EXEC SUMMARY: Welcome to the weekend! Pete Buttigieg is making a big announcement, "Game of Thrones" is beginning its final season, and more... Here's the latest...
| | WGA: Fire your agents
This is really happening. "Leaders of the Writers Guild of America have told their 15,000 members to fire their agents," Variety's Dave McNary wrote Friday evening.
The guild's deadline for talent agencies to accept its new "Code of Conduct" is midnight. I just spoke with reps on both sides of the battle. It's clear that neither side is giving in. So this labor action is happening... And no one knows for sure how it'll end. As McNary noted, this is an "unprecedented" situation...
--> Karen Stuart, who reps the talent agencies, says the writers guild wants "chaos" that "will hurt all artists..."
--> The writers guild says this week's talks did not address "our expressed concerns" about packaging fees and other issues...
--> Key quote in Variety's story: "We are in total uncharted territory," a veteran manager said. "These things are relatively easy to get into but not out of. I predict this will go on for a couple of months at a minimum."
This is Hollywood's biggest labor battle in a decade
As Bloomberg's Lucas Shaw said on Twitter, this is the "biggest labor fight Hollywood has seen in 12 years."
Here's his explainer: "Writers say the companies have enriched themselves at the expense of their clients. The WGA approved a new code of conduct mandating that agencies stop financing and producing their own shows, and that they stop collecting fees for packaging multiple clients into a project. Agencies have collected so-called packaging fees for decades, and say their growing heft has empowered writers, creating opportunities that otherwise would not have existed. But writers seized on the expiration of their current contract to demand changes..."
Recommended reads for the weekend...
-- Alan Rusbridger's column for CNN.com: Is Julian Assange a "Bond villain or cyber-messiah? It's complicated..."
-- Nine years ago, I covered Assange and WikiLeaks with my NYT colleague Noam Cohen. His new story for WIRED nails it: "The Julian Assange I met in 2010 doesn't exist anymore." That's how I feel too...
-- Elaina Plott's newest piece for The Atlantic is an exhaustive profile of Ivanka Trump. "Inside Ivanka's Dreamworld" is the product of three months of research and 50+ interviews...
-- The LA Times is "rising from the near-dead," says VF's Joe Pompeo. Read his profile of the publication, fighting its way back from what employees have referred to as "the Twenty Years' War..."
-- Colorado Sun's John Ingold recalls his role in the coverage of the Columbine massacre, examining how "the media — including me — unwittingly helped create a Columbine narrative that has inspired murderers ever since..."
-- Graydon Carter, in this guest column for THR, describes his life after VF... Among other details, he says "two parties approached me to see if I was interested in running Time if they bought it," but he had no interest...
-- Michael Barbaro, in this interview with THR, talks about the evolution of "The Daily" and his relationship with Lisa Tobin...
-- Erik Wemple on Fox's power: "The network is influential because it has banished a common set of facts for American political discussions..."
-- And a think piece thread to top things off... Anne Helen Petersen reacts to the call for "slower, better news" issued by NewYorker.com editor Michael Luo. She unpacks the "fetishized ideal of the old school news consumer..." | |
FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE
 -- The NYT's Privacy Project will debut in print this Sunday... (NYT)
-- Scott Rogowsky, the original "Quiz Daddy" host of HQ Trivia, is leaving the app-based trivia game behind for DAZN's new nightly MLB show, "ChangeUp." TMZ reports HQ wouldn't "give him the green light to work 2 jobs," so he left... ( TMZ) -- Fareed Zakaria's on-stage interview with Hillary Clinton at this year's Women in the World summit will air on CNN's "GPS" Sunday morning...
Buttigieg's big Sunday Technically Pete Buttigieg is still just "exploring" a run for president. That is expected to change on Sunday... The South Bend, IN mayor will make a "special announcement" around 2pm ET... Buttigieg is also on the cover of the next issue of NYMag, which happens to be David Haskell's first issue as EIC. Olivia Nuzzi wrote the cover story... And she will join me on Sunday's "Reliable Sources..."
WEEKEND PLANNER Saturday: The Masters Tournament continues on CBS and ESPN... Sunday evening: Town halls with Marianne Williamson and Andrew Yang on CNN... Saturday night: Emma Stone is hosting "SNL" with musical guest BTS... Sunday night: I think something's happening on HBO...? Monday 3pm: The Pulitzer Prizes will be announced...
Richard Johnson retiring
"Richard Johnson, the legendary New York Post gossip columnist and former longtime editor of Page Six, is retiring after four decades with Rupert Murdoch's notorious American tabloid. His final column will run in Sunday's paper," VF's Joe Pompeo reported Friday afternoon. "In a brief phone call, Johnson said there wasn't any new development or sudden event that precipitated his decision to leave the paper he's worked for since 1978. It's simple: He turned 65 in January, and it was time..."
>> In his farewell column, Johnson writes: "Farewell dear readers... I am leaving this wonderful tabloid to find out what life is like outside the gossip trenches. In the words of Mary McGrory, 'I should confess, I have always felt a little sorry for people who didn't work for newspapers.'"
On this Sunday's "Reliable Sources"
Along with the aforementioned Olivia Nuzzi, I'll be joined by Sarah Ellison, Waleed Shahid, and Karen Finney, and Craig Forman... Plus: What impact will the Julian Assange case have on press freedoms? I'll discuss it with The Intercept's Ryan Grim and national security lawyer Bradley Moss...
FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO -- Trump appeared with FCC chair Ajit Pai at a Friday event touting the admin's plans to accelerate 5G deployment. Pai also discussed a $20 billion rural broadband fund... ( Engadget) -- Del Bigtree, one of the anti-vaxxer movement's "most visible figures," has no formal medical training, and instead cites his experience working as a TV producer. He told Jackie Kucinich that he "found his true passion" while working on the "Dr. Phil" show... ( Daily Beast)
Disney PLUS, indeed! Disney's stock has its best day in nearly a decade Investors had been waiting and waiting for more info about Disney's streaming strategy. And they evidently liked what they heard on Thursday. Disney's stock "surged more than 11% Friday," Jordan Valinsky wrote. "The stock hasn't gained this much in a single day since May 2009." Frank Pallotta emails: Disney impressed investors on Thursday with its demo of Disney+ and then drove fans into a frenzy Friday with the first look it gave them of "Rise of Skywalker." (Scroll down for more info about that.) It was the kind of move that reminds industry insiders and investors that when Disney wants to punch, it can really throw a knockout. Now, back to Netflix... While $DIS drove the Dow higher on Friday, Netflix stock closed down 4.5%... Everything's relative, though, and $NFLX has traded between $231 and $423 in the past year, so Friday's close at $351 can't be too concerning to Netflix investors. Pallotta adds: Now we'll wait and see how Netflix CEO Reed Hastings responds on Tuesday when the company reveals its quarterly earnings... SPEAKING OF HASTINGS... Hastings to depart Facebook's board Facebook announced on Friday that Netflix CEO Reed Hastings "will not be up for reelection for his role as a director on Facebook's board," Sara Ashley O'Brien reported. "The move comes as Facebook is investing more in original video content, potentially competing directly with Netflix." Just to bring this full circle, back to Disney, Bob Iger says he has no plan to leave Apple's board, even though Apple is starting a subscription TV service. Iger has been on Apple's board since 2011, the same year Hastings joined Facebook's board... Faber's interview with Iger CNBC's David Faber sat down with Iger after Thursday's investor day... Watch the full 32-minute interview here... Or read the transcript... When Faber asked about the Apple board seat, Iger said, "When the business of direct-to-consumer or television or movies is discussed on the Apple board, I recuse myself from those discussions. There aren't many of them. It's still very small business to Apple. And I'm not at the point where I, you know, I believe it's problematic, but it's something that I have to continue to monitor."
A book about the streaming wars... Deadline's Dade Hayes and Forbes' Dawn Chmielewski are teaming up to write "Binge Times." They tweeted the news on Friday and said "our account of the streaming wars" will be "out in 2021 via HarperCollins imprint William Morrow." Love the title!
| | This week of news began with Kirstjen Nielsen's exit... Then came the DHS "purge..." And further departures...
Tapper's scoop
CNN's Jake Tapper started "The Lead" this way on Friday: "President Trump, I am told, raised the prospect of a pardon to a top official if this official broke immigration laws." Tapper added, "It was not clear if the president was joking or was serious. I asked the White House for a comment. They referred me to the Department of Homeland Security. A DHS spokesman told me that the president has never directed the acting secretary to do anything illegal." The NYT and other outlets soon matched Tapper's story... | |
The Contradiction President
POTUS was "directly contradicting his staff" by moving to "take ownership of an internal White House plan to release immigrant detainees into 'sanctuary cities,'" WaPo's team wrote in this Friday night story.
Trump's aides had previously sought to "minimize" the idea by "saying it was shelved months ago after only informal consideration." But now Trump is all-in. This is one of the many reasons why CNN's Chris Cillizza called Trump "The Contradiction President" in this piece...
Right and left TV
The A-block on "Tucker Carlson Tonight" promoted Trump's idea by accusing lefties of being hypocritical for not welcoming immigrants to their own neighborhoods. "Let's move them to Nantucket," he said, swearing that he was "dead serious."
At the same time, over on MSNBC, this was Chris Hayes' reaction to the "sanctuary city" proposals: It is "born of impotence, right? The president is thrashing around because he is fundamentally not up to the task before him. And yet they are also dangerous in their own way, in terms of what concepts and rhetoric they enforce." The Atlantic's Adam Serwer responded: "For Trump's base, this sort of proposal -- I'm sure they get a kick out of it. They get a kick out of anything in which the president seems to look like he's sticking it to the people that they hate so much. Of course they like it. Even if it never happens, they take a measure of satisfaction from the fact that he is punishing the people that they want to be punished. Even if it's just in theory."
"There's a piece of tape for everything"
After playing clips of Trump praising WikiLeaks and then dismissing WikiLeaks, Joe Scarborough said it very succinctly on Friday morning: "Donald Trump — just the worst liar there's ever been. He's genuinely BAD at it. He's as bad at lying as I would be at Jai alai, if I decided to go down, like, to Miami..." Willie Geist, deadpan, replied: "Great game."
Geist had a great insight. He brought up the oft-cited thought that "there's a tweet for everything." No matter what Trump says, there's a tweet that shows him contradicting himself. "There's a piece of tape for everything, it turns out, too, when he says something," Geist said. "He just tries to get through a moment. He's asked a question -- I'm going to say the thing that gets me through this question, regardless of what I've said before..."
Trump v. Omar
This is the No. 1 headline on the WaPo website right now: "President Trump targets Rep. Ilhan Omar with a video of Twin Towers burning..."
Press secretary is skipping the WHCD this year
"Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who was lambasted by comedian Michelle Wolf last year, has decided to skip this year's White House Correspondents' Dinner," THR's Jeremy Barr reported. Sanders told Barr, "I'm going to travel with the president for his rally that evening." This represents a further breakdown in the controversial WHCD tradition of comity for one night during the dinner...
The press secretary's dad is back at Fox
TheWrap's Jon Levine wrote: "Fox News has re-signed former governor Mike Huckabee as a contributor, a representative for the network confirmed on Friday. The channel didn't offer any specifics about how long the contract was for or any additional details." Huckabee continues to host a weekly show on the Trinity Broadcasting Network...
FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE
-- John Avlon broke down the social media "hive mind" in his latest column, showing how "progressives are drowning out centrist Democrats" online... (CNN)
-- "The Telegraph has been forced to correct a column by Boris Johnson after the Brexiter MP and potential Tory leadership candidate falsely claimed a no-deal Brexit was the most popular option among the British public," Jim Waterson reports... (The Guardian)
Fox v. AOC, and AOC v. Fox
Katie Pellico writes: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez retweeted findings from Media Matters researcher Courtney Hagle that came out on Friday. In her report, Hagle exhaustively detailed 42 days of Fox's discussions about the first-term congresswoman, revealing "Fox News and Fox Business talked about AOC every single day, mentioning her at least 3,181 times." Media Matters, of course, is on AOC's side in this. Read the full findings here...
>> AOC added on Twitter, "That's how hard they're fighting against dignified healthcare, wages, & justice for all; and turning their firepower on the youngest Congresswoman in history to do it. Too bad for them, cause we don't flinch."
FOR THE RECORD, FACEBOOK EDITION
By Katie Pellico:
-- "Facebook accidentally put hidden messages like 'Big Brother is Watching' and 'The Masons Were Here' in 'tens of thousands' of VR controllers," Rob Price reports. The company has no plans to recall them... (BI)
-- Along with Hastings' exit from the FB board, Erskine Bowles is also leaving. Sara Fischer says this is significant "given that he was a vocal critic of FB's handling of Russian meddling on its platform..."
-- Peggy Alford, a PayPal exec, has been nominated for the board of directors. Fischer notes Alford would be "the first black woman on Facebook's board in its history..." (Axios)
-- The standalone Messenger app may be merging back into the flagship Facebook app... (WaPo)
-- KJ Dell'Antonia's Friday column for NYT: "Facebook Is Stealing Your Family's Joy..." (NYT)
"For many rural residents in U.S., local news media mostly don't cover the area where they live"
This was Elizabeth Grieco's latest for Pew Research, out Friday: 62% of self-described urban residents say their local news media "mainly cover the area they live in," while 57% of rural residents say "their local news media mostly cover some other area."
The desire for tailored news is still there. Grieco writes, "Despite feeling that the local news media are less connected to their communities, rural residents express the same level of desire as urban and suburban residents for getting news from journalists who are personally engaged in their communities."
QUOTE OF THE DAY
AP exec editor Sally Buzbee, accepting an award from her alma mater, the University of Kansas, on Thursday:
"Hold on to the bedrocks of the past that have made journalism strong: the focus on facts, the accuracy, the credibility, the 'not taking sides' part... But on everything else, be bold — embrace the new. Be bold on how we present our journalism. On who we partner with and collaborate with. On the innovations we're brave enough to give a try. Take a risk on all that. Be bold and confident. And I think we'll get there."
The World Press Photo of the Year:
| | CNN's Jason Hanna writes: This photo of a 2-year-old girl crying near the US-Mexico border -- a child who became an iconic face of President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" immigration policy last year -- has won the World Press Photo of the Year award.
The image, titled "Crying Girl on the Border," was taken by Getty photographer and Pulitzer Prize-winner John Moore on June 12 near McAllen, Texas.
"One of the last people to get on the bus was the mother of this child and her daughter together," Moore told CNN's Ana Cabrera last year. "And when they went to body-search (the mother) against the vehicle, they asked her to put down her child. And right then, in that moment, the little girl broke into tears."
FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR
-- Deborah Dugan will succeed Neil Portnow as Recording Academy President/CEO... (THR)
-- Lawmakers are calling out Apple for complying with censorship demands from the Chinese government. Per The Verge's Shannon Liao, the Hong Kong Free Press reported "Apple Music's China service recently removed several Hong Kong singers from its platform..." (The Verge)
-- Agree/disagree? Poynter's Tom Jones lists his 25 best journalism movies of all time... (Poynter)
-- ICYMI: "Millions are obsessed with Vine compilations on YouTube. Now there's a battle brewing over who should get paid..." (Money)
THE BEGINNING OF THE END...
The final battle for Westeros is on
Just how momentous is this Sunday's final season premiere of "Game of Thrones" on HBO? Well, CNN has a dedicated page with "all the latest" about the show. We will be updating it through the final episode on May 19... | |
And now their watch is ended...
Frank Pallotta emails: "Game of Thrones" has been a boon for not just HBO but for the journalists who've made careers out of reporting on every development out of Westeros. Articles! Podcasts! Fan sites! Viewing parties! But now winter has arrived for this community of reporters and super-fans... So I spoke with a few of them, like VF's resident "Thrones" expert, Joanna Robinson, and asked... what now?
HBO is at a crossroads
Brian Lowry emails: When "The Sopranos" ended, some wondered if HBO would ever have another hit of that magnitude. It did, of course. But now "Game of Thrones" is reaching the end of the road. For the network and the veterans working there, the build-up to the finale comes with the pay channel clearly at a crossroads, as WarnerMedia (CNN's parent) tries to make HBO a central pillar of its plans as it pivots to face the streaming future.
Read Lowry's full story here...
| | "The Rise of Skywalker"
That's the title for the next "Star Wars" film.
Frank Pallotta emails: Friday's title announcement pretty much owned the internet. Seriously, every trending topic on Twitter was "Star Wars." That reaction is EXACTLY what Disney could've hoped for after May's "Solo" was a dud. People are pumped that "Star Wars" is back, so it looks like "The Rise of Skywalker" could be the cure to all that "Star Wars" fatigue... | | Lowry's take
Brian Lowry emails: At the risk of geeking out a bit, the Emperor's trademark cackle and actor Ian McDiarmid's surprise appearance at Star Wars Celebration created a huge wave of enthusiasm for "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," especially for those who had their gripes about Episode VIII, "The Last Jedi." Disney also dropped the new trailer, capping a pretty staggering week for the studio, coupled with the unveiling of Disney+ and all the parts associated with it, in terms of its over-sized place in the pop-culture universe.
>> Lowry adds this footnote: Stephen Colbert, who's off this week and a huge "Star Wars" fan, moderated the presentation, continuing his bromance with director J.J. Abrams, who has the "Talk in entertaining fashion without giving away anything" game down to a science.
Sunday's 'Les Misérables' miniseries
Brian Lowry emails: While "Game of Thrones" will be the big attraction on Sunday night, make DVR space for "Les Miserables," a terrific six-part adaptation of Victor Hugo's oft-told story (not the musical version, it's worth noting) that stars Dominic West and David Oyelowo...
FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE
By Lisa Respers France:
-- Nipsey Hussle's store in L.A., where he was gunned down, has become sacred ground for fans as they mourn the man who rose from the streets to become a Grammy-nominated rap artist and businessman...
-- Amber Heard details why she called Johnny Depp "the Monster" in a court filing...
-- Donald Glover's got Coachella and a new movie with Rihanna this weekend...
Cooper Hefner leaves Playboy business to launch 'HefPost'
Katie Pellico writes: Nearly two years after Hugh Hefner's passing, his son Cooper announced Friday he is stepping away from the family business to launch "HefPost." In this report from THR's Chris Gardner, the endeavor is described as a "millennial-focused... media and digital company that will feature adult content." Hefner said he will stay on at Playboy "in a board capacity as an advisor to the company's CEO," Ben Kohn.
>> HuffPost's Amanda Terkel quipped, "Cooper Hefner is going to get really annoyed when everyone starts calling HefPost 'HeffPo.'"
| | | Thank you for reading. Email me anytime! See you Sunday... | | | |
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