| | | | | Reacting to Trump's "rigged election" lie | | Donald Trump is sowing doubts about the integrity of our election process -- despite denials from his surrogates. On Sunday he was explicit about his view that "many polling places" are being rigged. As I said on Sunday's "Reliable Sources," his "rigged election" claim is a serious test for journalism. There are several things news outlets can do to instill confidence in the election: Demand evidence from Trump for his evidence-free assertions; refute lies about widespread voter fraud; make it easy for readers/viewers to alert newsrooms to suspicious activity at polling sites. What else? Email reliablesources@cnn.com with your recommendations. A few other thoughts:
-- This is not ideological. Journalists who stand up for our voting system are not anti-Trump. They're pro-democracy...
-- When it comes to affirming the election results, leadership from conservative media figures is going to be critically important...
-- NYT's Ashley Parker: "The country has not had a presidential candidate from one of the two major parties try to cast doubt on the entire democratic process and system of government since the brink of the Civil War, said Douglas Brinkley..."
-- I'll be talking more about this on "New Day" at 8:50am Monday... | | | Trump is an improviser. Was his weekend of "rigged" rhetoric just a bid to shift attention away from the women accusing him of unwanted advances?... | | | Journalists as Clinton campaign workers in disguise (we're not) | | Over the weekend I wrote about what makes Trump's ongoing, deepening media critique DIFFERENT. Republicans have complained about media bias for decades. But Trump is staking out a position much more extreme than his predecessors. In Trump's world, journalists are really just Hillary Clinton campaign workers in disguise, collaborating with Clinton in a conspiracy to "rig" the election. This is obviously false, and it's also a marked change from the past.
NYU's Jay Rosen told me: "Instead of talking about favoritism among journalists toward a candidate or cause, Trump is making a more extreme claim: doing politics and doing journalism are the same thing. In this way of thinking, 'the media' and 'the left' have an equal sign between them." Read more... | | | An incorrect belief that "media" = Clinton | | Listen to Trump's media allies, and you'll notice this "media" = Clinton attitude right away. A few nights ago Sean Hannity said the media is "an extension of Clinton" the same way I say "the sky is blue." And Newt Gingrich tried it on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday.
Do "MSM" reporters have adversarial relationships with the Clinton campaign? Why yes they do. Are beat reporters frustrated by limits on access to Clinton? Very much so. Do some of those same journalists jump at the chance to criticize Clinton in private? Yes. Conversely, do Clinton aides feel they're scrutinized more severely than their Trump counterparts? Again, yes. But Hannity and Gingrich don't want to hear anything of these facts. They have to believe that the "media" = Clinton...
-- More from Rosen on his PressThink blog: The Trump supporters who adopt this POV have essentially opted out of journalism...
-- None of this is meant to discount actual effects of media bias. As I wrote here, many journalists dislike and even fear Trump. But the most popular complaints about media collusion fail to recognize "MSM" antipathy toward Clinton... | | | Newsrooms need to mount a "far more assertive defensive" | | | Trump is trying to drive a wedge between news outlets and their audiences. So what to do? NYT's Jim Rutenberg says newsrooms should "better illuminate the concerns of Mr. Trump's supporters well beyond Election Day." But "there is something else that will help: a far more assertive defense from the news media, of what it does well and honestly, and against the sustained attempts to impugn its motives." I could not agree more... Read his full Monday column here... | | | Glenn Greenwald talks Wikileaks | | | If you say "there's collusion" often enough, some people start to believe it. But my view is that the stolen trove of Wikileaks emails show isolated cases of improper journalistic behavior -- not systemic wrongdoing. Does Glenn Greenwald agree? I talked with him on Sunday's show... Watch the segment here... | | | More highlights from Sunday's show | | | Waiting on Billy Bush news... | | Is Billy Bush any closer to an exit deal with NBC? His lawyer Marshall Grossman says negotiations continued through the weekend. No word on when the deal will be announced...
-- More: On Friday night Page Six said NBC was close to striking a $10 million settlement with Bush. Grossman denied that figure. But even if it ends up being less than $10 million, the ultimate payment could prove to be a further embarrassment for the network. "Everyone is so mad that he's getting paid," a high-ranking "Today" show staffer told me... Read more...
-- Who leaked? "At NBCU, Billy Bush Is Out, But Corporate Espionage Seems In" is Brian Steinberg's headline... | | | Trial against Rolling Stone begins Monday | | In Monday's NYT, Sydney Ember has this look inside Wenner Media as Rolling Stone faces the first of two trials over its discredited "Rape on Campus" story. It's an $8 million defamation trial that "opens on Monday in a federal court in Virginia." UVA administrator Nicole Emaro is the plaintiff. Details here...
-- Emaro gave an interview for ABC's "20/20" special, which aired on Friday... More... | | | Amy Goodman facing "riot" charges | | "Democracy Now" host Amy Goodman, previously charged with criminal trespassing in connection with her coverage of protests against the Dakota Access pipeline, is now facing a "rioting" charge. She is in North Dakota to face the judge on Monday.
Her attorney Reed Brody emails: "On Friday the prosecutor dropped the trespass charges and sent papers on riot charges to the judge." If district judge John Grinsteiner finds probable cause, Goodman is expected to appear in court on Monday afternoon. "After that, in due course we expect to file motions challenging the prosecution on various grounds," Brody said...
-- More: The Nation mag says "the charges against Goodman are a clear attack on journalism and freedom of the press..." | | | 22 days till Election Day | | | Sunday's funniest (?) story is about "SNL..." and specifically about Trump's reaction to the show. On Sunday morning, after watching the skits, he tweeted, "Watched Saturday Night Live hit job on me. Time to retire the boring and unfunny show. Alec Baldwin portrayal stinks. Media rigging election!"
Lorne Michaels and co. must have loved this tweet. A year ago, they were getting criticized for letting Trump host "SNL." Back then, he was thrilled to be a part of the iconic show, calling it an "amazing evening." He even said that "part of the reason I'm here is that I know how to take a joke." And he has heaped praise on Michaels in the past... | | In fairness to Trump, this "Melanianade" digital short is the show's harshest anti-Trump spot yet. The parody of Beyonce's "Sorry" depicts five of the women in Trump's life fed by The Donald -- Melania Trump (Cecily Strong), Ivanka Trump (Emily Blunt), Kellyanne Conway (Kate McKinnon), Omarosa (Sasheer Zamata) and Tiffany Trump (Vanessa Bayer) -- and all but says Melania is going to leave him after the election. The YouTube vid has 2 million views so far...
-- More: "SNL" had its highest week three ratings since 2008 in the metered markets... | | | Still no Trump lawsuits against NYT or other news outlets | | | On Sunday's "Reliable," we convened a Trump biographers' roundtable with Tim O'Brien, Michael D'Antonio and Brad Thomas. O'Brien, who actually has been sued by Trump before, said he thought the current retraction demands and lawsuit threats are meant to "chill the media." Watch the segment here... | | | Death threats due to a newspaper endorsement | | | CNNMoney's Jill Disis writes: The Arizona Republic's editorial board knew it was wading into controversy last month when it endorsed a Democrat for president -- the first time it had done so in its 126-year history. But some of the backlash went way beyond the pale. On Sunday the paper published an op-ed about the death threats and its responses... | | | How the AZ Republic's president is reacting | | Disis interviewed AZ Republic president Mi-Ai Parrish, who said, "We're being targeted ... it's not the America I know. It's not the democracy I love."
More: Parrish said she feels "even more strongly" now about the paper's decision, and said the Republic has received a flood of support in the wake of Sunday's op-ed. She called her employees "strong" and passionate," adding, "I'm just honored to stand by their side..." | | | Media week ahead calendar | | Monday afternoon: Netflix Q3 earnings...
Tuesday afternoon: Yahoo earnings...
Wednesday evening: The final debate...
Sunday night: "The Walking Dead" returns... | | | "Walking Dead" gets an early renewal | | | EW's James Hibberd reports: "The zombie drama has been renewed for an eighth inning a week before the debut of its eagerly awaited seventh season. After-show Talking Dead has been renewed as well... Season 8 will premiere late next year and kick off with the drama's 100th episode. Current showrunner Scott Gimple is on board too..." | | | On Sunday, "The Simpsons" officially hit 600 episodes -- a milestone more than worthy of a "Woohoo!" Sandra Gonzalez interviewed Al Jean to mark the occasion... | | | Catch up on Sunday's show! | | | | You can watch/DVR the replay of Sunday's "Reliable Sources" Monday at 3am ET... Listen to the podcast here... Or watch the video clips from the show... | | Tell us what you think... | | | What do you like about this newsletter? What do you dislike? Send your feedback to reliablesources@cnn.com. We appreciate every email... And 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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