EXEC SUMMARY: I'd love to lead with the Golden Globes or CES or the NFL playoffs. But this US-Iran crisis is the most dangerous point of the Trump presidency yet. So let's start there...
Patriotism in wartime
As many people have pointed out this week, a crisis like this one is precisely when credibility is needed the most -- and President Trump doesn't have it. He squandered his credibility in the very first days of his presidency. And many members of his administration have followed him down a path of deceit, leaving their credibility in tatters too. Journalists should not tip-toe around this reality. While we should avoid being cynical, we should question everything, with fresh memories of what happened in the lead-up to the Iraq War. Journalistic values demand that skepticism, and patriotism demands it.
On Sunday's "Reliable Sources" telecast, I talked about patriotism, because I already see propagandists trying to name and shame people who doubt Trump's claims about Iran. They're telling us to wear blinders. But the truth is that it is patriotic to ask for evidence; to question official accounts; to wonder if the public is being manipulated into a wider war. It is patriotic to ask -- as Fox's Tucker Carlson did the other day -- "who's actually benefiting from this?" It is patriotic to hold our leaders accountable.
My message to Fox's Pete Hegseth, who claimed on Saturday that "since the Iraq War, it feels like patriotism is largely dead among our journalism corps:" Patriotism is alive and well in America's newsrooms. But that type of "journalists aren't patriotic" talk is going to keep up. If this crisis worsens, if more missiles fly, the American press will come under more and more pressure to "rally around the flag," to toe the line, to save their questions for later. But no -- this is the time, right now, to insist on evidence and accountability. And that's what we are seeing, in Sunday's interviews with Mike Pompeo and in hard-hitting news stories and in viral social media messages...
"Twitter war"
Like it or not, that's what we're witnessing right now. The US and Iran are trading threats 280 characters at a time. "The risks are huge," Atlantic Council senior fellow Jasmine El-Gamal told me. "I mean, this is definitely not the way to conduct diplomacy." Twitter taunts are "just the wrong way to mitigate any crisis, let alone manage a full-blown crisis like the one that we're in right now." | | Kim Ghattas and Jason Rezaian also joined me for this "A block" conversation. "I think we need to hear more from the Iranian people," Rezaian said. A former prisoner in Iran himself, he also warned that "we still have prisoners in Iran, and this could spiral out of control in ways I can't imagine right now..."
Are Trump's actions being motivated by media coverage?
Numerous reports from WaPo, NYT and other sources say: Yes. It sure seems like Trump is being affected by news coverage of his actions in the Middle East. The Times said Saturday that Trump "became increasingly angry as he watched television images of pro-Iranian demonstrators" storming the US embassy in Baghdad days ago. Trump also had Benghazi on his mind.
As Katie Rogers put it, Trump "has a particular aversion to coverage that makes him look weak." Sam Donaldson added: Trump "is simply reacting to the fact that he can't be seen in his eyes to be weak..."
Countless sources for pro-Trump cheerleading
Quoting from Margaret Sullivan's newest column: In the wake of the Baghdad airstrike, "the need for skepticism and caution needed to be top-of-mind for journalists and the public." But, she says, a website called TheRighting reflected "what many Americans were receiving from their information sources:" Not cautious stories but "pro-Trump cheerleading."
Howard Polskin runs TheRighting because, as he said to Sullivan, "to be an educated person in America, you have to know what's being said on the right." Here's her full column about it...
Recommended reads
-- Greg Miller's lead for WaPo: "Presidents on the brink of war tend to rely on an array of Oval Office assets: teams of experienced advisers, trusted sources of intelligence, strong ties with U.S. allies and credibility with the broad American public. For President Trump those assets may be in short supply..."
-- Jim Sciutto's important reporting: "Senior US officials say there is widespread opposition within the Trump admin to targeting cultural sites in Iran..."
-- "Former U.S. hostages in Iran say Trump's bellicose threats revive their 1979 trauma," the LAT's Melissa Etehad reports...
FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE
-- CNN is live all night and into the morning with continued coverage of the Iran crisis...
-- A handful of correspondents are in Tehran for American networks. Among them: Frederik Pleitgen is there for CNN, Ali Arouzi for NBC, and Martha Raddatz for ABC...
-- We're still keeping count: The last formal televised White House briefing was 300 days ago...
Lowry's note
Brian Lowry emails: I was struck by David Frum's point on "Reliable" about Trump getting unduly favorable press coverage relative to what he should be receiving, citing the pro-Trump analysts on CNN as an example. Despite plenty of second-guessing about the practice, CNN has long made the point that it needs to articulate the view of those who support the president as balance – basically, their opinions can't be ignored. In response to having them as paid contributors, Frum said, "I understand why you do that, but it's not a favor he would ever return to you."
Catch up on Sunday's "Reliable"
Catch the video clips on CNN.com... Watch the full episode via VOD or CNNgo... Or listen via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, or your preferred podcast app...
IN OTHER NEWS...
Week ahead calendar
Monday: "E! News" moves to 7am...
Monday: The trial of Harvey Weinstein begins...
Tuesday: The House returns, which means impeachment limbo resumes...
Tuesday: BAFTA Awards nominations drop...
Saturday: NFL divisional round weekend begins...
Any day now: "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" will cross the $1 billion mark...
CES time
The press conferences are underway, and the show floor opens on Tuesday. CNN's Samantha Kelly, who just landed in Las Vegas, writes: "It's been years since major tech players have made revolutionary announcements at CES... However, the event remains a key platform for some companies, especially startups, to launch new products and make some noise. More than that, CES typically helps set the tone for which tech trends stick for the rest of the year."
Kelly expects 5G to get a ton of attention... Plus, auto innovation, sex toys, privacy, AI and smart assistants, TVs and streaming services... Read her full preview here...
I want to see this TV set | | Kelly writes: Companies have reached far into their bags of tricks over the years to impress consumers, but this year Samsung is betting on a unique concept specifically with smartphone users in mind. On Sunday night Samsung showed off its new Sero TV, featuring a display that rotates vertically from landscape mode. Samsung hopes it will appeal to Millennials looking to watch the videos they consume on social media or shoot on their smartphones on a much bigger screen. The 4K TV looks like a standard horizontal model but when you press a button, the orientation of the display switches, similar to what happens on a mobile device...
EXCLUSIVE
Rush renews
"The Rush Limbaugh Show" will continue well into the new decade. His contract was due to expire later this year, but he has renewed, Premiere Radio Networks confirmed to me over the weekend.
Who tipped me off? The president. Actually he told everyone... He blurted out the info at a rally in Miami on Friday. After lodging his usual complaints about news outlets that challenge him, he turned to praise some of his biggest radio and TV boosters. "We have great people," Trump said. "Rush just signed another four-year contract. He just wants four more years, okay."
This next part is revealing: No one seemed to notice that Trump had just revealed some key info about the biggest name in right-wing radio. No one asked Premiere for comment. No one wrote a story. So I did... thanks, POTUS, for the tip!
-- Thought bubble: If Trump had tweeted about Rush's new deal, it would have been big news, right? But his comments at rallies seem to get less attention...
FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO
-- Agree or disagree? Democratic lawmaker Brian Schatz tweeted Sunday: "I'm convinced that the desire not to seem wacky prevents journalists from describing what is happening accurately. It is legitimately difficult to not sound a bit crazed in describing what Donald Trump is doing to the country." (Twitter)
-- Before Bari Weiss spoke at NYC's solidarity march against anti-Semitism, she spoke with me on "Reliable Sources" and had some fiery things to say... Here's the video... (Mediaite)
-- "60 Minutes" investigated the death of Jeffrey Epstein on Sunday night... Sharyn Alfonsi's report included never-before-seen photos of Epstein's autopsy and his jail cell... (CBS)
-- US military branches are blocking access to the TikTok app amid a warning from the Pentagon... (NYT)
Who needs foreign meddlers when...
Jake Tapper's essay at the end of Sunday's "SOTU" pointed out what most people failed to notice a few days ago -- that the president retweeted a deceptively edited clip of Joe Biden. So did some GOP operatives. "There's a real recklessness about what folks put out on social media," he said. "Some of it is carelessness, and journalists often fall into that trap too." Tapper noted that experts are warning about Iran employing disinformation campaigns. "While we are all bracing for what the Iranians might do to us as this conflict escalates," he said, "let's not lose sight of what Americans are already doing to each other."
'Satire' on Facebook
Donie O'Sullivan emails: A "satirical" article headlined "Democrats Call For Flags To Be Flown At Half-Mast To Grieve Death Of Soleimani" went viral on Facebook this weekend, with almost 500,000 likes, shares, or comments on Facebook, according to BuzzSumo, a social media analysis tool.
To put that in perspective, the NYT's story about the killing of Soleimani had 540,000 Facebook engagements and the CNN live blog on the killing had 400,000 Facebook engagements.
Here's the problem: A whole lot of people sharing the satirical story didn't realize it was satire -- stories like these appear in the Facebook news feed and look just like real news stories. One reader comment I noticed said, "I wish this was satire." I've been noticing this issue more and more on Facebook -- outrage-inducing articles are being published that are barely satirical -- but being labeled "satire" is a good way to sidestep Facebook's rules...
Meanwhile, over on Twitter...
Donie adds: Over the weekend a fake Fox News Twitter account helped amplify a fake Rep. Ilhan Omar tweet about the US strike on Soleimani. The B.S. was picked up by the head of Trump's National Diversity Coalition, who tweeted, "Ilhan Oman says she's ashamed to be an American. Well, real Americans are ashamed you're an American, too."
Twitter has suspended the fake Fox News account. More on this from Lead Stories and Alex Kaplan...
Layoffs at Metro
The staffs at Metro New York and Metro Philadelphia "were laid off by former owner Metro US on Friday," but new owner Schneps Media is offering new jobs to some of the employees, NYPost's Keith J. Kelly reports.
What's going on: Schneps already owns NYC's other freely distributed paper, amNew York. Now it owns Metro too. "A merged paper will be reflagged as amNewYork Metro" starting Monday. Kelly has all the background info here...
Inside Hearst
Kerry Flynn emails: BI's Lucia Moses has a new report on the state of Hearst amid employees' massive union effort, seeking to address pay disparity, diversity issues and company strategy. A vote is expected to take place this month. Execs have been fighting against the union drive...
>> Hearst prez Troy Young to BI: "For the past year we have been working to modernize all aspects of the employee experience at Hearst. There are a lot of amazing people who love being here. We are navigating the challenges of the industry better than most, but change can be hard..."
FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE
-- Nellie Bowles profiles the PragerU operation and catches up with an unsuspecting student who was one of the right-wing site's "good targets..." (NYT)
-- For more, read or re-read Joseph Bernstein's piece about PragerU from 2018... (BuzzFeed News)
-- Lara Logan's show on Fox Nation, titled "Lara Logan Has No Agenda," debuts Monday... (Fox)
A historic moment
As USA Today notes, Harvey Weinstein's trial "can fairly be considered historic. As such, it will be closely followed around the world as the first #MeToo case to be put before a criminal court jury."
Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor, who authored the original NYT story about Weinstein's sins, co-bylined this trial curtain-raiser along with Jan Ransom. "For all the expectations about the high-profile trial, the jurors will be hearing a narrow legal case," they note, "with an already-fraught back story and a highly unpredictable result." Read this to get prepped...
NYMag's new feature
On "Reliable," Irin Carmon previewed her new NYMag story containing interviews with 21 women who have accused Harvey Weinstein of misconduct. Some of these women have not spoken publicly before. In total, the magazine now counts at least 100 women who have leveled allegations against Weinstein. Some of them are photographed, all wearing black, for a multi-page NYMag feature. "These women, they wanted to pose with their arms linked, they wanted to show that they're unified," Carmon said...
FIRST LOOK
The people v. Weinstein
This is the next cover of The Hollywood Reporter... The issue won't come out until Wednesday, but the cover image will be out on Monday. Rebecca Keegan's story notes that some of Weinstein's accusers "are planning to attend the trial to show solidarity with the alleged victims in the case..." | |
Here's what Weinstein is saying
Weinstein "has remained relatively reclusive" for the past two years, Chloe Melas pointed out. Over the weekend, Weinstein agreed to answer some Q's from Melas via email, and he said his main focus is "proving my innocence and clearing my name."
Weinstein asserted that "the public's biggest misconceptions come from the assumptions that have been made through the help of media." Here is the full story by Melas...
--> On "Reliable," Melas noted: "He could be placed on a gag order, right, so this is kind of his last opportunity to speak to any press..."
| | So, what did you think of the Golden Globes? | | Brian Lowry writes: For all the talk about Netflix owning the nominations, this was not a very big night for them in terms of hardware. "Marriage Story" took a supporting prize for Laura Dern, and Olivia Colman won for "The Crown" on the TV side, but the Globes results will only feed Q's about whether the streaming service is still being viewed skeptically in some quarters in terms of getting over the hump and winning major film prizes.
Also, the Globes were an ideal situation for Universal, with "1917" receiving its two awards as the movie heads into its wide theatrical release starting this Friday, having already performed splendidly in a limited engagement...
The scoreboard
Among movie distributors, Sony was tops with three Globes... Paramount, Universal, and Warner Bros. each won two...
Among TV networks, HBO was No. 1 with four Globes... Hulu and Amazon Prime Video each won two... And FX, Netflix, and Showtime each won one.
If you missed the show...
Click over to CNN Entertainment for a complete recap. Here is the winners list. Notable quotes and newsy moments:
-- Michelle Williams gave an impassioned speech about reproductive rights. Chloe Melas has the transcript here...
-- Tom Hanks, fighting a cold, choked up while thanking his family -- a wife "who has taught me what love is" and five kids "who are braver and stronger and wiser than their old man..."
-- Ellen DeGeneres movingly spoke about the "power of television..."
-- While introducing Ellen, Kate McKinnon "spoke candidly and with humor about being gay and the role DeGeneres played in her understanding of herself..."
-- "The Farewell" star Awkwafina "is the first performer of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe Award in a lead actress film category," Sandra Gonzalez wrote...
-- After "Parasite" won best foreign-language film, director Bong Joon Ho told the audience via a translator, "Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films."
-- My favorite moment: When Ramy Youssef won a Globe for the little-seen Hulu series "Ramy," and he said, "Look, I know you guys haven't seen my show." Jamie had just said to me, "Who is that?" And then my mother-in-law texted me asking the same Q. The series is streaming right here...
Political and poignant moments
-- Host Ricky Gervais said the ballroom was filled with powerful studio execs who are "all terrified of Ronan Farrow..."
-- The opening monologue by Gervais won praise from conservative media because he criticized Hollywood elites for taking political stands...
-- Patricia Arquette used her acceptance speech to "beg and plead for everyone we know to vote in 2020..."
-- Numerous presenters and winners expressed concern and support for Australians affected by massive bushfires...
-- Russell Crowe, who won a Globe for playing Roger Ailes in "The Loudest Voice," was absent due to the fires. In a message read aloud by Jennifer Aniston, he said "the tragedy unfolding in Australia is climate change based..."
-- "There were limits to the night's activism," the NYT's James Poniewozik wrote. "Joaquin Phoenix, accepting for 'Joker,' got played off just as he decried the environmental effects of flying private jets to Palm Springs..."
A truncated awards season
Brian Lowry emails: The Golden Globes kicked off what will be a truncated awards season, with the Oscars having chosen to move their ceremony up by two weeks, to Feb. 9, creating less space between the various honors that will dribble out over the next five weeks. What I haven't seen much on yet is whether that will have any impact on the various publications/websites that bank on "For your consideration" ads as a sizable portion of their annual revenue...
Heating up
One more item from Brian Lowry: While all the attention has been focused on "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" underperforming expectations, a funny thing happened with another sequel, "Frozen II," which caught a second wind over the holidays. The animated movie now stands at $450 million in the United States and $1.3 billion worldwide, with $500 million domestic in its sights. As Variety noted, that has pushed it past its predecessor and "Incredibles 2" to become the highest-grossing animated film ever...
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