| | | | | What a busy media news day. There were at least six potential lead stories tonight. So scroll down to get caught up... | | | What Ailes and Trump are talking about | | As Donald Trump preps for this fall's debates, he has Roger Ailes in his corner. Tuesday afternoon the NYT reported that Ailes is "advising" Trump, helping him prep for the debates. Two of the NYT's sources said "Ailes' role could extend beyond the debates."
Hope Hicks came out and said that Ailes "is not advising Mr. Trump or helping with debate prep." But the two men are definitely talking, as sources confirmed to Dylan Byers. Quoting from Dylan's story: "Ailes and Trump were together in person at Trump's golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this weekend, one of the sources said..." | | | "I don't have a debate coach" | | After the initial wave of stories about Ailes/Trump came out, Trump spoke with the NYT:
"Trump said Mr. Ailes was not formally involved in his debate preparations, and chafed at the suggestion that he even needed to prepare for them. 'I'll speak with Roger, but this is not a formal thing,' Mr. Trump said. 'I don't have a debate coach. I've never had a debate coach.' He insisted that Mr. Ailes had 'no role.'" | | | On "Anderson Cooper 360," I noted that Ailes doesn't need the $$$ and Trump doesn't need the trouble that an official campaign role for Ailes would entail. But Ailes' conversations with Trump are a way for the deposed exec to remain "in the arena..." | | | John McLaughlin, 1927-2016 | | Dylan emails: John McLaughlin, the host of the long-running political roundtable show "The McLaughlin Group," died today. He was 89.
McLaughlin's show, which he both produced and hosted, launched in 1982 and set the stage for much of the free-for-all roundtable political shows you see on television today. Last week, McLaughlin missed his show because he was "under the weather." It marked the first time in 34 years he'd failed to host his show. More...
-- The news of his death was announced in a post on the show's Facebook page...
-- Jim Geraghty tweets: "He made politics and arguing about ideas wildly fun and entertaining television..."
-- Chuck Todd: "McLaughlin's legacy and influence can be seen on at least five cable channels daily. He changed political TV. Right? or WRONG!!?? RIP" | | The winning bid was $135 million. "Gawker Media Group has agreed this evening to sell our business and popular brands to Univision, one of America's largest media companies that is rapidly assembling the leading digital media group for millennial and multicultural audiences," Nick Denton said in an email. "I am pleased that our employees are protected and will continue their work under new ownership -- disentangled from the legal campaign against the company. We could not have picked an acquirer more devoted to vibrant journalism."
Prior to the Hogan trial, Denton asserted that Gawker was worth between $250 and 300 million, Dylan Byers and Tom Kludt note in their story... | | | What Univision execs are thinking | | | A senior Univision source told Dylan and Tom that Univision believes Gawker's brands are "highly monetizable," particularly because they made comparatively little video before but would now be paired with Univision's enormous video production capacity. Whether Denton will have a role at the company he founded has yet to be determined, according to the source... | | | What Gawker staffers are wondering | | Real talk from Dylan: Gawker, love it or hate it, had teeth. It exposed salacious secrets and published uncomfortable truths that the rest of the media wasn't willing to cover -- often relying on anonymous sourcing to do so. It's very hard to see how Gawker will get away with that under Univision -- a corporate owner that will likely be much more cautious about its reputation.
-- Related: TPM's Josh Marshall penned this blog post: "Yep, Independent Media is a Big Deal" | | | Lukas I. Alpert tweets: "Univision's winning $135 million bid for Gawker beat out Ziff by just $5 million, according to a source..." | | | A hearing to confirm Univision's winning bid is scheduled for Thursday in NYC. Once approved by a bankruptcy judge, Univision will gain ownership of all seven Gawker Media websites, including Gawker.com. Let's see if Denton tries to buy back the flagship site... | | | Nate Parker responds to new info about college rape accusation | | Tuesday afternoon, a shocking story by Ramin Setoodeh: "The woman who accused 'The Birth of a Nation' director and star Nate Parker of raping her while they were both Penn State students died in 2012 at age 30, according to family members and public records. Her older brother told Variety that she committed suicide and overdosed on sleeping pills."
On Tuesday night Parker addressed the matter in a Facebook post. He said he hadn't known about the suicide. "I am filled with profound sorrow," he says.
More: "I cannot- nor do I want to ignore the pain she endured during and following our trial. While I maintain my innocence that the encounter was unambiguously consensual, there are things more important than the law." Here's his full post... | | -- "CNN aired a clip of the sister of police shooting victim Sylville Smith that appeared to show her calling for peace following the violent Milwaukee riot, when she actually was calling for violence to continue elsewhere," Mediaite's Alex Griswold reports. The CNN.com story and video have now been updated... (Mediaite)
-- Reorg: "At least six newsroom employees have been laid off at the San Diego Union-Tribune..." (Poynter)
-- Fascinating data: SimilarWeb's rankings of the top U.S. media publishers and publications in July... (SimilarWeb)
-- Larry Wilmore thanked his fans Monday night after news of the "Nightly Show" cancellation broke. Meanwhile, Vanity Fair asks: "Can Anything Save Comedy Central Now?" (VF) | | On Tuesday afternoon MSNBC confirmed the news we broke in Monday night's newsletter -- that Brian Williams will be the host of an 11pm election special between Labor Day and Election Day. It'll be a half-hour program, according to a network exec.
In the 11 months he's been back on television, Williams has been on MSNBC for "roughly 245 hours," NYT's John Koblin notes. Yet Williams "has still had a relatively low profile... A daily show would provide him the structure that he was used to in his decade as anchor of the 'NBC Nightly News...'"
Williams will continue to anchor breaking news coverage during the day, BTW... | | | Clinton campaign refutes Trump's latest "conspiracy theory" | | Conservative media chatter about Hillary Clinton's health has gotten so loud that Trump is questioning her physical "stamina" — so on Tuesday night the Clinton campaign condemned him for "peddling deranged conspiracy theories."
A detailed press release from the campaign included a new statement from Clinton's physician saying that she is in "excellent health" and a scathing comment from comms director Jennifer Palmieri accusing Trump of trying to distract from his own refusal to release tax returns. The forceful rebuttal was deemed necessary by the campaign because the health rumors have been getting more and more attention in recent days. Here's my story all about it... | | As I mentioned on Sunday's "Reliable Sources," Sean Hannity has recklessly promoted these Clinton health rumors. He's really doing a disservice to his viewers.
It turns out Hannity is one of MY viewers -- this morning on "Fox & Friends" he said he watched Sunday's show, called me a "little pipsqueak," and railed against guest John Huey's depiction of Trump as a "demagogue." I'm glad he tuned in. But I wish he had addressed the actual point of my segment about him: that he should help his audience instead of misinforming them with conspiracy theories...
-- Hey, some common ground! When I called Hannity an "excellent broadcaster" tonight, he tweeted, "Finally we agree..." | | | Sopan Deb tweeted during Trump's prime time speech: "Let's take a moment to remember all the times Trump has mocked Clinton for using a teleprompter at rallies. Was a daily part of stump speech." T. Becket Adams elaborated: "Trump on teleprompter tonight. Prepare for media's inevitable 'this is the pivot we've been waiting for!' #hottakes..." | | | Trump starting to buy TV ads | | The CNNPolitics trifecta of Theodore Schleifer, Jeremy Diamond and Sara Murray says that the Trump campaign will begin airing general election advertisements this weekend, "putting an end to an unprecedented advertising gap." The spots will air in VA, NC, OH, FL, and PA, "all places where Trump is trailing solidly.".."
-- Noted: "Republicans close to the campaign do not expect a major advertising push until September..."
-- WSJ broke this ad buy news...
-- Good read by Hunter Walker: "Trump campaign insiders explain their war on the media" | | | (I wish I had written this story) | | What a great story idea: CNBC's Daniel Libit wrote about the "agony" of Donald Trump transcribers.
Libit says "Trump's crimes against clarity are multifarious: He often speaks in long, run-on sentences, with frequent asides. He pauses after subordinate clauses. He frequently quotes people saying things that aren't actual quotes. And he repeats words and phrases, sometimes with slight variations, in the same sentence." Indeed, part of what makes him "great TV" makes him tough to transcribe... Read more... | | | Counting down to the Green Party town hall | | What a moment for the Green Party in the United States. A prime time town hall on CNN... Wednesday at 9pm... To be moderated by Chris Cuomo.
I have to imagine that some viewers are finding out about the existence of the party for the first time this week through all of CNN's promos and on-air reminders... | | | Apple making a doc with Cash Money Records | | More and more original video for Apple Music:
"Apple Inc., the world's richest company, is making a documentary with Cash Money Records, one of the world's most successful hip-hop labels," Alex Webb and Lucas Shaw report. "Cash Money is home to Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj and Drake, with whom Apple already has an exclusive deal."
Cash Money co-founder Bryan Williams Instagrammed with Apple exec Larry Jackson today, leading to speculation about "an agreement to secure all of Cash Money's new albums exclusively," but the photo was actually a celebration of the doc deal. More via Bloomberg here... | | -- Britney Spears "will perform at this year's MTV Video Music Awards for the first time in roughly a decade," Frank Pallotta reports... (CNN)
-- Chloe Melas reports: John Krasinski will star in a 10-episode Jack Ryan series for Amazon... (CNN)
-- Also via Chloe: Did you know Ashley Judd has a master's degree in public administration from Harvard? Now she's going back to school to get a PhD... (CNN) | | It continues. Arol Sharma and Joe Flint report: Viacom and National Amusements Inc. "are back in deep talks toward a settlement that would end their litigation, reshape the company's board" and lead to Philippe Dauman's exit. Remember, similar talks failed last month. "The talks are delicate and could lead to a swift agreement or fall apart altogether..."
-- Something new: "While in earlier discussions, the idea was that" COO Tom Dooley would serve as CEO in an interim capacity, "it is unclear now whether there would be any timeline on his appointment..." | | | No third season of "I Am Cait" | | "After 2 amazing seasons of @IAmCait, it's time for the next adventure," Caitlyn Jenner announced Tuesday. E! said Jenner and the channel's execs "mutually decided not to move forward with another season at this time. She will always remain a part of the E! family, and we look forward to continue following her journey as she appears on 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians.'" Read Sandra Gonzalez's full story here... | | | For the record, part three | | | By Lisa France:
-- Wendell Pierce, beloved for his roles in "The Wire" and "Treme," was one of the first celebs to step up after Hurricane Katrina. Now he is dealing with the loss of his home following the historic flooding in Baton Rouge... (CNN)
-- Ellen DeGeneres made what seemed like a harmless joke about Olympic champion Usain Bolt. But some folks on Twitter were not having it, and labeled her racist. Here's her response... (CNN)
-- Justin Bieber has made good on his threat to quit Instagram after fans went after his new gal pal, Sofia Richie... (CNN) -- And speaking of Instagram: That's where former "Bachelor" star Juan Pablo Galavis has found love. Any way to make THAT into a TV show? (CNN) | | | What do you like about today's newsletter -- and what do you think we should improve? Email your feedback to reliablesources@cnn.com. We'll be back tomorrow... | | | Get Reliable Sources, a comprehensive summary of the most important media news, delivered to your inbox every afternoon. | | | | | |
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