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Bron Maher

@bronmaher.bsky.social
1.5K followers 609 following 424 posts

Reporter at A Media Operator. Tips, chats and drinks proposals to bron@amediaoperator.com

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Reposted by Bron Maher
Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 28/09/2026
London's Waterloo Bridge faces closure within three years without urgent repairs, deepening concerns over the UK capital's crumbling river crossings. Read more: bloom.bg/4xRZaZ9 📷️: Jason Alden/Bloomberg
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It's easy, perhaps, to imagine that the days of open street homophobia in the UK are a thing of the past. And sure, things aren't as bad as they were even two decades ago, of course. But, as I find in a new piece for @thefence.bsky.social, abject anti-gay hate remains a familiar occurrence.
the-fence.com
Hate in Hampstead
Our LGBT dispatches have taken a sadder turn.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Scoop: Marina Hyde is leaving The Guardian.
amediaoperator.com
Top Guardian Columnist Marina Hyde to Leave Paper After 26 Years
One of The Guardian’s most popular columnists, Marina Hyde, is leaving after 26 years at the paper.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
New: Reach is working on launching bundled subscriptions. Since launching its first partial paywall on the MEN in December Reach has added them to another 18 sites. Bundled subs would let a reader buy discounted access to multiple brands.
amediaoperator.com
Months After Launching Subscriptions, Reach plc Wants to Launch Bundles
Reach plc is working on a way to sell bundled subscriptions to its multiple brands, months after launching its first wave of paywalls.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
JMG Media Limited, the company identified on the JOE Media website as its publisher, has gone into voluntary liquidation owing ~£3.7 million to creditors - including £213,383 to the group's CEO, John Quinlan. JOE's websites nonetheless continue to publish.
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Fascinating piece this - the answer is a (slight) corrective for boring trads like me:
economist.com
Does AI stop children from learning?
New data show the peril and promise of the technology
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Much to admire about The Guardian publishing its corrections publicly every day, but I particularly enjoy that the corrections extend to recipes
 A recipe for a summer spritz cocktail overstated the amount of elderflower liqueur by some margin: 35ml was the intended measure, not 235ml (The good mixer, 18 July, Feast, p15).
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Reposted by Bron Maher
dr. thrasher, an american writer in ex(archia)(xile) @thrasherxy.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
it was for @us.theguardian.com … for a civil liberties reporter job! does this comport with new york state human rights law?
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Peter Thiel is to receive the 2026 Axel Springer Award: www.axelspringer.com/en/ax-press-...
axelspringer.com
Peter Thiel to Receive the 2026 Axel Springer Award
Recognizing an entrepreneur, investor, and thought leader who has significantly shaped digital transformation
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
tidbit: FT CEO Jon Slade mentioned in an interview with FT Strategies that they had a team look into whether the brand "should be experimenting with membership." (fwiw FT says it was just investigatory - they're not actively planning a membership product at the moment)
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Job move news: New Statesman deputy editor Will Lloyd is leaving the mag to join the Financial Times as FT Weekend's senior features writer
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Axel Springer says it's completing its acquisition of The Telegraph today after getting all the necessary regulatory approvals. Editor Chris Evans said: "After three, difficult years without owners, we look forward to stoking up the engines and setting forth on a new voyage.”
axelspringer.com
Axel Springer Is Closing Acquisition of Telegraph Media Group
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Private Eye publisher Pressdram Limited has published its accounts for the year up to the end of September: - Revenue was just under £11m, up 2% year-on-year - Operating profit was £133,449, nearly double 2024's - Profit after tax was £308,739 vs a £74,230 loss the year before
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
New: The new owners of Scientific American magazine have asked the U.S. National Labor Relations Board to halt a unionisation election count due to go ahead tomorrow. It comes after Canadian publisher LabX Media Group bought the 180-year-old mag from Springer Nature, cutting 15 roles
A copy of Scientific American is seen held in someone's hand in front of a newsstand. It reads: The Unsolvable Problem - A journey into some of the strangest ideas in modern math and physics. 

(Picture: dennizn – stock.adobe.com)
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Asked about rumours Semafor has been tapping up reporters in Brussels, Ben Smith tells me: “We are always talking to great journalists all over the world, and I’ll be in Brussels next month chatting with people” - but says there’s “no plan or timeline for a European launch."
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Looks like that exec said something he wasn't meant to: YouTube have been in touch fully walking back the claim they're working on publisher paywall integration. They're not saying he was misquoted - only that "at the moment, there are no plans to launch a paywall integration with news publishers."
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Big news: YouTube is working on integrating its platform with publisher paywalls, according to its vice president for Europe - a move that could fundamentally reshape the news industry’s relationship to the traditionally free-to-air streamer www.amediaoperator.com/news/youtube...
amediaoperator.com
YouTube Exec Says Integration With Publisher Paywalls Coming ‘Very Soon’
stock.adobe.com YouTube is working on integrating its platform with publisher paywalls, a move that could fundamentally reshape the news industry’s
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
New: NYT publisher AG Sulzberger says the company has now spent more than $20 million in its lawsuit against OpenAI that began two and a half years ago.
amediaoperator.com
Sulzberger Says NYT has Spent $20 Million Fighting OpenAI’s ‘Brazen Theft’ of Property
AG Sulzberger said The New York Times has spent more than $20 million fighting OpenAI in a speech casting doubt on the viability of AI content licensing for publishers.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
It's a year since Tom McTague took over as editor of The New Statesman and it sounds as though things are going well: circulation is up around 10%, he told me, and peers at other outlets agreed the mag is doing more to set the news agenda. www.amediaoperator.com/news/the-new...
A picture of The New Statesman on some grass. The cover reads "What Britain Won't Face" and depicts Britannia, the personification of Britain, crouched on the beach with her head in the sand as a tidal wave approaches.
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Press Gazette @pressgazette.co.uk · 20/05/2026
Google has unveiled an AI-powered overhaul of Search that will see the end of the "ten blue links". Instead of returning a list of links, Search will centre around a reimagined “intelligent search box”, dropping users into AI-powered experiences techcrunch.com/2026/05/19/g...
techcrunch.com
Google Search as you know it is over | TechCrunch
Google is transforming Search from a list of links into an AI-powered experience filled with conversational answers, autonomous agents, and interactive interfaces — a shift that could further reduce…
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Christiane Amanpour: "Clearly I'm concerned" about what might be coming if CNN comes under ownership of the Ellisons. "I'm concerned based on what's happened [for example at] CBS. I mean, do I have to list what's happening there? Haemorrhaging viewers [and] probably money"
Christiane Amanpour on stage at the Sir Harry Evans Truth Tellers Summit in London in 2026
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Tom Cox @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
This continues to be a hugely expensive problem for me. And it's all down to a major lie at the heart of Substack's promise that writers on Substack can leave and take their subscriber list with them at any time. substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com
An Explanation (Which I Would Be Very Grateful If You Took The Time To Read)
What follows is a minor modern horror story.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
This is interesting: Press Gazette reports Sky News is launching its first paywalled product - a video-first app focused on defence coverage pressgazette.co.uk/paywalls/sky...
pressgazette.co.uk
Sky News moves into paid online content with planned launch of defence app
Sky News is launching a paywalled app specifically for defence and security content in summer 2026 as part of its "premium, video-first" plan
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Come for the discussion of Alphaville's strategic role within the FT's portfolio, stay for Lionel Barber repeatedly calling its audience nerds (lovingly)
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Axel Springer says it's received approval from DCMS to proceed with its acquisition of The Telegraph. The deal "remains subject to outstanding regulatory approvals in Ireland and Austria, with completion expected within calendar Q2 2026"
axelspringer.com
Axel Springer Receives UK Government Approval for Acquisition of Telegraph Media Group
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Nick Hilton @nickfthilton.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
It's my own fault for using ChatGPT as a search tool, but this really made me laugh. "...with an important nuance..." is sublime 🤌
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
I spoke to Politico co-founder Robert Allbritton about his plans to expand/rebrand his DC newsroom NOTUS in order to occupy the space ceded by The Washington Post. He's bullish on its business prospects. www.amediaoperator.com/news/robert-...
Allbritton described the expense as “significant, but it’s not huge. I did have somebody come up to me going: ‘Oh my God, you’re gonna lose all this money!’ And [I said]: ‘Yeah, I might lose like, a small, single-digit percentage from the proceeds of the sale of Politico.’”
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Mia Sato @miasato.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
this is completely insane: since when is it acceptable for a tech company to rewrite news outlets' headlines without their consent? especially at a time when audiences are sensitive to how stories are framed in headlines? (ie Israel/Palestine, the Trump admin, ICE) www.theverge.com/tech/896490/...
theverge.com
Google Search is now using AI to replace headlines
Let us know if you see more.
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 20/03/2026
Mistral CEO: AI companies should pay a content levy in Europe ft.trib.al/PVj0GUo
ft.trib.al
Mistral CEO: AI companies should pay a content levy in Europe
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
After a long time saying I would get round to it, a couple of weeks ago I set up an Instagram account dedicated to discarded BuzzBallz. I'm pleased with the result, not least because my friends have taken it up and are now constantly sending me pictures of BuzzBallz www.instagram.com/ballzinnatur...
a red buzzball is seen from ground level next to a bike cart and a treea yellow buzzball is seen perched on the ledge of a white walla red buzzball is seen from directly above amid tree litter (and actual litter)a clear buzzball is seen from above nestled amid a sort of rock garden
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
If you know any more about what's going on at The Observer, I'd love to hear from you. More broadly, this is a good opportunity to remind everyone that a) I'm not at Press Gazette anymore but b) I'm still very much on the media beat and please god keep sending me tips
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
New: The Observer has opened a voluntary redundancy round. It comes nearly a year after the paper transferred from The Guardian's ownership to that of Tortoise Media. Unlike the last VR round, pre-transfer, this one is also open to staff who were originally at Tortoise.
amediaoperator.com
The Observer Opens Voluntary Redundancy Round
The Observer has opened a voluntary redundancy round nearly a year after it was acquired by Tortoise Media from The Guardian.
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Reposted by Bron Maher
George Greenwood @georgegreenwood.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Make no mistake that any weakening of FOI is an attack on all of our civil liberties, and would be a clear example of democratic backsliding. It is clear that the government is now seriously considering an attack on your right to know. www.ft.com/content/2c34...
ft.com
UK considers FOI clampdown as requests soar
Moves to tighten system likely to be met with resistance from campaigners
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Lizzie Dearden @lizziedearden.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
This sounds incredibly basic but is serious progress, and the result of years of hard campaigning by the Crime Reporters' Association and in particular our chair Rebecca Camber I hope the new guidelines can give officers the ability and confidence to answer common sense questions on the ground...
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Jim Waterson @jim.londoncentric.media · 18/03/2026
For years I’ve said if you want a revolution in Britain, make the land registry free to access. Imagine if people’s house price/land holdings came up when you google their name. (I’d be amazed if that’s what the government’s proposing… but you never know.) www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Government to lift paywall from large parts of the Land Registry
Exclusive: finding out who owns land will become simpler under plans to make the best use of green spaces and hit net zero targets
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
continually deluded by the nice weather into believing I should go for post-work drinks and finding my fantasy thwarted by the sun still setting before 6
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
*while
A screenshot of the Grammarly page for its "Expert Review" feature, with copy that reads: "AI that supports you without replacing you.
With Grammarly, how and when you use AI is always up to you. Our AI agents work only when you engage them, and you’re always in charge of changes, so your voice and ideas remain at the center of your work—and you continue to grow as a writer."
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Jack @jackinpogform.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
The meme of three white men at a bar/pub table with pints only the men have various bugs for faces

'Here comes trouble' says a long horned beetle
'Looks like they'll let anyone in here' - a fly
'There he is' - a green cricket
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Reposted by Bron Maher
The Fence @thefence.bsky.social · 23/02/2026
Time to re-up @bronmaher.bsky.social's dispatch from south London. the-fence.com/the-tina-tri...
the-fence.com
The Tina Triangle
The Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Anoosh Chakelian @anooshc.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
My column in this week's @newstatesman1913.bsky.social, on bad data used in bad faith. FOI-ing the stats myself, I didn't find a great deal of difference in sex offending rates: 5 per 10,000 Afghan men, 7 per 10,000 UK men:
newstatesman.com
The truth about immigrants and sex crime
Corrosive innuendo about asylum seekers is helping no one
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
The NYT added another slab of subscribers last quarter, but the market ain't so thrilled: its share price was down 17% at one point this morning, and is still down around 8% at time of writing.
A Google Finance share price graphic showing the NYT's price down 8% versus last night's market close. It was down as low as 17% right at the start of the day.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
wonderful banner ad placement
The City AM article about the London Stock Exchange Group axing FT subscriptions appears completely surrounded by website banner ads for the FT itself, featuring the line: "For the why: FT"
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Matthew Eadie @mattheweadie.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
👀
A tweet from Chicago Tribune reporter Olivia Olander:

"I'm sitting in on a Tribune editorial board endorsement meeting for the 9th district where a representative for Kat Abughazaleh just read a statement saying the board promoted 'reactionary' ideas and undermines the credibility of the newsroom. The representative then walked out."
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
shout out to the coop radio dj playing tom's diner (dna mix) on this cold thursday evening..... banger of bangers
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
big news! if formally enacted this would be binding, and non-compliance on google’s part could result in a fine up to 10% of annual global revenue (or at least, see the gov *attempt* to levy such a fine)
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Reposted by Bron Maher
LVL?KEN 💀🕘 @ricesnot.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
The Surprising Physics behind Mommy
Baby YouTube thumbnail depicting a vanishing mommy. Baby will explain how peekaboo works
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Dave Earley @earleyedition.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
Australia’s national broadcaster, the ABC, has exited (paused) its account on Threads. To be fair, they haven’t posted anything on Threads since July last year, and it comes after they shut all but four of their X/Twitter accounts in August 2023. The ABC doesn’t have an official presence on Bluesky
Update: We're pressing pause on our Threads account for now as we focus our efforts on other platforms.

If you want to stay across the latest news, alerts and live coverage, the ABC News app is the best way to make sure you’re not missing anything: https://www.abc.net.au/news/app
 
Thanks for joining us on Threads up to now. You can still follow us over on Instagram at abcnews_au: https://www.instagram.com/abcnews_au/
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sam @samthielman.com · 22/01/2026
I just thought everyone should see this
Dr Kareem Carr
man: i wish to publish
@kareem_carr
Jan 21
reviewer 2: your paper is no good
man: i'll do anything to improve
reviewer 2: it's simple. you must read the work of the great scientist Pagliarini
man: *bursts into tears* but i am Pagliarini
Andre Pagliarini
@apagliar
Jan 21
a first: in rejecting an article I submitted to a journal, reviewer 2 noted I failed to engage the work of one Andre Pagliarini
Jan 21, 2026 • 3:47 PM UTC
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Reposted by Bron Maher
Press Gazette @pressgazette.co.uk · 20/01/2026
Nandy ‘minded to’ seek competition probe into DMGT’s Telegraph takeover But Culture Secretary will not intervene to look at any foreign state influence in the deal pressgazette.co.uk/news/nandy-m...
pressgazette.co.uk
Nandy 'minded to' seek competition probe into DMGT's Telegraph takeover
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has said she is "minded to" intervene in Daily Mail owner DMGT's takeover of The Telegraph.
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Bron Maher @bronmaher.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
! "The UK’s Independent Media is in advanced talks to take over the digital and commercial operations of lossmaking London newspaper The Standard... Staff were told that they would be offered a voluntary redundancy scheme alongside a formal consultation process"
ft.com
Independent to take over operations of London’s Standard newspaper
Media group co-owned by Evgeny Lebedev plans to retain print product and ‘future-proof’ the business
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