Media Politicize

Slowly Sinking . . .

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Article in Daily Kos by Oliver Willis, 4/24/26

Headline:  “Alex Jones lost Infowars—and now he’s losing his sh-t”

“Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is losing the empire of lies, deception, and dubious brain pills that he’s spent decades pushing—and he’s not happy about it.

“Jones has spent the last few days directing his signature rants toward The Onion, which is in the process of acquiring Jones’ Infowars brand that he lost as a result of bankruptcy proceedings. Specifically, Jones has directed his ire toward comedian and satirist Tim Heidecker, the new creative director of Infowars. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/4/24/800027311/media-and-culture/alex-jones-lost-infowars/

More Media Consolidation

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Article in Slashdot by BeauHD, 4/23/26

Headline: “Warner Bros Shareholders Approve Paramount’s $81 Billion Takeover”

“Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders have approved Paramount Skydance’s takeover bid, moving the massive Hollywood merger a step closer to completion. It’s not a done deal quite yet, though, as it still faces regulatory scrutiny and fierce opposition from critics who warn it will further concentrate media power. The Associated Press reports. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/26/04/23/1940241/warner-bros-shareholders-approve-paramounts-81-billion-takeover

More CBS Angst

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Article in Daily Beast by Annabella Rosciglione, 4/23/26

Headline:  “CBS Staffers Revolt After MAGA-Coded Anchor’s Wild Lecture”

“CBS News staffers have been fuming over the network’s top talent ever since he released a video complaining about the ‘legacy media.’

Before CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil took over the anchor chair, he posted a video in January accusing the ‘legacy media’ of having ‘missed the story’ by putting ‘too much weight in the analysis of academics or elites, and not enough on you.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/cbs-staffers-revolt-after-maga-coded-anchor-tony-dokoupils-wild-lecture-on-legacy-media/

Investigate Journalist for Reporting?

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Article in Daily Kos by Oliver Willis, 4/23/26

Headline: “Kash Patel’s FBI is mad as hell that this reporter did her job”

“FBI agents investigated a New York Times reporter who uncovered that FBI Director Kash Patel’s girlfriend was being ferried around on taxpayer-funded flights.

“The New York Times reported Thursday that agents probed reporter Elizabeth Williamson in March, following the article about Patel that she wrote in February. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/4/23/800026413/media-and-culture/kash-patel-fbi-reporter/

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Article in The Hill by Dominick Mastrangelo, 4/23/26

Headline:  “New York Times alleges FBI investigated journalist after report about Patel girlfriend ”

Read the article at:

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5844807-fbi-investigates-new-york-times-journalist-patel-girlfriend-security/

Food Fight at Correspondents’ Dinner?

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Article in Poynter by Amaris Castillo, Angela Fu, and Ren LaForme, 4/22/26

Headline:  “Opinion | The White House Correspondents’ Dinner guest list keeps raising eyebrows”

Subhead: “Brendan Carr’s planned appearance and Trump’s return complicate an event already fraught with press tensions”

“Federal Communications Chair Brendan Carr plans to attend this weekend’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Oliver Darcy reports in his Status newsletter, adding another controversial name to a guest list that already includes Pete Hegseth, Stephen Miller and Donald Trump. Carr confirmed his attendance in a text message to Status, though it’s unclear what table he’ll join. His presence raises eyebrows because he has used his role to target major broadcasters and float potential actions against journalists. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/brendan-carr-fcc-chair-attending-whca-dinner/

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Article in Daily Beast by David Gardner, 4/22/26

Headline:  “Trump’s Plans for ‘Mic-Drop’ Media Confrontation Are Leaked”

Subhead:  “AFTER-DINNER SCREECH – The president is planning a rage-fueled moment at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.”

“Donald Trump will launch a ‘revenge’ attack on the White House media when he confronts them in person at a Washington dinner on Saturday night—then flee before there can be revenge.

“He is expected to target publications that he has accused of writing negatively about his administration and his war with Iran, in particular, according to sources.

“The Daily Beast is among the outlets the president and his aides have accused of ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumps-plans-for-mic-drop-media-confrontation-at-white-house-correspondents-association-dinner-are-leaked/

Critical Reporting Survives

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Jem Bartholomew, 4/20/26

Headline:  “Lawfare”

Subhead:  “A string of court decisions have gone against Donald Trump and his administration, blocking efforts to shut down critical reporting.”

“. . .here is what we do know: In a string of court cases, judges have ruled against Trump and his administration’s efforts to shut down critical journalism. These decisions have revealed that many of Trump’s executive actions and legal threats against the press are hollow—and exposed the capitulation by some prominent outlets as needless, cowardly, and self-defeating.

Trump has sought to use defamation suits to intimidate the press, only to see a number of them shatter on impact with the court system. . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/lawfare-trump-court-decisions-first-amendment-new-york-times-wall-street-journal-whca-correspondents-dinner.php

Godful Media

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Article in Media Matters by Payton Armstrong, 4/15/26

Headline: “Right-wing Christian media double down on supporting Trump’s Iran war: ‘King David himself did this when he found himself dealing with a nation that was barbaric’ “

Subhead: “Trump and Pete Hegseth have framed the war in religious terms, including Hegseth claiming that military operations are being ‘carried out under the protection of divine providence’ “

“Some right-wing Christian media figures are continuing their support for President Donald Trump’s war with Iran even as some within the broader right-wing media ecosystem have split with the administration.

“These right-wing Christian media personalities — including several prophetic figures who claim to share prophecies, or messages from God, with their audiences — have celebrated that ‘God was brought in’ by Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in public messaging of the war, and claimed that ‘we are on God’s side’ so ‘whatever we do would have His blessing.’. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/right-wing-christian-media-double-down-supporting-trumps-iran-war-king-david

Demons in the Media?

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 4/17/26

Headline:  “Opinion | Pete Hegseth uses the Bible to demonize the press”

Subhead:  “In a Pentagon press briefing, defense secretary called the press ‘unpatriotic’ and lashed out about ‘endlessly negative coverage’ of the war in Iran”

“. . .After calling the coverage ‘unpatriotic,’ Hegseth then launched into a bizarre attack of the press by invoking the Bible . .”

“Then he added, ‘As the passage ends, the Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel against him, how to destroy him. I sat there in church and I thought, Our press are just like these Pharisees, not all of you, not all of you, but the legacy Trump-hating press.’ ”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/hegseth-compares-press-biblical-pharisees/

Against Mega Media Merger

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Article in Free Press by Staff, 4/15/26

Headline: “Free Press Flies Protest Banners Around Paramount Studios as a Struggling CBS Attempts to Woo Advertisers During ‘Upfront Week’ “

Subhead:  “Billboard trucks and a plane circle studio lot showing the dangers of media mega-mergers as CBS seeks to attract advertisers amid historic declines in ratings.”

“LOS ANGELES — On Wednesday evening, two mobile billboards and a plane banner exposing the dangers of the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger circled the Paramount Studio lot as the media giant attempts to woo advertisers to purchase spots on CBS’s fall primetime schedule. . .”

“The protest billboards and banner, produced by Free Press, warn advertisers about placing their products on CBS, as it remakes itself into a mouthpiece for the Trump regime. If the Paramount Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery goes through, it would put outlets including HBO and CNN under the control of David Ellison and his father Larry, one of the richest men in the world. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.freepress.net/news/free-press-flies-protest-banners-around-paramount-studios-struggling-cbs-attempts-woo

Anger at Media Supporters

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Article in Daily Kos by Oliver Willis, 4/15/26

Headline: “Why Trump turned his rage on these MAGA mainstays”

“Last week, President Donald Trump went to war against some of his most diehard supporters in the world of right-wing media.

“These figures—conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, pundit Megyn Kelly, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, and conspiracy theorist and author Candace Owens—have bolstered Trump’s cause and attacked his political enemies without hesitation for years.

“But on April 9, Trump took a swing at them on Truth Social, calling them ‘nut jobs’ with ‘low IQs’ after they criticized his war in Iran. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/4/15/800019711/media-and-culture/why-trump-turned-his-rage-on-these-maga-mainstays/