Exec summary: Hello from the late night DC to NYC train... Here are the day's media headlines, from "New Fox" to Facebook, the Washington Times to Seth Meyers, Netflix to FX...
Don't fall numb to this Facebook hack
Donie O'Sullivan emails: This could be Facebook's worst week… and that's saying something.
Amid the SCOTUS drama, it was easy to miss. But the breach Facebook announced last Friday is the worst in the company's history.
I think we all have data breach fatigue. And it's been a challenge for reporters to convey how serious this is. But here's what you need to know: If you are among the 50 million people whose data was exposed, the hackers could log in as you. They had the chance to get into your entire Facebook world.
Facebook's investigation is ongoing, but if they find anything other than the best-case scenario (that they caught the hackers before they accessed data) things could get ugly very fast.
BREAKING:
Lawmakers will be briefed later this week
Donie adds: A source familiar with Facebook's plans told me Monday night that the company is expected to brief lawmakers in Washington on the breach later this week.
You can log in to hundreds of websites (think dating apps) with Facebook. We did a story earlier in the day looking at how those companies are determining if their users' data was also exposed. (Hint: not very well!)
Putting this in perspective...
"The reason the Facebook hack isn't getting crazy attention is because the republic is falling apart," NYT's Mike Isaac tweeted Monday in his patented style. "Were we not in the middle of this SCOTUS thing, people would realize how mindblowingly bad this hack is."
SUPREME BATTLE
Kavanaugh's future hinges on his past | | "If you set yourself up to be a choir boy," Don Lemon said...
"...You better be able to sing!" Chris Cuomo said.
While the FBI continues investigating Brett Kavanaugh, and lawmakers continue fretting about how extensive the investigation will be, stories keep coming about Kavanaugh's past behavior. Accounts about his drinking in high school and college are relevant "because there are serious questions tonight about the veracity" of his testimony, Lemon said on CNN Monday night...
A bar fight in 1985...
Right now the headline on CNN.com reads "Police questioned Kavanaugh after bar fight in 1985."
The NYT had the story, backed up by a police report, first. There's no disputing the police report. But Kavanaugh backers, including Sarah Sanders, are questioning the source, specifically NYT Mag staff writer Emily Bazelon, who had the first byline on the story.
Bazelon is a Yale grad and a lecturer there. She criticized Kavanaugh back in July, saying "he's a 5th vote for a hard-right turn on voting rights and so much more that will harm the democratic process & prevent a more equal society."
Sanders pointed to Bazelon's tweet on Monday night and asked if her opinion of the judge motivated her "to write this ridiculous story..."
>> Heading into Tuesday, here's the big picture, via CNN's Lauren Fox: "Kavanaugh's drinking at Yale comes into renewed focus..."
FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE
-- As expected, FB's head of News Feed Adam Mosseri is taking over Instagram, effective immediately... (CNNMoney)
-- Speaking of Insta: Sarah Frier is writing a book about the app... (Twitter)
-- "Google's ad chief Sridhar Ramaswamy is leaving to be a general partner at Greylock Partners..." (CNBC)
-- The News & Doc Emmys just wrapped up in NYC... I'll have highlights tomorrow...
FIRST LOOK
Variety's New Power of New York list
Here's a sneak peek at the cover of Variety's annual New York issue, featuring Seth Meyers on the New Power of New York list: | | Full disclosure/proud husband brag, my wife Jamie Stelter is on the list as "NY's wake-up call..." The full list will be up on Variety.com on Tuesday morning, but here are the twelve featured pairings... mini-profiles written by colleagues, friends, admirers of those on the list:
Ronan Farrow by Samantha Bee; Suzanne Scott by Lachlan Murdoch; Meghan McCain by Joe Biden; Timothee Chalamet by Armie Hammer; Radhika Jones by Lena Waithe; Cardi B by Michelle Williams; Monica Lewinsky by Alan Cumming; Ryan Reynolds by Jake Gyllenhaal; Van Jones by Kim Kardashian West; Zachary Quinto by Andrew Rannells; Zoe Kravitz by Jean-Marc Vallee; Awkwafina by Anne Hathaway.
Netflix working on "choose your own adventure" shows
This is the coolest thing I read today. Netflix is "developing a slate of specials that will let viewers choose the next storyline in a TV episode or movie, according to people familiar with the matter," Bloomberg's Lucas Shaw reported. "The company expects to release the first of these projects before the end of this year."
>> In one episode of "Black Mirror," we'll be able to pick our own paths through the story...
>> Shaw tweeted: "Interactive TV has been sitting at Hollywood's kids table for a few years. Netflix's big investment could change that..."
FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO
-- Donie O'Sullivan emails: On Monday evening, Twitter announced new rules re: the distribution of hacked materials ahead of the midterms...
-- Twitter also revealed that "in August, we removed approximately 50 accounts misrepresenting themselves as members of various state Republican parties..."
-- Planning ahead: On Monday the RNC announced that its 2020 convention will be held August 24-27, 2020, in Charlotte...
| | Nickelodeon's new president is...
Brian Robbins. He co-founded Awesomeness TV and he's been running the Paramount Players division for Viacom. Now he's being tasked with, in Bob Bakish's words, ensuring "the brand remains the dominant force with young audiences."
Robbins is replacing Cyma Zarghami, who stepped down in June. Sarah Levy had been the interim boss.
"Nickelodeon has experienced ratings declines of more than 20% compared with a year ago among its key demographic of children 2 to 11 years old," the WSJ's Joe Flint and Keach Hagey report. But "despite its challenges, Nickelodeon is Viacom's most successful cable channel..."
"New Fox" is taking shape
Who's going to Disney as part of the 21st Century Fox deal, and who's staying at Fox? Disney is about to make some announcements. And Deadline reported on Monday that Gary Newman "is in final negotiations to remain at 'New Fox' for the near future and oversee the broadcast network as it ushers a new era as an independent."
Plus, the WSJ reported that Marianne Gambelli, Fox News president of advertising sales, will be gaining ground at "New Fox," overseeing ad sales "for most of its assets, including sports channels and the Fox broadcast network." Fox Network Group President Joe Marchese will be leaving after the deal closes, per the WSJ...
The Atlantic hires Jemele Hill
"The former ESPN host is joining the magazine as a staff writer covering the intersection of sports, race and politics. She will also have a podcast," CNN's Jordan Valinsky reports.
Note Hill's statement, easily interpreted as a jab at ESPN: "You can't talk about sports without talking about race, class, gender and politics. I want to explore the complications and discomforts with a publication that has a long history of supporting this kind of work..."
Newspaper retracts and apologizes for Seth Rich column as part of settlement
Oliver Darcy emails: The Washington Times on Monday retracted and apologized for an op-ed that peddled a conspiracy theory about Aaron Rich, the brother of the murdered DNC staffer Seth Rich. The stunning reversal came as part of a settlement Aaron Rich reached with the conservative newspaper.
"The column included statements about Aaron Rich, the brother of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich, that we know believe to be false," part of the retraction read. It added, "The Washington Times apologizes to Mr. Rich and his family." In a statement, Aaron Rich said he accepted the publication's apology...
FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE
-- Meghan McCain said Monday that she'll return to "The View" next Monday, the 8th...
-- Kevin Jackson, who was fired from Fox News last week for calling the Kavanaugh accusers "lying skanks" and other derogatory terms, claims that a Fox executive told him "I could have said something to save my job." Some sort of apology, presumably? But he said "Hell no." A Fox News rep is denying this... (Contemptor)
-- Chloe Melas and Laura Ly have the latest on Cardi B: She was charged with reckless endangerment and assault on Monday... (CNN)
-- Correction: Last night I misspelled the name of NatGeo Global Networks CEO Courteney Monroe. My apologies!
| | About that presser...
President Trump's interaction with ABC's Cecilia Vega was one of the subplots of his long speech turned press conference on Monday. He was there to tout his new trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, and he bristled when reporters tried to ask about non-trade topics.
Trump -- perhaps mishearing Vega -- said to her, "I know you're not thinking, you never do." And just like that, people were talking about Trump and sexism again. "Unsurprisingly, he was noticeably more hostile toward the women journalists than the men," Jezebel's Ashley Reeve wrote.
"You've had enough," Trump said to CNN's Kaitlan Collins at one point.
Vega tweeted afterward, "A news conference means you get to ask whatever question you want to ask. #FirstAmendment." Collins replied: "Ditto."
"Can you imagine?"
A flash of self-awareness at the presser: Trump, who doesn't drink, said "Can you imagine, if I had, what a mess I'd be? I'd be the world's worst."
That's one of the positive things about his increasing accessibility to the press: We see and hear more of the man, beyond the tweets...
>> PRO: Geraldo Rivera tweeted on Monday: Trump "is definitely getting better and deeper in dealing with press. Today's Rose Garden performance demonstrated a strengthening grasp of issues and a less confrontational way of handling controversies..."
>> CON: Seth Meyers' reaction on Monday night: "I know Trump has never had a beer in his life, but he talks like a guy begging the bartender to give him back his keys."
More pressers, but almost no press briefings
We can't let the month of September pass without pointing this out: For the entire month, a period jam-packed with presidential news, Sarah Sanders only held one on-camera briefing. And half of that briefing was chewed up by a presentation by a W.H. economist.
Sanders has been cutting back on briefings for months. But this is a new low for briefings, which were an almost-daily occurrence in past administrations.
Yes, Trump is talking with the press corps frequently, but briefings have historically served a different and complementary purpose. Here's my full story...
>> Philip Bump's take for WaPo: "Trump eliminates the middleman in his war against journalists..."
>> Joe Lockhart's op-ed for CNN.com: "Abandoning the White House daily briefing is a big mistake..."
Colbert going live on election night
Frank Pallotta emails: "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" will be live on election night for the midterms, CBS announced Monday. It's a smart move by the network. Colbert is great live as he showed during the 2016 conventions and his live 2016 election night special on Showtime really captured a moment in history. It'll be interesting to see how Colbert adjusts his live show to the new hyper news cycle world of 2018...
| | Lowry's look at the fall premiere #'s
Brian Lowry emails: Although there's still plenty of focus on overnight ratings, delayed DVR viewing can provide a sizable lift — especially for new network series, which rely on getting sampled and then hanging on to those viewers. THR's Rick Porter has a good breakdown (complete with nifty graphics) of live-plus-three-day totals, which generally saw shows that opened well (NBC's "Manifest" foremost among them, along with the returning "This is Us") padding their results...
FX re-ups "Mayans M.C."
Brian Lowry emails: Four weeks into its run, FX has ordered a second season of "Mayans M.C.," the "Sons of Anarchy" spinoff from producer Kurt Sutter...
FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR
By Lisa Respers France:
-- Kanye West has stirred yet more outrage with his tweets about the 13th Amendment and slavery...
-- Emma Watson has honored a woman whose death changed Ireland's abortion laws...
-- Here's what's streaming on Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime in October...
| | In case you missed Sunday's show...
Watch the video clips on CNN.com... Catch the full show through CNNgo or VOD... Or listen to the pod via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or TuneIn...
Notes and quotes
-- On "Reliable," we analyzed the two alternative universes where Kavanaugh coverage is being consumed. It's like night and day. "Unfortunately, there's not a shared narrative about the facts," Susan Glasser said...
-- Later in the hour, Jessica Valenti called for fewer "pundits" and more experts in the TV coverage mix. She said Kavanaugh embodied white male backlash to #MeToo...
My interview with Katie Couric
Here are a few of the highlights:
-- On the Kavanaugh case: "Our understanding of sexual violence against women and the trauma -- the lifelong trauma that ensues -- has not progressed, since I covered the Anita Hill hearings 27 years ago..."
-- About her new podcast looking back at her Sarah Palin interview ten years later: "We wanted to look at how much things have changed and how her kind of anti-intellectual, red meat populism, anti-media rhetoric did pave the way for Donald Trump..."
-- Re: the recent scandals at CBS: "The culture I found at '60 Minutes' personally was very challenging and at times quite offensive. I think obsequious and subservience was a job requirement in order to thrive there for many women in particular." Read Jackie Wattles' recap here...
That's a wrap! Your feedback helps shape the newsletter and hopefully make it better, so email me anytime. See you tomorrow...
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