Good morning and welcome to your daily Press Gazette media briefing on Wednesday, 12 March.

I can picture the scene next to a water cooler at Google's Mountain View HQ: “Brad, are we the baddies?”

It is certainly starting to look like Google is going from frenemy to enemy of the news industry.

While other AI companies have sought to strike deals with publishers over use of their content, Google has driven a freight train through copyright. And it has now launched an entirely AI-driven version of its search engine which seems to provide very little incentive for readers to click on publisher sources.

As if all this wasn't bad enough, Google is holding a gun to the heads of publishers by saying it will remove them from search if they block use of their content in Google's AI summaries.

Writing for Press Gazette David Buttle explains why what Google is doing is so wrong and provides two simple remedies which would make the tech giant's use of AI fairer for publishers.

Today we also have the latest top 50 rankings of news websites in the world and United States, which show traffic slipping across the board in February.

We have the latest from the High Court where The Observer has apologised and offered "substantial damages" after a sloppy mistake in a column libelled Spectator associate editor Douglas Murray.

And actor Noel Clarke has taken the stand for a third day in his £10m libel battle against The Guardian over an investigation into his sexual behaviour which he says destroyed his career.

On Press Gazette

Google AI Mode. Picture: Google

With launch of AI Mode Google threatens to bleed news media dry

“The events of the last year have irredeemably changed the way we should look at Google.”

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Top 50 news websites in the world: The Hill and AP saw largest growth in February

The majority of the top English-language news sites in the world saw visits fall in February 2025, with just six recording web traffic higher than in January.

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Top 50 news websites in the US: Traffic falls in month following inauguration

Two publications increased their visits by 10% or more month-on-month: political news site The Hill and The Independent. The Gateway Pundit, a website that promoted false claims the 2020 US presidential election was stolen, was not far behind, rising 9% month-on-month.

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Douglas Murray wins ‘substantial’ damages after Observer column error

An Observer writer inaccurately claimed comments made by Murray in 2023 had referred to the 2024 UK summer riots.

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Noel Clarke claims woman who says he asked her for sex is a ‘fantasist’

“On my kids, that is not what happened at our dinner, and she is a fantasist because that is what she does. She is into women’s rights, which I do not knock, I used to be as well.”

Read more

News in brief

Substack says it has surpassed five million paid subscriptions across its platform, up from four million four months ago and three million a year ago. (The Hollywood Reporter)

Organisations including the Center for Journalism and Liberty and Committee to Protect Journalists have signed a letter to FCC chair Brendan Carr expressing alarm at "selective enforcement that could undermine a free press as well as the agency’s credibility". (Public Knowledge)

The BBC is "preparing to argue" that the government ought to take on the full costs of funding the World Service in order to counter Russian and Chinese state media pushes worldwide, according to The Guardian.

Reader-owned magazine New Internationalist says it is half way to its goal of crowdfunding £50,000 to cover "the global rise of the far right", attracting supporters including actor Emma Thompson. (Crowdfunder)

Also on Press Gazette:

• FT chief commercial officer Jon Slade named next CEO

• Biggest local news sites: Surrey Live grows audience 300% in a year

• Regional newspaper ABCs: No UK daily now has print circulation of 20,000 or more

• Noel Clarke gives evidence in Guardian libel trial: Publisher ‘smashed my life’

• ‘Don’t worry about page views’: Newsquest Scotland tops 40,000 online subscriptions

• Top 50 magazines in the US: The Atlantic is fastest growing title in second half of 2024

• Noel Clarke claims Guardian played ‘judge, jury and executioner’ as libel trial opens

• ‘AI time dividend’ fuels booming income from face-to-face events for Informa