New Voice for VOA

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Article in Common Dreams by Jake Johonson, 12/12/24

Headline:  ” ‘Stuff of Parody’: Trump Taps Election-Denying Ally Kari Lake to Run Voice of America”

Subhead:  ” ‘Authoritarians love to control and instrumentalize media organizations, especially state-funded ones,’ journalist Mehdi Hasan wrote in response to the news.”

“President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has chosen Kari Lake, a far-right election denier and failed U.S. Senate candidate, to lead the federally funded international broadcast network Voice of America, a move that critics said underscores Trump’s effort to transform government entities into vehicles to advance his own interests.

In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote that as director of VOA, Lake would “ensure that the American values of Freedom and Liberty are broadcast around the World FAIRLY and ACCURATELY, unlike the lies spread by the Fake News Media.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/kari-lake-voice-of-america

Will the Regulators be Truthful?

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Article in ProPublica by Justin Elliot, Robert Faturechi, and Alex Mierjeski, 12/10/24

Headline:  “Donald Trump Controls a Publicly Traded Company. Now He Will Pick Its Regulator.”

Subhead:  ” There have been internal concerns that Trump Media could be misleading investors, a source said. But with its largest shareholder about to be president, experts doubt the SEC is up to the job of investigating Truth Social’s parent company.”

“. . .When Trump takes office in January, a president will for the first time be the majority owner of a publicly traded company, Trump Media, which runs Truth Social. Former SEC officials are concerned about how Trump could try to use the agency to go after the foes of his company, which accounts for more than half his fortune. They also worry that the agency isn’t up for the job of taking on Trump Media should it run afoul of securities laws. . .”

https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-media-truth-social-sec-securities-exchange-commission

Gotta Pay the Right News Outlets

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Article in Reuters by Maayan Lubell, 12/10/24

Headline:  “Netanyahu assails media as he testifies for first time in his corruption trial”

“. . .The leader of the right-wing Likud party, Netanyahu assailed the Israeli media for what he called its leftist stance and accused journalists of having hounded him for years because his policies did not align with a push for a Palestinian state.

” ‘I have been waiting for eight years for this moment to tell the truth, ‘ Netanyahu told the three-judge court. ‘But I am also a prime minister … I am leading the country through a seven-front war. And I think the two can be done in parallel.’ ”

“Netanyahu was indicted in three cases involving gifts from millionaire friends and for allegedly seeking regulatory favours for media tycoons in return for favourable news coverage. He denies any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty.”

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/netanyahu-take-stand-his-corruption-trial-first-time-2024-12-09/

Reporter Records Seized in Past

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Article in AP by Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer, 12/10/24

Headline:  “Justice Department ignored some policies when seizing reporters’ phone records, watchdog finds”

“Federal prosecutors sidestepped some Justice Department rules when they seized the phone records of reporters as part of media leak investigations during the Trump administration, according to a new watchdog report being released as the aggressive practice of hunting for journalists’ sources could again be resurrected.”

https://apnews.com/article/justice-department-inspector-general-reporters-congress-records-d337eb87f286b9c14779adb8b4b14365

Who Checks the Media?

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Article in the Washington Post by Erik Wemple, 12/9/24

Headline:  “Will anyone hold the media to account? I answered your questions.”

Q by guest – “. . . Why don’t reporters ask real follow-up questions?
As a former newspaper reporter/editor, my heart remains in the field and with the reporters trying to cover some of the strangest times in our history.

“I am frustrated that reporters rarely ask sufficient follow–up questions when a politician, like a president-elect, lies. Kristen Welker’s interview with Donald Trump is an example.

A – : “. . . Welker then challenges Trump by saying that the figure he cited goes back 40 years; Trump then plows ahead with his narrative, which a subsequent NBC News fact check calls false. Your critique is a good one: This point is significant enough to essentially halt the flow of the interview and say something like, “Please cite your source.” Because even though NBC News later fact-checked it (as did other outlets), there’s value in standing firm on principle in real time, when possible.. . ”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/12/09/erik-wemple-media-live-chat/

Attacking Media That Inform Us

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Article in The Verge by Adi Robertson, 12/9/24

Headline:  “Politicians already feel emboldened to use the legal system to target journalists.”

Subhead:  “404 Media is fighting a subpoena from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to seize confidential reporting material”

“In order to do our job well, journalists need to be independent from the government and from outside corporate interests. … Our sources—many of whom are particularly vulnerable—share information with us specifically because we are independent from the state.

“As we’ve said before: tell your Senator to pass the PRESS Act.”

https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/9/24317197/politicians-already-feel-emboldened-to-use-the-legal-system-to-target-journalists

Media Pardon Prank

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Article in Huffpost by David Moye, 12/9/24

Headline:  “Media Prankster Offers Free Joe Biden Pardons For Everyone”

Subhead:  “ ‘Everyone deserves a pardon,’ conceptual artist Joey Skaggs told HuffPost.”

“A conceptual artist and media prankster has created the perfect gift for people who fear President Joe Biden played favorites when he pardoned his son Hunter: Free pardon cards for anyone who wants one.

“This past weekend, artist Joey Skaggs posted a link on his website for Free Biden Presidential Pardons.”

“. . .Would you rather be pardoned by Donald Trump than Biden? No problem. Skaggs also has a Trump pardon on his website that he created the first time Trump left office”

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/joey-skaggs-free-biden-pardon_n_67576431e4b02942d61cb4f7

Malicious Media?

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Article in Daily Kos by Sabrina Haake, 12/99/24

Headline:  “Media malfeasance got us here, and media malfeasance will keep us here”

“Mainstream media spent last week in a self-righteous frenzy over Joe Biden’s pardon of his son.

“Almost none of the coverage explained that Hunter Biden was pardoned for offenses rarely prosecuted in the first place.

“. . . Since the pardon was announced, Fox News has churned non-stop false narratives equating the “Biden crime family” with Trump’s long litany of felonies. Fox News ran over 80 features covering the Biden pardon over the past week alone, yet to this day has still never factually discussed J6 or Trump’s role in it.

“Fox similarly offers no criticism of Trump’s plan to install a psychopath to turn the FBI into a dragnet against American citizens.. . . ”

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/12/9/2291063/-Media-malfeasance-got-us-here-and-media-malfeasance-will-keep-us-here?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web

Media Empire Trouble

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Article in The Guardian by Lauren Aratani, 12/9/24

Headline:  “Rupert Murdoch loses battle to control succession to his media empire”

Subhead:  “Media mogul’s three adult children will retain control despite attempt to give his son Lachlan complete control”

“Rupert Murdoch’s three adult children will retain control over their father’s media empire upon his death, a Nevada court has ruled after Murdoch launched a campaign to wrest away their power and give it all to his oldest son.

“The New York Times reported on Murdoch’s loss, citing a sealed court decision that was filed on Saturday. The family battle took place outside of the public’s eye, despite attempts from the media to gain access to the trial.”

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/dec/09/rupert-murdochmedia-empire-children