Internet Media

New Media Companies

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Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 12/23/26

Headline:  “A CBS News personality is starting his own media company – but keeping his day job”

Subhead:  “David Begnaud is launching an independent media company using the beehiiv platform while remaining a contributor at the network”

“As media jobs disappear and the industry shifts even further to a focus on individual personalities, rather than global brands, many journalists are choosing to leave stable jobs and strike out on their own by starting paid newsletters on platforms such as Substack and beehiiv. . .”

“On Monday morning, the longtime CBS News personality David Begnaud announced that he would be keeping his day job as a contributor while starting an independent media company called Do Good Crew . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/feb/23/cbs-news-david-begnaud-beehiiv

More Media Targets!

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Article in Washington Post by Will Oremus, 2/13/26

Headline:  “Trump’s campaign against ‘left-wing’ media finds a new target: Apple News“

Subhead:  “Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a letter to Apple that he’s “not the speech police” but warned the company that its choice of articles could violate the law.”

“Apple News, the popular newsreader app that comes installed on every iPhone, is the latest media property to be warned by a regulator appointed by President Donald Trump over charges of liberal bias.

“On Wednesday, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson sent a letter to Apple chief executive Tim Cook expressing concern about ‘reports that Apple News has systematically promoted news articles from left-wing news outlets and suppressed news articles from more conservative publications.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/02/12/apple-news-bias-ftc-ferguson-letter/

Reporter – Obliteration or Obfuscation?

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Article in Mediaite by Karen Wilkens, 2/13/26

Headline:  “Reporter Corners Trump on What’s Left to Bomb If He ‘Totally Obliterated’ Iran’s Nuclear Sites”

“In a Friday appearance before reporters from the tarmac at Fort Bragg, President Donald Trump was questioned on what’s left to bomb in Iran if he truly ‘totally obliterated’ the country’s nuclear sites as he’s previously claimed.

“The off-camera reporter cited Trump’s speech after last June’s military strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, in which he deemed the bombings a ‘spectacular’ success that had ‘completely and totally obliterated’ their targets.

“ ‘What’s left to go after?’ questioned the reporter. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/reporter-corners-trump-on-whats-left-to-bomb-if-he-totally-obliterated-irans-nuclear-sites/

News – Harumph!

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 2/12/26

Headline:  “Opinion | Americans say the news is essential. They just don’t enjoy it much.”

Subhead:  “The latest Pew data reveals a growing gap between the civic duty to follow the news and the willingness to support it”

“If you’re reading this newsletter, it likely means that you care about the news and you’re interested in the media. Or you’re related to me.

“But news consumption for most Americans has become complicated and confusing in recent years. There is, no doubt, news fatigue among some who are tired of divisive politics and seemingly constant bad news. Meanwhile, many news organizations are struggling financially to the point that they either shut down or severely cut staff, creating news deserts across the country. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/do-americans-consume-news-anymore/

ALL The Media!

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Article in FAIR by Caitlin Scialla, 2/4/26

Headline:  “The Digital Media Oligarchy: Who Owns Online News?”

“When Ben Bagdikian, an esteemed journalist and early FAIR contributor, published his groundbreaking book The Media Monopoly in 1983, he painted a troubling picture of US media consolidation, reporting that 50 corporations controlled the media business. With each reprint, that number dwindled. When FAIR replicated his analysis in 2011 , it stood at 20. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/the-digital-media-oligarchy-who-owns-online-news/

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Article in The Guardian by Rafael Behr, 2/4/26

Headline:  “When Maga oligarchs control the platforms, it isn’t really a debate about ‘free speech’ ”

Subhead: “Moves to ban under-16s from social media should raise deeper questions about who controls democracy’s digital infrastructure”

“. . .Free speech is the lens that tech companies apply because it gives a democratic inflection to their commercial interests as oligopolists in an under-regulated digital realm. Far-right politicians adopt that frame because they are in the business of undermining the norms and institutions of liberal democracy. That agenda is well served by communications infrastructure that privileges frenzied intolerance. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/feb/04/maga-oligarchs-social-platforms-free-speech-ban-under-16s-social-medi

Cooked Medium or Well-Done?

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Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 2/3/26

Headline: “Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery execs grilled by Senators over megamerger”

“Executives for entertainment giants Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday faced a grilling from lawmakers on Capitol Hill, with senators raising concern about a planned megamerger between the two companies that would create one of the largest media conglomerates in the world. . .”

“Critics of the deal say it would harm competition in the entertainment production and film industry, giving Netflix too much control of the way millions of people in the U.S. and abroad see the world. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://thehill.com/media/5721455-netflix-warner-brothers-merger-hearing/

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Article in Free Press by Staff, 2/4/26

Headline:  “Free-Expression Groups and Creative Labor Unions Call on the Senate to Protect Free Speech and Root Out Corruption in Review of Warner Bros. Discovery Takeover”

“On Tuesday, 11 civil-rights, free-expression, consumer-protection and creative professional organizations and unions called on the Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights to prioritize free speech and investigate corruption in its review of the competing bids from Netflix and Paramount Skydance to take over Warner Bros. Discovery. . .”

“ ‘We request this subcommittee’s diligent oversight to ensure careful application of antitrust law, uphold the First Amendment, and guarantee this process is free of corruption and abuse.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.freepress.net/news/free-expression-groups-and-creative-labor-unions-call-senate-protect-free-speech-warner-bros-merger

Playing a Game With The Media

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Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 2/3/26

Headline:  “Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery execs grilled by Senators over megamerger”

“Executives for entertainment giants Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday faced a grilling from lawmakers on Capitol Hill, with senators raising concern about a planned megamerger between the two companies that would create one of the largest media conglomerates in the world. . .”

“Critics of the deal say it would harm competition in the entertainment production and film industry, giving Netflix too much control of the way millions of people in the U.S. and abroad see the world. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://thehill.com/media/5721455-netflix-warner-brothers-merger-hearing/

What You Report is a Crime?

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Article in The Atlantic by The Editors, 2/2/26

Headline:  “Trump’s Relationship With the Media”

Subhead:  “Panelists joined to discuss the arrest of former CNN anchor Don Lemon, and more.”

“The former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested yesterday for covering a protest inside a church in Minnesosta. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss what implications this may have, Donald Trump’s relationship with the media, and more.

“ ‘It’s true that Donald Trump has gone after the press’ before, Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker, said last night. But ‘this is the first time he’s ordered the arrest of a journalist—so I do think a line has been crossed here.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theatlantic.com/national/2026/01/don-lemon-arrest-washington-week/685847/

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Article in Democracy Now! by Staff, 2/2/26

Headline: ” ‘Journalism Is Not a Crime’: Georgia Fort & Don Lemon Arrested for Covering St. Paul Church Protest”

Read the article at:

https://www.democracynow.org/2026/2/2/georgia_fort

Rt. Wing Media – Whistle = Assault?

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Article in Media Matters by Payton Armstrong, 2/3/26

Headline:  “Right-wing media figures are furious at activists for using whistles during ICE activity”

Right-wing media figures are lashing out at community members in Minnesota for using whistles to alert others of federal immigration enforcement in the area, asserting that whistles should be ‘considered a violent weapon and that their use constitutes ‘interference” with immigration enforcement operations or even “assault.’

“Activists and residents have explained that whistles are ‘a way to quickly draw witnesses and cameras when enforcement activity happens in neighborhoods.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/immigration/right-wing-media-figures-are-furious-activists-using-whistles-during-ice-activity

MAGA Media Distorting Minnesota?

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Article in Media Matters by MAtt Gertz, 1/30/26

Headline:  “MAGA media demand Trump put down the Minnesota ‘revolution’ “

“A week after Border Patrol officers gunned down nurse Alex Pretti on the streets of Minneapolis, MAGA media’s biggest stars are portraying locals who oppose immigration enforcement officers’ brutal tactics as China-backed ‘revolutionaries’ seeking ‘the complete overthrow of Western civilization’ which they are urging President Donald Trump to put down at all costs…”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/maga-media-demand-trump-put-down-minnesota-revolution

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Jem Bartholomew, 2/2/26

Headline: ” I Might Get Arrested, People’ “

Subhead: “How MAGA media outlets are fueling Trump’s crackdown on the press.”

“. . .In the immediate aftermath of the church protest, the right-wing, MAGA-aligned mediasphere reacted with fury. ‘Don Lemon storms the church, rushes the altar in the middle of the sermon, harasses and threatens the pastor on a live feed,’ Benny Johnson, the right-wing YouTuber, posted on X, twisting the facts as aggressively as a powerlifter wringing out a wet towel. Johnson called for Lemon to be “frog marched before the cameras” and face “full federal charges with decades of prison time.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/don-lemon-georgia-fort-arrests-church-st-saint-paul-ice-pastor-dhs-maga-media-benny-johnson-tim-pool.php