“President Trump falsely accused the New York Times on Saturday of making up a source in an article about North Korea, even though the source was in fact a senior White House official speaking to a large group of reporters in the White House briefing room,” the New York Times reports.
Sandy Hook Families Sue Alex Jones
New York Times: “More than five years after one of the most horrific mass shootings in modern history, the families of Sandy Hook victims are still enduring daily threats and online abuse from people who believe bogus theories spread by Mr. Jones, whom President Trump has praised for his “amazing” reputation.”
“In three separate lawsuits — the most recent was filed on Wednesday in Superior Court in Bridgeport, Conn. — the families of eight Sandy Hook victims as well as an F.B.I. agent who responded to the shooting seek damages for defamation. The families allege in one suit… that Mr. Jones and his colleagues ‘persistently perpetuated a monstrous, unspeakable lie: that the Sandy Hook shooting was staged, and that the families who lost loved ones that day are actors who faked their relatives’ deaths.'”
Trump Attacks Press So No One Believes Negative Stories
“60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl told an awards dinner that President Trump once told her that he attacks the press so no one will believe the negative stories written about him.
Said Stahl: “I said, ‘You know that is getting tired, why are you doing this? You are doing it over and over, it’s boring, it’s time to end that. You won the nomination, why do you keep hammering at this?'”
Responded Trump: “You know why I do it? I do it to demean you all and discredit you all, so that when you write negative stories about me no one will believe you.”
Quote of the Day
“It means calling out actual ‘fake news’ when we see it, and supporting brave journalists and their reporting, maybe even by subscribing to a newspaper.”
— Hillary Clinton, speaking about “democratic resilience” at Yale’s Class Day over the weekend.
When You Can’t Turn Off the News
Dahlia Lithwick: “In other words, if you work in media, you would be well within your rights to have had a tequila shot with your breakfast every day this week. It’s all just terribly sick and sad and the constant stream makes it hard not to be sick and sad all the time. We’ve long since stopped describing news consumption as drinking from a firehose. It went from firehose to tidal wave a year ago. Nevertheless, we’ve persisted.”
“Perhaps the most common refrain journalists hear from strangers is ‘I feel bad for you. I feel sad that following all this is your job.’ The truth of the matter is that there is not enough hazard pay in the world. It’s hard not to want to shut it all off and just hope that some combination of Michael Avenatti, Bob Mueller, and the 2018 elections might restore normalcy. Normalcy would be nice, because weeks and months of being the head/desk emoji is hazardous to one’s mental health. Our brains, messed up from all that banging, still know something is amiss. It feels like the only way to exert any control at all over the insanity would be the capacity to turn it off.”
“And, of course, turning it off is exactly what a president who wants to kill the news is hoping for.”
Show Starring Avenatti and Scaramucci Is Being Pitched
“A television show featuring Michael Avenatti, the lawyer who is suing President Trump on behalf of a pornographic film actress, and the former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci was pitched to two cable networks in recent weeks,” the New York Times reports.
“The prominent television agent Jay Sures discussed with executives at CNN and MSNBC the concept of a program where the two men would square off.”
Science Shows That Fake News Works
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An Evangelical Journalist Finds His Calling
New York Times: “While Mr. Trump attacks major news organizations and suggests revoking media credentials for outlets he deems ‘Fake News,’David Brody and his network enjoy a closeness to the White House that is foreign to most reporters. In return, Mr. Trump gets a direct line to his most supportive voters, the conservative evangelicals who make up CBN’s core audience. Their allegiance is critical to his success; more than 80 percent of white evangelicals who went to the polls in 2016 voted for Mr. Trump.
Said Brody: “The access has been phenomenal. I’m very appreciative to God for allowing it.”
Radio Execs Pressured Hosts to Cover Trump Positively
“Executives at Salem Media Group, a conservative media company that syndicates some of the country’s most recognized talk radio hosts and operates a batch of popular commentary websites, pressured some of their radio talent to cover Donald Trump more favorably during the 2016 presidential campaign,” emails obtained by CNN show.
Trump Threatens to Take Away Press Credentials
President Trump suggested in a tweet taking away news organizations’ press credentials over “negative” coverage.
Said Trump: “The Fake News is working overtime. Just reported that, despite the tremendous success we are having with the economy & all things else, 91% of the Network News about me is negative (Fake). Why do we work so hard in working with the media when it is corrupt? Take away credentials?”
What Did Republicans Expect?
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Alex Jones Says Trump Is Fighting to Save Humans
Alex Jones told his Infowars listeners that President Trump is part of an effort to fight against a sentient computer program that has decided to kill all humans.
Cavuto Calls Out Trump for His Lies
Neil Cavuto slammed President Trump on Fox News for the president’s “pattern of false statements.”
It’s Time to End the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Margaret Sullivan: “It never has been a particularly good idea for journalists to don their fanciest clothes and cozy up to the people they cover, alongside Hollywood celebrities who have ventured to wonky Washington to join the fun. But in the current era, it’s become close to suicidal for the press’s credibility.”
“Trust in the mainstream media is low, a new populism has caught fire all over the Western world, and President Trump constantly pounds the news media as a bunch of out-of-touch elites who don’t represent the interests of real Americans.”
“The annual dinner — or at least the optics of the dinner — seem to back him up.”
Nate Silver: “The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is one seriously screwed-up ritual. Like, it’s literally like some weird shit you’d read about in an anthropology textbook.”
Red State Fires Writers Not Supportive of Trump
“Salem Media, owner of the influential conservative outlet RedState, froze the site on Friday and dismissed many of its writers… Multiple sources told CNNMoney that they believed conservative critics of President Trump were the writers targeted for removal.”
Said one: “They fired everybody who was insufficiently supportive of Trump.”
Trump Wants Regular Appearances on ‘Fox & Friends’
Kellyanne Conway told the hosts of Fox & Friends that President Trump wants to come on the show regularly, The Hill reports.
Said Conway: “The president has said he would like to perhaps come once a month and as news breaks. He’ll keep us guessing.”
Majority of Republicans See News Media as the Enemy
A new Quinnipiac poll finds a majority of Republicans — 51% — see the news media as the enemy of the people, compared with 37% of them who view the media as an important part of democracy.
By contrast, 91% of Democrats and 70% of independents see the media as an important part of democracy.
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“I don’t watch them at all. I watched last night.”
— President Trump, in a Fox & Friends interview, insisting that he doesn’t watch CNN.
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