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Good morning! Today is my 40th birthday, and I feel really blessed to have this email connection with all of you. Your readership is a great gift 🎁 Now to the news. Here's the latest on the NFL, Rudy Giuliani, Infowars, Nielsen, "The Paper," David Ellison, "The Hunting Wives," and more...

New way to reject reality

"If something happens that's really bad, maybe I'll have to just blame AI."

And with that, the man who turned the term "fake news" into a potent political weapon showed that he knows he can do the same thing with generative AI.

President Trump made the "blame AI" aside after Fox's Peter Doocy asked about this week's black bag mystery – an online video of someone throwing bags out a White House window. Trump said the clip was "probably AI-generated," even though two sources indicated to CNN "that the video was real — and that it was related to construction and renovations going on in the room."

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

So, there is no indication that the video was AI-made. But as Trump said, this is "one of the problems we have with AI." Onlookers like VP JD Vance smiled when Trump said "if something happens really bad, just blame AI," but it's a scary preview of a future in which deepfakes — and the fears surrounding AI itself — will become tools to deny reality, sow doubt and undermine reporting.

As Stephen Colbert quipped to Trump last night, "YOU just blamed AI! You just blamed AI! Which means... something really bad happened?"

 >> The Bulwark's Tim Miller reacted to the Oval Office exchange by saying, "We've now reached the point where journalists and the president either can't tell AI from real video or use the existence of AI to undermine real video. Slightly ominous!"

The 'information inequality' divide

Axios CEO Jim VandeHei, in a staff memo yesterday: "There's more fake, useless, manipulative content pumping through our social media feeds than ever. This will persist and surge." But that "surge in crap content vastly increases the value of quality content, for both human consumers and AI that feeds off us. The reason: Humans and AI increasingly need safe, trusted, useful content to thrive."

VandeHei says this "information inequality" will be "the great divide for companies and individuals." This next story is a prime example...

Dancing on a nonexistent grave

Take some legitimate questions and concerns about Trump's health. Add illegitimate speculation by grifters who know how to cash in when topics are trending. Then add lots of liberal wishful thinking about a premature end to the Trump era. Plus some long weekend boredom. That's how you got a torrent of online hubbub about Trump — ranging from "he's dead" memes to "what is the White House covering up???" TikTok videos.

The genuine health Qs are not going away. As Dr. Jonathan Reiner said on "Erin Burnett OutFront" last night, Trump covering up bruises on his hand with heavy makeup is "the opposite of transparency."

But this also has a lot to do with the twisted incentives of social media content creation. I wrote about the algorithm-fueled conspiracy theories for CNN.com here.

The Oval Office as a cozy stage for TV?

You've probably noticed how often Trump brings the WH press pool into the Oval Office for Q&As and announcements. This nugget in Katie Rogers' NYT story about POTUS health speculation stood out to me: "Trump prefers to hold events in the Oval Office rather than in larger venues like the East Room, in part because the acoustics are better and he is not forced to stand for long periods, according to a person familiar with event planning at the White House."

First test for CBS ombudsman? 

CBS News is pushing back against Kristi Noem's claim that the network "shamefully edited" her "Face the Nation" interview. In a statement to CNN's Liam Reilly, CBS said the televised interview "was edited for time and met all CBS News standards," and pointed out that the whole thing was posted on YouTube. And as TNR's Greg Sargent observed, the edited portions were "almost entirely lies and unsubstantiated charges."

But this may become a political hot potato for the new Paramount leadership team. WaPo's Jeremy Barr reported that the conservative Center for American Rights — which lodged the trio of bias complaints against CBS, NBC and ABC that the FCC revived in January — has "sent FCC chairman Brendan Carr a letter citing the Noem edit and saying CBS should move quickly to appoint an ombudsman to conduct a review." CBS declined to comment on the letter, and there is no indication that it has appointed an ombudsman yet...

Big Trump rift at Infowars

Owen Shroyer, a longtime Alex Jones sidekick, is leaving Infowars after "Jones believed Shroyer was too 'anti-Trump,'" TNR's Robert McCoy reports. Jones claimed "I never censored him" in an X post about the dust-up. "I only encouraged him to be more positive in general about the fact that humanity has come a long way in the great awakening," Jones wrote. Now Shroyer is fundraising via GiveSendGo — a Christian fundraising site known for hosting campaigns that GoFundMe removes — to "continue his daily show without interruption."

Stern stalls on Sirius speculation

We noted yesterday that Howard Stern was expected to return to his SiriusXM show on Tuesday morning, but a rerun aired instead. The show's social media handles said Stern "will now speak Monday, September 8." They're certainly leaning into the speculation about Stern's future at the satellite radio network. A source told the Daily Mail that Tuesday's postponement "was a result of 'frustrations over the new contract' he's been negotiating..."

Vogue to print less frequently

Vogue confirmed yesterday that Chloe Malle will be the new head of editorial content for Vogue US. Malle envisions "major changes to Vogue’s print product," the NYT's Jessica Testa reports. "Malle believes issues should be released less frequently and around specific themes or cultural moments, upending its current monthly schedule. These issues should be viewed more as collectible editions, printed on thick, high-quality paper. Her first print issue will most likely be published next year..."

Nielsen touts 'updated era' of ratings

"Nielsen begins updated era of TV ratings with Big Data + Panel for this fall's TV season," the company said in a Tuesday AM press release. It was, at least in part, a rebuttal to the NFL publicly accusing Nielsen of underestimating football audiences. "There are millions of viewers that we believe they are systematically undercounting," an NFL exec told the WSJ's Joe Flint.

Nielsen responded by saying this will be the "most accurately rated football season in history." The company's updated methodology now includes "viewership data from smart TVs along with its usual panel of video consumers," and crunching all the #'s will take more time, as Variety's Brian Steinberg reports here...

Briefly…

Jon Haidt and his colleagues "will be regular contributors" to The Free Press... The NFL has struck a content licensing deal with Front Office Sports... The sale of Spin Magazine has apparently collapsed because the buyer didn't wire the money... The Corporation for Public Broadcasting will receive the Governors Award at the Creative Arts Emmys next week...

Smartmatic seeks trial date against Fox

Marshall Cohen reports: Smartmatic is practically begging a New York judge to set a trial date in the voting company's 2020 election defamation case against Fox News. Lawyers for Smartmatic wrote in a new filing that finally selecting a trial date is the only way "to put an end" to Fox's alleged attempts to "delay the case as much as possible."

Fox didn't respond to a request for comment about a potential trial date in the long-running lawsuit, which Smartmatic filed in early 2021. Fox denies wrongdoing...

🏛️ More suit and settlement news

 >> "Eight months after a former Fox Sports hairstylist accused Skip Bayless of repeatedly pressuring her into having sex with him for over a million dollars, the plaintiff, the ex-Undisputed host and Fox Sports have reached a deal." (Deadline)

 >> Disney "agreed to pay $10 million to settle a children's privacy lawsuit with the FTC." (Axios)

 >> Disney is being "sued for pay discrimination by one of its former top lawyers, expanding a legal battle over claims from female employees who say they’re paid less than their male counterparts for similar work." (THR)

 >> Dr. Phil McGraw is inching toward a settlement with Trinity Broadcasting. (Deadline)

5️⃣ political media notes

 >> "Coming soon: A primary in the media capital of the world." (Politico)

 >> "Influencers are among the winners of Trump's 'no tax on tips' policy." (Business Insider)

 >> Yesterday, Fox anchor Sandra Smith ended a friendly segment with host-turned-US attorney Jeanine Pirro by saying, "We miss you, come back soon." Pirro returned the love: "I miss you, too."

 >> Newsmax is shuffling its schedule, moving "The Chris Salcedo Show" from 4 to 5pm ET (up against "The Five" on Fox), moving "Carl Higbie FRONTLINE" to 6 and bumping Greta Van Susteren to 4. (Newsmax)

 >> Three days after a serious car accident, Rudy Giuliani was back on his LindellTV show and podcast last night. Wearing a back brace, he said “I got terrible injuries but I would have been killed if I didn't have my seatbelt on." (NYPost)

Google gets 'slap-on-the-wrist ruling'

The WSJ's top headline this morning: "Google Dodges Worst Penalties in U.S. Antitrust Case." Google shares are up nearly 6% in premarket trading as a result. Apple is up almost 4%.

CNN's team outlined the news here. Although the judge in the case "found Google guilty and ruled its payments to Apple illegal, the remedies were far less severe than many feared," analysts at MoffettNathanson said overnight. They called it a "slap-on-the-wrist ruling" and "a home run for the status quo, and the status quo has been very favorable to both Google and Apple..."

More of today's tech talk

 >> "How Elon Musk Is Remaking Grok in His Image:" The NYT reviewed thousands of Grok responses and found how xAI tweaked the chatbot to make the answers "more conservative on many issues." (NYT)

 >> Here's the lead of Hadas Gold's latest package: "Allan Brooks, a father of three who lives outside Toronto, says he spent three weeks this May in a delusional spiral fueled by ChatGPT." Watch the rest here. (CNN)

 >> "ChatGPT guardrails for teens and people in emotional distress will roll out by the end of the year," Megan Morrone reports. (Axios)

 >> "It’s now illegal in Michigan to make AI-generated sexual imagery of someone without their written consent," bringing the total number of states has enacted their own deepfake laws to 47, Samantha Cole reports. (404 Media)

Ellison gets his 'Call of Duty' deal

It's happening: Activision and Paramount "have inked a deal that will see the studio develop, produce and distribute a live-action film" based on the "Call of Duty" video game franchise, THR's Alex Weprin reports. This one is close to David Ellison's heart: "As a lifelong fan of Call of Duty this is truly a dream come true," he said.

Read all about 'The Paper'

CNN's Sandra Gonzalez has some good news for us: "The Paper," the "Office" spin-off coming to Peacock tomorrow, "finds belly laughs and beauty" in the fledgling world of local news. "Creator Greg Daniels found his first nugget for the show's concept in what he thinks was a radio program about so-called ghost newspapers."

Gonzalez also talked with Domhnall Gleeson, who plays Ned Sampson, "an anti-Michael Scott if there ever was one." Check out her full story here...

Entertainment notes and quotes

 >> Trump, Satan and Labubu mania are all featured in tonight's new episode of "South Park," per this preview clip. (YouTube)

 >> "SNL" is adding featured players to its cast following a week that saw several high-profile departures from the sketch comedy show. (CNN)

 >> Netflix "has set a two-week theatrical window" for "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery." (Variety)

 >> Last but not least... I binged "The Hunting Wives" with my wife Jamie last week, and when it ended, we immediately talked about where the writers could take the show next. It turns out Netflix is in talks for a second season, Jackie Strause reports in this Q&A with creator Rebecca Cutter. (THR)

This edition of Reliable Sources was edited by Andrew Kirell and produced with Liam Reilly. Email us your feedback and tips here.