TGIF. Here's the latest on Beyoncé, Brendan Carr, Hillary Clinton, Tim Cook, the Daily Mail, "Dog Man," and more...
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Paramount paying off Trump? |
When President Trump sued CBS News on Halloween, legal experts called the suit "frivolous;" "ridiculous junk;" and laughable on its face. From the wild amount of alleged damages ($10 billion!) to the fact that the complaint was filed in Texas (an apparent attempt at "judge shopping") to the decision to give Fox News the scoop about it, the suit had all the hallmarks of a political PR stunt.
Trump's team alleged "deceptive doctoring" of a "60 Minutes" interview with Kamala Harris. There was some editing – a preview clip of the Harris interview used one part of an answer about Israel, and the "60" broadcast used a different part – but that's a debatable matter of editorial discretion, not "doctoring." CBS quickly moved to throw out the suit, stating "the First Amendment prevents holding CBS liable for editorial judgments the President may not like."
And yet...
The news outlet's parent company, Paramount Global, is now trying to settle the lawsuit, the NYT's Lauren Hirsch, James B. Stewart and Michael M. Grynbaum reported last night. "A settlement would be an extraordinary concession by a major U.S. media company to a sitting president, especially in a case in which there is no evidence that the network got facts wrong or damaged the plaintiff's reputation."
Bluntly: It would look like a payoff. It would look like a big check to Trump (or his presidential library, following in ABC and Meta's footsteps) in exchange for federal approval of Paramount's deal with Skydance.
Is this the cost of doing business in the Trump era? Some business leaders clearly believe it is. But settling with Trump will also cost CBS some of its hard-won credibility. As Oliver Darcy reported last night in his Status newsletter, "journalists at CBS News are livid" over the settlement talks. If a deal is reached, he wrote, "Shari Redstone will be remembered as the mogul who sold out '60 Minutes.'"
A Paramount spokesperson declined to comment.
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A Paramount payment to CBS won't stop Trump's pressure campaign – not over the long term. After all, CBS is home to figures like Stephen Colbert, who delivered an absolutely scathing 10-minute monologue about the president last night.
Colbert began this way: "This is not my first Trump rodeo. And I say 'rodeo' because of all the bullshit... We all know what it's like to drink from this man's firehose of hate and lies every day. But Daddy's all full, thanks! But you've got to pay attention anyway, it's part of the gig, if only to hold on to the knowledge that none of this is normal. 'Cuz his MAGA goons and the spineless apologists want you to believe that this is all normal and that you're crazy." But "nope, it's still him."
I'm already imagining what Colbert would want to say about a settlement deal...
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Another controversial FCC move |
New FCC chair Brendan Carr has ordered an investigation into the sponsorship practices of NPR and PBS member stations, Liam Reilly reports. One of the Democrats on the FCC, Geoffrey Starks, responded by saying that "any attempt to intimidate these local media outlets is a threat to the free flow of information and the marketplace of ideas." The broadcasters are defending themselves...
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>> "It felt like 2020 again" at the White House as Trump "once more used a national calamity to blame others and denigrate his foes," Jon Lemire wrote after yesterday's "unpresidential" press conference.
>> Philip Bump said the presser showed that "this Trump presidency is deeper in the right-wing bubble than the first."
>> Playbook's takeaway: "After week one, the Trump administration seemed a bit like a Colossus astride the world. After week two, it seems altogether more fallible and subject to the same laws of gravity that apply to every government and political leader..."
>> Karoline Leavitt will hold her second press briefing at 1pm today. Will she be asked about her "condoms in Gaza" claim?
>> Alex Jones claims he has been "invited to come" to a White House press briefing next week. Jones is a notorious liar, but he also has genuine Trump WH connections...
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The Grammys are live on CBS and Paramount+ starting at 8pm ET Sunday. This year's performance list is pretty impressive, as Lisa Respers France notes here. The biggest storyline heading into Sunday night is about Beyoncé and whether this will be the year she finally takes home the Recording Academy's top prize, album of the year. Yale professor Daphne A. Brook, who is teaching a class about Beyoncé's cultural impact, penned this excellent piece for the NYT about the historical context...
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'Dog Man' opens in theaters |
"For the first time in 2025, the box office is going to have some sort of pulse," Deadline's Anthony D'Alessandro writes. "Universal’s DreamWorks Animation title Dog Man is set to send families back into theaters... with an opening in excess of $20 million-plus." (I already have tickets for my kids!) "Also hitting theaters is New Line's horror movie Companion," which has been getting rave reviews...
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A special screening for 'Navalny' |
Hadas Gold writes: Hillary Clinton, Yulia Navalnaya, Patricia Clarkson and Katie Couric were among the big names at the Museum of Modern Art last night for a special screening of the CNN Films documentary "Navalny" presented by Alan Pepe Communications. The film about the late Russian opposition leader won the Oscar for best documentary in 2023, and garnered even more attention when Navalany died suddenly in a Russian prison last year.
In short remarks before the screening, Clinton said the film is "incredibly important" because it's about a man who "stood up for freedom and democracy."
"We need to be reminded of how important that is to do everywhere in the world, wherever human rights or freedom or democracy or the rule of law are threatened," Clinton said.
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>> Peter Spiegel is joining the Washington Post as a managing editor. (Post)
>> Staffers at the Daily Mail are facing job losses as its online and print teams merge. (The Guardian)
>> The British government "has condemned a Russian arrest warrant issued" for journalist Jerome Starkey, "calling it an example of 'desperate rhetoric' from Vladimir Putin's administration." (Independent)
>> "ITV has been holding early-stage talks with Abu Dhabi-backed group RedBird IMI about a possible merger of their respective production businesses." (Reuters)
>> Shares of Comcast fell 11% yesterday after reporting a "bigger-than-expected drop in broadband customers." Charter, on the other hand, is up this morning on "better-than-expected Q4 results..." (Deadline)
>> Matthew Belloni says "Comcast's Brian Roberts has a decision to make with Peacock..." (Puck)
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Cook says Apple Intelligence is working |
Apple shares are up 4% in premarket trading after a bullish earnings call (and despite "falling short on iPhone revenue," Yahoo's Daniel Howley writes.
Notably, CEO Tim Cook told CNBC's Steve Kovach "that iPhone sales were stronger in countries where Apple Intelligence is available..."
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Leaks about leaking at Meta |
Via 404 Media's Jason Koebler: "At an all hands meeting inside Meta Thursday," Mark Zuckerberg said "he had to be increasingly careful about what he says internally at Meta because 'everything I say leaks. And it sucks, right?'"
>> Related? "Meta is renewing its threats against employees, telling them today that they will hunt for leakers and tolerate zero leaks," the NYT's Sheera Frenkel wrote on Bluesky. "Want to know how that is going? Three Meta employees who I’ve never spoken to before just cold messaged/emailed me offering me to be sources."
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>> In a major shift, "Amazon is ramping up ad spending on Elon Musk's X," Dana Mattioli, Suzanne Vranica, Jessica Toonkel scooped... (WSJ)
>> "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman gave government leaders, policy experts and journalists a sneak peek at coming technology yesterday during an off-the-record demo near Capitol Hill." (Axios)
>> The Authors Guild has launched "Human Authored" certification, a "new project that allows authors to certify that their book was written by a human, and not generated by artificial intelligence." (The Verge)
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>> Peggy Noonan says a "disquieting" recent trip to DC "leaves me with a sense that America is making a big break from the past." (WSJ)
>> Pamela Paul offers some meditations on "how to remain a reality-based human in 2025." (NYT)
>> "The intrepid journalists of the Los Angeles Times continue to do invaluable work—in spite of a historically bad owner," Jim Newton writes. (CJR)
>> Sound familiar? Maurice Oniang'o breaks down "how young Kenyans turned to news influencers when protesters stormed the country's parliament" last year. (Nieman Lab)
>> Stephen J. Adler's latest essay asks: "Does it still make sense to be a journalist?" (CJR)
>> Here's a fun one for book lovers from Lily Meier: "The internet almost killed Barnes & Noble, then saved it." (Bloomberg)
>> Brian Lowry explores why Trump both derides Tinseltown and yearns for its golden years... (TheWrap)
>> "Since the release of Paramount’s 'Landman,' real landmen are having to explain that they encounter more cat ladies than drug cartels," Benoît Morenne writes in this amusing piece... (WSJ)
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>> "'Emilia Pérez' star and Oscar nominee Karla Sofía Gascón has issued an apology after her social media posts expressing controversial views on Muslims, George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars resurfaced this week," Katcy Stephan writes. (Variety)
>> On the heels of of Jimmy Donaldson's "Beast Games" hit for Amazon, "streamers are ramping up the search for influencer-led content," Lucia Moses reports. (Business Insider)
>> In a new music video, "Will Smith is getting to play Neo nearly three decades after he famously rejected the lead role in the 1999 blockbuster The Matrix." (THR)
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