Brian Stelter here. It's 10:14pm ET on Monday, March 14.
Perils for the press
War correspondents attend training workshops and travel with protective gear. They take common-sense precautions and consult with security experts in the field. But the danger, even when minimized, never disappears.
And the dangers right now in Ukraine are extraordinary even by war zone standards.
Reporters have been "shot at, shelled, robbed, and detained by Russian forces as they cover the war and the ongoing humanitarian crisis it has caused," as the Committee to Protect Journalists wrote on Monday.
With Sunday's death of Brent Renaud still reverberating in the minds of journalists and officials, we learned on Monday that Fox News correspondent Benjamin Hall was injured while reporting near Kyiv. Fox said Hall was hospitalized and indicated that the network had minimal information about his condition. At the time I'm writing this, 10pm US ET, there is enormous concern about Hall.
"Our thoughts are with him, his family, and all of his colleagues, and we wish him a full recovery," State Department spokesman Ned Price said Monday evening. "We stand ready to assist in any way we can."
Prayers for Fox correspondent
Seconding what Anderson Cooper and Victor Blackwell said on the air when the news broke, our thoughts are with Hall and his family right now.
-- Fox colleagues sent well wishes via Twitter. Alex Hogan called Hall "a bright and talented journalist... but more importantly a good and kind person." Lauren Blanchard said he is "a top notch reporter and the most loving father..."
-- Hall, who has years of experience reporting from conflict zones, was named Fox's State Department correspondent last November. State's association of reporters praised his warmth and good humor...
-- Shep Smith spoke about his former colleague on CNBC Monday night: "I've known Benji as a consummate professional, a respected journalist of the highest standards, and a wonderful man..."
"Very difficult terrain to operate in"
PBS "NewsHour" correspondent Jane Ferguson put the threats into words with this Twitter thread on Monday. "This war is incredibly tough to cover as a field reporter – unlike any I have seen or experienced before, and many colleagues would agree," she wrote. "The intense artillery which reaches for miles, and vague fluidity of various army positions means there is no 'front line'. The Russian presence of 'saboteurs' inside Ukraine not only means they can pop up pretty much anywhere, and often way before you think you've reached 'the front', but also leaves the Ukrainian soldiers incredibly jumpy."
Ferguson recounted being pulled out of a car at gunpoint on Monday when soldiers "thought we were filming them from our car." Each incident is different, she said, "and the press pack here are all incredibly experienced at war reporting. It's just a very difficult terrain to operate in and one where many of us are having to figure it out as we go along. Not something anyone really wants to have to do."
Dangers are "increasing by the day"
Summer Lopez, the director of the Free Expression Programs at PEN America, said Monday, "The dangers facing journalists on the ground in Ukraine are increasing by the day... Courageous reporters are putting their lives on the line to tell the world the horrific truth of this war. The risks of war reporting are always high, but wherever journalists are being targeted directly, it is a violation of international law. All efforts must be made to ensure their protection..."
What Putin wants
On "The Lead," Jake Tapper pointed out that Russian officials are "lying" about Renaud: "Today, Russia's ambassador to the UN said that journalist Brent Renaud was not a journalist, and they called him a filmmaker. They said he was killed by Ukrainian forces, not Russian forces. Renaud was a journalist. He was also a documentary filmmaker... Not only does the chief of police in Kyiv say the shooters were Russians, other journalists in that convoy -- who survived -- say it was Russians shooting them."
Tapper's guest Nic Robertson, CNN's international diplomatic editor, said "Russia wants to stamp out any information that it doesn't regard as legitimate," and this effort extends to Ukraine. "It is quite clear that Russia will go to great lengths to stifle those voices," Robertson said. "Arresting people at home, and in Ukraine, clearly much worse..."
>> Joshua Benton's tribute to Renaud: "if there's even a single thing about Sunday that makes any sense, it might be that Brent Renaud died telling the stories of people caught up in some of humanity’s darkest situations. That's what Brent — with his brother and filmmaking partner Craig Renaud — did all his career..."
FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE
-- WaPo's lead headline in Tuesday's editions: "U.S. warns China not to assist Russia..." (WaPo)
-- Delia Gallagher's very informative piece for CNN.com: "In Putin's vision for the world, a medieval narrative resurfaces..." (CNN)
-- As Russia-Ukraine "metastasizes into its fourth week of full-fledged war with no end in sight, news organizations are assessing how to deploy staff for the round-the-clock demands of covering it," Jeremy Barr reports... (WaPo)
-- Jacob Mchangama on "the problem with" banning Russian disinfo: Freedom of expression and access to information "is the best way to defeat Putin's propaganda..." (Beast)
"NO WAR"
The people most astonished by this on-air protest on Russia's Channel One were Russian experts. They instantly recognized how unusual it was. "Wow," Michael McFaul tweeted. "Incredible bravery. Ukrainians, please know you have allies in Russia." Jill Doughtery called it "astounding."
"NO WAR. Stop the war. Do not believe propaganda they tell you lies here," the sign said. OVD-Info, an independent human rights protest-monitoring group, identified the protester as Maria Ovsyannikova, an employee of the channel. Her friends said she was at a nearby police station afterward. OVD-Info also obtained a video purportedly made by Ovsyannikova before she interrupted the broadcast. "What is happening now in Ukraine is a crime, and Russia is the aggressor country, and the responsibility for this aggression lies on the conscience of only one person. This man is Vladimir Putin," Ovsyannikova said in the video...
Russia cuts off Instagram
"Russia's promised ban on Instagram has kicked into effect today, with the social media platform inaccessible for the vast majority of the country’s population, according to internet monitoring service GlobalCheck," The Verge's James Vincent wrote Monday. The NY Post headlined it this way: "Russian influencers sob bitter tears as Putin’s Instagram ban goes into effect." My headline would be "Russia takes Instagram away from its citizens..."
Supporting independent media on both sides
"Money is pouring in for the Ukrainian journalists covering the invasion of their homeland," NiemanLab's Sarah Scire reports. "A fundraising campaign organized by journalism groups The Fix, Are We Europe, Jnomics, and Media Development Foundation has raised more than $4 million in a little over two weeks."
And here's another: Meduza, a prominent Russian news site based in Latvia, is launching a crowdfunding campaign, BuzzFeed's Stephanie K. Baer reports. "Sweeping economic sanctions against Russia have made it nearly impossible to send money out of the country, and the newsroom has lost funding from 30,000 members based there," so Meduza is seeking 30,000 new supporters...
FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO
-- The NYT "has launched a new, dedicated channel on Telegram" to provide war updates... (NYT)
-- "QAnon, Ukraine and 'biolabs':" Ben Collins and Kevin Collier show how Russian propaganda efforts have been "boosted" by US far-right figures... (NBC)
-- Know your history: Jake Tapper thoroughly examined Donald Trump's "track record" on Russia and Ukraine, including Trump's history of siding with Putin despite Russia's repeated aggression... (CNN)
-- This NYT Opinion headline crystallizes the "vibes" of the moment: "There Are Almost Too Many Things to Worry About..." (NYT)
IN OTHER NEWS:
Politico v. Hawley
"Politico is demanding Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) stop using a controversial photo taken last year by a journalist at a publication it owns on his campaign merchandise," The Hill's Dominick Mastrangelo wrote Monday. It's the infamous photo of Hawley's fist raised in the air on Jan 6. The photo was taken by Francis Chung of E&E News, which is now owned by Politico. The issue: Hawley's reelection campaign is "selling ceramic coffee mugs emblazoned with the photo and the words 'Show Me Strong' for $20." Thus, the cease-and-desist letter, a standard practice for news outlet. Hawley's rep claimed "we are in full compliance with the law..."
TUESDAY PLANNER
Equal Pay Day will be highlighted through an event at the White House...
New nonfiction releases include "Lessons From The Edge" by Marie Yovanovitch...
HBO debuts "Phoenix Rising," a two-part documentary about Evan Rachel Wood’s domestic-violence advocacy and her relationship with Marilyn Manson...
The NCAA First Four begins with Texas Southern vs. Texas A&M-CC...
Julian Assange denied permission to appeal extradition to US
Jamie Maglietta writes: "The U.K. Supreme Court has refused WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's final request to appeal against extradition to the United States. 'The decision is a major blow' to Assange, the BBC's Victoria Lindrea reports. The matter now moves to U.K. Home Secretary Priti Patel. In the US, Assange faces a trial on '18 counts related to WikiLeaks' release of vast troves of confidential U.S. military records and a potential sentence of up to 175 years in prison,' per Jacob Knutson of Axios..."
"Does Chapek survive?"
Disney CEO Bob Chapek "wants to steer the company from left to center, and has tried to avoid what he views as political entanglements," Puck's Matthew Belloni wrote Monday. Maybe that explains last week's flip-flop that played right into Florida governor Ron DeSantis's hands. As Belloni wrote, it's "pretty clear that openly stating a goal of political neutrality at a creatively-driven company isn't possible in today's climate, especially on subjects that a vast number of employees consider issues of human rights and equality, not politics." According to Belloni, "Does Chapek survive?" is "the topic du jour" in Hollywood. For the record, Belloni thinks he does...
>> Sharon Waxman's latest for TheWrap: Insiders are wondering "whether his top-down leadership style has put the new leader out of touch with the vast array of cultural sensibilities in his business empire..."
John Oliver calls out Disney
Brian Lowry writes: "On Sunday's 'Last Week Tonight,' John Oliver nicely articulated why Disney's posture about its reluctance to take a stand on the 'Don't Say Gay' bill rang hollow. Oliver expressed skepticism that the company was somehow naïve about the policy positions of Florida politicians to whom it donated that support the legislation. The HBO host called that explanation 'actively insulting...'"
FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE
-- THR's Alex Weprin reports: "Thanks to a new long-term contract with extensive stock options, Discovery CEO David Zaslav's 2021 total compensation topped $246 million..." (THR)
-- Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels has confirmed the company's plans "to combine its current streaming service Discovery Plus and WarnerMedia’s HBO Max into one service, rather than offer the two platforms as a bundle," Jennifer Maas writes... (Variety)
-- Dylan Byers' Monday evening scoop: "Craig Melvin, the star NBC News & MSNBC host, is leaving MSNBC to dedicate himself full time to NBC's 'Today' show, sources familiar with the matter tell me. His departure leaves yet another vacancy for MSNBC to fill -- this time at 11 am..." (Twitter)
-- Rex Chapman previewed his CNN+ show in this interview pegged to March Madness. Guests will include Kevin Love, Ben Stiller and Jason Sudeikis... (Bleacher Report)
NYT warns staff about efforts to "surreptitiously" record them
Oliver Darcy writes: "One week after Mathew Rosenberg was featured in two Project Veritas videos making inappropriate comments about his colleagues, the NYT put out a memo to employees warning them to 'take extra care if someone unfamiliar' approaches them to talk about their work. 'Please be aware that this could be an effort to surreptitiously record you with audio or video,' the memo said. WaPo's Erik Wemple tweeted a full copy of it here..."
FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR
By Oliver Darcy:
-- Former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster has joined CBS News as a contributor... (AdWeek)
-- BuzzFeed News managing editor Sara Yasin "has been named a managing editor for the Los Angeles Times..." (LAT)
-- ABC News has hired HBO's Reena Mehta to be SVP of streaming and digital content... (Deadline)
-- NYT has named Jennie Coughlin as Metro's first full-time audience editor... (NYT)
-- Alana Wise is joining NPR's National Desk "to cover the Race and Identity beat..." (Twitter)
Nielsen for sale
Shares in Nielsen jumped more than 30% when the WSJ reported on a potential sale of the TV ratings giant. "A consortium of private-equity firms including Elliott Management is in advanced talks" to buy Nielsen "for about $15 billion including debt, according to people familiar with the matter," Dana Cimilluca and Cara Lombardo reported. "Financing talks with a number of banks are progressing and a takeover deal could be completed within weeks." The usual caveat sentence: "There is no guarantee there will be a deal, as the talks could still fall apart..."
Blitzer on "Wheel"
Oliver Darcy writes: "Wolf Blitzer's ears may have been ringing Monday night when 'Wheel of Fortune' aired. Blitzer was part of the answer — 'Hungry Like The Wolf Blitzer' — to a puzzle on the game show. Blitzer later joked on Twitter that he was 'working all day' in 'The Situation Room' and 'didn't eat much.' He added, 'So yes — I was pretty hungry!'"
ABC renews "Abbott Elementary"
Brian Lowry writes: "In what's shaping up to be a decent year for new broadcast-network comedies -- first with CBS' 'Ghosts' -- ABC has given an early renewal to 'Abbott Elementary,' its top-rated half-hour in two years, per Deadline..."
"The Gilded Age" reminds us...
Lisa Respers France writes: "The storyline of HBO's 'The Gilded Age' begins less than 20 years after slavery was abolished in the US, and so the creative forces behind the historical series would have been well within their rights to feature a Black family struggling post Reconstruction. But, instead, there is the well-to-do Scott family, whose characterization is a breath of fresh air to many viewers, especially African Americans. The series reminds viewers that the Black elite existed and thrived. I talked with the show's historical consultant, who said, 'We're in a moment where we need to see dignity.'" Read on...
FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE
By Lisa Respers France:
-- In the wake of his heart attack, Bob Odenkirk said he would like to be more like the late Bob Saget...
-- Speaking of Saget, his family has been granted a permanent injunction to block the release of "certain records related to" the comedian's death, according to this CNN team...
-- The first full trailer for Hulu's "The Kardashians" has arrived, and whoa baby...
-- Adele has another concert special coming – this time on NBC...
Rock the vote
Jamie Maglietta writes: "Dolly Parton has decided to 'respectfully bow out' of being nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, tweeting on Monday that 'I don't feel that I have earned that right' and adding that this has inspired her to 'put out a hopefully great rock ’n’ roll album at some point in the future.' CNN's Scottie Andrew explained how the Hall of Fame 'has made an effort in recent years to nominate and induct artists who aren't traditional rock artists but have made major contributions to popular music and influenced other musicians.' Dictionary.com replied to Parton's announcement and said, 'We're the dictionary, but Dolly is defining the word humility...'"
Campion apologizes for "thoughtless" comment
"Director Jane Campion has apologized to tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams, calling a comment she made during her acceptance speech at Sunday night's Critics Choice Awards 'thoughtless,'" Sandra Gonzalez reports. "The social media ire directed toward Campion over her speech for best director stemmed from one particular moment that came after she acknowledged the other nominees in the category, who were all men. 'The Power of the Dog' helmer then said, 'Venus and Serena, you're such marvels. However, you don't play against the guys, like I have to.' In addition to being inaccurate (the tennis champions have faced off men), some perceived Campion's statement as being dismissive of two successful Black women's accomplishments." Read on...
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST...
Pet of the day
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