Press Freedom

Run or Collaborate?

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 6/18/25

Headline:  “Opinion | Should journalism embrace AI? Or run from it?”

Subhead:  “In the latest episode of ‘The Poynter Report Podcast,’ Alex Mahadevan explores what AI means for journalism and why reporters may not need to panic”

“. . .Should journalism run from AI? Or embrace it? Why are we scared of it? How can we put AI to good use? And how can we avoid the dangers of AI?

“And, what I wanted to know most of all: Are journalists someday going to become obsolete b . . .”cause some AI tool is going to produce its own newspaper? (And, gulp, newsletter?). . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2025/should-journalism-embrace-ai-or-run-from-it/

Report and . . . Off You Go

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Article in Common Dreams by Brett Wilkens, 6/18/25

Headline:  “Journalist Who Decried Trump’s ‘Deportation of Dissent’ Says He Was Deported for Dissent”

Subhead:  ” ‘Alistair Kitchen’s deportation is a clear case of retaliation in connection with his reporting, and such action sends a chilling message to journalists,’ said one press freedom defender.”

“A leading press freedom advocate on Tuesday condemned the United States’ ‘disturbing pattern’ of screening and expelling international visitors for their political viewpoints following the detention and removal of an Australian journalist who criticized the Trump administration’s targeting of Palestine defenders on college campuses.

“Alistair Kitchen said he was detained for 12 hours and interrogated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in Los Angeles International Airport while en route from Melbourne, Australia to New York last week. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/news/alistair-kitchen

Still Attacking Media

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Article in Poynter by Editorial Staff, 6/17/25

Headline:  “Opinion | 10 years of Trump, 10 years of media attacks”

Subhead:  “Donald Trump has turned phrases like ‘fake news’ and ‘enemy of the people’ into rallying cries to undermine the free press”

“It was 10 years ago Monday that Donald Trump rode down his golden escalator and announced that he was running for president. . .”

“But the world and our country — and the media — have definitely changed. . .”

“Among Blake’s items is “The decline of truth.” Blake writes, “At this point, Trump’s falsehoods often aren’t even treated as news. And that’s because, strictly speaking, they’re not new. He spouted more than 30,000 false and misleading claims in his first term, according to The Washington Post. That averages out to nearly one every hour for four years. And it hasn’t stopped. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2025/decade-donald-trump-fight-free-press/

Iran and the Media

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Jon Alsop, 6/17/25

Headline:  “Strikes on Iran Reverberate Through the Media”

Subhead:  “In Iran, Israel hit a state broadcaster. In the US, MAGA media is at war about war.”

“Yesterday, Sahar Emami, an anchor on Iran’s state broadcaster, was on air in a studio covering Israeli strikes on the country—the fourth day of missiles flying back and forth between the two powers since Israel launched a massive attack on Iran’s nuclear program. ‘Listen, what you hear is the sound of the aggressor,’ Emami said. ‘You hear the sound of the aggressor attacking the truth.’ Suddenly, an almighty sound could be heard on the broadcast; Emami quickly stood up and walked off-set as the studio shook, fragments of debris fluttered down, and a whirl of smoke passed across the camera. Israel, it transpired, had struck the building.

“Iran’s state media is indeed a mouthpiece, but US press-freedom groups nonetheless condemned the strike.  . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/iran-israel-nuclear-deal-trump-framing-farsi-voa.php

Media History Repeated?

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by John Alsop, 6/16/25

Headline:  “The Other Echoes of 2020”

Subhead:  “How this media moment mirrors the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing, beyond police attacks on the press.”

Last week, I wrote in this newsletter about attacks, mostly perpetrated by law enforcement, on journalists covering the protests that followed the recent immigration raids in Los Angeles, and how they echoed the summer of 2020, when police assaulted journalists covering the protests that followed the murder of George Floyd: an Australian TV reporter was hit while talking to camera, which also happened in 2020; ditto the on-air detention of a CNN correspondent; as of last Monday, the US Press Freedom Tracker was working to document at least twenty-six anti-press incidents in LA . . . As last week progressed, the echoes continued: the confirmed number of injured Australian journalists alone jumped to three; an LA police officer was caught on camera shoving and screaming at an ABC journalist; as of Friday, the Press Freedom Tracker was working to document at least fifty anti-press incidents.  . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/other-echoes-2020-floyd-padilla-australia.php

No Coverage for Disasters?

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Article in Indian Country Today by Annie Rosenthal and Chad Bradley, 6/16/25

Headline:  “What defunding public media would mean for the West”

Subhead: “Data show that rural, tribal and Western stations would be most impacted by the Trump administration’s attempt to cut funding for the Center for Public Broadcasting. “

“Late last fall, members of Bethel, Alaska’s search and rescue team met at the local public radio station, KYUK, for a program called River Watch. Over an hour and a half, they took calls from listeners around the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, comparing notes on the safety of the ice at different points along the Kuskokwim River. . .”

“He wanted to warn listeners in other towns: “There is no trail right now. None of the open water is marked. So it’s advised not to be traveling back and forth from Aniak.”

KYUK is the only daily news source for the region, which is roughly the size of Oregon, and River Watch is a staple of its programming. . .”

Read the full article at:  

https://ictnews.org/news/what-defunding-public-media-would-mean-for-the-west/

Journalist Survival Kit

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Article in Poynter by Al Tompkins, 6/13/25

Headline: “25 guidelines for journalists to safely cover unrest”

“Your goal should be to get close enough to observe the scene without endangering yourself or others, or interfering with security or rescue operations”

“With protests scheduled around the country on Saturday, Poynter is republishing a 2021 article with tips about covering unrest. . .”

“1. Your attitude is crucial. Show respect, follow police orders, don’t argue while tensions are high. To avoid being mistaken for a demonstrator, use your best judgment and try not to wear clothing that matches what demonstrators are wearing (e.g., all black). Also, engage with police before the event so they know who you are and may be less likely to arrest you. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2025/25-guidelines-for-journalists-to-safely-cover-unrest/

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Article in FAIR by Shirlynn, 6/13/25

Headline:  “For Media, Unruly Protesters Are Bigger Problem Than Trump’s Police State”

Subhead: ” ‘Violence’ and ‘anarchists’ “

“While major media sources described these protests as ‘mostly peaceful,’ they nevertheless tended to dwell on what was depicted as rioting and protester violence. In its morning newsletter, the New York Times (6/9/25) set the scene:

” ‘Hundreds of National Guard troops arrived in the city, and crowds of people demonstrated against President Trump’s immigration raids. They clashed with federal agents, leaving burned cars, broken barricades and graffiti scrawled across government buildings downtown.’ ”

Read the full article at:

https://fair.org/home/for-media-unruly-protesters-are-bigger-problem-than-trumps-police-state/

Clawing Public Media

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Public Media is NOT State-media

Article in Democracy Now by Staff 6/13/25

Headline:  “House Approves Trump Request to Rescind $9.4B for Foreign Aid and Public Media”

“The U.S. House on Thursday approved in a 214-212 vote President Trump’s request to claw back $9.4 billion in funding for international aid and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS. Only four Republicans voted against the measure, which will freeze $8.3 billion in appropriated foreign aid and $1.1 billion for public media, pending another vote in the Senate.”

Read the full article at:

https://www.democracynow.org/2025/6/13/headlines/house_approves_trump_request_to_rescind_94b_for_foreign_aid_and_public_media

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Article in the New York Times by Megan Mineiro & Catie Edmondson, 6/13/25

Headline:  “Trump’s $1.1 Billion Public Broadcasting Clawback Faces Pushback in the Senate”

Subhead: “Some Republican senators are voicing concern over the House-passed bill that would rescind $9 billion that Congress already approved, including money for NPR and PBS stations in their states.”

“Dakota Talk Radio in the tiny town of Lake Andes, S.D., is one of dozens of rural radio stations across the United States that could see more than half of its budget vanish.

“The station in Unalakleet, Alaska, a remote village in the western Arctic, could lose more than 90 percent of its funding.

“President Trump’s plan to claw back $9 billion in spending already approved by Congress, which Republicans pushed through the House this week and is pending in the Senate, would slash $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/13/us/politics/trump-public-broadcasting-senate.html

VOA Back to Iran?

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Article in Raw Story by Daniel Hampton, 6/13/25

Headline: “Voice of America service airing to Iran ‘urgently called back’ amid airstrikes “

“A government-funded international broadcaster that provides news in Persian and which primarily targets audiences in Iran has been ‘urgently called back,’ according to reports.

“The Voice of America Persian Service was cut by President Donald Trump in a March 15 executive order that shut down VOA Persian TV, along with other U.S.-funded international broadcasters. The service’s funding was cut and nearly all staff were placed on administrative leave.

“But VOA Persian is widely regarded as a vital channel to reach Iranian audiences with independent news and United States viewpoints, as Iran wields tight control over the media. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.rawstory.com/voice-of-america-2672366377/

Is Manufactured News, News?

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Article in The Contrarian by Josh Levs, 6/12/25

Headline:  “Avoiding the media trap of the military parade”

Subhead:  “Help Americans see that standing against authoritarianism is patriotic.”

The military parade and protests planned for this Saturday present the media with a big opportunity to educate America. . .”

“They can explain why any hint of this being a birthday celebration for President Donald Trump rather than a celebration of the Army’s 250th birthday is not befitting a democracy, in which the people — not one person — rule. . .”

The media can help Americans who don’t follow the news closely understand why moves from the Trump administration endanger our democracy . . . And, crucially, the media can fact check those who try to use this Saturday to push anti-democratic movements under simplistic slogans.”

But instead, here’s what we’re likely to see: two-dimensional reporting that fails to dig into the issues and partisan reporting that casts the two sides as good guys vs. bad guys. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://contrarian.substack.com/p/avoiding-the-media-trap-of-the-military