Our weekly roundup of news found at the intersection of media, politics, policy and technology, from the Shorenstein Center and from around the web.
News from our Fellows and Students
The Public Editor’s Club at The New York Times as told by the six who lived it. Two former Shorenstein Center fellows, Clark Hoyt (fall 1986) and Dan Okrent (fall 2009), reflect on the experience of serving as public editor for The New York Times.
John McCain and I disagree on health care, but he’s still one of my personal heroes. Melinda Henneberger, spring 2013 fellow, writes that McCain is “the rare grown-up in the pre-school.”
President Trump’s Boy Scout Speech. Jackie Calmes, spring 2015 fellow, writes that the speech has generated a “barrage of complaints” due to its partisanship and profanity, while Dan Kennedy, spring 2016 fellow, writes that as a result, “scouting will increasingly be seen as an activity for red America.”
Trump vs. Mueller is Nothing Like Clinton vs. Starr. Michael Tomasky, spring 2013 fellow, writes that “there are vast differences between the two special probes of sitting presidents.”
Understanding the Ebola Narrative. Student Claire Chaumont argues in the Kennedy School Review that an “outbreak narrative centered on fear and loss of control” positioned African countries as failures, while building up Western countries.
The Trump Administration and the Press
- Anthony Scaramucci Is the Right Answer to the Wrong Question, from The Atlantic.
- ‘The TV cameras are back on,’ Scaramucci tweets. Here’s why that’s a smart move for Trump. From The Washington Post.
- Scaramucci Calls for Inquiry After ‘Leak’ of Financial Form, from The New York Times.
- Sanders threatens to halt briefing as transgender troop ban dominates, from
- The New Presidential Interview, from The New York Times.
- White House correspondents group decides to exclude some outlets, both left and right, from The Washington Post.
Press Freedom and Transparency
- On Trump, transparency and democracy, from the Sunlight Foundation.
- Journalist skirmish in the Senate: What you should know, from Columbia Journalism Review.
Conservative Media
- Matt Drudge is firing warning shots at Trump, and that should worry the president, from CNN.
- Trump’s Attacks On Jeff Sessions Test Breitbart’s Support For The President, from Huffington Post.
- Meet the man who’s got all the news on conservative news, from Poynter.
- Inside Sinclair: CEO Nixes Fox News Rival Rumors, Talks Tribune & Big Ambition for Broadcast Biz, from
Fact-Checking
- Snopes turns to readers to avoid shutting down: ‘we need your help,’ from Poynter.
- Why Snopes matters, from American Press Institute.
- This tool is helping newsrooms collaborate on factchecking and verification projects, from Nieman Lab.
Media Diversity
- Where Are the Mothers? From Nieman Reports.
- Backlash over BBC’s low-paid minority ethnic staff, from The Guardian.
- Q&A: Hannah Allam on covering Muslim life in America for BuzzFeed, from Columbia Journalism Review.
- The media’s war on Trump is destined to fail. Why can’t it see that? From The Guardian.
Fake News
- What will misinformation look like in 2030 (and will we be better at spotting it by then)? From Nieman Lab.
- The future of fake news: don’t believe everything you read, see or hear, from The Guardian.
- Fixing Twitter’s Louise Mensch Problem: How do you stop fake news on Twitter? Start by not endorsing the people who spread it. From Vanity Fair.
Social Media
- Facebook releases an update on its project to combat fake news and support journalists, from Poynter.
- Tweeting Protest: Organization and Mobilization in the New Administration, from Harvard Political Review.
- Data from analyzing 5,000 social videos suggests that only 1 percent will go viral, from Nieman Lab.
Local News
Megaclustering Is Coming for Your Daily Newspaper, from The Street.
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