TGIF! Here's the latest on Charter, Bret Baier, C-SPAN, George Clooney, Anna Gomez, "Fortnite," Axel Springer, Tom Cruise, and much more... |
Leonardo Munoz/AFP/Getty Images |
At the Manhattan courthouse where Sean "Diddy" Combs went on trial this week, one marshal at the court was overheard saying, "This is crazier than when Trump was here."
As CNN's Laura Coates has said, the trial is a huge cultural moment. Accordingly there is a torrent of news coverage – from real-time text updates to AI recreations. At least half a dozen major media outlets have launched Diddy trial podcasts; CNN has "Trial By Jury: Diddy," hosted by Coates, while the BBC has "Diddy on Trial" and the Daily Mail has "The Trial of Diddy." Right now ABC's trial podcast, called "Bad Rap," is #5 on all of Apple Podcasts, ahead of "The Daily" and "Dateline."
The trial has been "an absolute media circus – but not with your typical players," CNN entertainment correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister told me. "Given that the Combs story has attracted different audiences across traditional media, entertainment media, social media and urban media, the courthouse is full of a cast of characters every day – many of whom are fans waiting in the public line, or even line-sitters hoping to catch a glimpse inside the courtroom."
Only 21 members of the media are let in to the actual courtroom every day – which means most are in the overflow room. Being in the actual room is a real advantage for journalists who want to convey the reactions to Cassie Ventura's gut-wrenching testimony...
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Sorting through explicit testimony |
It was one year ago tomorrow when Wagmeister broadcast a CNN exclusive about the horrifying surveillance tape of Diddy assaulting Ventura. Her report changed public perception and arguably the trial itself.
This week Wagmeister has started her days by hosting 5-7 minute livestreams on the CNN app before heading into court. "Testimony in this trial is so graphic, it's difficult to report, given how disturbing it can be to audiences," she told me. "But at the same time, I worry that not reporting the details can water down the horrific allegations – this is a sex trafficking trial, after all, and it's important that we report the news coming out of that courtroom."
Standards editors at various news outlets have been tasked with deciding which text messages and other evidence at trial are appropriate to publish and read aloud on air. Viewer warnings have become common. Some CNN segments and stories about Ventura alleging a decade of physical abuse by Combs have been accompanied by reminders about the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
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Another 'trial by TikTok' |
Sign of the times: NBC News Now devoted a segment to the online "court of public opinion," with anchor Gadi Schwartz pointing out that opinion is "really shaped through what you are seeing on your timeline right now, or on your For You page."
It's another "trial by TikTok," happening parallel to the actual trial. Chat rooms and comments threads are full of "theories" about "the other celebrities involved" and mentioned in court, correspondent Maya Eaglin said.
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Charter combining with Cox |
The Cox family, the longest continuous cable operator in the industry, is combining its cable and broadband assets with Charter. Full disclosure: My wife is anchoring the news on a Charter-owned channel right now. So here's CNN's Jordan Valinsky with the story.
"Combining helps both of the companies on several fronts," Valinsky writes. "A combined entity will help both companies compete against wireless services and improve their offerings." The transaction will need regulatory approval "and could be a litmus test for President Donald Trump's views on major companies combining." To that end, part of the pitch in the press release is about "returning jobs from overseas" by bringing Cox's "customer service function to the U.S."
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Media notes from Trump's trip |
>> Before departing for DC, Trump taped an interview with Bret Baier, to be shown on tonight's "Special Report."
>> "Manosphere" podcaster Theo Von appeared with Trump at a US base in Qatar yesterday and "regaled the uniformed troops with jokes about drugs, developmental disabilities, homosexuality and their Qatari hosts." (AP)
>> Next week's cover of The New Yorker, out this morning, features cartoonist Barry Blitt's take on the Qatari jet controversy. (New Yorker)
>> "Qatar and Airplane are the top Google searches for Trump the last 5 days," CNN's Harry Enten reports. (X)
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FCC 'weaponized to chill speech' |
Democratic FCC commissioner Anna Gomez let it rip yesterday, blasting her agency for turning into an "instrument of political censorship" now that Trump-aligned Republicans are in charge.
As CNN's Liam Reilly notes here, Gomez didn't directly name FCC chair Brendan Carr, but she tore into his recent actions, saying the agency has been "weaponized to chill speech and to punish the press." She also applauded past FCC chairs, Republican and Democrat alike, who didn't succumb to political pressure.
Gomez closed by saying that if she’s removed from her seat, "it wasn't because I failed to do my job. It's because I insisted on doing it." Here's the PDF text of her speech...
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Bernie Sanders breaks the fourth wall |
Sen. Bernie Sanders was on CBS's "The Late Show" last night, where he called out Trump's lawsuits against news outlets, including the one against... CBS. Stephen Colbert asked why Sanders wrote a letter urging Paramount not to settle the suit, and the senator spent the next two minutes putting the legal battle into broader context. Here's the segment...
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CNN CEO Mark Thompson is the guest on the latest episode of Alan Rusbridger and Lionel Barber's "Media Confidential" podcast. It's one of the most interesting, in-depth interviews with Thompson I have heard. Thompson discussed CNN's digital expansion efforts; why CNN is hiring reporters and editors with more "newspaperlike instincts" to produce more "distinctive" journalism; and what it means to "listen attentively to what audiences actually want." Plus, lots of Trump talk...
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"This announcement marks a historic Broadway first," CNN PR says: "Never before has a live play ever been televised."
The play is "Good Night, and Good Luck," and it will air live on CNN on Saturday, June 7, on the production's second-to-last night on Broadway. "CNN is the perfect place to bring this story of courage to so many more people than we could have ever hoped," George Clooney says. "Live TV. No net. Buckle up everyone."
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I remember talking with Sam Feist about this idea a long time ago. Now the CNN DC bureau chief turned C-SPAN CEO is making it a reality. "Envisioned as a respectful conversation between lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle, 'Ceasefire,' which is expected to debut in the fall, will be C-SPAN's first new weekly program in two decades," the NYT's Michael Grynbaum reports. Feist says each episode will feature "two American political leaders with a willingness to find common ground."
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Meet the Meiselas brothers |
Katie Couric has the first in-person interview with Ben, Brett and Jordy Meiselas, the brothers behind the MeidasTouch Network, one of the most popular progressive media startups in the US. It's up on YouTube now.
Ben says the network has "350 million or so YouTube views every single month" and claims to beat "Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Charlie Kirk, and Ben Shapiro all combined." Around the 43-minute mark, Ben strongly defends the "preaching to the choir" function of POV media...
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Trumpworld playbook against Axel Springer |
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