Articles Feature

Only Half of Trumpers Call Diversity a Plus

by richard02502

MAGAs Deny Existence of White Privilege
. . . No, Emancipation’s Promises Weren’t All Kept
. . . What Other Felons Think of Trump’s New Status
For WaPo’s CEO, Conciliation Might Not Be Enough

White Writer Repeats Old Ruse: Disguising as Black
What’s Wrong With This Picture?
First Black-Led Sports Radio Station Launches
Proposal: Pulitzers Should Make Up for Past Exclusions
Thomas Confirms ProPublica Reporting on Gifts

Howard U. to Return Sean Combs’ $1 Million
What’s This With Stephen A. Smith and Fox News?
Crowds Attack Journalists in East Jerusalem
Venezuela Lost 400 Outlets Under Chávez, Maduro

Short Takes: Wendell Pierce as Perry White in “Superman”‘; AI-generated images and European beauty standards; how Virginia universities displaced Black families; poll on best journalism films; push for bill to protect newsgathering rights of journalists; Sports Journalism Institute boot camp;

LZ Granderson’s HIV diagnosis; banned books and Isabel Wilkerson’s “Caste”; Malika Andrews; Zen Zheng and Houston’s Chinatowns; Haitian Times; post-election press freedom in India; Sudanese journalists killed; “Senegalese journalism at a crossroads”; more shackles for press freedom in Cuba.

Homepage photo: “President Trump buoyed the white nationalist movement on Tuesday as no president has done in generations — equating activists protesting racism with the neo-Nazis and white supremacists who rampaged in Charlottesville, Va., over the weekend,” Glenn Thrush and Maggie Haberman wrote for The New York Times on Aug. 15, 2017.

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MAGAs Deny Existence of White Privilege

While about half of Americans in a new Pew Research Center poll say diversity strengthens American society, about a third of Donald Trump supporters (32%) say that having a diverse society doesn’t make much difference, and 19% say it weakens society, the center reported Thursday.

By contrast, “Voters who favor [President] Biden overwhelmingly say that diversity strengthens society: 82% say this and just 4% say it weakens the U.S.”

“Similarly, majorities in both coalitions say that White people declining as a share of the U.S. population is neither good nor bad for society: 73% of Biden supporters and 57% of Trump supporters say this. Yet Trump supporters are much more likely to describe this trend as bad for society. Nearly four-in-ten Trump supporters (39%) say the decline in the share of White people is bad, compared with 10% of Biden supporters.”

The findings confirm the oft-stated view that much of Trump’s appeal is to white grievance and to fear of whites’ declining share of the population.

The U.S. Census Bureau projects that, depending on the pace of immigration, the non-Hispanic white alone population is projected to drop from 58.9 percent in 2022 to between 42.7 percent and 50.7 percent in 2060.

At the same time, the Hispanic population is projected to increase to between 24.6 percent and 27.8 percent, depending on the level of immigration. Hispanics were 19.1 percent in 2022.

The non-Hispanic Black alone population is expected to remain at around 13% in 2060 in all of the immigration scenarios, Pew said.

Although those projections focus on the three largest racial and ethnic groups, white, Hispanic and Black, “by 2060, the number of U.S. Asians is projected to rise to 35.8 million, more than triple their 2000 population,” Pew has said. 

 [The American Indian and Alaska Native population is projected to increase to 5,046,000 in 2060 from 4,382,000 in 2022.] (Added June 11)

The report comes as Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., the only Black Republican in the Senate, not particularly popular among Black voters but a potential GOP vice presidential pick, is to lead a $14 million campaign targeting voters of color in seven key swing states; as the movement to oppose diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts picks up steam, and another Black Republican, Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida, has been roundly criticized last week after invoking Jim Crow — a period of racial violence and segregation — as an era when “the Black family was together.” Donalds has said that his remarks were misinterpreted.

Moreover, as Garance Burke and Meg Kinnard reported Friday for the Associated Press, “As Trump seeks to make inroads with African American voters in his third run for the White House, fresh allegations are surfacing about his disrespectful behavior toward Black people inside the Manhattan skyscraper that launched his show [“The Apprentice”] and political career. There are still questions about whether any of that behavior was caught on tape.”

The Pew study also found:

  • “Among registered voters, eight-in-ten Biden supporters say that White people benefit at least a fair amount from advantages in society that Black people do not have. By contrast, only 22% of Trump supporters say this.

  • “There is a similar divide in opinion about the continued impact the legacy of slavery has on Black Americans: Most Biden supporters (79%) say it continues to have at least a fair amount of impact. Among Trump supporters, a far smaller share (27%) say slavery’s legacy continues to affect Black people in the U.S.

  • About “half of registered voters (51%) say that White people benefit at least a fair amount from advantages in society that Black people do not have, though the share who say this is down 4 percentage points in the last two years and 8 points since 2020. The share of voters who say White people benefit a great deal from advantages in society has decreased from 32% in 2022 to 24% today.”

Biden has said that the events of Aug. 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Va., where neo-Nazis marched, were so shocking that they motivated Biden, who had mostly retired from political life, to run for president against Trump. He said hearing Trump saying there were “very fine people on both sides” that day in Charlottesville was a defining moment.

Biden declared in 2021, “As the Nation’s largest employer, the Federal Government must be a model for diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, where all employees are treated with dignity and respect. Accordingly, the Federal Government must strengthen its ability to recruit, hire, develop, promote, and retain our Nation’s talent and remove barriers to equal opportunity.

Michael Leach, a special assistant to Biden and the chief diversity and inclusion officer for the White House, departed earlier this year after serving as a top aide to Biden since his 2020 presidential campaign. “Both in office and during the campaign, Leach, who’s Black, spearheaded efforts to create the most diverse general election and White House staffs in history,“ Matt Brown reported in January for the Associated Press. “He was frequently involved in conversations advancing inclusive perspectives in administration policy.’

However, a White House spokesperson did not respond to a question about whether Leach was ever replaced.

. . . No, Emancipation’s Promises Weren’t All Kept

“It’s often thought of as a promise that was never kept. But ’40 acres and a mule’ was more than that,” says the nonprofit organization Reveal, from the Center for Investigative Reporting.

“It was real.

“In ’40 Acres and a Lie’, a three-part podcast series from Reveal and the Center for Public Integrity, we tell the history of an often-misunderstood government program that gave formerly enslaved people land titles, only to take the land back. We explore a reparation that wasn’t – and the wealth gap that remains. . . .”

“Coming June 15, from Reveal and the Center for Public Integrity.”

KSLA-TV in Shreveport, La., reports May 30 that former president Donald Trump is found guilty on all 34 counts. (Credit: YouTube)

. . . What Other Felons Think of Trump’s New Status

“I think [Donald Trump] needs to come to prison for a few months to see just how bad it is and get out and become president again [and] fix the prison system,” Ronnie Morgan, who is incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Fort Dix, N.J., told the Marshall Project.

“In my eyes, if Trump becomes president, this verdict will make the criminal justice system worse,” said Donnell Genyard, formerly incarcerated in New York. Genyard is the founder of Rehabilitation Speaks, a platform that helps people affected by the system show their talent.

“He has promised vengeance against it. The vengeance is for the defendants and not the victims of crime. Thus, if Trump gets elected, victims of crime will not feel comfortable talking to the administration of justice because they will feel like it’s pointless. With no confidence in the criminal justice system, crimes will be committed more frequently and witnesses will feel less compelled to cooperate with authorities. In a nutshell, a Trump vote is great for defendants but bad for victims of crime.”

The Marshall Project, a nonprofit newsroom focused on criminal justice, “asked a handful of currently and formerly incarcerated people — some convicted of white-collar crimes, others of violent crimes — to reflect on what [Trump’s] conviction means for the country and how it compares to their experiences. Many grappled with what it really means to receive a fair trial. These responses are written in their own words, but The Marshall Project has condensed some for clarity.”

  • Charlie Savage, Jonathan Swan, and Maggie Haberman, New York Times: If Trump Wins

William Lewis speaks to the Washington Post staff after being named publisher and CEO in November. (Credit: Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

For WaPo’s CEO, Conciliation Might Not Be Enough

The Washington Post’s new CEO, Will Lewis, reiterated his belief in diversity as part of a conciliatory memo to the staff Friday, Mike Roe reported for The Wrap, but any diversity concerns have been overshadowed by the much larger question of whether Lewis even belongs in the job.

“The news that Washington Post editor Sally Buzbee had resigned under pressure earlier this week was disconcerting enough for the Post’s 950 or so journalists and an untold number of its readers,” former Post media reporter Paul Farhi wrote Friday for the Daily Beast. “But the revelations that have followed since then are considerably more important and damaging than the departure of one editor.

“The New York Times reported Wednesday evening that one of the precipitating events in Buzbee’s exit was a brief clash with her and new boss, Post publisher Will Lewis. The dispute was over an unpublished news story involving Lewis’ work for Rupert Murdoch after the phone-hacking scandals at Murdoch’s British tabloids more than a decade ago.

“The Post was about to report a basic fact: that an English judge overseeing a lawsuit filed by victims of the hacking, including Prince Harry, was seeking to add Lewis’ name to a list of executives allegedly involved in efforts to cover up the hacking. According to the Times, Lewis sought to dissuade Buzbee from publishing the story, and criticized her for ‘a lapse in judgment’ when she said she would do so despite his guidance. The Post reported Thursday that Buzbee had a similarly tense exchange with Lewis about another story about the case in March.

“Strike one: If the Times and Post accounts are accurate — Lewis has denied trying to spike the stories and denies any hacking cover-up — his actions constitute blatant self-dealing and the corrupt exercise of power.

“Then on Thursday, NPR reporter David Folkenflik dropped another anvil on Lewis. After Folkenflik requested an interview with Lewis in December before he joined the Post, Lewis ‘repeatedly and heatedly’ offered an exclusive interview on the condition that Folkenflik drop a story he was reporting about Lewis’ alleged role in the Murdoch scandal. Folkenflik declined the offer and wrote about the allegations in December. Lewis didn’t explicitly deny Folkenflik’s description of their conversations in his response on Thursday, but he did call the reporter ‘an activist, not a journalist.’

“Strikes two and three: Lewis’ reported quid pro quo offer reeks of unseemly image polishing and manipulation, a bad look for a news executive supposedly dedicated to transparency. Further, calling a respected journalist names isn’t likely to endear Lewis to a building full of journalists. . . .”

Roe also wrote for The Wrap, “As he seeks to get his staff on the same page, Lewis told them that his first step is setting up discussions next week around his so-called ‘Third Newsroom’ strategy, which includes an audience and service journalism-focused newsroom joining the traditional newsroom and their opinion/editorial journalists.

“Lewis promised to answer questions from staff, noting, ‘There was a lot for us all to process at the Newsroom meeting on Monday, so we need more time together to listen and talk it through — please sign up to come.’

“The executive also addressed concerns about diversity following his hiring of two new white men as top editors alongside himself, showing a lack of diversity at the Post’s top levels.

“ ‘On the concerns many of you raised about creating a diverse workforce that looks more like America, I know I cannot just talk a good game, but need to show it,’ Lewis wrote. ‘I assure you I will.'”

From June 7

From June 5, June 6

White Writer Repeats Old Ruse: Disguising as Black

“Sam Forster (pictured) expected some pushback online when he announced his latest book, Seven Shoulders: Taxonomizing Racism in Modern America,“ Alana Wise reported Friday for NPR.

“Detailed accounts of America’s racial divide are nothing new, and particularly in the years since the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, there has been renewed interest in the topic.

“But the key difference between Forster’s account and those written by others is that Forster, a white man, said he ‘disguised’ himself as Black — donning an Afro wig and dark foundation — to get a firsthand account of modern life as a person of color. . . .”

“I disguised myself as a Black man and traveled throughout the United States to document how racism persists in American society,’ he wrote. ‘Writing Seven Shoulders was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done as a journalist.’

“The tweet was quickly ratioed — with responses and quotes of the tweet outperforming likes on the message more than 15 to 1. . . .

“Forster said he was inspired to write the book after reading previous accounts of white people dressing up in blackface for journalistic purposes.

“He specifically cites John Howard Griffin’s 1961’s Black Like Me, in which the white author recounts darkening his skin with an anti-vitiligo drug in order to understand racial strife in the Jim Crow South. . . .

“But, he says, in order for some in white America who downplay the existence of racism, maybe the voice of a white man would be more compelling.

“ ‘There is a considerable portion of white America that believes Black racial grievance is exaggerated or entirely fabricated and who find the writing of white journalists or academics more compelling than the writing of Black academics,’ he said. ‘… I don’t feel the need to apologize for that.’ ”

 
 
 
 
 
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What’s Wrong With This Picture?

“Fans aren’t here for the ‘division’ on The Hollywood Reporter’s covers!” writes an Instagram patron. “One is the main cover and the other is their digital cover! It’s important to note that one is focused on ‘drama’ actresses and one is focused on ‘comedic’ actresses. What y’all think Neighbors? 👀”

Journal-isms reached out June 2 to Co-Editor-in-Chief Nekesa Mumbi Moody (pictured) for an explanation.

While we’re waiting, though, Eric Deggans (pictured), NPR television critic, offers his perspective.

“I saw the video of the comedy actress roundtable and remember thinking it was remarkable there was only one white woman in the group,” Deggans messaged. “But I’m really disappointed there are no Black women in the drama group.

“They will say there were more Black women who could potentially be part of the comedy group, and they would be right. They may also argue that the drama group had the biggest stars in it – Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Aniston, Jodie Foster – and that’s why it was their print cover. But dramas like The Gilded Age, The Walking Dead and Star Wars: Ahsoka all feature Black actresses who are stars and could have been part of the drama group (The Morning Show had two Black actresses who could also have been part of the group, but they don’t bring in two people from the same show.).

“To me, it’s a sign of a growing segregation returning to TV, where Black people are growing scarce in prestige dramas (making this more challenging, non-white women were co-stars on True Detective, The Morning Show and Expats, where the white actresses got top billing.) That the Hollywood Reporter would reflect that without attempting to find a more diverse field is truly disappointing.”

(Credit: Sports Rap Radio)

First Black-Led Sports Radio Station Launches

“A few weeks after its originally scheduled launch date, Detroit’s ‘Sports Rap Radio’ WXYT (1270) made its debut on Tuesday, June 4. Billed as the first all-Black-led sports radio station, ‘Sports Rap Radio’ is led by Fox Sports Radio host Rob Parker,” Inside Radio reported Wednesday.

“The local daytime lineup includes all Black hosts, including the ‘What Up Morning Show’” featuring Donavon Travis and Tarohn Finley (7-10am), B.J. Armstrong (10am-12pm), Martin Weiss and JR Gamble (12-3pm), and ‘The Pitbulls’, comprised of Lindsay Hunter and Montezz Allen (3-7pm). FSR’s ‘The Odd Couple,’ which Parker co-hosts with Chris Broussard, is placed in evenings (7-10pm) on the new station.

“Parker partnered with Armstrong, a former NBA player turned agent, and former college athletes Dave Kenney and Maurice Ways on the new venture. The station is airing on WXYT via a Local Marketing Agreement with Audacy. The signal previously carried Audacy’s ‘BetQL Network,’ which has moved to WXYT-HD3.

“ ‘[This is] history-making‘ Parker told WWJ-TV.

“ ‘[It’s] groundbreaking, [and] we just believe that the time has come… Just four years ago, there were no Black full-time sports hosts on the radio in Detroit. In a city that’s nearly 80% black, I looked at that as a problem.’ ”

Brandon Contes added Thursday for Awful Announcing, “Minority hosts have been historically underrepresented by sports radio stations around the country. Just as there were no full-time Black hosts in Detroit four years ago, only 10-14 percent of the on-air talent on nearly 800 sports radio stations around the country were Hispanic or Black as recently as 2020.”

Proposal: Pulitzers Should Make Up for Past Exclusions

“The first Pulitzer Prizes were presented in 1917,” Roy Peter Clark, senior scholar at the Poynter Institute, wrote Wednesday for the institute. “It took 33 years of prizes for a Black artist — the poet Gwendolyn Brooks — to be declared a winner. It took 52 years for the first Black man — photojournalist Moneta Sleet — to win as an individual. . . . “

Major League Baseball announced last month it will include Negro League baseball statistics with all professional baseball data, meaning the achievements of 2,300 Black players will be analyzed and potentially considered for immortality by baseball scholars, journalists, and historians, as Wayne Dawkins wrote May 30 for NABJ Black News & Views, a publication of the National Association of Black Journalists.

Clark continued, “Here’s my proposal: The Pulitzer Prize Board, one of the great standard bearers in journalism and the arts, should create a new category of Pulitzer Prizes.

“For the moment, let’s call it the Pulitzer Legacy Prizes. The board need not take the entire effort upon itself. It would work better with congenial partners. I don’t see this as a single award, but one that would go to three to five winners each year, quickly building a virtual hall of honor, with a curriculum that might go with it. . . .”

Marjorie Miller, Pulitzer Prize administrator, declined to comment on Clark’s proposal.

The Pulitzer board honored the late Black writer and critic Greg Tate with a special citation last month. Miller told Journal-isms at the time, “From time to time the board has recognized writers and artists whose work had a profound influence on media and culture. Several of the board members were familiar with his work and particularly with his influence on the current generation of critics.”

Thomas Confirms ProPublica Reporting on Gifts

“Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas (pictured, by Library of Congress) acknowledged for the first time in a new financial disclosure filing that he should have publicly reported two free vacations he received from billionaire Harlan Crow,” Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski reported Friday for ProPublica.

“The pair of 2019 trips, one to Indonesia and the other to the Bohemian Grove, an all-male retreat in northern California, were first revealed by ProPublica. Last year, Thomas argued that he did not need to disclose such gifts. ‘Justice Thomas’s critics allege that he failed to report gifts from wealthy friends,’ his lawyer previously said in a statement issued on the justice’s behalf. ‘Untrue.’ . . . “

Among other awards, ProPublica won the Pulitzer Prize for public service last month for its “Groundbreaking and ambitious reporting that pierced the thick wall of secrecy surrounding the Supreme Court to reveal how a small group of politically influential billionaires wooed justices with lavish gifts and travel, pushing the Court to adopt its first code of conduct.”


Sean Combs proclaims last October that he has given $1 million to Howard University, which he attended from fall 1987 to spring 1989. “We all got to keep coming home and we got to keep on investing in this university and all HBCUs,” he said, referring to historically Black colleges and universities. (Credit: YouTube)

Howard U. to Return Sean Combs’ $1 Million 

Howard University’s board of trustees said Friday it was revoking media mogul Sean Combs’ honorary degree and directed the administration to “terminate a 2016 gift agreement with Mr. Combs, disband the scholarship program in his name, return his $1 million contribution, and terminate a 2023 pledge agreement with the Sean Combs Foundation.”

“Mr. Combs’ behavior as captured in a recently released video is so fundamentally incompatible with Howard University’s core values and beliefs that he is deemed no longer worthy to hold the institution’s highest honor,” the board said in its announcement.

As Zoe G. Phillips wrote for The Hollywood Reporter, “The video, released last month, showed Combs running out of a hotel room in a towel and chasing [ex-girlfriend Cassie] Ventura toward the elevator. He grabbed her by the back of the neck and threw her on the floor, kicked her, shoved her and dragged her by her sweatshirt. Later in the footage, he returned to kick her again and then threw an object from a nearby table at her.”

Separately, Combs “has sold his majority stake in Revolt, the company announced Tuesday,” Janelle Griffith reported for the Associated Press.

“ ‘Shares held by the company’s former chair, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, have been fully redeemed and retired,’ Revolt said in a statement.

“The company said it will remain Black-owned and operated. . . .”

(Credit: X)

What’s This With Stephen A. Smith and Fox News?

Should Stephen A. Smith stop cozying up with Fox News?

Yes, says The Grio columnist Deron Snyder.

“Even if Smith occasionally scolds [Sean] Hannity and Tucker Carlson and Will Cain for their MAGA-loving bullshit, the network is booming,” Snyder wrote May 22. “Smith’s appearances help fulfill the mission and fatten the bottom line, especially when he stokes flames and parrots the talking points of racist fake patriots.

“They loved it last month when Smith went on Hannity’s show and said Donald Trump’s legal problems ‘and everything else being exercised against him is something that Black folks throughout this nation can relate to with some of our historic, iconic figures.’

“A ‘Breaking News’ graphic appeared as he spoke: ‘Stephen A. Smith calls out Democrats over their persecution of Trump.’ The NAACP and a slew of Black voices pushed back against the asinine suggestion that Trump is an innocent victim like the millions of Black folks abused by this country’s legal system for 400 years and counting.

“Smith offered a quasi-apology, saying his words on live TV were misconstrued and taken out of context. He said the misrepresentation and depiction was ‘as insulting and disrespectful’ as what Black folks ‘evidently felt about what they thought I said. But I’ll own it anyway.’ . . .”

Meanwhile, the ESPN+ streaming service has released Smith’s latest project, “Up For Debate: The Evolution of Sports Media,” a three-part docuseries. Alex Kirshner wrote for GQ, “As the show’s executive producer and most frequent interviewee, the series is his account of sports TV’s shift toward the low-cost, fiery debate programming that ESPN birthed and Fox, TNT, and a million podcasts have imitated over the decades — which is to say, it doubles as Smith’s autobiography, since his genre now defines much of sports media.”

Kirshner asked Smith, “There are people who think the brand of sports journalism that you’re at the vanguard of contributes to people running their mouths, to things getting out without a filter in a way that wouldn’t have happened in the old days. What is your view of that?”

Smith replied with a dig at those with what he calls insufficient credentials landing sports journalism jobs on television.

“Well, I would say that’s B.S., and I would say that the people in the industry who would dare say that, especially about me, let’s go on a public platform and debate that. Name the time and place, and I’ll show up. The fact of the matter is that I was hired at ESPN because of my journalistic background, and the reason why I’ve been entrusted to do what I do on the platform that I’ve done it on over the years is not only because I’ve been successful, it’s also because by and large, I’ve been responsible as a journalist.

“I don’t just run out there and speak. I actually cultivate sources. I actually do my homework and research. I have a history of being connected to the things that I actually cover. It’s not a secret. It’s not breaking news to see Stephen A. in a locker room, to see Stephen A. in a press box, to see Stephen A. talking to athletes, coaches, executives. All of this stuff comes with the job.

“If anything, the industry should be held responsible because of what it has allowed. You’ve gotten to a point where you allow people devoid of my resume to come into the business as if they had the resume to do the things that they do. You might see me debating with somebody like I’m in the backyard at my house about a relatively innocuous subject, but then I’m interviewing the commissioner, and my tone is different, and my delivery and my presentation are different.

“Or then something happens of a serious nature, and all of a sudden I know how to dial it back and get into journalistic mode. It’s not my fault that the industry itself has looked at people with less credentials and said, ‘You can come in here, too, and do it.’ ”

 

Palestinian journalist Saif Kwasmi tells the Turkish Radio and Television Corp. that he will keep reporting even after being assaulted by Israeli settlers in occupied East Jerusalem on Palestinian Naksa Day, a day celebrated by Israelis as they mark the country’s occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank. (Credit: YouTube)

Crowds Attack Journalists in East Jerusalem

Just three days before Saturday’s stunning news that Israeli soldiers and special operations police rescued four hostages from Gaza, while killing scores of Gazans, press-freedom groups received “reports of multiple violent attacks against journalists by crowds who participated in an annual march in East Jerusalem,” the International Press Institute reported Friday.

“Before the march officially began, a group of youth entered the Muslim Quarter, attacking Palestinians and journalists. Among those attacked were Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) correspondent Alison Horne and her crew. Horne reported being hit in the face, pushed, and verbally abused.

“Saif Kwasmi, a freelance Palestinian journalist was also attacked; photo and video documentation of the attack show a group grabbing him by his press vest and kicking him. Haaretz journalist Nir Hasson was pushed to the ground and kicked until police arrived. Hasson reports that at least one other photojournalist was hit in the head by bottles thrown from the mob of people.

“As of June 6, police had arrested 18 individuals for various crimes committed during the march – including five individuals on suspicion of assaulting Kwasmi and Hasson. Footage of the attacks show more than five taking part in the assault. . . .”

Separately, in the United States, “The Hill fired video show cohost Briahna Joy Gray on Thursday following a controversial interview she conducted with the sister of an Israeli woman abducted by Hamas in which Gray rolled her eyes at a closing comment from her interview subject,” Mike Roe reported Thursday for The Wrap. “Gray announced her firing on social media.

“Gray, who previously served as Bernie Sanders’ press secretary in the 2020 Democratic primary campaign, has been a controversial figure, particularly due to her comments about the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the war in Gaza. . . .”

A report on the firing on the progressive broadcast “Democracy Now!” website omitted the eye-rolling provocation, which was headlined in other media.

Meanwhile, Omer Benjakob reported Wednesday for the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, “The Israeli government is behind a large-scale influence campaign primarily aimed at Black lawmakers and young progressives in the United States and Canada. The operation, whose existence was first reported by Haaretz in March, was launched after the start of the war in Gaza and was intended to sway certain segments of public opinion on Israel’s conduct. . . .”

During a Dec. 3 referendum in Venezuela on the future of Guyana’s Essequibo region, which Venezuela claims as its own, the Press and Society Institute of Venezuela (IPYS Venezuela), an organization dedicated to promoting freedom of expression, said it documented nine cases of press access restrictions, affecting 30 journalists and one cameraman. Among those affected, 16 were women. Venezuelans voted to claim sovereignty over the area. (Credit: Women Press Freedom)

Venezuela Lost 400 Outlets Under Chávez, Maduro

“In 20 years of the governments of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro 400 media outlets have disappeared, including print outlets, radio stations, television channels and digital platforms, according to the report Situation of the Right to Freedom of Expression in Venezuela by Espacio Público,” Ivanna Laura Ordoñez reported May 31 for LatAm Journalism Review, referencing the socialist presidents.

Ordoñez also wrote, “For many years, companies have not advertised in Venezuelan digital media, for several reasons: ignorance of the impact of their investment in the digital ecosystem, fear of the political context and preference for social networks as a direct marketing mechanism.

“ ‘The large media outlets in the United States or Spain have achieved a number of subscribers that help keep operations running, but in a country like Venezuela, with one of the lowest minimum wages in the world, this is not an option at the moment. The subscription culture will be good news that will probably come with economic improvements,’ the co-founder of El Bus TV said.

“But the economic factor is not the only thing that digital media in Venezuela face. State censorship through blocking of websites, or impediments to the work of the press, further limit the access and dissemination of information online. . . .”

Short Takes

  • “As AI-generated images spread across entertainment, marketing, social media and other industries that shape cultural norms, The Washington Post set out to understand how this technology defines one of society’s most indelible standards: female beauty,” Nitasha Tiku and Szu Yu Chen reported May 31 for The Washington Post, and displayed on Sunday’s print-edition front page. They also wrote, “AI artist Abran Maldonado said while it’s become easier to create varied skin tones, most tools still overwhelmingly depict people with Anglo noses and European body types. ‘Everything is the same, just the skin tone got swapped,’ he said. ‘That ain’t it.’ Maldonado, who co-founded the firm Create Labs, said he had to use derogatory words to get Midjourney’s AI generator to show a Black woman with a larger body last year. . . .”

An official trailer for 1941’s “Citizen Kane.” Plot summary: “Following the death of a publishing tycoon, news reporters scramble to discover the meaning of his final utterance.” (Credit: YouTube)

  • What are the best 200 films about the journalistic profession and the world of media? More than 450 journalists, writers, directors and academics from around the world put together a ranking for the Argentina-based portal Journalists in the Cinema, a project created by journalists Federico Poore and Manuel Barriento, infobae.com reported. “The Citizen [also known as “Citizen Kane”], the classic film directed by and starring Orson Welles at just 24 years old, easily took first place.” It was followed by ” All the President’s Men,” “Spotlight,” “The Post” and “La Dolce Vita.”

  • “I too am HIV-positive — and this is the first time I am sharing this information publicly,” Los Angeles Times columnist LZ Granderson (pictured) wrote Thursday. “My viral load has been undetectable for years, meaning I cannot spread the virus to others. . . . Still, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit shame was a significant factor in my keeping my status quiet until now. I didn’t want to be viewed as a gay stereotype, including at ESPN, where I worked for years. I was not the first openly gay person there, but I was among the most visible, and that came with scrutiny. I also kept my status private because I didn’t want to be shunned in social settings. The use of the word ‘clean’ on dating apps served as a regular reminder that the epidemic may have subsided, but ostracism remained. . . .”

  • “At just twenty-nine years old, Malika Andrews (pictured) has become the face of ESPN’s N.B.A. studio coverage,” The New Yorker writes in promoting a piece in its June 6 issue. “She swiftly transitioned from writer to host in part by eschewing much of the chummy, laid-back reporting style that is typical among sportscasters. Four years ago, when she was sent to live inside the league’s experimental COVID ‘bubble’ at Disney World, ‘it was as if the network had hired a straight-A student to go report on the jocks,’ Jennifer Wilson writes, in this in-depth profile. Andrews’s ‘precociousness and evening-news-anchor gravitas’ has earned wide praise, but her dogged reporting on all aspects of the sport, including alleged sexual misconduct in the league, has generated blowback from some angry viewers. . . .”

  • The Haitian Times announced Wednesday the addition of four new Haiti-based journalists to its team.” The Brooklyn, N.Y.-based publication said, “They successfully completed the newsroom’s bi-annual journalism boot camp, which is focused on enterprise investigative journalism and reporting. This program has prepared these journalists to contribute significantly to the publication’s mission of delivering high-quality journalism to the global diaspora community. The new hires are Jose Flécher, Edxon Francisque, Onès Joseph, and Kervenson Martial. . . .”

  • It is no shock that India’s recent election has been seen as a partial victory for democracy and independent media, Anisha Dutta reported Friday for Columbia Journalism Review. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has ruled India with increasingly authoritarian tendencies since 2014, is set to return to power, but with a chastening cut in the number of seats for his ruling Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party. . . . But even if Modi’s mandate is diminished by his need to enter into complex alliances, his stranglehold over Indian media won’t be undone by a single election. . . . Modi, according to Indian journalists and media-watchers interviewed for this story, has systematically exploited a long-standing structural weakness in India’s media ecosystem in order to undermine critical reporting. . . .”

  • Two journalists in Sudan have been killed by elements of the paramilitary group Rapid Support Force, the International Press Institute reported Friday. “IPI demands accountability for both cases and calls on conflict parties in Sudan to act immediately to protect the safety of journalists. Muawiya Abdel Razek was killed on June 4 when RSF elements raided his home in Khartoum. Three of his siblings were also reportedly killed during the raid. Media also reported that RSF forces assassinated journalist Makawi Mohamed Ahmed on June 5. The outbreak of the conflict between RSF and the Sudanese Army Force (SAF) in April 2023 has severely impacted the safety of journalists and media freedom. . . .” (Map credit: Brittanica)

  • “In its new report, ‘Senegalese journalism at a crossroads’, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reveals that, from 2021 to 2024, more than 60 journalists have been arrested, assaulted, questioned or detained,” the press freedom organization said Thursday. “Polarisation, political interference and disinformation have increased. Faced with this worrying picture, the arrival in power of new authorities in Senegal is an opportunity for the scarred face of the media to heal, and for the country to once again become a driving force in the defence of the right to information throughout the region and in Africa. . . .”


Arrest of Lázaro Yuri Valle Roca. (Credit: Eralisis Frometa/Facebook)

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