Media Politicize

Harassing Freelancers Now?

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Article in The New York Times by Devlin Barrett, 8/1/26

Headline:  “Justice Dept. Subpoenas Times Freelancer in Effort to Identify Sources”

Subhead:  “A previously undisclosed subpoena, involving reporting on a failed SEAL Team 6 mission in North Korea, reflects the government’s expanding campaign to investigate leaks of secrets.”

“A freelance reporter has been fighting a subpoena from the Trump administration seeking to force him to reveal his sources for a New York Times article about a failed top secret mission in North Korea, according to people familiar with the matter. . .”

“In the months since Mr. Cole’s subpoena, The Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post have faced similar subpoenas seeking information about their reporting. The news organizations have resisted. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/01/us/politics/times-subpoena-reporter-trump-north-korea.html

No More Mister Nice Network!

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 7/31/26

Headline:  “Opinion | ABC is done playing defense against the FCC”

Subhead:  “The network’s unusually forceful filing accuses the FCC of retaliation and warns of a chilling effect on the media”

“For more than a year, the Federal Communications Commission and its chairman Brendan Carr have repeatedly hassled, threatened and tried to intimidate ABC. . .”

“But now, ABC says it has had enough.

In a fervent filing with the FCC, ABC is accusing the commission of “attempted censorship.” The FCC is targeting the network, ABC claims, simply because the FCC doesn’t like what the network sometimes says. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/abc-accuses-fcc-attempted-censorship/

WaPo Slowly Going Under?

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Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 7/31/26

Headline:  “Washington Post’s opinion editor resigns after just one year in role:

Subhead:  “Adam O’Neal did not give reason for his departure at end of August in another major shakeup at US publication”

“The Washington Post had realized a state of relative calm in the five months since the paper was turned upside down in February, when nearly half the newsroom was laid off and its unpopular publisher, Will Lewis, abruptly resigned.

“But on Friday, staffers were shocked to find out that Adam O’Neal, a millennial hired last year to lead its opinion section, was already leaving. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jul/31/washington-post-opinion-editor-resigns-adam-oneal

ABC Persecuted?

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Article in The New Republic by Sophie Jager, 7/30/26

Headline:  “ABC Accuses Trump’s FCC of Trying to Censor the Whole Media Industry”

Subhead:  “ABC fired back at the Federal Communications Commission, accusing the agency of “attempted censorship” and “retaliation.”

“ABC accused the Federal Communications Commission Thursday of “attempted censorship” and a clear “retaliation” effort meant to send a message to every other media company in the country.

“The Administration has openly and repeatedly called for the revocation of ABC’s licenses, because it dislikes the content and viewpoints expressed on ABC network programs,” ABC wrote in a fiery 119-page regulatory filing to the agency. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://newrepublic.com/post/213787/abc-trump-fcc-censorship-media-industry

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Article in Reuters by David Shepardson, 7/30/26

Headline: “ABC says FCC seeks to intimidate network over news coverage”

“. . .Walt Disney-owned, ​ABC said on Thursday that the Federal Communications Commission’s threat to revoke the network’s broadcast licenses is ‌part of an unprecedented campaign of intimidation over broadcast content the Trump administration dislikes.

“ABC said that the Trump administration agency’s nearly unprecedented decision to order an early license review of the eight Disney-owned ABC stations is a warning from the government to other media companies. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.reuters.com/world/abc-says-fcc-seeks-intimidate-network-over-coverage-2026-07-30/

Rt. Media Rebrand War?

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Article in Media Matters by John Knefel, 7/29/26

Headline:  “The growing MAGA media despondency over the Iran war quagmire”

Subhead:  “Benny Johnson once called to rebrand the Strait of Hormuz in the US’s image, but now he has acquiesced to Iranian control over the crucial waterway”

“As President Donald Trump’s war on Iran extends into its sixth month, some figures on the right are recalibrating their messaging from an original demand for maximalist victory to something much more modest.

“Although the war has created some fractures in right-wing media, at the outset of the conflict it had no shortage of boosters — either Iran hawks or MAGA hacks. Now, as the Iranian government has survived months of bombing and operationalized its previously unrealized control of the Strait of Hormuz, some of those pundits are scaling back their ambitions. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/us-iran-relations/growing-maga-media-despondency-over-iran-war-quagmire

Media White Flag?

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Article in The Bulwark by Jonathan V. Last 7/27/26

Headline:  “Trump Was Right About the Corporate Media”

Subhead:  “The White House Correspondents’ Association surrenders.”

“On Friday night the White House Correspondents’ Association hosted the re-do of its annual dinner. It was a stunning display of weakness. A sham in which serious journalists chose to pretend that Donald Trump is a normal political figure. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-was-right-about-the-corporate

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Article in The Nation by Jeet Heer, 7/27/26

Headline:  “Submissive Mainstream Media at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner”

Subhead:  “His speech was racist, homophobic, vindictive, and soul-crushingly unfunny—and the journalists in the crowd didn’t seem to care. “

“Fittingly, the disgraceful second edition of the 2026 White House Correspondents’ Dinner (WHCD) was celebrated in a venue that embodies Donald Trump’s corruption and impunity. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/trump-whcd-speech-media-humiliation/

McCarthy Ghost Pursues Media

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Article in Democracy Now! by Staff, 7/28/26

Headline: “A New McCarthyism? House GOP Subpoenas BreakThrough News in Escalating War on Progressive Groups”

“The Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee subpoenaed BreakThrough News last week, demanding the independent online news outlet hand over internal communications and financial records. BreakThrough News says it’s being targeted over its coverage of U.S. mass deportations, ICE abuses, Cuba and Palestine solidarity and U.S. foreign policy. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.democracynow.org/2026/7/28/rania_khalek_breakthrough_news_subpoena

60 Minutes Continues its Slide?

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Article in The New Republic by Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling, 7/28/26

Headline:  “NYT’s Most Obnoxious Columnist Joins 60 Minutes in Pro-Trump Overhaul”

Subhead: “Bari Weiss is bringing a friendly face to the prestigious news show.”

“Conservative columnist Ross Douthat is leaving The New York Times to join the storied broadcast magazine in a new role, 60 Minutes executive producer Nick Bilton announced Tuesday. . .”

“Despite being an early skeptic of Donald Trump’s politics and popularity, Douthat has since downplayed the president’s authoritarian and fascist tendencies while attempting to rationalize Trump’s behavior.”

Read the full article at:

https://newrepublic.com/post/213657/new-york-times-columnist-60-minutes-ross-douthat-pro-trump-overhaul

Vendetta Against Reporter?

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Article in The Washington Post by Scott Nover, 7/27/26

Headline:  “Trump’s fresh mocking of CNN reporter renews calls to end correspondents’ dinner”

Subhead:  “The president posted a doctored image of CNN’s Kaitlan Collins as the network’s future, and that of the correspondents’ dinner, are in limbo.”

“President Donald Trump escalated his attacks on the news media over the weekend, following a blistering address at the rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association dinner by posting an edited image mocking CNN’s Kaitlan Collins — a personal jab later amplified by an official White House social media account. . .’

Read the full article at:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/07/27/trumps-fresh-mocking-cnn-reporter-renews-calls-end-correspondents-dinner/

Media Merger Clock is Ticking

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Article in Reuters by Brody Godoy, 7/24/26

Headline: “Paramount agrees to pause Warner Bros deal while case plays out”

“. . .​on Friday agreed to pause its acquisition of Warner ‌Bros. Discovery until after a ruling on a challenge by states to the deal, plunging the $110 billion deal into further uncertainty.  . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.reuters.com/world/paramount-agrees-pause-warner-bros-deal-while-case-plays-out-2026-07-24/

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Article in Alternet America by Ryan Rose and Alternet America, 7/23/26

Headline:  “We Have 11 Days Until the Free Press Shrinks”

“They don’t call it censorship. They call it a merger.

“Twelve state attorneys general just sued to block Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. They say the deal would gut competition, raise prices, and shrink an already hollowed-out industry. A federal judge agreed enough to pump the brakes by issuing a 14-day restraining order.

“Three of those days are already gone.It’s not censorship when it’s a merger. That’s the whole trick. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.alternetamerica.com/