Media Maintaining Illusions?


Article in The Bulwark by Tim Miller and John Dickerson, 6/29/26

Headline:  “John Dickerson: When the Media Helps Rewrite Reality”

“The most powerful person in the world repeatedly creates his own narrative about a news event despite what we can see and hear with our own eyes and our own ears. Media organizations that don’t fight like hell in response are failing at doing their most basic job—and they’re failing the country and our democracy as well. That’s what CBS News did when it settled Donald Trump’s frivolous 60 Minutes lawsuit and when it tried to change the story of the Minneapolis protests to benefit Trump. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/john-dickerson-when-the-media-helps

Different Questions for Different Areas?


Article in Al Jazerra by Patrick Gathera 6/30/26

Headline: “At the World Cup, the media has set up a moral checkpoint”

Subhead : “While US and European players just get to play football, Global South footballers are questioned about politics.”

” ‘Why is it that African teams and Middle Eastern teams have to answer for what their governments are doing but European teams don’t?’ South African comedian Trevor Noah asked recently during a World Cup watch party.

“He was reacting to the questions Western journalists had lobbed at Iranian players following their games. But the question goes far beyond Iran. It speaks to a familiar hierarchy in global journalism: Some players are allowed to be athletes. Others are turned into ambassadors, defendants and moral exhibits. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2026/6/30/at-the-world-cup-the-media-has-set-up-a-moral-checkpoint

Murdoch Media Menace?

Article in The Guardian by Amanda Meade, 7/1/26

Headline: ” ‘This is the dark art’: new book claims pattern of personal attacks by Murdoch media empire”

Subhead: “In a book dedicated to ‘the bullied’, two former News Corp journalists outline a behavior pattern they call ‘getting Murdoched’, which they say harms individuals and public debate”

“‘Murdoched’, a term Dodd and Ricketson coin for the book, means to be ‘editorially attacked when one’s ideas or deeds do not accord with the media proprietor’s programs or publications.

“The book examines ‘murdoching’ across the US, the UK and Australia, including dozens of interviews with prominent people and ordinary citizens about the way they were treated in newspapers, such as the Sun and the New York Post, and cable television network Fox News.

Dedicated to ‘the bullied’, the book focuses squarely on Murdoch’s ‘way of doing journalism’ Dodd and Ricketson write. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jul/01/andrew-dodd-matthew-ricketson-getting-murdoch-book-bullying-factory

Media Say People Envy the Gold?

Article in The Guardian by Arwa Mahdawi, 6/30/26

Headline:  “Doubt that Elon Musk ‘earned’ his trillion? Rightwing media says you’re in an ‘impotent envy cult’ “

Subhead:  “The lovefest from Musk’s conservative fans completely overlooks the unscrupulous tactics behind his immense wealth”

“. . .The National Review dismisses anyone who questions Musk’s wealth as being part of ‘an impotent envy cult’. Per the National Review: ‘There are such things in history as great men, and Musk is one of them.’ The Los Angeles Times (owned by another billionaire born in South Africa) is similarly enthusiastic; columnist Jonah Goldberg explained that Musk’s trillionaire status ‘is a good thing, actually’ because the economy is not a ‘static pie’: innovation grows the pie, meaning more pie for everyone. . .”

“Are you wondering where your slice is? Or how the world’s richest people have claimed, according to Oxfam, more of this pie than half of humanity?. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/global/commentisfree/2026/jun/30/elon-musk-trillion-rightwing-media

Court Protects Journalists


Article in USA Today by Maureen Groppe, 6/29/26

Headline:  “Supreme Court lets landmark journalist protection stand”

“. . .The Supreme Court on June 29 declined to revisit a landmark decision about press freedom that limited when a public figure can sue for libel or defamation. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/06/29/supreme-court-press-freedom-dershowitz-cnn/90298532007/

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Article in CBS News by Melissa Quin, 6/29/26

Headline:  “Supreme Court turns away Alan Dershowitz’s defamation case against CNN”

“The Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up former Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz’s case alleging CNN defamed him with its coverage of remarks made during President Trump’s 2020 impeachment trial.

“The dispute presented the high court with the chance to revisit its landmark 1964 decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, which set a high bar for public figures to win defamation lawsuits against media companies. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-alan-dershowitz-cnn-defamation-case/

Buying President – Media Empire Victory?

Article in The Nation by Jeet Heer, 6/29/26

Headline:  “For Larry Ellison, Buying Trump Is the Bargain of the Century”

Subhead:  “The billionaire has gotten media dominance and cozy government deals for what amounts to chicken feed.”

“For most people, $45 million is a staggering sum of wealth, enough to satisfy all their dreams of avarice and more. But for tech plutocrat Larry Ellison, $45 million is just a drop in the bucket.  . . To put that in perspective, for someone with $200 billion, spending $45 million is the equivalent of a person with a net worth of $200,000 spending $45. In other words, it’s chicken feed rather than real money. And it was all Ellison needed to get in Donald Trump’s good graces. . .

Read the full article at:

https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/larry-ellison-trump-corruption/

Not Bari Happy!

Article updated in Daily Beast by Julia Ornedo, 6/28/26

Headline: CNN Star Issues Bombshell Warning to MAGA-Curious Boss”

“Anderson Cooper has made it clear how he feels about working with Bari Weiss.

“The star anchor, 59, has told colleagues at CNN that he does not want to work for the beleaguered CBS News chief, two sources told The New York Times. His comments came amid reports that Weiss is being considered for a top role at the network, which is slated to soon come under the control of Trump-friendly CEO David Ellison. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://archive.ph/XEmxZ#selection-1641.0-1649.178

Mega-Media Manipulation

Article in UPI by Joe Fisher, 6/29/26

Headline: “Comcast, NBCUniversal splitting into separate companies”

“. . .Comcast announced Monday that it is planning to split into separate media and technology companies over the coming year.

Comcast will split into two independent publicly traded companies in what it said is a “tax-free spin-off” of NBCUniversal and Sky. The companies will be NBCUniversal and Comcast. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/06/29/comcast-nbcuniversal-publicly-traded-spin-off/6931782742823/

– – – – –

Article in Status by Oliver Darcy, 6/29/26

Headline: “Carving Up Comcast

“Brian Roberts insisted the seismic breakup of Comcast’s media and broadband business is about creating two stronger companies – but no one in the industry is buying it, with insiders telling Status they believe Roberts has other intentions in mind. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.status.news/p/comcast-nbcuniversal-spin-off-plan-brian-roberts

No Climate for News Change


Article in FAIR by Olivia Riggio, 6/26/26

Headline:  “Covering the Impact of Climate Change—Without Mentioning Climate Change”

“. . .With extreme weather events worsening each year, and the world on track to surpass by 2030 the Paris Agreement’s attempt to limit global heating to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, connecting these disruptive and deadly events to climate change is a key part of the story.

“Yet on the evening of Tuesday, June 23, despite leading their shows with severe weather headlines, nightly news shows on NBC, ABC and CBS failed to mention climate even in passing. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/covering-the-impact-of-climate-change-without-mentioning-climate-change/

Sinclair Changes News


Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Susie Banikikarim, 6/26/26

Headline:  “Agenda Journalism”

Subhead:  The Baltimore Sun swipes at Wes Moore, and a seasoned reporter resigns. Plus: Holding the police accountable, and the grim reality of wellness treatments.”

“On Monday, Jeff Barker, who spent twenty-five years as a reporter at the Baltimore Sun, posted on X that he was resigning. ‘I was proud to have been there during a long period when our reporting followed the facts wherever they happened to lead,” he wrote. “I’m not saying anything readers can’t see for themselves, but The Sun has changed since its purchase by David Smith, executive chairman of the Sinclair Broadcast Group. I no longer fit there.’

“It was a stark rebuke of The Sun and of its owner, Smith, a wealthy conservative who once told Donald Trump: ‘We are here to deliver your message. Period’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/laurels-and-darts/agenda-journalism-baltimore-sun-west-moore-sinclair-david-smith-barker-resign-mississippi-senatobia-police-shooting-atlanta-journal-consitution-ajc-wellness-georgia.php