Happy Friday! What do you think we're going to lead with today? (By the way, we'll be back with a special Broadway-themed edition of this letter on Saturday.) |
Abnormal is the new normal |
As every political junkie in America watched the Donald Trump-Elon Musk alliance shatter into a million X-shaped pieces yesterday, consider what was assumed and baked into the news coverage and commentary:
>> Reporters and analysts openly talked about all the ways that Trump might now turn the levers of government to punish Musk, without much talk of the legal or ethical implications.
>> Talking heads also speculated that Musk might tweak the X algorithm to push anti-Trump messages into users' feeds, again sidestepping all the implications.
>> No one seemed overly surprised that the richest man in the world spent hundreds of millions of dollars to sway an election and now has buyers' remorse. There were hardly any sidebar stories about the consequences of billionaires buying elections.
>> Nor did anyone seem particularly surprised that the DOGE initiative might be going down in flames.
>> In fact, most people expressed a sense that this breakup was inevitable. A Godzilla vs. Kong-style fight between the two of the biggest egos on the planet was the story most people were, in fact, waiting for. Almost like anticipating the next season of a schlocky reality TV show.
>> Even Musk's invocation of the "Epstein files" wasn't deemed to be all that surprising. Of course the MAGA obsession with pedophilia-related theories was going to be weaponized. Of course the Trump-Musk discourse would devolve into conspiracy and unreality.
There are so many angles of this story to dissect. But let's not skate over just how abnormal this is. Or, rather, how none of it used to be normal. But in 2025, it is completely typical. We just assume the guy with the nuclear codes and the guy with the largest net worth in human history will spend their valuable time calling each other liars and losers and worse.
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I really think the WSJ editorial board said it best overnight: "No one wins a divorce as nasty as this one."
"The Trump-Musk rift creates peril for both Trump's authoritarian project and the tech oligarchy," Jonathan V. Last wrote for The Bulwark. Thus there are lots of stakeholders pushing for a ceasefire. Politico's Dasha Burns popped a story late last night about a "possible détente," and this morning one of Bloomberg's newsletters was titled "Burying the hatchet, maybe."
Emphasis on the "maybe." Trump has been getting on the phone with reporters to drive this morning's news cycle, telling ABC's Jon Karl that Musk "has lost his mind" and telling CNN's Dana Bash that "I'm not even thinking about Elon. He's got a problem. The poor guy’s got a problem." (Speaking of problems, the NYT story about Musk's drug use came out this time last week. Musk replied on X, "I am NOT taking drugs!")
Trump "has more power in this fight right now," Sara Fischer said on CNN just now. Indeed, I think that's why Musk played dirtier yesterday: Because he is more vulnerable. But don't overlook what Musk has going for him: He has a bigger social media platform than Trump, a somewhat separate fan base, and a whole lot of experience in the so-called "meme wars." I wrote about the social media dynamics for CNN.com here.
>> Semafor editor Ben Smith observed that "the most plugged-in people in Washington are reading the same tweets you are, marveling. The persons-familiar who populate so much of the reporting about Trump are no more or less familiar with his Truths than you are, and are speculating on his plans and motives — Is this breach final? Will it heal soon? — just the same as many Americans."
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Did Fox News choose a side? |
Andrew Kirell writes: Fox News was in mourning last night over the feud — torn between their two heroes, at times practically begging them through the TV screen to reconcile.
A dismayed Will Cain declared this is “not a story that we wanted today for America.” Greg Gutfeld implored the pair to “knock it off” and to stop “sabotaging” the Trump “Golden Age.” Laura Ingraham exhorted Musk — whom she called a modern-day Thomas Edison — to see that “Trump is not the problem here.” She confessed the situation “makes me sad,” and solemnly claimed she “talked to an insider today who said it is irreparable.”
Others were in denial of the severity. "Big deal," Sean Hannity said. "They'll work it out eventually, they'll become friends again." Jesse Watters asserted Trump and Musk were “just blowing off steam” and bizarrely likened the situation to bros in a love triangle: “Guys sometimes will punch you in the face, and the next night you’re having beer; sleep with your girlfriend, and you patch things up.”
>> Surprisingly, the network didn't shy away from repeating Musk's "Epstein files" allegation about Trump. "If Trump was in them, Biden probably would have released them," Watters said. Trump "was one of the first people to realize just how horrible Epstein really was," Hannity offered in a defense.
>> Kirell adds: None of the network's MAGA opinion stars explicitly chose a side last night. It will be interesting to see where they fall if things get even uglier. My money's on Trump, of course.
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It’s a full-on "World War Douche," Michael Kosta declared on "The Daily Show" last night, between "the leader of the free world and the breeder of the free world."
The tweet war "was like a serving of instant pudding for late night," friend-of-Reliable Bill Carter writes at LateNighter, "with every show scrapping their planned monologues in favor of whipping up gleeful rundowns of the two kids fighting in the park." Carter has all the highlights and and video clips here.
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It's a weekend full of big media events:
Tonight: Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on TNT, TBS and Max.
Tomorrow evening: "Good Night, and Good Luck" airs and streams live on CNN's platforms at 7pm ET.
Tomorrow night: UFC 316 takes place in Newark, with the president in attendance.
Sunday night: Game 2 of the NBA Finals on ABC and the Tony Awards on CBS.
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Shari Redstone's diagnosis |
For the past few months, as Shari Redstone has been trying to sell Paramount and deal with Trump's CBS suit, she has been dealing with a thyroid cancer diagnosis. She intended to keep the diagnosis private, but The New York Times learned about it, and she confirmed the news. "While she closely monitors developments at Paramount and remains eager to see a deal with Skydance completed, she continues to be occupied with medical consultations and treatment," the NYT reported. Redstone's rep said "her prognosis is excellent."
>> As for the deal Redstone desperately wants to complete, former FCC commissioner Rob McDowell "warned on Thursday that Paramount Global will be a 'melting ice cube' if its pending $8 billion merger with Skydance Media fails to close," TheWrap's Lucas Manfredi reports.
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Calling out 'sham investigations' |
Liam Reilly writes: What do you do when you’re the lone Democrat on the Trump-era FCC? You go on tour. Commissioner Anna Gomez is calling attention to what she calls the "weaponization" of the FCC by launching a "First Amendment Tour." She says she will speak at various events through the rest of the year.
In a phone interview, Gomez denounced her agency's "sham investigations" and said “I will continue to speak out, regardless of what happens, because I think it’s important that we bring attention to these actions that are so contrary to our constitutional freedoms." Read on...
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>> I want to believe this is true! Aimee Levitt writes that alt-weeklies are "alive and well" in some communities. (CJR)
>> Is this the "twilight of evening news" in America? Alex Weprin writes about the "uncomfortable position" the newscasts are in. (THR)
>> Sacha Biazzo chronicles "the phone-spying scandal rocking Italian journalists." (CJR)
>> Jacob Bernstein profiles crisis comms pro Juda Engelmayer, who reps Harvey Weinstein and is now "the pied piper of pariahs." (NYT)
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>> The great Pete Wells writes that the culinary world is experimenting with AI to explore how to expand recipes, menus, and customers' dining experiences. (NYT)
>> Andrew Deck explains how political cartoonists are "bringing AI into their work." (NiemanLab)
>> Emine Saner chronicles the creatives and academics who have opted to reject AI in their everyday lives. (The Guardian)
>> John Thornhill argues that "we need a new deal for the web" given the "speed and direction of AI’s transformation of the digital economy." (FT)
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>> This feud keeps escalating: Fox's Mark Levin "went berserk" on former colleague Tucker Carlson yesterday. (Mediaite)
>> "Palantir threatened to call police on a WIRED reporter and kicked out other journalists from a recent conference," Caroline Haskins reports. (WIRED)
>> "The New European, the 'Remainer' newspaper set up in response to the Brexit referendum, is to rebrand as The New World and revamp its coverage as it seeks to broaden its focus nine years after Britain voted to leave the EU." (FT)
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>> There's a lot to like about this depolarizing idea: X "is piloting a new program to use its Community Notes feature to highlight posts where people of typically differing opinions actually agree with each other," Sara Fischer reports. (Axios)
>> "Chinese propagandists are using ChatGPT to write posts and comments on social media sites — and also to create performance reviews detailing that work for their bosses, according to OpenAI researchers." (NPR)
>> "Coign, a self-described credit card 'built for conservatives,' claims to have launched the first fully AI-generated national TV commercial, at least in the financial services industry," Tal Axelrod reports. Here's what the ad looks like. (Axios)
>> Amazon "has cut jobs in its books division, including at its Goodreads review site and Kindle units." (CNBC)
>> Spotify has "laid off 15 employees in its podcast division." (Variety)
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How 'Jeopardy' can help save us |
"Trivia, of all things, is a ray of hope in our moment of national crisis," "Jeopardy!" host Ken Jennings writes in this terrific guest essay for the NYT.
Jennings' show is, he says, "one of the last great media monoliths, regular viewing for millions of faithful viewers in red and blue states alike." So how does he explain it? "In a dark time, my secret optimism is that our viewers’ love for quiz games is a sign of what can eventually save us: a practical belief in fact and error that is more fundamentally American than the toxic blend of proud ignorance and smarter-than-thou skepticism that's brought us to this point." Read on...
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This edition of Reliable Sources was edited by Andrew Kirell and produced with Liam Reilly. Email us your feedback and tips here! We'll be back with a special Saturday edition of the newsletter tomorrow... |
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