TGIF! Here's the latest on the Washington Post, Elon Musk, CBS, Robert Caro, Amazon, Reels, Peppa Pig, MrBeast, and more...
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What happens when irresponsible media personalities hype a conspiracy theory, only to see it unravel before their eyes?
We're finding out right now.
– New York Post: "Trump DOJ feeds Jeffrey Epstein documents to underwhelmed conservative influencers"
– NBC: "Hyped release of 'Epstein Files' sparks anger and disappointment on right"
– Daily Beast: Elon Musk "rushes to defend Pam Bondi from MAGA fury over botched Epstein files dump"
For years, "conspiracy theorists have believed there is grand plot by the government to conceal not only the cause of Mr. Epstein's death but the names of powerful men who also abused some of the victims," the NYT's Matthew Goldstein and Glenn Thrush wrote yesterday.
This theory has often been shorthanded as an Epstein "client list," even though the best-sourced reporter on this beat, Julie K. Brown of the Miami Herald, said "those who have worked with the FBI on the case for decades say there is no evidence Epstein kept a ledger or a list of clients who were involved with his sex trafficking operation."
Nevertheless, A.G. Pam Bondi said President Trump directed her to review government files about Epstein and provide transparency to the public. "It was a moment that said much about the Trump administration," the Times reporters noted: Bondi and FBI director Kash Patel "chose to prioritize a long-concluded case to assuage conservative media and the obsessive core of Trump supporters who see the case as nefarious unfinished business."
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Bring in the 'influencers' |
Bondi evidently decided to give a "scoop" to a group of fifteen pro-Trump social media personalities who were at the White House for briefings yesterday. The influencers (many of whom have hyped other conspiracy theories for years, and thus have big fan bases on the right) walked out of the White House with white binders labeled "The Epstein Files: Phase 1." Some of the attendees looked triumphant, as if they'd finally figured out what the government had been hiding.
"But they quickly soured after opening the binders," Brown wrote, "realizing that they contained pages of redacted material and flight logs that were already made public in 2021."
A furious new fight erupted on X and in other conservative media circles. National Review senior writer Noah Rothman said "they're telling you that you're the dupes" by "handing you fake folders of stuff that has been public knowledge for nearly a decade and putting fake declassification markers on it for photo ops. They're making you out to be fools."
But many MAGA media heavyweights couldn't or wouldn't come to that conclusion. Radio host Glenn Beck asked instead: "Who is subverting POTUS?"
The goalposts had to shift. A new theory had to take shape. A new villain had to be blamed.
Bondi wrote a letter to Patel claiming that thousands of Epstein-related documents were withheld by the FBI's New York field office. She demanded the documents and asked Patel to investigate why they were withheld. She proposed a Friday morning deadline. This enabled conservative TV hosts like Laura Ingraham to excitedly tease the release of the "Epstein files" while cautioning, as correspondent Kevin Corke did, "we'll probably learn a lot more tomorrow morning."
Or not. After all, the most effective conspiracy theories are the ones that are never fully resolved.
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Beware of fake 'flight lists' |
And if the next episode of this reckless show turns out to be a bust, too, then what? Well, it almost doesn't matter. "Because," as CNN's Anderson Cooper said last night, "online, there is a whole ecosphere of QAnon and others who have put out a lot of fake lists, 'flight lists.' I believe I am on one of the fake flight lists that is out there online because I get weird DMs from people accusing me of being on a flight, which obviously is absurd."
I experience the same thing all the time due to a made-up social media meme. The never-ending supply of lies – and the apparent demand to be lied to – suggests that these digital platforms are broken beyond belief. Or maybe... we're broken.
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Welcome to Oscars weekend! |
Who's going to win on Sunday? "After a few years where the best picture winner was practically ordained from the start of the season, at least this race has given us some twists and turns," the NYT's Kyle Buchanan writes.
"Despite the late push from 'Conclave,' with its key wins at the BAFTA Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards, it would be an overwhelming upset if 'Anora' lost Best Picture," Gold Derby's Christopher Rosen writes.
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A politics-free Oscars ceremony? |
Elizabeth Wagmeister writes: Oscars host Conan O'Brien's comedy typically does not delve into politics. In fact, that was partly why O'Brien was selected as host this year, according to the Academy's CEO Bill Kramer. "He's a lovely person, number one. He's a humanist. He's apolitical," Kramer said when I asked what makes O'Brien the perfect host.
Kramer also said, in no uncertain terms, that he is aiming for a politics-free telecast. "Absolutely," the CEO responded when I asked if he wants the Oscars to steer clear of politics on Sunday night. Of course, what a winner or presenter decides to say onstage is ultimately up to them...
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Political media notes and quotes |
>> Today's dominant story: "After insults and false claims," Trump will host Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House. (NYT)
>> Jim Sciutto writes: "When Trump sided with Putin on Russian interference in the 2016 election in Helsinki in 2018, it was a major news event eliciting bipartisan criticism and consternation among his advisors. [Yesterday] he did the same in the WH, and it barely registers." (X)
>> "Washington Post staffers are in open rebellion against Jeff Bezos," Liam Reilly writes. (CNN)
>> According to Post vet Gene Weingarten, Post media critic Erik Wemple filed a column about the opinion section's shift, but it was "spiked." (The Gene Pool)
>> Meteorologists across the country, including some trusted local TV broadcasters, are speaking out about the Trump administration's mass terminations at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. CNN's Ella Nilsen and Tami Luhby have details about the cuts here. (CNN)
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>> This morning the NYT is out with what it views as the definitive long-read on "how Elon Musk executed his takeover of the federal bureaucracy." (NYT)
>> David Bauder highlights how WIRED boss Katie Drummond decided to focus on the intersection of tech and politics ahead of the presidential election — and just how much the decision has paid off for the publication. (AP)
>> Ezra Klein interviews Martin Gurri about "a theory of media that explains fifteen years of politics." (NYT)
>> Rachel Janfaza talks with the "it-girls" behind The Conservateur, a website for conservative young women. (The Up and Up)
>> "Billionaire media owners aren't the white knights journalists dreamed of," Brian Lowry writes. (TheWrap)
>> Matteo Wong says it's possible Sam Altman could be the one to make Musk and Trump turn on one another. (The Atlantic)
>> I have been reading – no, devouring – former TV newsman Don Dahler's new memoir "Souvenirs from an Absurd Life." It's wild! (CBS)
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>> Tom Cibrowski is joining CBS News as president and executive editor. (Variety)
>> Carla Hall, "the last remaining member of the Los Angeles Times editorial board," is taking a buyout, "ending her thirty-two-year tenure at the paper," Sewell Chan reports (CJR)
>> "FCC chairman Brendan Carr said that the agency's review of the proposed Skydance-Paramount Global merger is far from finished, as the two companies have said that they expect to complete the deal by the summer." (Deadline)
>> Sony is soliciting bids for the streaming rights to "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune," John Koblin reports. (NYT)
>> Pete Distad, who would have run Venu, will instead "lead Fox's new direct-to-consumer streaming platform." (THR)
>> ESPN will launch a daily "SportsCenter" show exclusively for Disney+ on Monday. (Variety)
>> "Warner Bros. Discovery is doing away with the term DEI, but says it is still committed to inclusion within its company." (THR)
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From the Semafor news summit... |
A few of the headlines: "CNN's Mark Thompson charts a future beyond cable" ... NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde "teases news subscription service" ... Journal editor Emma Tucker "says WSJ committed to covering Musk 'seriously'" ... plus:
>> NYT editor Joe Kahn on whether Trump is good for business again: "News is good for business. And Trump, as we know from this first month, is the most newsmaking person to occupy the Oval Office I've ever seen."
>> NPR CEO Katherine Maher "said she is 'confident' it is compliant with Federal Communications Commission guidelines as it faces a FCC investigation into its sponsorship and advertising practices."
>> Fox's Bret Baier is "concerned about the White House taking control of who is allowed to join the press pool."
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>> Chris Heath provides some updates on the next installment of Robert Caro's LBJ biography. (Smithsonian)
>> When Google "changed its rules around how product-review sites appear in its search engine," it "devastated a once-lucrative corner of the news media world," Alexandra Bruell reports. (WSJ)
>> Matthew Scott Goldstein says the harvesting of publisher data by AI companies is "the greatest heist in history." (Press Gazette)
>> "Nothing in TV is a sure bet — except for Taylor Sheridan," Kayla Cobb and Drew Taylor write. (TheWrap)
>> And I loved Jada Yuan's profile of Col Needham, the CEO of IMDb, who created "one of the most enduring spaces on the internet 35 years ago." (Wash Post)
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>> "In a bid to take on YouTube, TikTok is revamping its desktop platform with the addition of several new features." (TechCrunch)
>> And in a bid to take on TikTok, Instagram is considering spinning off Reels into a standalone app. (The Information)
>> "Meta is apologizing for a technical error after some users said they saw violent, graphic videos in their Instagram Reels feed." (CNN)
>> Microsoft has named four developers that "it says were part of an effort to evade its generative AI guardrails and enable the creation of celebrity deepfakes, among other things." (Axios)
>> Amazon has a "slew of AI devices" coming, its hardware chief says. (CNN)
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>> "The world’s biggest YouTube star, MrBeast, is planning to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in a move that would reportedly value his company at roughly $5 billion," Kayleena Makortoff reports. (The Guardian)
>> It's looking like another quiet weekend at the box office, with "Captain America: Brave New World" slated to maintain the No. 1 spot. (Box Office Pro)
>> Here is CNN's latest on the investigation into Gene Hackman's death. (CNN)
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SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST... |
Big news from 'Peppatown' |
What a brilliant move by Peppa's producers: "Peppa Pig, loved by under-5s the world over, is about to become a big sister again," CNN's Lianne Kolirin writes. "She and her little brother, George, will soon have a baby sibling to play with, their mother announced on British national TV."
"Peppa Pig" first aired in 2004 on Britain's Channel 5 and premiered in the U.S. a year later. "While, in real time, Mummy Pig might now be considered a little old to be pregnant again, like all popular cartoon characters, she is frozen in time." Read on...
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