Media Silence for Public


Article in Poynter by Kelly McBride, 12/9/25

Headline:  “When powerful people bully the press, they’re really trying to silence the public”

Subhead:  “What looks like a personal attack is often an intimidation tactic aimed at the entire press and the people it serves”

“. . .In addition to recently calling a reporter “piggy,” President Donald Trump has mocked a journalist’s physical disabilities and belittled one of his interviewers at the 2024 NABJ conference for her tough opening question. But he’s not the only one. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene told a reporter to go back to her country. . .”

Read the full article at:
https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2025/what-to-do-when-powerful-people-bully-journalists/

Newspaper Breaking Out of the Cage?

Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 12/5/25

Headline:  “The New York Times draws a line on Pentagon press limits”

Headline:  The Times sues the Pentagon, highlighting a pivotal moment for press freedom”

“The New York Times did something Thursday we haven’t seen enough of as President Donald Trump and his administration continue to strip away press freedoms.

“They took the fight to the administration.

“In a sign that they are sick and tired and aren’t going to take it anymore, the Times filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon, claiming that their First Amendment rights are being violated by the Pentagon’s new press restrictions. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2025/new-york-times-sues-pentagon-npr-underage-women/

Clowning Around in the Pentagon?

Article in Status by Oliver Darcy, 12/2/25

Headline:  “The Pentagon’s Propagandists”

Subhead:  “The Pentagon held its first media briefing in months, hand-selecting a group lf MAGA influences to lob softballs – a charade that disgusted the actual journalists Pete Hegseth exiled earlier this year”

Read the article at:

https://www.status.news/p/pentagon-media-briefing-propagandists

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Article in The Washington Post by Scott Nover & Drew Harwell, 12/2/25

Headline:  “Pentagon upbraids mainstream media in briefing with pro-Trump press corps”

Subhead:  “Defense Department press secretary lays into “legacy media,” especially The Washington Post, at a news conference for the Pentagon’s now largely right-wing outlets.”

“The Pentagon’s press secretary excoriated the mainstream press, and particularly The Washington Post, at a news briefing Tuesday for the Pentagon’s newly credentialed media representatives, the first such event since Defense Department press restrictions spurred a mass exodus of established news organizations in October. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/12/02/pentagon-media/

Networks Have Broadcast Licenses?

Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 11/18/25

Headline:  “Trump threatens ABC News broadcast license after reporter asks about Epstein “

“President Trump attacked an ABC News reporter Tuesday after she asked about the Epstein files, threatening to have the network taken off the air for questioning him about the controversy. . .”

Read the full story at:

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5611057-president-trump-threatens-abc/

Is There a Campus Right-to-Report?

Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Carolina Abbott Galvão and Riddhi Setty

Headline:  “One Battle After Another”

Subhead:  “On university campuses, student papers are fighting their own administrations—and sometimes the government—for the right to report.”

“. . .The Mercury [University of Texas] published several stories criticizing the university for calling in state troopers to student encampments and ran interviews with protesters who were arrested; soon after, administrators accused Olivares Gutierrez of committing “journalism malpractice” and replaced The Mercury’s adviser. . .”

“In September of 2024, the school’s administration fired Olivares Gutierrez. The Mercury’s entire staff subsequently went on strike, and members of its management team were fired as well. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/news/one-battle-after-another-student-newspapers-censorship-crisis.php

CBS News – “Lotta Money”


Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 11/3/25

Headline:  CBS News heavily edits Trump 60 Minutes interview, cutting boast network ‘paid me a lotta money’ “

Subhead:  “Trump said Paramount’s sale to David and Larry Ellison was ‘greatest thing that’s happened in a long time’ for free press”

“. . .The edits are notable because, exactly one year before Trump was interviewed by O’Donnell at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Friday he had sued CBS over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, which he alleged had been deceptively edited to help her chances in the presidential election.

While many legal experts widely dismissed the lawsuit as ‘meritless’ and unlikely to hold up under the first amendment, CBS settled with Trump for $16m in July. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/03/trump-cbs-60-minutes-interview-edited

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Article in Mediaite by Sean James, 11/2/25

Headline:  ” ‘Paid Me a Lotta Money!’ Trump Takes Victory Lap Over ’60 Minutes’ — In Part of Interview That Didn’t Air Live On ’60 Minutes’

“One part of President Donald Trump’s 60 Minutes interview on Sunday that did not air live: The president gloating that CBS paid him millions of dollars to settle his lawsuit against the program for its editing of an interview with Kamala Harris last year. . .”

He also complimented Bari Weiss, the new head of CBS News, and said he believed she will do a good job leading the news operation. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediaite.com/media/paid-me-a-lotta-money-trump-takes-victory-lap-over-60-minutes-in-part-of-interview-that-didnt-air-live-on-60-minutes/

This Week – The West Wing!


Article in the Washington Post by By Scott Nover and Andrew Jeong, 11/1/25

Headline:  “White House restricts media access in key area of the West Wing”

Subhead:  “The move limiting free press access to Room 140, which houses the offices of the press secretary and other staff, was said to be based on national security.”

“The White House said Friday that reporters could no longer access an area in the West Wing known as ‘Upper Press’ that houses the offices of key communications staff members, triggering pushback from White House correspondents, who said the move would hurt the press’s ability to cover the president. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/10/31/white-house-media-access-west-wing/

Don’t do it CNN!


Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 10/27/25

Headline: CNN boss told staff to scale back White House demolition coverage: Report”

CNN is denying a recent report that its head Mark Thompson recently met with officials in President Trump’s administration and afterward urged staff at the network to ease up on its coverage of the White House renovation project, which has torn down the East Wing.”

The report, published in the media-news outlet Status, cited people familiar who said staffers at the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned cable channel were ‘taken aback,’ after Thompson, who they said generally does not weigh in on daily editorial matters, suggested CNN’s viewership ‘isn’t all that interested in the story’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5574665-cnn-white-house-east-wing-ballroom/

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Article in Daily Beast by Cameron Adams, 10/27/25

Headline: CNN Boss Ordered Teardown Censorship After West Wing Visit”

Subhead:  “CNN CEO said to be the latest media boss bending the knee before Donald Trump.”

CNN chief Mark Thompson reportedly told the cable network’s reporters to ease up on coverage of the controversial demolition of the East Wing after a visit to the White House last week.

“Although denied by CNN, the report from the Status newsletter appears to be the latest example of media bosses bending the knee before the Trump administration.

“The historic White House East Wing was bulldozed last week to make way for President Donald Trump’s $300 million vanity project, a 90,000-square-foot ballroom that will be more than twice the size of the rest of the White House. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/cnn-boss-mark-thompson-told-reporters-to-ease-up-on-teardown-coverage-after-white-house-visit/

Newspaper – Just Axing?


Article in The Nation by Ella Curlin, 10/24/25

Headline: “Why Did Indiana University Axe Its Award-Winning Print Newspaper?”

Subhead: “If the administration can censor the Indiana Daily Student—one of the most acclaimed student publications in the nation—then student journalism everywhere is at risk.”

“On street corners across Bloomington, Indiana, newspaper boxes sit empty. Nearly two weeks ago, on October 14, Indiana University cut the award-winning print version of the Indiana Daily Student—just hours after firing the paper’s adviser—ending 158 years of print journalism two days before the next edition was set to publish. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/indiana-university-student-newspaper-censorship/#

Redlining the Media?

Article in The Black Wall Street Times by Tiana Manon, 10/20/25

Headline: ” FCC Drew the Map: Media Redlining Still Shapes Who Controls the Airwaves”

Subhead: “ ‘Media Redlining,’ How Today’s Media Inequality is Rooted in Harmful Historic FCC Practices”

“The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has recently made headlines for its approval of the massive and controversial merger between Paramount and CBS deal and for investigating the DEI practices of companies like Comcast. Across the industry more broadly, major firings of Karen Attiah at the Washington Post and the temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel caused rumblings among everyday people who worry about the administration’s overreach. And now most recently, President Donald Trump’s lashing out at Al Sharpton for his show on MSNBC, stating perhaps the FCC should “look into” it. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://theblackwallsttimes.com/2025/10/20/fcc-drew-the-map-media-redlining-still-shapes-who-controls-the-airwaves/