Scoop: Facebook aiming to launch News for Watch this summer
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Facebook is getting ready to launch a news section for its Watch platform and it's testing different video partnerships with roughly 10 publishers, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: This would be the first standalone news product for national news in Watch. The tech company previously launched several products, like Instant Articles and Facebook Live, with an array of publishers which included but was not limited to news companies.
Facebook is in touch with both legacy and digital-first news publishers to test a daily video feature that would run for at least a year, according to multiple sources familiar with the effort.
The content needs to be a minimum of three minutes.
Facebook plans on launching the feature this summer and testing what works best.
Sources say Facebook is working strategically with publishers to understand budget needs and monetization opportunities on the platform.
The big picture: Facebook is trying to create more meaningful engagement on its platform. While executives have said they don’t know exactly how they will measure meaningful engagement through comments and shares, creating a news product that’s native to the platform and includes content from vetted publishers will hopefully drive less passive engagement and curb the spread of misinformation on its platform.
“Timely news video is the latest step in our strategy to make targeted investments in new types of programming on Facebook Watch... As part of our broader effort to support quality news on Facebook, we plan to meet with a wide-range of potential partners to develop, learn and innovate on news programming tailored to succeed in a social environment. Our early conversations have been encouraging, and we're excited about the possibilities ahead.”
— Campbell Brown, Head of News Partnerships for Facebook, in a statement to Axios responding to a request for comment
The backstory: 2017 was a year of reckoning for Facebook, from both a fake news and publisher relations perspective. The company has since taken steps to combat the spread of misinformation on its platform and to improve its relationship with publishers, including being more transparent and collaborative around product testing.
Our thought bubble: Creating a standalone destination for news is an opportunity to guide readers to credible sources its platform, especially during breaking news, when misinformation tends to spread faster. It also gives the company a chance to work more strategically with publishers on achieving their branding and monetization goals.
Mike Pompeo's secret visit to Pyongyang is the latest in a series of dramatic events in the run-up to the summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un. It’s almost certainly not the last.
The big picture: "Part of this is normal, but we've got a wacky situation here," says Jim Walsh, an international security expert at MIT who has taken part in previous negotiations with North Korea. When it comes time to present a "final package," he adds, "surprises won't fly."
Surprise #1: Trump accepts Kim’s invitation
Trump stunned just about everyone on March 8 with his immediate acceptance of Kim's invitation to meet.
Between the lines: The news shocked the Japanese, as did the fact that South Korean officials announced the news from the White House.
Surprise #2: Kim rolls into Beijing
The Chinese had also been surprised by the news. 17 days later, an armored train arrived in Beijing and, after it departed, the Chinese confirmed that Kim Jong-un had been on board.
Between the lines: The Trump administration appeared "caught off guard" by Kim’s visit to Beijing, "though not terribly surprised by the outcome,” Chris Johnson, a former top CIA China analyst now at CSIS tells Axios. Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Chinese officials briefed the White House — after the visit.
Surprise #3: CIA chief heads to PyongyangThe Washington Post reported Tuesday that the CIA Director and Secretary of State-designate was dispatched to Pyongyang on Easter weekend to meet with Kim. The news was leaked to bolster Pompeo’s standing ahead of his confirmation battle, Politico reports and Axios’ Jonathan Swan has confirmed.
Johnson says Pompeo’s visit was likely motivated by the need "to verify at a very high level that denuclearization was on the table.”
According to Walsh, “each side would have gotten some idea of what the other side wants,” without tipping their hands on negotiations.
Between the lines:
“It’s not the first time the U.S. has done this,” says Yuki Tatsumi, a former Japanese diplomat now at the Stimson Center, noting that Henry Kissinger, for example, made secret trips to China during the Nixon administration.
This time was different, though, as most steps in this process have been. “You can have a secret meeting, but if it’s a secret meeting you don’t talk about it afterwards,” Walsh says.
The White House and State Department wouldn’t say whether there was any coordination with Tokyo or Seoul ahead of Pompeo’s trip. The news certainly didn’t reach some diplomats in D.C., who were sent scrambling by the news.
If there was any coordination, Tatsumi says, it was probably with South Korean intelligence. As for the Chinese, Johnson says, “I would highly doubt they were consulted, but I'm sure they were informed," by the North Koreans, probably shortly before Pompeo’s arrival.
