Ban All Media Except Paramount?

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Article in The Wrap by Kim Murphy, 9/19/26

Headline: “Elizabeth Warren Blasts Paramount Merger Settlement Talks: ‘Massive Mistake to Cave’”

Subhead: “The senator cites CNN’s ban from the White House in warning that the merger could create a ‘Trump-controlled media conglomerate'”

“Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) issued a warning Saturday that it would be a ‘massive mistake to cave’ on 12 states’ lawsuit against Paramount Skydance’s pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Warren’s statement comes amid reports that California Attorney General Rob Bonta is in advanced talks on a potential settlement with the company, which would remove the only remaining regulatory hurdle impending the transaction. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/public-policy-legal/elizabeth-warren-paramount-merger-settlement-massive-mistake/

Comcast Censoring Musk Film?

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Article in Common Dreams by Brad Reed

Headline: “Will Universal Studios, Owned by Comcast, Decide to Withhold Elon Musk Documentary?”

Subhead: “’Have I mentioned lately that oligarch-owned media consolidation is bad?’ said one critic.”

“Filmmaker Alex Gibney’s scathing four-hour documentary about SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has received rave reviews since its debut at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month, but it could soon be without an international distributor.

“According to a Wednesday report from The Hollywood Reporter, Comcast-owned Universal Pictures, which holds distribution rights to the film outside the North American market, is getting ‘cold feet’ about releasing it. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/tag/elon-musk

Streaming Killing Public Media?

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Article in The Guardian by Mark Sweney, 9/19/26

Headline:  “‘A losing battle’: will UK public service broadcasters survive amid US onslaught?”

Subhead:  “Jobs and programme budgets in firing line at BBC, Channel 4 and ITV as they are outgunned by YouTube and Netflix“

“‘I wouldn’t be surprised if the BBC or Channel 4 disappeared,’ says one of the thousands of TV staff at risk of redundancy, as British broadcasters face what has rapidly become a fight for survival against US digital rivals.

“’My generation grew up with Netflix and YouTube … Honestly, I feel like it is a losing battle.’

“Over the course of the summer the crisis facing the UK’s biggest public service broadcasters (PSBs) – the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV – has reached fever pitch amid announcements of deep job cuts and talk of business models unfit to face up to the deep-pocketed streamers. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/sep/19/uk-public-service-broadcasters-us-bbc-channel-4-itv-netflix-disney-amazon

Mediasphere Erupts Over Purge!

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Article in Common Dreams by Stephen Prager, 9/18/26

Headline: “‘Straight Out of the Authoritarian Playbook’: Trump Bans CNN, MSNOW, and Politico From White House”

Subhead: “One press freedom advocate said it was “difficult to imagine a more blatant violation of the First Amendment.”

“Donald Trump announced in a Friday afternoon tirade that he would ban CNN, MSNOW (formerly MSNBC), and Politico from the White House. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-bans-news-networks

Coverage on this issue from some other sources:

Status News:  https://www.status.news/p/trump-press-ban-cnn-ms-now-politico

Axios:  https://www.axios.com/2026/09/18/trump-ban-cnn-ms-now-politico-white-house

AP News:  https://apnews.com/article/trump-cnn-msnow-politico-media-bans-bb675679fb10738a51bef90bde6c525a

Reuters:  https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-bans-media-outlets-cnn-msnow-politico-white-house-2026-09-18/

The Hill:  https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/6098639-trump-bans-cnn-msnow-politico-white-house/

AI and McClatchy

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Riddhi Setty, 9/17/26

Headline: “McClatchy’s Post-Layoff Future”

Subhead:   “AI is clearly part of the plan moving forward,” Ariane Lange, an investigative reporter at the Sacramento Bee, said. “It’s been part of the plan for quite some time.”

“Over the summer, journalists at McClatchy battled with management over the company’s plans to use artificial intelligence—and union members, organized in several regional guilds, largely seemed to be making headway. In July, newspapers in Washington State and Idaho ratified a union contract with significant AI provisions, including ones preventing the company from using AI to replace staff, using AI to impersonate journalists, or disciplining members for a chatbot’s mistakes. . .”

Then, last week, McClatchy laid off more than ninety unionized media workers across seventeen publications. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/analysis/mcclatchys-post-layoff-future-artificial-intelligence-ai-labor-union.php

Rt. Media – Nothing to See Here!

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Article in Media Matters by Allison Fisher, 9/17/26

Headline: “Gas and diesel prices are soaring. Right-wing media figures promised that wouldn’t happen.”

Subhead: “Right-wing media knew that soaring gas prices would be trouble for the midterms — and assured their audiences repeatedly that they’d come back down”

“Since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s war with Iran, right-wing media have attempted to downplay, dismiss, and deflect from the resulting pain at the pump, including by repeatedly claiming that elevated prices would be temporary. Some right-wing media personalities have even gone so far as to predict exactly when prices would fall back to prewar levels or to speculate about precisely what deadlines prices would need to drop by in order for the Trump administration and Republican Party to avoid suffering severe political fallout. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/gas-and-diesel-prices-are-soaring-right-wing-media-figures-promised-wouldnt

Spiteful Media Exit?

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Article in The Wrap by Lucas Manfredi, 9/16/26

Headline:  “Paramount Preps California Exit Amid State AGs’ Warner Bros. Merger Battle”

Subhead:  “The David Ellison-led media giant has informed AG Rob Bonta and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ offices of the plans”

“Paramount has informed the offices of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Attorney General Rob Bonta that it is preparing to leave the state amid a legal battle over its $110 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery.

“A Paramount spokesperson had no comment when asked about the plans, while a spokesperson for Bass told TheWrap she is ‘focused on protecting and fighting for jobs in L.A., including critical jobs in the entertainment industry that have been a vital part of Los Angeles’ economy.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/business/paramount-david-ellison-california-exit/

Local News, New Flight Path

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Article in Poynter 9/16/26,by Stephanie Edgerly and Tim Franklin

Headline:  “Local news audiences aren’t disappearing, but their habits are changing fast”

Subhead:  “A three-year Medill survey found declining TV and radio use, growing reliance on smartphones and creators, and deep skepticism about AI in news”

“In 2024, the Medill Local News Initiative at Northwestern University conducted its first in-depth survey of Chicago-area news consumers to understand how smartphones and social media were remaking the relationship between audiences and local news. . .”

“This article was originally published by Northwestern University’s Medill Local News Initiative. . .”

Read the full  article at:

https://www.poynter.org/business-work/2026/medill-survey-local-news-consumption-2026/

Some Citizens Think Press Control OK?

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Article in Poynter by Jon Greenberg, 9/15/26

Headline:  “Americans give their take on press freedom. You should worry”

Subhead:  “A new Pew-Knight study finds broad support for press freedom but also surprising support for giving the government power over the press”

“Fresh off the presses from a Pew Research Center and Knight Foundation collaboration, a new report shows solid support for a free press. Just about three-quarters of the public say a free press is extremely or very important to society.

“But under some circumstances that would make many journalists bristle, large shares of Americans think it’s OK to limit the press. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2026/americans-press-freedom-pew-knight-study/

 

Rt. Media Says “A.I is No Problem”

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Article in Media Matters 9/15/26 by Helena Hind, Jane Lee & Evlondo Cooper

Headline: “Right-wing media downplay AI safety concerns as a hoax by comparing them to climate change and “COVID hysteria”

“Right-wing media are following President Donald Trump in dismissing calls to slow down AI development in the wake of multiple hacking incidents as a ‘hoax,’ comparing concerns over AI to ‘climate change apocalyptic talk’ and ‘COVID hysteria’ including support for vaccines. . .”

“Trump vehemently rejected the idea of an AI slowdown in a series of Truth Social posts on September 14, calling the push for caution a ‘hoax,’ ‘scam,’ and a ‘SICK conspiracy.’ . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/sean-hannity/right-wing-media-downplay-ai-safety-concerns-hoax-comparing-them-climate-change-and