Media Politicize

Disappearing Media Freedom

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Article in Al Jazeera by Mohamad Elmasry, 9/8/25

Headline:  “The capitulation of the US media is not an aberration”

Subhead:  “The Trump administration is bringing to the fore weaknesses that have long plagued US democracy.”

“American democracy is arguably in more peril than at any moment in recent history. Not only are United States President Donald Trump and his Republican allies seeking to guarantee that Americans never again participate in a truly free and fair election, but public officials and Trump-aligned figures in the media industry are also manipulating the information environment at an unprecedented scale. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/9/8/the-capitulation-of-the-us-media-is-not-an-aberration

FCC Getting in Range of Networks

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Article in NOTUS by Violet Jira, 9/3/25

Headline:  “Trump Is Targeting Broadcast Networks. The FCC Is Poised to Help Him.”

Subhead:  “Federal Communications Commission decisions ‘were meant to be beyond the reach of the current occupant of the White House,’ the agency’s sole Democratic commissioner told NOTUS.”

“As President Donald Trump continues to attack media organizations, the Federal Communications Commission is uniquely positioned to weaponize its regulatory framework to help him. Critics say it’s already started.

“The FCC is turning into a “wing of the MAGA movement” under its Trump-appointed chair, Brendan Carr, said Timothy Karr of Free Press, a nonprofit that promotes free speech and press freedom. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.notus.org/policy/trump-media-fcc-brendan-carr

Media Racketeer?

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Article in The Nation by Jack Mirkinson, 9/4/25

Headline: “Vile Grifters Are Taking Over Establishment Media”

Subhead: “Paramount is reportedly set to pay between $100 million and $200 million for ‘The Free Press’ and will install Bari Weiss at the top of CBS News.”

“. . .As a New York Times columnist, she constantly hawked right-wing bile while posing as a liberal who was just tired of all the extremism and censorship on the left—a tedious bait-and-switch that nevertheless sent her media profile soaring. . .”

“. . .There are lots of awful things about our current moment. But one of the worst is that we have to sit and watch as odious hucksters not only take over our public life but make out like bandits while doing so. I hope that CBS News staffers resist this attempt to destroy their workplace with everything they have. . .

“I hope that Weiss’s tenure atop CBS is short and failed. But mostly, I hope that one day we live in a world where people like Weiss are treated with the contempt they deserve and are hurled into the cultural wilderness where they belong.

Read the full article at:

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/bari-weiss-free-press-cbs-news-paramount/#

 

Show is Too Anti-Trump Now?

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Update:

Article in Daily Kos by Oilver Willis, 9/2/25

Headline:  “Alex Jones loses his sh-t after infamous lackey breaks up with him”

“Pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Alex Jones lashed out against former Infowars host Owen Shroyer Monday, describing him as a ‘backstabber’ and ‘snake.’ Shroyer recently left Jones’ Infowars network, alleging that he felt pressure to soft-pedal criticism of President Donald Trump.

Read the full article at:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/9/2/2341509/-Alex-Jones-loses-his-sh-t-after-infamous-lackey-breaks-up-with-him

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Article in Raw Story by Daniel Hampton, 9/1/25

Headline: “InfoWars host abruptly splits with Alex Jones over ‘too anti-Trump’ label”

“A right-wing InfoWars host made what he called a ‘shocking announcement’ Monday night that he was leaving Alex Jones’ signature conspiracy theory show, because he’s “too anti-Trump.”

“Owen Shroyer, best known as the host of the ‘War Room’ show on the far-right website, told viewers in a livestream Monday night that he was making a ‘shocking announcement.’

” ‘I am done at InfoWars,’ he said. ‘This may come as a shocking announcement for you tonight. It may not.’ ”

Read the full article at:

https://www.rawstory.com/owen-shroyer-2673946222/

Someone Likes a Network

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Article in Mediaite by Joe DePaolo, 8/31/25

Headline:  “Trump Goes On Wild Social Media Spree Shouting Out Fox Pundits, Attacking Newsom and Encouraging ‘Major Lawsuit’ Against Major League Baseball”

“President Donald Trump went on a wild social media spree Sunday morning in which he fawned over Fox News pundits, attacked Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) and encouraged a ‘major lawsuit’ against Major League Baseball. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/trump-goes-on-wild-social-media-spree-shouting-out-fox-pundits-attacking-newsom-and-encouraging-major-lawsuit-against-major-league-baseball/

Media Find Happy Warrior

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Article in FAIR by Raina Lipsitz, 8/28/25

Headline:  “Media Like Newsom’s Fighting Words—But Are Words Enough to Beat Trump?”

“Corporate media outlets, and the consultants and former administration officials who work for them, have a message for Democratic voters: To revive its dwindling appeal, their party needs a fighter to take on Trump. And California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has lately made headlines for parodying Trump on X, is the man for the job. . .”

“Because corporate media outlets have taken Trump’s 2024 victory as evidence that the Democratic Party has moved too far left, they are eager to portray Newsom’s shifts as part of a commonsensical and pragmatic effort to broaden his appeal by tacking right. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/media-like-newsoms-fighting-words-but-are-words-enough-to-beat-trump/

FCC Steamrolling Civil Rights?

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2 Articles in Fair by Jamine Jackson, 8/26/25

Headline:  “The FCC Is Trying to Roll Back Protections Won Over the Past 60 Years:”

Subhead: “CounterSpin interview with Joseph Torres on FCC and structural racism”

“Janine Jackson: CounterSpin listeners don’t need to be reminded of how central journalism is to everything we care about. Authoritarian leaders want to silence even half-awake news media, because information is so important to people’s understanding of the world, and how we might change it.

“It’s also important to see, as on many issues, that Donald Trump didn’t invent bad, racist, anti-democracy media, or the legal landscape that allows it to thrive. . .”

Read the full articles at:

https://fair.org/home/the-fcc-is-trying-to-roll-back-protections-won-over-the-past-60-years/

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8/22/25 Headline:  “Joseph Torres on the FCC and Structural Racism”

https://fair.org/home/joseph-torres-on-the-fcc-and-structural-racism/

Stomping the Networks

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Article in Common Dreams by Brad Reed, 8/25/25

Headline:  “As Trump Threatens News Outlets, Experts More Concerned About Capitulation of Corporate Owners”

Subhead:  “The commercial news media, which helped elevate Trump to power, have proven repeatedly that they are ill-equipped to withstand such pressures,” warned one scholar.”

“As US President Donald Trump late on Sunday lashed out against the American media and threatened to pull broadcasting licenses from networks for their alleged “biased” coverage of him, media experts said the danger to the news media lies partially in corporate outlets’ potential capitulation to the Trump administration. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-nbc-abc-licenses

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Article in Reuters by David Shepardson, 8/25/25

Headline: “Trump again pushes US agency to revoke NBC, ABC station licenses”

“. . .President Donald Trump reiterated a long-running push for the Federal Communications Commission to revoke station licenses of two major U.S. broadcasters and charge them for using the public airwaves, as he criticized their news programming. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.reuters.com/business/trump-again-pushes-us-agency-revoke-nbc-abc-station-licenses-2025-08-25/

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Article in Newsweek by Robert Birsel, 8/25/25

Headline:  “Trump Calls For ‘Fake News’ Networks To Have Licenses Revoked by FCC”

“U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday called the ABC and NBC networks two of the “most biased” broadcasters ever and said the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should revoke their licenses. . .”

“Media outlets promote a healthy democracy by providing the public with fact-checked information, particularly on those in power, and offering essential context. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-media-nbc-abc-fcc-license-revoked-fees-2118632

 

Loss of VOA

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Article in On the Media by NPR. 8/22/25

Headline: “The Power of Shortwave Radio. And, What Gets Lost with Voice of America?“

“This month, the director of Voice of America is being forced out in the latest of many moves to dismantle the state broadcasting service. On this week’s On the Media, a history of the Voice of America, and how it’s been politicized. Plus, hear why propagandists in Russia, China, and Iran are celebrating cuts to U.S.-funded foreign reporting. . .”

Listen to the podcast at:

https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media

Media Plan: Better Vote Right

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Article in Media Matters by John Knefel, 8/21/25

Headline:  “Steve Bannon just laid out the MAGA media playbook to subvert the midterms”

Subhead:  “The right-wing media plan for undermining the 2026 elections includes pushing for ICE to stalk polling sites and sending a band of election deniers on tour”

“War Room host and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon this week spelled out a vision of how MAGA media could attempt to subvert the 2026 midterm elections, including by advocating for the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at polling places, extreme Congressional redistricting, and a mail-in voting ban. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/steve-bannon/steve-bannon-just-laid-out-maga-media-playbook-subvert-midterms