| | | | | Empowering users to notice "fake news" | | "Fake news" stories sow confusion. People in power, all around the world, benefit from confusion. So users should outsmart them. Refuse to be confused.
That was my message on Sunday's "Reliable Sources." Now it looks like #RefuseToBeConfused has become a hashtag. There has been a ton of conversation about "fake news" all weekend long, partly spurred by a pair of must-read stories in the NYT and the WashPost.
NYT's Sapna Maheshwari showed how made-up claims go viral by tracing one Texas man's false tweet about anti-Trump protesters. That's the bottom-up approach -- one fib on Twitter becomes a story of dozens of web sites. WashPost's Terrence McCoy documented the top-down approach -- how two unemployed restaurant workers started a web site that lies to Trump fans every single day. Seriously, please read McCoy's story, all the way til the end. | | | "We're the new yellow journalists" | | | "We're the new yellow journalists," Paris Wade, 26, told McCoy. His experience running "Liberty Writers News" has taught him that "violence and chaos and aggressive wording is what people are attracted to." Business partner Ben Goldman says it's about "shock value." Goldman wrote up a story saying "it was a literal Hell Storm at DNC headquarters today" and laughed at it. "God, I just know everything about this statement is so wrong. What is a hell storm?" | | | My take: "Fake news" is a symptom of a disease | | "Fake news" sources like "Liberty Writers News" are just a symptom of a disease. The disease is distrust. The folks who click on these links and share these stories don't trust real sources, and I don't know if/when that will change. On Sunday's "Reliable Sources," I asserted that we are entering a new age of information warfare, and it's being fought right on your phone. Here are the main points from my essay:
— We're beyond just "red news/blue news" now. We are in an environment where some people are choosing to be colorblind...
— We need a lot more research to understand why online lies are so appealing to some voters...
— Trump himself has been fooled by fake news. Remember when he said "All I know is what's on the Internet?"
— Media literacy is part of the solution. The more media-literate you are, the less likely you will be tricked by propaganda...
— Journalism is also part of the solution. As an industry, we have to redouble our efforts to restore our credibility...
— But these are not full or satisfying solutions. I wish I knew 'em, but I don't. How does this end? Is the U.S. moving into an authoritarian media climate, more like Russia or China, where no one really trusts anything? | | | Mark Zuckerberg, in a Facebook post over the weekend, says "we take misinformation seriously..." Jim Rutenberg responds to Zuckerberg and says "Truth doesn't need arbiters. It needs defenders. And it needs them now more than ever..." Margaret Sullivan says Facebook should hire an "executive editor..." Jack Shafer says "fake news, which the supermarket tabloids once excelled at, fills a market need for frivolous hyper-excitement. This need will never vanish..." And Stephen Colbert says "the fact that they call this 'fake news' upsets me because this is just lying..." I | | Gwen Ifill was laid to rest on Saturday at the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church in Washington. "At this particular moment in our country, I do want to note that Gwen represented the most American of success stories," Ifill's cousin Sherrilyn said during the service.
NYT's Yamiche Alcindor writes: "The funeral became a reunion of Ms. Ifill's large family and a gathering of luminaries. Michelle Obama, the first lady; Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Mr. Obama; and Donna Brazile, the interim DNC chairwoman, sat alongside a number of prominent journalists, including Dorothy Gilliam, Chuck Todd, Roland Martin and Charlayne Hunter-Gault..." | | | "The world turned upside down?" | | If Donald Trump would like to see "Hamilton," he'll be able to snag tickets, even though the show is sold out through next August. And if he just wants to keep tweeting about it? Well that's okay, too. "I pray he keeps tweeting -- the show will sell out for decades, not just years," PR guru and "Hamilton" investor Ken Sunshine told me.
Sunshine's other point: If Trump "were really smart he would go see it -- like so many Republicans, like the Bushes, the Cheneys... The show is a hugely patriotic comment on what America is supposed to be." Here's my full story...
-- For the record: The show's lead producer, Jeffrey Seller, told NYT's Patrick Healy that Trump is "welcome to attend..." | | Why Trump's criticism matters | | Trump v. "Hamilton" dramatizes Divided America. The President-elect's words have consequences; when he claims Mike Pence was "harassed" by the cast and says "this should not happen," media types are right to wonder what's next... Right to worry about artistic expression and the First Amendment. "A President Trump may well try to suppress speech," Dean Obeidallah wrote on CNN.com Sunday night.
At the same time, Ben Shapiro was right on "Reliable" -- "If you're going to turn it up to 11 on a 'Hamilton' tweet... There is no place to turn it from there..." Mediaite recapped Shapiro's comments here... | | "Does Trump do this on purpose?" The question came up repeatedly in green rooms and on the Sunday morning shows. "Does he create controversies to distract us all?" If so, he's not the first. Certainly there are plenty of conflict-of-interest stories Trump would rather not have on Page One. Judd Legum of ThinkProgress makes the case: "One of the guiding principles for the media in covering the POTUS is that the things the president says and does are, by definition, newsworthy... But what happens if the president intentionally misdirects the media by taking about trivialities?"
Counterargument: What I see is a man who's just reacting to what he reads in the papers and sees on the TV screen... | | | Ari Emanuel paying his respects to the President-elect? Or something more? The super-agent visited Bedminster on Sunday afternoon... Trump called him "the king of Hollywood" when he arrived... Afterward, Emanuel's spokesman said "he is not seeking a role in the administration." Emanuel wouldn't comment on the substance of the meeting, but a source said he sought to "discuss some concerns he had." The source wouldn't elaborate. Here's my full story... | | Other weekend visitors with media ties | | | BET founder Robert Johnson... and Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, a top shareholder in Tronc (formerly Tribune Publishing)... | | | Encouraging and discouraging signs re: press access | | Over the weekend reporters were able to camp out at Bedminster. Trump occasionally came outside with visitors like Mitt Romney. And Trump answered a few shouted questions from the assembled press. Of course, it was in his interest to have the reporters and cameras outside -- it showed that he was working all weekend long. There were still some restrictions. WashPost's Philip Rucker tweeted Sunday morning: "When Obama attends church, press pool goes inside. When Romney attended church in 2012, press followed inside. Not so with Trump today."
I asked White House Correspondents Association president Jeff Mason for an update, and he replied: "We're encouraged that there has been some pool access this weekend, including some limited access to the president-elect, but discouraged that we still do not have a full protective pool. We will continue to push for that..." | | Ann Compton talks about the "press pool" | | Ann Compton was part of the "press pool" on 9/11. "For the last half century or more, every president, Republican and Democrat, have welcomed the presence of a travel pool," she said on "Reliable Sources."
I asked: "What should journalists do, to try to hold Trump to the same standard?" "We keep talking about it; we keep putting the news on the air; and to the presidential staff and the presidential transition staff, we make the point that this is a two-way street. The president works for the American people..." | | When will Trump hold a press conference? | | | Tom Kludt says Trump's lack of a post-election presser is a "break from tradition that is keeping reporters and the public in the dark about the transition to his administration. Going back at least to 1976, when Jimmy Carter was elected, no president-elect has waited so long after the election was decided to speak to reporters. Most did it within the first three days." Hope Hicks says she's sure Trump will hold one "very soon..." | | Other highlights from Sunday's show | | -- Charles Blow: "The country needs us right now to put pressure on him, because we have to make him be the president..."
-- Salena Zito: It's not enough just to interview voters in swing states. "Being there and living there and listening to them" is vital...
-- Marisa Guthrie: "People who are criticizing" Megyn Kelly "for talking about this are actually proving her point, that sexual harassment is a problem and that it needs to be talked about..." | | | Trump slams "SNL," asks "equal time" question | | What did you think? Was Alec Baldwin funny on "SNL" Saturday night? Trump didn't think so. He told everyone: "I watched parts of @nbcsnl Saturday Night Live last night. It is a totally one-sided, biased show - nothing funny at all. Equal time for us?"
Baldwin responded: "Equal time? Election is over. There is no more equal time." That's accurate -- FCC "equal time" rules entitle candidates to the same amount of airtime as their opponents for some non-news TV appearances, but the rules do not apply to politicians after election day... But that wasn't really Trump's point, was it? Frank Pallotta has more here... | | | Three "SNL" clips to watch | | | Media week ahead calendar | | Tuesday night: CPJ's annual International Press Freedom Awards dinner in NYC
Wednesday: Disney releases "Moana"
Wednesday: The news cycles sloooows wayyyyyy dowwwwn... Hopefully?
Thursday morning: The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC and CBS | | -- First ABC News Now, then Fusion, now...? Claire Atkinson says "ABC is exploring the possibility of a new 24-hour digital news channel... Our sources say ABC News chief James Goldston is spearheading the effort..." (NYPost)
-- Stephen Colbert and John Oliver vocalized their fears about a Trump presidency at this Montclair Film Festival fundraiser... (CNNMoney)
-- Michael Cieply says there's been a "slight shift in my arrangement" at Deadline. TheWrap says there have been behind the scenes "clashes..." (TheWrap)
-- "MSNBC Host Left TV Battles Behind to Fight Poverty Instead." The NYT profiles Dylan Ratigan... (NYT) | | | Solid start for "Fantastic Beasts" | | | Frank Pallotta reports: Even without Harry, Hermione and Ron, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" cast a spell on audiences around the world this weekend. The Warner Bros. film, a spinoff of the hugely popular J.K. Rowling franchise, brought in an estimated $218 million at box offices around the world this weekend. The take includes $75 million in North America. The film's opening was in line with industry projections... | | | 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. | | | | | |
Post a Comment