TGIT! Here's the latest on Fox Business, Dominion Voting Systems, Gannett, F1, NPR, "The Last of Us," and much more… |
Reality versus fantasy. That's what is on my mind today as the press and the public tries to sort out President Trump's latest pronouncements.
Trump and MAGA media are claiming yesterday's partial tariff "pause" was a win, but so much has already been lost, in terms of market value, consumer confidence and American credibility. "Reality sets back in on Wall Street" is CNN Business editor David Goldman's framing this morning. That reality: Trump's "other massive import taxes have already inflicted significant damage, and the economy won't easily recover from the fallout."
Explaining reality – in the face of hyperpartisan fantasy – is what separates serious reporters from stenographers. "For many, the second Trump administration has felt like a constant tearing of the fabric of our reality," The Atlantic's Charlie Warzel writes in this new column.
Warzel describes the tariffs as "a reality test" for political partisans. But cold hard facts sometimes don't stand a chance against the "internet's justification machine," which Warzel describes as "an efficient mechanism for dispelling any trace of cognitive dissonance. In some cases, falling down the conspiratorial rabbit hole is motivated by grievance—my enemies hate this, therefore it must be good. And any market bounce-back after Trump's announcement of a 90-day pause will be taken by true believers as evidence of the president's genius."
That was certainly true yesterday. But as reality creeps back into the markets today and the outlook for a recession remains unchanged, the question remains – will the damage of Trump's tariff play actually set into the public conscience?
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This morning's WSJ front page headline is a mood: "President Watched TV, Heard Dire Warnings, Then Gave In."
Those dire warnings were about the bond market and more. Trump "was watching" Fox Business yesterday morning "when JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said a recession was 'a likely outcome' of" the trade war, CNN's team reports.
While the interview with Maria Bartiromo "had been in place for some time, Dimon knew that Trump and his inner circle often watched Fox and that his message would likely get through to them," the WSJ adds, citing a source.
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Yesterday Fox's
Charles Gasparino said he had a scoop: "The potential TikTok deal — sale to a US company by the Chinese — is off the table for the foreseeable future and maybe forever." He cited unnamed White House sources. Trump, however, told reporters that "it's on the table, very much." He claimed "we have a deal with some very good people... but we're going to have to wait and see what's going to happen with China."
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China to reduce imports of U.S. films |
CNN's Nectar Gan reports: China says it will cut the number of American movies shown in the country as part of its retaliation against Trump's tariffs. A spokesperson for the China Film Authority said Washington's tariffs on China "will inevitably reduce the appeal of American movies to the Chinese audience" so "we will follow market rules, respect the audience's choice, and appropriately reduce the number of imports of American movies." |
>> Trump's use of Truth Social to encourage stock-buying is raising many, many eyebrows today.
>> Drew Harwell frames this perfectly: "Under President Joe Biden, MAGA influencers framed every stock slide as a national crisis. Under President Trump, however, they're masterful chess moves or moments for building character." (Wash Post)
>> But some right-coded podcasters and content creators are being more honest with their audiences. The AP's Meg Kinnard rounded up recent comments from Joe Rogan, Dave Portnoy and others.
>> Portnoy told CNN's Dana Bash yesterday that he is going to give Trump "some time," but he could see himself voting for Democrats in the midterms.
>> Peter Kafka's headline: "Fox pushed back on tariffs. Then Trump changed his mind on tariffs. Coincidence?"
>> On the other hand, Brian Lowry says "Fox & Friends" is an excellent option for those looking to escape bad economic news. (TheWrap)
>> Michael M. Grynbaum and John Koblin checked out the rising ratings for CNBC and Fox Business. (NYT)
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Newsmax is heading to trial |
Here's another illustration of reality versus fantasy. Yesterday a Delaware judge ruled that Newsmax did defame Dominion Voting Systems by falsely accusing the company of rigging the 2020 presidential election. It will be up to a jury to decide if the smears were intentional, although "an out-of-court settlement is always possible," as CNN's Marshall Cohen reports here. The trial is scheduled to begin on April 28.
What did Trump do on the same afternoon as that ruling? He signed an order targeting Susman Godfrey, the law firm that represents Dominion in the cases against against Newsmax, One America, Mike Lindell, and other defendants. Dominion famously secured a $787.5 million settlement from Fox News in 2023...
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CNN is hosting a live town hall with four members of the US House – two Democrats, two Republicans – who represent battleground districts. Jake Tapper and Kaitlan Collins will lead the broadcast from DC starting at 9pm ET. Details here... |
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>> POTUS is holding a cabinet meeting this morning, but at the moment it is listed as "closed press," meaning we won't see if Elon Musk is in attendance.
>> Press pool trouble? "It appears the White House is withholding reports it doesn't like – choosing not to distribute pool reports that contain information it finds inconvenient or unflattering," Oliver Darcy reports. (Status)
>> Karoline Leavitt didn't comment on Darcy's report. She liked this story though: "Trump White House won't respond to some journalists who display their pronouns" in emails. Leavitt promoted the headline on social media.
>> As expected, the White House is appealing Judge Trevor McFadden's ruling restoring the The AP's access to Trump events. "It's likely that attorneys for the Justice Department will ask the appeals court to put the ruling on hold while the intermediate court reviews McFadden's injunction," CNN's Devan Cole reports.
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A new style guide, free for all |
Today Gannett is rolling out the USA TODAY Network Style Guide, a 165-page resource for editors and anyone else who wants help with terminology, thorny topics and other matters. Gannett Media chief content officer Kristin Roberts says it is "a free service to the media industry and beyond." The Associated Press is known for its industry-standard Stylebook, and it charges newsrooms, classrooms and companies for usage. Gannett stopped using AP content last year, but the company says this style guide rollout has nothing to do with that.
>> Wondering what Gannett recommends re: the Gulf? "Use both names."
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Jo Ellis — a member of the National Guard who is trans and who was falsely accused of piloting the Black Hawk helicopter that in January collided with a passenger jet, killing 67 people — filed a defamation lawsuit against Matt Wallace, accusing the X influencer of using his two-plus-million-follower platform to spread falsehoods about Ellis and her life. Wallace did not respond to the NYT's request for comment, though he deleted the text- and photo-based posts after Ellis shared a video via Facebook dispelling the bogus claim.
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>> Heading into upfront season, Fox News sales executives are trying to "snatch ad dollars from CBS, ABC, NBC," Brian Steinberg reports. (Variety)
>> Despite being "among the fastest-growing sports in the world," F1 is "having trouble translating that revved-up popularity into the large-scale rights package it wants," Isabella Simonetti writes. (WSJ)
>> Mark Yarm sat down with Zach Seward, the NYT's first editorial director of AI initiatives, to discuss how AI "opens up a totally new area for investigations," among other topics. (Depth Perception)
>> Ex-Substack creators who have switched to alternatives like Ghost and Beehiiv say they are "earning more on new platforms that offer larger shares of subscription revenue." (Digiday)
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>> The Hollywood Reporter named Lori O'Connor exec VP and publisher. (THR)
>> CNN welcomed two new additions: Matt Zapotosky as senior director for White House and Capitol Hill reporting and Kate Irby as a supervising editor for the White House. (X)
>> NPR named Evie Stone executive producer of “Weekend Edition” and “Up First Saturday.” (NPR)
>> Want to be Vanity Fair's next editor in chief, nay, "global editorial director?" The job is posted. (Condé Nast)
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>> Sarah Wynn-Williams "told U.S. senators during her testimony on Wednesday that Meta actively targeted teens with advertisements based on their emotional state," Sarah Perez reports. (TechCrunch)
>> David Ingram described the hearing as "a demonstration of deep bipartisan anger at Meta, even as it has largely flown under the political radar in recent months." (NBC News)
>> "With support from SAG-AFTRA, the MPA, YouTube, OpenAI and the RIAA, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators has reintroduced a bill designed to combat the unauthorized use of a person’s voice and likeness in AI-generated deepfakes." (TheWrap)
>> The move came the same day that several top YouTubers "signed on to a pilot program that will give high-profile figures more control over their likenesses on the platform." (THR)
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>> Chris Lee writes that “video games like ‘Minecraft’ are replacing superheroes as Hollywood’s dominant IP.” (Vulture)
>> The UK remake of “Saturday Night Live” with Sky has officially been OK’ed by NBC, and will premiere in 2026 with Lorne Michaels executive producing, Peter White reports. (Deadline)
>> James Cameron told Andrew Bosworth he’s optimistic AI can help cut costs by expediting workflows and helping directors realize their visions, though he’s not a fan of the current pastiche/“in the style of” trend. (THR)
>> Sharon Knolle describes how "anti-woke" comedians have become emboldened under Trump 2.0. (TheWrap)
>> HBO renewed "The Last of Us" for a third season days before its sophomore season’s debut. (THR)
>> Thomas Pynchon’s first novel in 12 years, "Shadow Ticket," will be published on Oct. 7. (NYT)
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