| | | | | Exec summary: Scroll down for details about Laura Ingraham's return, Raju Narisetti's exit, Albert Cheng's new role, the rebellion inside Sinclair, and much more... | | | President Trump's defenders on TV sound shaken up, like they don't know quite what to say. And the president himself, by multiple accounts, is angry beyond belief. That's where things stand twelve hours after FBI agents showed up at Trump lawyer Michael Cohen's office and hotel room. The raid was first reported by the NYT at 3:54pm. Agents seized "business records, emails and documents related to several topics, including a payment to a pornographic film actress," Matt Apuzzo reported. That would be Stormy Daniels, who reportedly just landed the May/June cover of Penthouse... | | Syria on one hand, Stormy on the other | | | Lawrence O'Donnell on MSNBC Monday night: "Will President Trump's response to the suspected chemical attack in Syria be influenced by the FBI's investigation of payments made to a porn star to protect the president? That's the country we're living in. That's the question here tonight. Will the president use this situation in Syria to distract attention..." | | The man who called himself the "law and order candidate" railed against Monday's law enforcement effort... Without even being asked a question, Trump began a Cabinet Room photo op by calling the raid a "disgrace" and a "witch hunt." The most memorable line: The investigation is "an attack on our country in a true sense."
That's UNtrue, but Kirsten Powers explained what Trump was doing during this "AC360" segment: "He's telling the story that's now going to be told throughout the conservative world, so that they can say he's being persecuted and it's unfair..." | | Source tells Haberman that Trump is "bouncing off the walls" | | Hey, do you remember when a president's moods didn't have to be a national news story?
Many of Monday's leaks from the W.H. were about just how angry, just how enraged, Trump is. On "AC360," Maggie Haberman said Trump's public venting is "a fraction of what he is saying in private. He's 'bouncing off the walls,' according to one source..." | | The WashPost points out... | | | That "this was Trump's first crisis without Hope Hicks." Also: "Without a lead attorney in Dowd's absence, Trump has absorbed some advice from a number of legal commentators on cable news..." | | Hannity: "Robert Mueller declared war today" | | | The dominant message from pro-Trump talking heads: Jeff Sessions, Rod Rosenstein and Robert Mueller ALL have to go. "Mueller has to be dealt with," Seb Gorka told Lou Dobbs on Fox Biz. "This is a sham investigation," Steve Cortes said on CNN... | | | Brian Lowry emails: During the course of the coverage I caught Monday, there were several comparisons of Michael Cohen to "Ray Donovan," the "fixer" character in the Showtime series by the same name. The involvement of the New York U.S. attorney's office -- going toe-to-toe with the rich and connected -- also brings to mind another show on that network, "Billions." But the real point seems to be that much of the coverage has been in such uncharted waters that pundits are grasping at fictional dramas -- which usually have a way of exaggerating reality -- in an effort to put what's happening in context that people will understand. Let's just hope the next stop isn't "Twin Peaks." | | What will Trump think of this NYPost cover? | | Wired EIC Nick Thompson tweeted Monday night: "You know who's really happy that the Michael Cohen raid is going to dominate the news? Mark Zuckerberg."
Yes, but... Tuesday afternoon's Senate hearing will still receive wall-to-wall coverage on Tuesday. The NBC broadcast network is even planning a special report anchored by Lester Holt and Savannah Guthrie. I'll see you on CNN's TV coverage... We'll also have a live blog on CNN.com... | | -- "The insularity that shielded Zuckerberg from having to directly defend Facebook in front of lawmakers and regulators has finally cracked," the WasPost's Elizabeth Dwoskin wrote...
-- CNN's Laurie Segall: This is "Mark Zuckerberg's growing up moment"
-- BF's Alex Kantrowitz tweeted: "Congress is going to go for its YouTube moments, but I think this will be friendlier than a lot of people anticipate..."
-- If you're not on the list for Dylan Byers' PACIFIC newsletter, sign up here... He'll have another update before the hearing begins... | | Laura Ingraham is back, but her advertisers are not | | | "My friends, something alarming is taking place." On Monday night Laura Ingraham cast the ad boycott against her show as part of "the left's plot to silence conservatives." She said the "bullying on the left" is "Stalinist" but promised: "We will never relent and we will never give in. Never." The ad breaks during her hour were noticeably shorter than usual, signaling that many advertisers are still avoiding her... | | Hannity says he's accepting Jimmy Kimmel's apology... Even though it seemed like a "forced, Disney corporate apology..." So, a truce is in effect?
"I do agree with Jimmy in the sense it's time to move on," Hannity said Monday night. Frank Pallotta has a recap here. BUT Hannity also threatened Kimmel by saying "my producer spent all weekend compiling a lot of your highlights, or lowlights, in your career. They don't make you look too good. Instead of airing them, we will put them in storage..." | | -- Via a tipster: The Peabody Board of Jurors have reached a consensus. All 60 Peabody Award nominees will be revealed Tuesday afternoon...
-- Former Fox News exec VP Michael Clemente, also a vet of ABC and CNN, is becoming the CEO of Newsmax TV, reporting to Chris Ruddy...
-- Sally Kohn's book "The Opposite of Hate" is out Tuesday...
-- Mark Glaser's MediaShift is scaling back its work and focusing on trainings...
-- Tim Baysinger is joining TheWrap as a TV beat reporter... | | | YOU READ IT HERE FIRST... | | New reporting from inside Sinclair | | The controversy over Sinclair's mandated promos has quieted down, but the headache isn't going away. After interviewing more than a dozen current staffers at Sinclair-owned stations, plus former staffers and management sources, here's what I found:
There's a divide over the significance of Sinclair's corporate interference. Some staffers are so disturbed by it that they want to quit, while others are more tolerant. Some are relieved that the company's conservative tilt has been highlighted by the national news media while others believe the issue has been overblown.
But whether they agreed with the promo campaign, or were aghast by it, all of the sources agreed that company morale is low. One longtime staffer even used the word "despair." There's a LOT of resentment toward management. | | Sinclair still on defense | | More from my story: "This is so much bigger than us," one local anchor remarked. "I don't want people to lose faith in journalists." That's ultimately what this controversy is about -- credibility.
Several staffers predicted a talent drain in the months and years to come, subject to the onerous contracts that many anchors and reporters work under. But Sinclair management continues to defend the promo initiative. "We find it extremely ironic that the entire basis for our promos was to point out how false narratives can spread on social media, which is precisely what happened here," a Sinclair spokesman told me... Read the rest here... | | While on the subject of local TV, some recommended reading... | | WPRI reporter Ted Nesi emails: "I switched from newspapers to local TV here in Rhode Island seven years ago, and one thing I've realized is that the industry is pretty misunderstood... My feeling is that, for all the Ron Burgundy jokes, some well deserved, local TV news has an opportunity and a responsibility to step up in the coming years as newspaper newsroom strength is sapped in our communities."
With that in mind, Nesi says this new Knight Foundation study is worth reading... I agree... | | The latest wrangling between CBS and Viacom | | | Viacom has asked CBS "to raise its bid by about $2.8 billion in a move that would value the New York media company at about $14.7 billion," the LAT's Meg James reported Monday, citing sources. But "CBS is likely to reject the latest offer." So the wrangling between the corporate cousins continues. "The parties seem reasonably at odds on valuation, not unexpectedly," CFRA Research analyst Tuna N. Amobi wrote in a note to clients... | | Via Hadas Gold and Jessica Schneider: Unusual day. The judge closed the courtroom to the public after lunch to discuss a "legal matter." We were not told publicly what it is.
We heard from two witnesses -- Devin Merrill, VP of digital strategy & experience at AT&T, and John Harran, senior VP for digital distribution at Turner. DOJ lawyers used these two witnesses to get numerous emails into evidence in an attempt to establish that AT&T viewed virtual distributors, including its own DirecTV Now service, as lesser entities than its traditional satellite service. That touches on one of the government's themes about how the merged entity might try to stifle innovation. Harran's testimony was short. DOJ introduced evidence of him emailing with NBCU and ESPN execs -- perhaps to try to support their argument that these larger entities might try to hurt newer online providers. | | Gizmodo Media Group CEO Raju Narisetti is exiting the company. It's "a sign that parent Univision plans to get more directly involved with its flagship digital media property as it weighs deep cuts," The Daily Beast's Maxwell Tani scooped Monday.
Was he pushed or did he jump? That's in dispute, according to Tani's story. Narisetti's internal memo said he approached Univision about leaving... It "makes structural sense for GMG" at this time... | | -- Former FDIC chair Sheila Bair "will contribute a recurring monthly column" to Yahoo Finance... Her first piece is about Trump v. Amazon... (Yahoo)
-- "CBS Evening News" promotions: "Brinda Adhikari has been named senior broadcast producer of the network's flagship newscast, while Javier Guzman is now senior producer, responsible for features and planning..." (TVNewser)
-- Vox and the International Rescue Committee are launching a podcast called "Displaced..." (Vox)
-- John Jurgensen's latest: "More podcasters are making the leap from studio to stage and doubling their careers on the road..." (WSJ) | | | "Corey duBrowa is exiting Salesforce as CCO and joining Google as VP of global comms and public affairs, effective April 30," PRWeek reports. "In this role, duBrowa will report directly to Google CEO Sundar Pichai..." | | Celebrating Joanna Coles' new book | | | Oliver Darcy emails: The Snapchat Penthouse in Midtown Manhattan was buzzing on Monday night. To celebrate the Tuesday release of her new book "Love Rules," Joanna Coles hosted an event that included a conversation and audience Q&A with HBO's John Oliver. The event was off the record, but I'm told the guests included Coles' husband Peter Godwin, Arianna Huffington, Diane Sawyer, Jared Holt, Ryan Lizza, Olivia Nuzzi, Heather Passaro, Amy Larocca, David Carey, and many more. The book is out Tuesday... | | The biggest Black Lives Matter page on Facebook is fake | | Donie O'Sullivan emails: Not for the first time, Facebook took action against a major bad actor on its site not on its own but because journalists made inquiries. We were looking into this page for a while -- when we showed it to Facebook last week, along with some of our findings, the company initially said it didn't violate "community standards." But then on Monday morning, the company told us the page had been disabled.
The discovery raises a lot of Q's about how Facebook polices its platform -- if it can't figure out there is something up with the biggest "BLM" account, with almost 700,000 followers, why should we trust it to find other fakes? Despite transparency pledges from Mark Zuckerberg, our story also raises questions about the company's commitment to change -- Facebook wouldn't tell us, for instance, if the page had been boosted with paid Facebook ads. More... | | Diamond and Silk vs. Facebook | | Oliver Darcy emails: Diamond and Silk, the popular pro-Trump commentators, said on Friday that Facebook had told them it had determined their content "unsafe to the community." The message, the duo said, came after months of correspondence over what the pair said was decreased reach. A spokesperson for Facebook initially seemed to back the message, telling Fox News that the company's policy team "had concerns about their online rhetoric and deemed them as unsafe."
But then the story received heavy attention in right-of-center media. Diamond and Silk appeared on "Fox & Friends" over the weekend, the story was prominently featured on Breitbart, on Monday it was at the top of the Drudge Report, and later in the afternoon it was leading the Fox News homepage. Soon after, a Facebook spokesperson told me in a statement, "We have communicated directly with Diamond and Silk about this issue. The message they received last week was inaccurate and not reflective of the way we communicate with our community and the people who run Pages on our platform. We have provided them with more information about our policies and the tools that are applicable to their Page and look forward to the opportunity to speak with them." | | | Darcy adds: Why did Facebook only say the message was "inaccurate" after it received significant attention in the press? And why was this "inaccurate" message sent in the first place? Have such messages been sent to other page owners in the past? Diamond and Silk said they had been communicating with Facebook for months, so it seems hard to believe that this was just an off-handed message Facebook sent to them... | | | For the record, part three | | | -- Correction: Last night I said that Jeff Bezos is No. 1 and Trump is No. 776 on the Forbes list of wealthiest billionaires. Trump is actually No. 766.
-- "Dad's ambassador to the fringe" -- Cristiano Lima documents Donald Trump, Jr.'s use of Twitter to "promote questionable or outright false info..." (Politico)
-- "Writer-director James Toback, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by scores of women over his decades in Hollywood, will not face criminal charges in five investigations into his conduct because the allegations are beyond the statute of limitations, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said Monday..." (LATimes) | | Time to "fight the vulture owners hollowing out local news" | | "Is the local press woke?" Ken Doctor thinks so. He says The Denver Post's stunning protest against its owner, Alden Global Capital, should be just the beginning. The subhed on Doctor's column: "This is a golden age of American protest. It's time to stand up and fight the vulture owners hollowing out local news..."
--> With another round of layoffs underway, and the editors sounding the alarm, there's been a groundswell of support for the Denver Post from the community. The editors have heard nothing from Alden... | | Salke's first moves at Amazon Studios | | | "A month after landing the top job at Amazon Studios, Jennifer Salke has started to solidify her executive team," THR's Lesley Goldberg reported. COO Albert Cheng, who was the interim chief when Roy Price was ousted, will serve "in the newly created position of co-head of television... Cheng will continue to serve as COO of all of Amazon Studios while also working on day-to-day oversight of the business, creative and production units on the TV side..." | | The problem with "The Simpsons" | | Lisa Respers France emails: On Sunday night "The Simpsons" addressed the criticism over the Apu character... And now the show's producers are facing new complaints...
--> Hari Kondabolu, who made the documentary "The Problem with Apu," said "I used Apu & The Simpsons as an entry point into a larger conversation about the representation of marginalized groups & why this is important. The Simpsons response tonight is not a jab at me, but at what many of us consider progress..." | | Lindsey Buckingham departs Fleetwood Mac | | Chloe Melas emails: My heart breaks a little bit as I write this -- Fleetwood Mac and Lindsey Buckingham have parted ways. In a statement to CNN, the band says he will not be joining them on tour this fall and that they "wish him all the best." A source close to the band told CNN that the split was "over musical differences regarding the tour." A rep for Buckingham referred questions to the band.
The band has had their ups and downs over the years and this is not Buckingham's first departure from the group. Read more... | | | For the record, part four | | | By Lisa Respers France:
-- Cardi B revealed her pregnancy this weekend on "SNL," and now she is thankful for all the baby love she is receiving...
-- Speaking of "SNL," this week's "Black Jeopardy" skit got me to thinking about other shows we wish were real...
-- "Real Housewives of Atlanta" cast member Kenya Moore and husband Marc Daly are expecting a baby. At 47 it's her first, and on Monday she made it clear that she is not using a surrogate... | | Highlights from Sunday's "Reliable Sources" | | | If you want a break from all the Cohen news, you can catch up on "Reliable:" Watch the video clips on CNN.com... listen to the podcast via Apple or other apps... read the transcript here... or watch the whole program via CNNgo or VOD... | | Trump's attacks against newsrooms like the NYT are "out of control," NYT exec editor Dean Baquet told me on the show. "It's out of control and his advisors should tell him to stop, because it's actually affecting the civic life and debate of the country," Baquet said.
More: "If he creates a culture where 'Fox and Friends' and Jesse Watters are regarded as serious journalism, and The New York Times and The Washington Post are not," he will have a "longstanding, harmful effect on the country." | | "Donald Trump has this belief that he if thinks something is true, it IS true," Greenfield said during our "A block" conversation.
I was reminded of this quote on Monday when Sarah Sanders told the W.H. press corps that "the president still feels there was a large amount of voter fraud..." | | "The president surprises his own staff most of the time" with tweets, NYMag Washington correspondent Olivia Nuzzi said on "Reliable." "You'll be in the West Wing and a tweet will pop up or will come up on cable news, and they express total shock like all of us do."
So what surprise will be next? | | | Email brian.stelter@turner.com... the feedback helps us improve this newsletter every day... Thanks! | | | | | | |
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