EXEC SUMMARY: Hey there, and welcome to the Reliable Sources newsletter! This is Oliver Darcy, in for Brian Stelter, who will be away for a couple of weeks on a well-deserved paternity leave. Which brings me to...
OUR TOP STORY | | Brian is spending his second night at the hospital because his wife Jamie gave birth to their second child, Story Moon Stelter, on Wednesday. Here's a picture of the parents, baby and big sister Sunny.
Brian says Jamie came up with the name and he fell in love with it right away. Two journalists are starting a brand new story... A big congratulations to Brian and Jamie from everyone on the Reliable Sources team, and at CNN! 🎈
And now, to the news...
WSJ: Facebook offers news orgs millions to license content
News organizations might soon be receiving millions of dollars from Facebook in exchange for giving the social media giant the rights to license its content. That is according to a WSJ scoop from Benjamin Mullin and Sahil Patel. "Representatives from Facebook have told news executives they would be willing to pay as much as $3 million a year to license entire stories, headlines and previews of articles from news outlets," Mullin and Sahil reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Among the outlets WSJ reported have been pitched were ABC News, Dow Jones, The Washington Post, and Bloomberg. NYT's Mike Issac reported NYT is in talks. And a source told me that BuzzFeed has also been approached. WSJ reported that it was not clear whether any news organization has cemented a deal with the social media company. The licensing agreement would be for Facebook's forthcoming news tab, which a spokesperson confirmed to CNN is slated to launch in the fall.
Calls have been growing for Big Tech to pay up
Media executives have called for Facebook and other Big Tech companies to pay outlets for the content they produce. One of the main driving forces behind this? Media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Murdoch called on Facebook to pay publishers back in early 2018. "If Facebook wants to recognize 'trusted' publishers then it should pay those publishers a carriage fee similar to the model adopted by cable companies," Murdoch said back then in a statement.
BuzzFeed's Peretti calls the news "exciting"
BuzzFeed chief Jonah Peretti also called on Facebook in 2018 to pay publishers. So I decided to check in with him on Thursday and see what he thought of the WSJ report. In a statement, Peretti said, "Our society needs financially sustainable, globally accessible, high quality journalism on the big tech platforms. It is exciting to see Facebook make progress in this direction. We'll continue to do our part building a strong and diversified business to support the award winning work of BuzzFeed News."
But there is some skepticism
Of course, given what previously happened after Facebook stopped paying for live video, some publishers will naturally be wary of this proposal. WSJ quoted one person familiar with the deal saying, "It's asking a whole lot of publishers in terms of asking us to commit to something that none of us have any idea if it's going to work." I also saw such skepticism expressed on Twitter. Deadspin editor Barry Petchesky put it this way: "Morons who run digital media, I beg of you: Please don't fall for this for the 18th time." Questions I have
-- Which other news organizations has Facebook approached?
-- Has Facebook approached partisan news outlets? If so, which ones?
-- How is Facebook determining which outlets to approach?
-- Who will sign on to this deal? Who won't?
-- Five years from now, what will the Facebook news tab look like?
FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE
-- The White House will host Big Tech on Friday for an online extremism meeting. Tony Romm reports there is some skepticism about it... (WaPo)
-- Lloyd Grove takes you "inside the sudden, brutal death" of the Pacific Standard... (Daily Beast)
-- This is a must-read from The Guardian: Documents reveal how chemical company Monsanto worked to "monitor and discredit journalists and activists..." (The Guardian)
Fox board stays silent as Tucker vacations amid controversy
The seven members of Fox Corporation's board of directors continued to remain silent on Thursday -- two days after Tucker Carlson used his Fox News prime time program to falsely claim that the white supremacy problem in America is a "hoax."
On Thursday morning, I again reached out to Fox Corp. spokesperson Hope Hicks, asking if Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Paul Ryan, or Jacques Nasser had any comment. I didn't hear back. I also reached out to former Telemundo CEO Roland Hernandez, Formula One chief executive Chase Carey, and Aragon Global Holdings chief executive Anne Dias. All remained silent...
What advertisers are saying
Nestlé, which has advertised Proactiv on Carlson's show in recent months, told THR's Jeremy Barr on Thursday that it doesn't plan on doing so in the future. "Nestlé does not currently advertise on Tucker Carlson Tonight nor do we have any plans to purchase ads on the show in the future," a spokesperson told Barr.
Barr also reported that HelloFresh, which he said advertised on Carlson's Wednesday night show, said the advertisement was "placed through a remnant inventory advertising purchase." The HelloFresh spokesperson told Barr "this remainder buy is now complete and the ad is no longer running."
>> Meanwhile, Long John Silver's told Angelo Carusone, the president of the progressive group Media Matters, that it will no longer advertise on Fox, after the company did not renew its contract in April...
Carl Cameron: "It's not journalism.... it's horrible"
Former Fox News chief political correspondent Carl Cameron appeared on CNN International Thursday and slammed Carlson, noting what the prime time host had claimed "is just not accurate." Cameron added, "It's just not journalism. It is opinion making. It is entertainment. And unfortunately it's an entertainment that can catch on...It's horrible and it's not right and it's good that he's on a vacation whether it was intended or not."
"This is formal impeachment proceedings"
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler used clear language on Thursday when talking about his committee's inquires into Trump: "This is formal impeachment hearings," Nadler told Erin Burnett. Nadler told Burnett that his committee is "gathering the evidence" and "we will at the conclusion of this, hopefully by the end of the year vote to vote articles of impeachment to the house floor or we won't." Nadler also made an appearance on Rachel Maddow's show where he further discussed his committee's probe...
>> Related story from Manu Raju and Jeremy Herb: "Nadler presses ahead with impeachment probe as Pelosi keeps door open..."
Trump fumed about media coverage of visits to shooting sites
Trump might have put on a positive face in public, but he was unhappy with his trip to El Paso and Dayton, Kaitlan Collins reported on Thursday. Specifically, and predictably, Trump fumed over the media coverage while aboard Air Force One on the way back to DC.
...lashed out at staff for keeping cameras away
Trump loves the limelight, and he apparently wanted to be in it as he traveled to visit with the the victims and first responders of the recent mass shootings. A source told Collins that Trump lashed out at staff for keeping the cameras away from him during the hospital visits in both cities. According to Collins' source, Trump complained he wasn't receiving enough credit.
But one camera found its way into the room | | Meanwhile, cell phone video taken of Trump inside the El Paso hospital shows the president boasting about his crowd size, while mocking Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke. Trump said he had a "packed" rally when he visited Texas. "And then you had this crazy Beto," Trump said. "Beto had like 400 people in a parking lot, they said his crowd was wonderful."
>> Collins reported in her story that aides "had feared a moment like the one that is now going viral — where the President appears to focus on himself in front of those still recovering from a tragedy..."
Cooper: "It's not how a president should behave"
Anderson Cooper addressed Trump's behavior during his "Keeping Them Honest" segment. "This is just not normal," Cooper stressed.
"It's starting to seem normal, but it's not, and it's not how a president should behave." Cooper then played clips of former presidents consoling the nation in times of crisis. "That seems like a long time ago, that kind of language," Cooper observed.
Andrea Stanley on this week's "Reliable" podcast
Before heading to the hospital with Jamie, Brian sat down with Andrea Stanley, features editor at Cosmopolitan, to discuss her brand new story: "Is It Possible to Stop a Mass Shooting Before It Happens?"
Stanley convinced a top-secret investigator, who she identifies only as "K," to talk with her on condition of anonymity. "K" infiltrates online hate groups to monitor the behavior of men who display signs of violence.
Stanley talked about her reporting process, Cosmo's coverage of this topic, and more... Listen to the podcast via Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app...
FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO
-- "Publishers including Vice Media and The Stylist Group say they've gotten traffic and, more importantly, revenue lifts from Apple News in the last three months..." (Digiday)
-- Axios made three "key hires" to help expand to subscriptions and other products... (Business Insider)
-- Viacom and CBS both posted "better-than-expected financial reports" on Thursday... No word on a merger yet, though... "Insiders say a decision is likely a week or more away," Paul Bond wrote. "Executives from CBS and Viacom both said on their earnings calls that they would not discuss merger speculation..." (THR)
NYT rebukes Weisman: He's "repeatedly displayed poor judgement"
Jonathan Weisman, NYT's deputy Washington editor, was rebuked by NYT on Thursday after telling author Roaxane Gay that she owed him an "enormous apology" for mocking a tweet of his. "Jonathan has repeatedly displayed poor judgment on social media and in responding to criticism," a Times spokesperson said. "We're closely examining what to do about it."
The backstory
Here's what happened: Weisman tweeted on Wednesday that the Justice Democrats were backing a candidate "seeking to unseat an African-American Democrat." He seemingly failed to realize the candidate was black. Gay then mocked him for the tweet.
That's when things took a strange turn. According to screen shots posted by Gay, Weisman emailed her -- and her assistant -- saying she owed him an "enormous apology" for mocking him. "I am legitimately shocked," Gay wrote.
A pattern
This isn't the first time Weisman has found himself facing a barrage of criticism. Late last month, he was forced to delete a tweet which suggested Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar weren't truly from the Midwest...
Ronan Farrow's "Catch and Kill" to hit stores in October
Ronan Farrow's forthcoming book, "Catch and Kill," finally has a release date. According to a listing that was recently posted to Amazon, the book will come out on October 15.
The listing, which went up recently, but had not been noticed, describes the book as "both a spy thriller and a meticulous work of investigative journalism." It promises to reveal "devastating new stories about the rampant abuse of power." Farrow, of course, is expected to detail his interactions with NBC News executives in the book. Here's my full story...
Mysterious ads encourage Fox viewers to "make the switch" to OANN
This is as fascinating story. Lachlan Markay reported Thursday that two Facebook pages have popped up and spent $70,000 on ads encouraging older Americans to "make the switch" from Fox News to the far-right OANN.
"It's not immediately clear who's behind the two pages, which haven't posted anything on their actual pages beyond identical profile photos of bald eagles," Markay reported, adding that the ads "come in the midst of a sustained OANN campaign to poach viewers from Fox by simultaneously promising more conservative and more fact-based news broadcasts."
Biden unloads on Breitbart writer
| | Joe Biden went off on a Breitbart writer on Thursday after the writer, Joel Pollak, accused him of misquoting Trump. Confronting Biden at the Iowa State Fair, Pollak claimed Trump "never called Nazis very fine people."
Biden responded, "No, he called all those folks who walked out of that -- they were neo-Nazis shouting hate, their veins bulging." Pollak attempted to push back, but Biden wasn't having it. "No, he did not! He said he walked out and he said, let's get this straight, he said they were very fine people in both groups. They are chanting anti-Semitic slogans, carrying flags."
>> You can watch video of the confrontation here via Politico reporter Natasha Korecki...
FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE
-- News Corp says WSJ now has a record 2.6 million subscribers, with 69% of the subscribers being digital-only... (Business Wire)
-- One of Thursday morning's big stories came from college journalism student Sasha Urban, reporting for BuzzFeed through the Beacon Project. Urban reported that 48 patients said a USC doctor sexually abused them... (BuzzFeed)
-- Colby Hall writes that Bill de Blasio's interview with Sean Hannity "shows exactly why Democratic candidates should go on Fox News..." (Mediaite)
Google will surface podcast episodes in search
This is very neat. Google started on Thursday to return results for podcast episodes in search. "We'll surface these episodes based on Google's understanding of what's being talked about on a podcast, so you can find even more relevant information about a topic in audio form," the company said in a blog post. "Soon, you won't necessarily need the term 'podcast' in your search to see episodes, making podcast discovery simpler across search."
>> Of note: Google said it will "soon add the ability for publishers to specify where you can listen to their podcasts, such as other apps or websites. This means you'll be able to discover podcasts that may be exclusively available by purchase or subscription..."
CBS and AT&T reach new deal to end 20-day blackout
If you're an AT&T customer, good news for you: the company has struck a new carriage deal with CBS, ending a 20-day blackout. "CBS and AT&T regret any inconvenience to their customers and viewers and thank them for their patience," CBS and AT&T, which owns CNN's parent company, said in a joint statement. Jordan Valinsky has the full story here for CNN Business...
iHeart radio stations to play "Sunday Night Podcasts"
Katie Pellico writes: iHeartMedia is launching "Sunday Night Podcasts," utilizing 270 of its radio stations to play prerecorded podcasts on their airwaves. The Verge's Ashley Carman reports, "Station programmers can decide which iHeart show they broadcast, which will likely be chosen based on the station's audience, and when to play it" on Sundays.
>> This comes a day after radio broadcast giant Entercom announced it was spending nearly $70 million to acquire two podcast companies, Pineapple Street Media and Cadence13. Carman remarked, "It wouldn't be surprising if Entercom began airing its own podcasts on its more than 235 radio stations across the US, too."
FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR
-- Willie Nelson will continue his tour after it was initially canceled due to a breathing problem... (CNN)
-- This is super cool: MLB is "planning to play a special game at the location of the 1989 Kevin Costner feature film Field of Dreams in Iowa..." (THR)
-- "Social media is distorting the representation of women in Africa. Here's what can be done about it..." (NiemanLab)
-- A correction: In Wednesday's edition of the newsletter, I misspelled Marty Baron's name. Apologies for that!
IFC to honor the late D.A. Pennebaker
IFC plans to celebrate the work of D.A. Pennebaker, the legendary documentary filmmaker who died earlier this month. IFC plans on Friday night to repeat "two episodes of its series Documentary Now! that were based on Pennebaker films," a release said. More info here...
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Jimmy Fallon to host shows following "Sunday Night Football"
CNN's Whitney Friedlander emails: NBC is not joking around with its "Sunday Night Football" lineup. Starting September 8, it will air a total of five telecasts of "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" after "Sunday Night Football." It will also air live broadcasts throughout the week of September 23.
>> A point from Friedlander: NBC has tried tactics like this to boost "Fallon" viewership before, such as airing live episodes after Super Bowl LII and Super Bowl XLIX and after June's presidential primary debates.
"GLOW" shines a less flattering light on life during the 1980s
Brian Lowry emails: The 1980s nostalgia of "Stranger Things" has been very, very good for Netflix, but another series rooted in that period, "GLOW," shines a much less flattering and thus more provocative light on the decade.
Season 3 marks the show's move to a new venue in Las Vegas, but continues to explore themes like homophobia, the AIDS crisis, open discrimination against women and people of color, and other topics more serious than bad hairdos and hanging out at the mall.
"How TV Tuned In More Ad Dollars"
Lowry emails another: Variety's Brian Steinberg breaks down the upfront advertising market, estimating that the major networks have again continued to defy gravity, securing in the neighborhood of $10 billion in advance ad commitments for the new TV season.
As Steinberg writes in his "How TV Tuned In More Ad Dollars" piece: "Why are advertisers relying even more on top-priced TV than they have in the past? Part of it appears to be disillusionment with aspects of digital media."
"The Kitchen" cooks up a half-baked mob drama
Lowry emails one more: Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish and Elisabeth Moss are three of the most in-demand actresses around, but they're ill-served by "The Kitchen," a half-baked mob drama. Adapted from a DC/Vertigo graphic novel and set in Hell's Kitchen during the 1970s, even the topnotch cast is handcuffed by dialogue that sounds like something out of a '30s gangster movie. Read Lowry's full review here...
| | Thank you for reading. I always enjoy your feedback, so send me a note via email or find me on Twitter... See you tomorrow!
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