FCC Second Home?

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Article in Poynter by Tom Jones, 8/20/26

Headline:  “Opinion | How close is FCC chair Brendan Carr to the Trump White House? New records offer a look.”

Subhead:  “The FCC is supposed to operate as an independent agency. New records reveal extensive ties among its chair, the White House and conservative media.”

“The Federal Communications Commission is supposed to be an independent government agency that “regulates interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.”

“But it’s pretty clear that under FCC chair Brendan Carr, the agency has been acting on behalf of President Donald Trump through threats and actions against network programming that Trump doesn’t like. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2026/fcc-ties-white-house-trump-conservative-media/

Some Military News – Gone?

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Article in UPI by Don Jacobson, 8/21/26

Headline:  “Pentagon fires Stars and Stripes editor-in-chief, publisher, reporter”

Subhead: “Stars and Stripes, the U.S. military newspaper founded in 1861, lost its editor-in-chief, publisher and Middle East reporter to firings Friday for what the Pentagon described as insubordination. File Photo by Sgt. Brendan Mackie/U.S. Army National Guard”

“The Pentagon has fired the publisher, editor-in-chief and Middle East reporter of the venerable military newspaper Stars and Stripes, the publication reported Friday.

“Editor-in-chief Erik Slavin, publisher Max Lederer Jr. and civilian reporter Lara Korte, who covers the Middle East, have all received termination notices, a Pentagon source confirmed to the newspaper. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/08/21/Pentagon-fires-Stars-Stripes-editor-in-chief-publisher-reporter/1571787353309/

“60 Minutes” Running Out of Time?

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Article in Status by Oliver Darcy, 8/20/26

Headline: “The ’60 minutes’ Countdown”

“The newsmagazine is racing to air amid major turbulence, with Bill Whitaker worrying he is a ‘traitor,’ Bari Weiss expressing frustration with a new contributor, and screenings behind the normal schedule, Status has learned. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.status.news/p/60-minutes-bari-weiss-bill-whitaker-nick-bilton-premiere

Afraid of Women Reporters?

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Article in The Hill by Ashleigh Fields, 8/19/26

Headline: “Trump attacks on female reporters ‘much nastier,’ ‘much more aggressive’: Haberman”

“. . .Haberman, who has often been the subject of Trump’s affronts, told CNN during an interview that she’s seen his attacks grow ‘nastier’ during his second stint in the Oval Office.

“The ‘attacks on female reporters have gotten much nastier and much more aggressive and much less just about being a keyboard warrior where he would do it on Twitter in term one,’ she told host Christiane Amanpour on her podcast, ‘The Ex Files.’

“CNN’s Kaitlan Collins and Haberman have faced Trump’s ire directly and covered the fallout both on air and in print. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/6037866-maggie-haberman-blasts-donald-trump-rhetoric-female-reporters/

Consolidating Media Costs Jobs?

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Article in The Wrap by Lucas Manfredi, 8/19/26

Headline:  “Paramount-WB Deal Could Cost LA 4,500 Film and TV Jobs and $2.8 Billion, Study Finds | Exclusive”

Subhead:  “Over 5,800 indirect or induced jobs from related small businesses could also be at risk over the next three years”

“. . .If the two companies merge, the decisions they make about where to
film their shows could dramatically affect how much production stays in California, CVL and DEO said. The high cost of living in L.A. County and California, combined with stronger incentives out of state and abroad, also contribute to work shifting out of the state and country. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/deals-ma/paramount-warner-bros-deal-job-losses-los-angeles/

Fighting Media Takeover

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Article and photo from Democracy Now! by Amy Goodman, 8/19/26

Headline:  “Trump’s ‘Authoritarian Takeover’ of the Media, ABC Suing FCC & the Meta Trial: Free Press’s Jessica González”

“We look at major media news with Jessica González, co-CEO of the advocacy organization Free Press. She discusses the landmark lawsuit against Meta for making its social media platforms addictive for young people, efforts to halt the Paramount-Warner Bros. megamerger, and Disney’s lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission over what it calls the Trump administration’s “retaliatory campaign” against the ABC television network. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.democracynow.org/2026/8/19/disney_paramount_meta

His Master’s Voice

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Article in Media Matters by Matt Gertz, 8/19/26

Headline:  “Fox & Friends, echoing GOP memo, runs cover against ‘far-left’ data center opposition”

“Republican leaders who fear that the furious, bipartisan backlash against AI data centers could cost their party in the midterm election are getting help from their loyal propagandists at Fox News. On its flagship morning show, the network’s hosts and contributors are attempting to convince viewers to support data centers by telling them that the ‘far left’ is behind the opposition. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.mediamatters.org/index%2Ephp/artificial-intelligence-and-data-centers/fox-friends-echoing-gop-memo-runs-cover-against-far-left

Media Collusion?

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Article in The Guardian by Jeremy Barr, 8/19/26

Headline:  “Revealed: FCC chair Brendan Carr’s close coordination with White House and rightwing media”

Subhead:  “Internal documents obtained by Guardian show White House meetings, scheduled calls with top Trump officials and communications with Fox News producers”

“. . .Between 12 March 2025 and 11 February 2026, Carr attended at least eight meetings at the White House, according to the records, and had at least three scheduled calls with administration officials, including two conversations with the chief of staff, Susie Wiles. . .”

“In addition, the files provide insight into Carr’s media strategy, including communications with producers at Fox News, and make public previously undisclosed meetings he has held with media titans such as the Fox Corp chief executive, Lachlan Murdoch, and Sinclair Broadcast Group chair, David Smith. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/ng-interactive/2026/aug/19/brendan-carr-fcc-white-house-exclusive

Media Give Politicians a Break?

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Article in Common Dreams by James Zogby, 8/18/26

Headline:  ” Independent Interviewers Expose How Mainstream Media Lets Politicians Off the Hook”

Subhead: “Two recent podcasts demonstrated what happens when establishment politicians, whose prepared talking points never stray from what serves as the conventional wisdom about Israel-Palestine, run up against interviewers unwilling to give them a pass.”

“Two July podcasts hosted by progressive media stars and featuring leading Democratic lawmakers brought home the deep disconnect that exists between the way establishment politicians and media operate and the way both come to speak about the Middle East and the realities that exist in that region.. .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/mainstream-media-israel-palestine

Media and Exploding Lawsuits

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Article in Axios by Sara Fisher and Kerry Flynn, 8/18/26

Headline:  “Trump’s media and defamation legal battles skyrocket”

Subhead:  “Media and defamation lawsuits involving Trump”

“. . .Trump’s efforts to target government-funded broadcasters and broadcasters regulated by the Federal Communications Commission have prompted many of those cases.”

“. . .According to Axios’ analysis, Trump, his businesses and his administration have been involved in 61 media and defamation lawsuits since 2015, including 16 in 2025 and nine so far in 2026.

Read the full article at:

https://www.axios.com/2026/08/18/trump-media-defamation-lawsuits