couple agreed to end their legal feud, with Heard’s insurance company paying Depp $1 million ($1.5 million AUD) to end the case. Heard, however, will be free to speak about the case and she has not accepted guilt as part of the agreement.
The pair have been engaged in a courtroom battle for the last six years over Heard’s claims that she was a victim of domestic violence during their marriage.
Heard was ordered to pay Depp $US10 million ($A14 million) in compensatory damages and $US5 million ($A7m) in punitive damages earlier this year after a jury decided she “acted with actual malice”. The latter penalty was reduced to $US350,000 ($A487,000).
Depp was ordered to pay Heard $US2m ($A2.78m) in compensation after she countersued for defamation.
Harvey Weinstein found guilty of rape and sexual assault in Los Angeles trial
A Los Angeles jury has found Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape and sexual assault, five years after dozens of women spoke out against the Hollywood producer and galvanized the #MeToo movement, reports The Guardian’s Lois Beckett
After more than nine days of deliberation, the jury convicted Weinstein of three counts of rape and sexual assault against one woman, a European model and actor who testified anonymously as “Jane Doe 1”, while remaining divided on three other charges of rape and sexual assault by two other accusers, including Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California’s governor. Weinstein was also acquitted of a sexual battery allegation made by a fourth woman.
News Brands
Vice Media set to miss revenue projection by over $100 million amid stalled sale talks
Vice Media is expecting to miss a 2022 revenue goal by more than $100 million (USD), according to people familiar with the situation, a blow for the new-media company as it pursues a sale, report The Wall Street Journal’s Alexandra Bruell and Jessica Toonkel.
The company presented a revenue target of over $700 million (USD) at an off-site with senior employees earlier this year, one of the people said. The expected shortfall would leave Vice with around $600 million (USD) in revenue for the year, roughly flat compared with 2021, the people said.
The anticipated revenue miss comes as the company has been in talks for months to sell itself to Greek broadcaster Antenna Group. The two companies are partners on Vice’s push into international news.
Vice has sought a valuation of around $1.5 billion (USD), according to people familiar with the sale process. The expected 2022 revenue miss could make it harder for the company to fetch that price.
Sport
Life ban for two, security review after derby pitch invasion
Football Australia has issued the first two of what it expects to be many life bans on spectators following a pitch invasion and riot that forced the abandonment of the A-League’s Melbourne derby last Saturday and brought worldwide notoriety to Australian soccer, report The Sydney Morning Herald’s Marnie Vinall and Greg Baum.
A 23-year-old Craigieburn man and a 19-year-old from Meadow Heights have been barred from all matches and from registering as participants.
Football Australia has found the 23-year-old guilty of entering the field and “using an item (bucket) with the intent to cause damage or harm”. Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover had to be hospitalised after he was struck on the head with a bucket filled with sand.
The 19-year-old was found guilty by Football Australia of entering the field and “engaging in conduct that did or was likely to cause harm or endanger others”. Both have also been hit with a range of charges by Victoria Police.
Television
Austen & Claudia win Love Island 2022
Reality love birds Austen & Claudia have won Love Island Australia 2022, reports TV Tonight’s David Knox.
The pair won the public vote over grand finalist couples Mitchell & Phoebe and Callum & Madeline.
In the series format they were each given an egg – one containing $50,000 and nothing in the other. Claudia’s egg had the $50,000, meaning she had the choice to either split the money with Austen or take it all for herself, proving whether she was in it for love or money. She chose to share.