TGIF! Hope you have some fun weekend plans. Here's the latest on Substack, Rolling Stone, "The Divided Dial," Fox News, "The New Avengers," Arcade Fire and more... |
Jeanine Pirro's absence from "The Five" yesterday was a tell. Minutes after the show wrapped, Trump confirmed that Pirro will be the interim US attorney for DC, replacing Ed Martin, whose conduct in the job was so aberrant that even some GOP lawmakers spoke out against him.
Fox News has barely covered any of the many Martin controversies, so Pirro's loyal viewers may be unfamiliar with the reasons why she is, as the NYT put it, ditching "a lucrative TV career, on short notice, to bail [Trump] out of an embarrassing jam."
But no one is terribly surprised. Pirro and Trump have had a friendly relationship for decades. She was hanging out at Mar-a-Lago long before Trump even ran for president. One of her own-the-libs books was even dedicated to Trump. You might get a kick out of the title: "Don't Lie to Me."
Pirro's enduring fame and Fox fortunes have, in the past eight years, been directly tied to her bellicose defense of Trump and derision of his critics. In 2020 her Trump loyalty wound up angering her bosses and hurting the company when she promoted his voter fraud lies. In "Network of Lies," I reported that her own executive producer called her a "reckless maniac."
Pirro's Fox persona has been ripe for "SNL" impersonation over the years. At the same time, I have found that her Fox colleagues truly respect her, specifically for her legal background (she was once the DA of Westchester County). No, she hasn't held one of those jobs for 20 years. But she was a trailblazer back in the 1990s and she still brings a lawyerly mindset to TV segments.
>> Don't tune into "The Five" expecting a Pirro send-off show; her exit is effective immediately.
>> "Pirro is the 23rd former Fox employee Trump has named to his administration," Matt Gertz of Media Matters noted.
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For now Pirro is just serving in an interim capacity, but "I've been told she will likely be fully nominated eventually," CNN's Kaitlan Collins reported.
So one of the most coveted seats in right-wing media is suddenly up for grabs. "The Five" often ranks as the #1 show across all of cable news, and is a proven launchpad for MAGA media superstardom.
Fox News says it will rely on a rotation of Fox personalities to fill the seat until a new co-host is named. Katie Pavlich, Kayleigh McEnany and Kellyanne Conway are three of the figures who've filled in for Pirro in the past. Pavlich is a logical fit, for sure...
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(Some of) today's other Trump news |
>> "Large institutional investors have massively increased their holdings of Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) in recent months," raising "further questions about big business's desire to curry favor" with Trump, Jason Wilson reports. (The Guardian)
>> The White House fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden yesterday, prompting Hakeem Jeffries to condemn Trump's "ongoing effort to ban books, whitewash American history and turn back the clock." (CNN)
>> Here's a followup to our lead story yesterday: "In emergency ruling, US Appeals Court reverses halt to funding for Radio Free Europe." But the network is still waiting for the $$$. (RFE/RL)
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My Monday column about America needing a civics refresher — and the media needing to incorporate some Constitution 101 into day-to-day news coverage — resonated with many of you. One of the many responses came from Larry, who said the column "brought me back to when I was a little kid and CBS News did one of their great documentaries in the form of exams to the viewers, hosted by Uncle Walter."
After "The National Drivers Test" was a surprise hit in 1965, CBS produced "The National Citizenship Test," with Walter Cronkite challenging viewers with 42 questions about the rights and responsibilities of American citizenship. "Maybe you guys at CNN or another network could try this concept on citizenship again," Larry wrote. I'm so intrigued that I'm now trying to get a copy of this TV special!
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Here are some of the other reader comments I received:
– Jim highlighted an outstanding podcast from New Hampshire Public Radio called "Civics 101," which has been educating listeners about "how our democracy works…or is supposed to work, anyway" since 2017. Recent episodes have included "what are executive orders?" and "what is a Constitutional crisis?"
– Holly texted me about an Associated Press story that should be a model for other coverage. Titled "America's long history of 'checks and balances' is being tested by Trump like rarely before," it explains the constitution's design in clear terms and applies historical context to today's tests.
– Frank flagged a fantastic resource from the
American Bar Association called "How Things Work: The Legal Edition." The on-demand episodes demystify the Constitution in the context of current events —"explaining specific actions the government is taking, the legality of these actions," and the impacts on daily life.
– Allan wrote in and shared a project he has been working on. "What is needed is an online platform where Americans can convene and forge consensus on solutions to our common problems," he said. "Let's meet in The Big Middle, where most Americans are."
– Jackie wrote in and connected the civics conversation to school curriculums, saying basic civics lessons are sorely lacking in schools. There are groups trying to fill the gaps: iCivics supplies educational resources and promotes civics video games like "Branches of Power" and "Argument Wars."
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A new pope with a social media footprint |
"Pope Leo XIV is the 267th pope in the church’s history. But there is something different about him from most of the popes who came before him: a presence on social media," Poynter's Tom Jones wrote in this recap of yesterday's media coverage and commentary. "Frivolous or not, the digital history of a religious figure is now a thing that exists," The Verge's Tina Nguyen commented...
>> Some MAGA media figures had a "meltdown" over the new Pope's apparent past criticism of Trump and JD Vance.
>> The New York Times can officially count the pope as their most famous Wordle player. (NBC Chicago)
>> Brian Lowry said he "saw 'Chicago Pope' in my feed and briefly thought NBC has gotten a little carried away with those Dick Wolf shows."
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Substack's very big ambitions |
Chris J. Ratcliffe/Reuters |
"Substack has added more than 1 million subscribers since Donald Trump’s triumph in the US election last November, as the online platform benefits from the shift towards creator-led journalism," the FT's Daniel Thomas writes in this new look at the company.
I interviewed Substack CEO Chris Best on stage at the Truth Tellers summit earlier this week (see above) and was struck by one of his answers about Substack's competitive set. "I think in the long run, our biggest competitor is YouTube," Best told me. He quibbled with some aspects of YouTube's model, but said YouTube has "internet scale," it "helps you find the things you want," and "actually pays the people that makes the things," he said.
The video of his remarks is, appropriately enough, up on YouTube...
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>> This morning AMC Networks reported "a smaller profit in the first quarter on a lower base of revenue as steady declines in the linear-TV model continue to overwhelm gains in streaming." (WSJ)
>> Paramount shrunk its streaming loss to $109 million in the first quarter and "said its direct-to-consumer streaming business was "on track" to reach domestic profitability in 2025." (THR)
>> "Warner Bros. Discovery is 'moving towards … a split,' CNBC's David Faber reported on Thursday, in a news update that broke right after the company’s quarterly earnings results." WBD (CNN's parent) did not comment on Faber's report. Shares in the company closed up about 5%. (THR)
>> News Corp "reported revenue and profit gains for its fiscal third quarter, driven by growth at Dow Jones, HarperCollins Publishers and the digital real-estate group." (WSJ)
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>> Patrick Healy is joining The New York Times newsroom masthead to oversee Standards and Trust, which means "focusing on elevating and protecting our journalistic reputation."
>> After 25 years at the WSJ, Jason Anders is joining The Washington Post to be Managing Editor of the "News Hub," a new role.
>> End of an era at Rolling Stone: Gus Wenner is moving into an executive chairman role and plotting a new project unrelated to the magazine his dad founded. Julian Holguin is Rolling Stone's new CEO. (Variety)
>> Two exciting hires at CNN this week: Choire Sicha is joining as senior VP of features editorial and Aaron Blake is coming aboard as a senior reporter.
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Great weekend reads & listens |
>> The excellent "On the Media" podcast/radio series "The Divided Dial" is back for season two. This season "is the untold story of shortwave radio," where extremists and cults are "finding a home." (WNYC Studios)
>> Jessica Testa profiles Dear Media in a piece titled "Is This the 'Manosphere' for Women?" (NYT)
>> John Herrman's latest: AI companies are adding integrative tools and memory features "get people to use their chatbots but to [also] get them well and truly locked in." (NYMag)
>> Matthew Gault describes how Trump has leveraged "grotesque AI slop" to "overwhelm the system." (404 Media)
>> David K. Li reports that "the road-rage killer of an Arizona man was sentenced last week to 10½ years behind bars after his victim spoke to the court via artificial intelligence in what could be the first-of-its-kind use of the technology." (NBC News)
>> Amanda Silberling writes that "the web series is back — only this time, they’re TikToks." (TechCrunch)
>> Travis M. Andrews has an ode to "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" as the movie turns 50. (Wash Post)
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The elephant in the room... |
Andrew Kirell writes: Arcade Fire released their seventh album, "Pink Elephant," today, and will perform on "SNL" tomorrow night. Notably absent from this album rollout: Any media interviews whatsoever. Comments are also disabled on all of their social-media posts. Once an omnipresent force in the music press, the band has gone conspicuously radio silent.
It seems to be a pointed strategy to avoid the elephant in the room: In 2022, Pitchfork reported four allegations of sexual misconduct against frontman Win Butler, including sexual assault. Butler denied the claims and said all encounters were consensual. The band disappeared for a few years but reemerged in January with a primetime gig at the televised ##### concert, followed now by the album rollout. All without ever talking to media.
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>> "The New Avengers" is tracking $34 million to $40 million heading into its second weekend. Meanwhile, "Sinners," entering its fourth weekend, is eyeing $17 million to $22 million. (Boxoffice Pro)
>> Drew Taylor and Sharon Waxman's latest piece explores why Neon, which has built a sterling reputation atop its Oscar-winning films, has yet to find a buyer. (TheWrap)
>> Alex Weprin details how "creators are building their own supersized studio system as Hollywood cuts back." (THR)
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