Oliver Darcy here. Chris Hayes is calling on Trump to resign from office, BuzzFeed News has fired a reporter, Matt Drudge is continuing to pummel the Trump White House, Mike Pence is getting called out for lying at the coronavirus task force briefing, Fox News spent part of the day hyping a bogus story about Joe Biden, and more. But first... Facebook's ad crisis
>> Joe Scarborough's reaction: "This is a weak move by a man who made $85 billion profiting off of hate, conspiracy theories, and anti-democratic posts..."
Is the boycott actually hurting Facebook's business?
While the ad boycott is causing a major public relations headache for Facebook, it's worth asking how much impact it's actually having on the company's business. Brian Fung noted in his story that the 100 highest-spending advertisers account for $4.2 billion in spending last year. That's about 6% of the company's ad revenue.
So where is Facebook earning the bulk of its profit? "Much of the rest of Facebook's ad revenue comes from small and medium-sized businesses, ad executives say," Fung explained. "It would likely take tens of thousands of them, acting over a significant period of time, to put a big dent in Facebook's bottom line."
>> Snopes' Vinny Green tweeted: "The CMOs of the brands leaving Facebook Ads should immediately tell their staff to start discovering meaningful ways to buy ads directly from credible publishers. Snopes reaches over 30M visitors monthly. We employ over 20 full-time, incredibly dedicated people in the fight against misinformation. Directing your ad spend to support publishers like us would be transformative for our mission. You can make a huge difference!"
NYT's Kevin Roose pointed out the post, with more than 200,000 shares, depicts a photo of "a Vietnam War memorial vandalized by BLM protesters." The problem? "The photo," Roose tweeted, "is from 2016, the vandals weren't BLM-affiliated, and it was debunked by a fact-checker weeks ago." The post eventually had a fact-checking label applied to it, and it appeared later to have been removed, but a Facebook spokesperson told me that the company did not take it down... FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE -- "The Trump administration is calling on Facebook, Twitter and other tech giants to take action against posts that call for people to break curfews, commit violent acts and topple statues in connection with racial justice protests nationwide, describing such content as 'criminal activity' that puts Americans’ security at risk," Tony Romm reports... (WaPo)
-- Oklahoma Watch reporter Paul Monies, who attended Trump's Tulsa rally, says he has tested positive for coronavirus... (AP) -- "Sean Hannity's Fox News town hall with President Donald Trump was the most-watched show on television Thursday night, beating all cable and broadcast competitors by with 5.1 million viewers..." (TheWrap)
-- Daniel Dale's latest: "Trump falsely claims Biden, who has committed to the debates, is trying to get out of debating..." (CNN) Hayes to Trump: Resign ![]() In a scathing segment Friday night, MSNBC host Chris Hayes — for the first time — called on Trump to resign the office of the Presidency. Hayes said Trump "ignored warnings from his public health experts" that "resulted in tens of thousands of preventable deaths." He argued, "Things are falling apart because of him." The VP's lies
After more than two months without a WH coronavirus task force briefing, Mike Pence walked out before reporters with Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx to discuss the outbreak and answer questions from reporters. As Peter Alexander pointed out, "More than 70K Americans have died of COVID-19 since the last White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing."
>> Nicholas Kristof tweeted: "When Mike Pence responds to the US hitting a new record in coronavirus cases by claiming to find that it's actually 'very encouraging news,' reflecting 'great success,' I'm reminded of past reporting trips...in North Korea...." Pence leaves briefing after being grilled by Paula Reid
Pence didn't have an answer to the simple -- yet sharp -- question, responding only by saying that Americans have a Constitutional right to freely assemble. He then ended the briefing (even though he had only taken a handful of questions) and left the stage without saying when the task force would brief the nation again...
Drudge's brutal banner headlines ![]() Influential conservative news aggregator Matt Drudge continues to hammer Trump, and the headlines featured Friday were particularly brutal. In the banner headlines, Drudge took the White House to task for its response to the coronavirus. And in several headlines under the banner, Drudge highlighted articles criticizing the President's general tone and chances at re-election.
>> Drudge's turn on Trump is irritating pro-Trump personalties in right-wing media. Mark Levin, for instance, tweeted Friday, "Drudge surrendered to Big Media long ago. Just another Democrat Party organ. Use more reliable news aggregators..." Outbreak in Florida takes toll on media industry
Brian Lowry emails: It’s just one part of the story, but the coronavirus spread in Florida is, among other things, going to hugely complicate media, entertainment and sports-related franchises that have tethered their business plans to the state, including Disney and Universal’s theme parks and hopes of restarting the NBA season...
Remember when RW media demanded apologies for DeSantis?
Lowry adds: The Florida outbreak has also underscored the dangers of getting too far ahead of the news cycle during this story, with a new round of finger-pointing amid the dire numbers at National Review’s Rich Lowry (no relation) for his May 20 column headlined, “Where Does Ron DeSantis Go to Get His Apology?”
>> Jon Passantino tweeted: "DeSantis bragged a few weeks ago about Florida's approach to the coronavirus and attacked the media. Today, the state recorded a record-breaking nearly 9,000 new cases..."
"Fantasyland" on this week's "Reliable" podcast
Brian Stelter writes: "Believe-whatever-you-want fantasy is deeply embedded in our DNA," journalist Kurt Andersen wrote in his 2017 book "Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire." I recently revisited the book because I think it explains so much about America's reaction to the Covid-19 crisis -- the denialism, the wishful thinking, the talk of magical cures. Andersen joined me on this week's "Reliable Sources" podcast -- check out our conversation via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, or your favorite app... WEEKEND PLANNER The VP travels to Dallas while Trump stays in DC...
Sunday morning on CNN: Nikole Hannah-Jones on "Inside Politics," John Bolton on "State of the Union," and António Guterres on "GPS..."
HBO's "I'll Be Gone in the Dark" premieres Sunday night... Scroll down for Brian Lowry's review... The "Reliable Sources" guest list BuzzFeed fires reporter Fox treats minor Biden misspeak as a serious story
>> Of note: By the afternoon, Trace Gallagher noted that Biden did immediately correct himself, but still covered the story and asked Chris Wallace if it was fair game. Wallace replied that he believed it to be a "cheap shot..." FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO -- Will Sommer reports that a complaint from the SEC "provided some clear breadcrumbs leading back to the Daily Caller as being among the outlets that ran with material paid for by [Jack] Abramoff." The Daily Caller writer in question denied anything untoward happened... (Daily Beast)
-- Despite conservatives making a big deal of jumping to Parler, Zachary Petrizzo notes they are still posting on Twitter... (Mediaite)
-- Parler CEO John Matze appeared on "Your World" Friday afternoon and told Neil Cavuto that he expects liberals will gravitate to his platform, too... We'll see...
-- The Dispatch says it has joined Facebook's fact-checking program... (Twitter)
-- One line from a must-read Alessandra Stanley essay: "America, or a part of it, is living an exhilarating, anything-is-possible moment, one of social protest, forged in rage over the mindless killing of George Floyd, but spreading so widely and powerfully and quickly that even the most sheltered elites are cowed." There's a "but..." (Air Mail) "Whatever Happened to Joy Reid’s Alleged Hackers and That FBI Investigation?"
Who will fill her weekend slot?
>> Ali clarified: "Important to note that doesn't mean that all of those people listed in the tweet above want the role. Just talking about who is being discussed internally at NBC/MSNBC..." JVL pushes back against Noonan
Last argued that Noonan's view is incorrect. "Trump understands his base infinitely better than Peggy Noonan does," he wrote. "And he is playing a different game than she realizes. Peggy Noonan still sees Donald Trump as an interloper who temporarily took control of an ideological movement and, when he fails to retain political power, will lose control of this movement." But, Last asserted, "Trump has remade conservatism and the Republican party as a single cult of his own personality. And precisely because he never provided steadiness and seriousness, he will control this cult even after he exits the White House." FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE By Kerry Flynn:
-- Curbed LA and SF announce they're shutting down their sites in preparation of relaunching under New York Magazine this fall... (Curbed)
-- Cathy Erway writes how management in food media must work harder to fix the industry's intrinsic racism.. (Grub Street)
-- Lucinda Southern asks publishers about Google's new offering to license news content... (Digiday)
-- Rick Porter reports: Just a day after LeBron James and Maverick Carter revealed their new media company SpringHill Co., the duo announced a two-year deal with ABC Studios... (THR)
NewFronts Day 5: The Trisis
Kerry Flynn emails: Last year, marketers and media reporters like myself spent this week in Cannes. This year, we were staring at screens to learn about the industry's future at virtual events. While the NewFronts had some relaxing moments courtesy of Snapchat-sponsored meditations and laughs thanks to host Scott Rogowsky, most of the presentations were quite serious. Execs grappled with what UWG CEO Monique Nelson called a trisis: pandemic, recession, unrest over police violence. Adweek has a great roundup of the entire week... >> I'm keeping my eyes on what's next. As Rogowsky said to end it all, "Let's take steps to take action, not just talk action..."
Katie's weekend reads
By Katie Pellico:
-- Nieman Lab's Hanaa' Tameez offers two new studies that "can help newsrooms through their reckoning with racism..." (Nieman Lab)
-- "Overcoming systemic racism begins in our own newsrooms." The 19th co-founder and publisher Amanda Zamora writes, "I’ve concluded that silence is complicity -- and I will no longer be silent..." (Poynter) -- MediaWise intern Aiyana Ishmael asks, "What have you done besides post on Twitter to support your Black colleagues, especially us younger ones?" She writes, "In 20 years I’m going to run your newsroom. But it’s going to take real, inclusive mentorship to help me get there..." (Poynter) -- USC Annenberg associate professor Robert Hernandez argues "there is no pipeline problem. J-schools across the country have trained and prepared talented, diverse voices ready to work in our industry, but they are often overlooked when hiring..." (National Press Club Journalism Institute) -- Jelani Cobb, Errin Haines, Rachelle Hampton, Alex Samuels, and Carvell Wallace weigh in on "this long-overdue moment of reckoning..." (Slate) -- A must-read from journalist Queen Muse: "Being the only Black woman journalist in the room is a privilege and a prison..." (Philadelphia Inquirer) ![]() Jon Stewart's legacy still looms large in late night ![]() Brian Lowry emails: In the five years since he left “The Daily Show,” Jon Stewart has – to the chagrin of some fans – kept a relatively low profile, producing some grumbling about him having signed off when he was needed most. As his new movie opens, though, you don’t have to look hard to find Stewart’s influence on late night – and contribution to the melding of satire and politics – in the hosts that cut their teeth on his program... Disney delays "Mulan" … again
“The Simpsons” make a change FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR -- Here's a full list of the winners of the 2020 Daytime Emmy Awards, which were presented virtually Friday evening... (THR)
-- "'The Office' creator Greg Daniels has cut a blackface scene from a 2012 episode, calling the racist trope “unacceptable” even when used as satire..." (Deadline)
-- Alex Trebek and his wife Jean have donated $500,000 to Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission to help fight the homelessness crisis in the Los Angeles area, David Williams reports... (CNN) Lowry reviews HBO's new true-crime docuseries
Brian Lowry emails: Premiering Sunday, HBO's "I'll Be Gone in the Dark" isn’t your usual true-crime docu-series. Adapted from the late Michelle McNamara’s book, it chronicles her hunt for the Golden State killer – identified after her death – but also her life and relationship with her husband, Patton Oswalt, as well as the subculture of “citizen detectives.” Still, it’s guilty of what’s become an increasingly common sin within its genre – namely, stretching out six hours from a concept that’s worth roughly three. Read my full review here... NBC orders "Connecting," about life in the age of coronavirus
"NBC is the first broadcast network to greenlight a scripted comedy series set in the times of the novel coronavirus pandemic," THR's Lesley Goldberg reports. "The network has handed out an eight-episode, straight-to-series order for 'Connecting,' an ensemble comedy about a group of friends trying to stay close — and sane — through video chats as they share the highs and lows of these extraordinary times."
The show will be produced "entirely remotely." Goldberg says it's "the first scripted broadcast series to explore the new way of life amid the global coronavirus pandemic and third overall. It joins Jenji Kohan's Netflix anthology Social Distance and Freeform's Love in the Time of Corona..." ![]() Thank you for reading! Shoot me an email with your feedback / tips or connect with me on Twitter. Brian can be reached here. Have a good weekend!
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