Happy St. Patrick's Day. Here's the latest on The Economist, Brendan Carr, Anna Gomez, NOTUS, David Zaslav, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Tina Fey, "Dune," and much more... |
Betting against the truth |
It's the story everyone in the news business is sharing: "Israeli journalist Emanuel Fabian said deranged gamblers threatened his life — as well as members of his family — if he did not change a story about an Iranian missile strike that hit an Israeli town."
Mediaite's Sean James recapped Fabian's stunning account of the death threats here. The Times of Israel military correspondent's column is worth reading in full. He says users of the Polymarket prediction market demanded he change his reporting so they could win a bet about whether any Iranian missiles would strike Israel on March 10.
"The attempt by these gamblers to pressure me to change my reporting so that they would win their bet did not and will not succeed," Fabian wrote. "But I do worry that other journalists may not be as ethical if they are promised some of the winnings."
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An anti-journalism parlay |
WaPo's Will Oremus interviewed Fabian and reviewed some of the threats that came in from bettors via WhatsApp.
Oremus also checked in with Polymarket, which condemned the threats and harassment, and said, "This behavior violates our terms of service and has no place on our platform or anywhere else."
"Prediction markets depend on the integrity of independent reporting," Polymarket said. "Attempts to pressure journalists to alter their reporting undermine that integrity and undermine the markets themselves."
Yes — but these attempts feel inevitable in a system where news itself is now something people can bet on, potentially turning reporters into targets for anyone with $$$ on the line.
>> Fabian's column reminded me of this recent piece by CNN's Marshall Cohen: "Iran-related bets on prediction sites scrutinized over 'death markets' and possible insider trades." (He noted that "CNN has a partnership with Kalshi and uses its data to cover major events. Editorial employees are prohibited from participating in prediction markets.")
>> Further reading: "Prediction markets are cosplaying as the future of news" by The Verge's Elizabeth Lopatto; and "Are prediction markets actually good for journalism?" by CJR's Ivan L. Nagy.
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'Lectures, scoldings and outright threats...' |
"Through lectures, scoldings and outright threats, President Donald Trump and his aides are ratcheting up the pressure on journalists to cover the war in the Middle East the way the administration wants," The AP's David Bauder writes.
"The goal," the NYT's Michael Grynbaum writes, "seems to be pressuring journalists to back off critical coverage of the war effort, or to at least encourage the public to second-guess reporting that runs counter to the administration's preferred narrative. And the effort has gone well beyond words." Read on...
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Carr rolls his eyes as top Dem vows to investigate |
Democratic lawmakers keep joining the chorus of criticism over FCC chair Brendan Carr's threat against TV station license-holders. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said yesterday, "Brendan Carr is a corrupt political hack and fake chair of the FCC. This guy (and the entities he promotes) will find himself on the wrong side of a congressional investigation in short order."
When I reported that on X, Carr replied with a GIF meme of a little girl rolling her eyes.
>> Jimmy Kimmel weighed in on the matter last night, saying Trump's praise for Carr is "really like a ventriloquist complimenting his dummy on a joke."
>> And the Washington Post editorial board has opined against Carr, arguing that "one common consequence of war is to make censorship more politically tempting, which makes it imperative to call out government efforts to chill free speech in moments like this."
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Do you think Anna Gomez ever tires of being called the "lone Democrat" at the FCC? Well, the lone Democrat issued a fulsome statement yesterday stressing that Carr's threats are the point. It was titled "stop falling for the FCC’s intimidation tactics."
"These threats are grounded in neither reality nor law and would not survive judicial scrutiny," Gomez wrote.
"Out of the many politically motivated FCC investigations targeting perceived government critics, not a single one has resulted in an enforcement action," she pointed out.
So, she concluded, "broadcasters, journalists, and the public should recognize these empty threats for what they are and fight to defend the First Amendment against any attempt to control or intimidate the press.”
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Evidence the attacks aren't effective |
Trump praises Paramount's owners |
Trump is back to name-dropping Larry and David Ellison. While touting the June 14 UFC fight at the White House, Trump said, "It's going to be broadcast on CBS, which is the Ellison family, two great people, great people, it's a great family."
>> For those keeping track, last October, Trump said, "They're friends of mine, they're big supporters of mine," but last December, when he was mad about "60 Minutes," he wrote, "If they are friends, I'd hate to see my enemies!"
>> And speaking of CBS: Unionized staffers at the network's streaming service, CBS News 24/7, are staging a full-day walkout today after contract negotiations broke down, TheWrap's Corbin Bolies reports.
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Today's new nonfiction releases |
"Ibram X. Kendi says that in order to understand the rise of authoritarianism, we need to understand great replacement theory," KQED's Mina Kim writes.
That's what Kendi's new book "Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age" is about. It's out today, along with "Stay Alive," an account of life in Berlin during World War II by Ian Burma; "Salt Lakes: An Unnatural History" by Caroline Tracey; and "Everyday Genius," a book of memory-boosting tips by six-time USA Memory Champion (didja know that's a thing?) Nelson Dellis.
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Today's the primary vote in Illinois, and one race stands out for both media and political observers: The IL-9 congressional Democratic race featuring Kat Abughazaleh, a former Media Matters staffer and progressive content creator. CNN's Arit John previews the race here: "Kat Abughazaleh knows how to create viral moments. Can she translate that into votes?"
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BBC moves to dismiss Trump suit |
The BBC has officially "asked a US court to throw out Donald Trump's $10 billion lawsuit over the way a documentary edited one of his speeches," The Guardian's Michael Savage reports. Among many other points, the BBC's lawyers "cited a recent Trump lawsuit against CNN, which was dismissed as 'meritless.'"
>> "We have said throughout we will robustly defend the case against us,” a BBC rep said on Monday. "Put simply — the documentary was never aired in Florida — or the US... We have therefore challenged jurisdiction of the Florida court and filed a motion to dismiss the President’s claim.”
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Hopeful news for DC: NOTUS confirms expansion plans |
So many former Washington Post staffers have now joined NOTUS, there's a joke going around about Posties saying, "Who wants to work for Jeff Bezos?" "Not us!"
Yesterday, Robert Allbritton and his deputies shared plans to launch a "new version of NOTUS under a new name” and expand personnel from 50 to 100, Max Tani reports. Dana Milbank and Jeff Stein are some of the boldface names joining the new operation. (Stein said his faith in the Post's current leadership is "broken beyond repair.") Milbank said Allbritton has vowed to make NOTUS "the next great Washington newsroom."
>> So, will it be called the Washington Star or the Washington Sun? As a dad with a daughter named Sunny, I'm partial to the Sun...
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David Zaslav's golden goodbye |
"Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav could collect more than $800 million in severance and other payments after rival Paramount acquires the media company," Theo Francis and Joe Flint report for the WSJ, citing a new SEC filing. The ballpark sum "includes cash and payments for options and restricted stockholdings, as well as a newly adopted tax reimbursement for Zaslav."
>> Speaking of Warner, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says in a new interview with Politico's Carrie Budoff Brown that "there was no political interference" from Trump during the tug-of-war. The interview concerns Sarandos' visit to Brussels today to meet with EU regulators "ahead of a looming review of Europe's streaming rules."
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>> Canadian billionaire Stephen Smith is acquiring a 27% stake in The Economist from Forester de Rothschild. (FT)
>> News Corp's Dow Jones "expects to earn $1 billion in annual profit within five years." (Axios)
>> Dana Walden has set the new leadership structure at Disney Entertainment, which includes naming Debra OConnell chairman of Disney Entertainment Television. OConnell will continue to oversee ABC News. (Deadline)
>> Jeff Shell has counter-sued R.J. Cipriani, accusing the Vegas gambler of extortion and defamation. (THR)
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Musk's quiet changes at xAI |
"Elon Musk has quietly made a small but significant change to how its flagship chatbot Grok functions," as xAI remains "mired in numerous controversies," Futurism's Frank Landymore reports. "Starting last week, Grok stopped taking questions that free users asked in posts on Musk's social media site, X, where the chatbot is integrated," instead informing users that the feature is only available to paid users.
"It's another sign of desperation from Musk," Landymore writes. "Musk has decided to limit what had become a cornerstone of the X experience under his tutelage to paid blue checkmarks."
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More of today's tech talk |
>> We're on verdict watch: A jury in L.A. continues to deliberate in a landmark social media addiction trial. (BBC)
>> A group of Tennessee teenagers sued Musk's xAI yesterday, alleging "the company's AI tools were used to create nude images of them by editing photos in which they were clothed," Faiz Siddiqui reports. Neither Musk nor xAI responded to a request for comment. (WaPo)
>> Encyclopedia Britannica and its Merriam-Webster subsidiary "have sued OpenAI in Manhattan federal court for allegedly misusing their reference materials to train its artificial intelligence models." (Reuters)
>> The WSJ's Berber Jin scoops that "OpenAI's top executives are finalizing plans for a major strategy shift to refocus the company around coding and business users, recognizing that a 'do everything all at once' strategy has put them on the defensive." (WSJ)
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>> Awesome: Tina Fey will host this Saturday's series premiere of "SNL UK." (LateNighter)
>> Timothée Chalamet shared a first look at "Dune: Part Three" on his Instagram story. The first trailer will be released later today. (Variety)
>> And last but not least: "Vinyl's resurgence has reached a new milestone, as vinyl revenue surpassed $1 billion in revenue in the United States in 2025," Ethan Millman reports. (THR)
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