| | | | | "Is President Trump ill? Is he unfit to be president? And if he IS unfit -- what then?" Uncomfortable questions about POTUS were our lead story on Sunday's TV edition of "Reliable Sources," and it's the lead on CNN.com right now. Scroll down for a complete wrap-up... but first... | | Will Monday's eclipse be -- forgive me for this -- eclipsed by the first prime time address of the Trump presidency?
The president will be speaking about his Afghan war strategy at 9pm ET. It may or may not be reminiscent of Barack Obama's prime time speech about Afghanistan in December 2009. There have already been leaks about what Trump may announce.
Knowing the president's keen attention to ratings, I bet he'll want to know what reaches a bigger audience -- his speech or the special eclipse coverage... | | FIRST WEST-TO-EAST "TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE" IN 99 YEARS | | -- NBC, ABC and CBS will televise special reports from 1 til 3pm ET. ABC's David Muir will anchor from Charleston, SC. NBC's Lester Holt and CBS's Anthony Mason will remain in NYC. (That was the plan all along, but it's important now that they will also be anchoring prime time specials. George Stephanopoulos will lead the Trump coverage on ABC.)
-- The cablers will also have extensive live coverage...
-- The PBS program "NOVA" will produce an instant prime time special about the eclipse. Exec producer Paula Apsell "said she began to consider two years ago how to best cover" this event...
-- Thank you, NASA: the TV networks will have access to live shots "from NASA research aircraft, high-altitude balloons, satellites and specially-modified telescope." The agency's locations: Salem, Oregon; Idaho Falls, Idaho; Beatrice, Nebraska; Jefferson City, Missouri; Carbondale, Illinois; Hopkinsville, KY; Clarksville, TN; and Charleston... | | CNN.com will be live-streaming the eclipse in virtual reality from seven different locations on Monday afternoon. Here's the link...
Hard to top that! But several other outlets are producing elaborate live-streams, some with an eye toward folks who will be watching from work. Time will have a three-hour live show on Time.com, Facebook and YouTube. PBS will have a FB Live stream hosted by Miles O'Brien starting at 12pm ET. Facebook will also be promoting NASA TV's broadcast... | | "May the shadow of the moon fall on a world at peace" | | ABC has been playing up the connection between its February 26, 1979 eclipse coverage and Monday's special report. This is how Frank Reynolds signed off that day:
"Not until August 21, 2017 will another eclipse be visible from North America. That's 38 years from now. May the shadow of the moon fall on a world at peace. And ABC News, of course, will bring you a complete report on that next eclipse, 38 years from now." | | | "I'm looking at it as a giant block party," ABC's Marc Burstein says. Per Variety's Cynthia Littleton: "He noted that ABC News will lean more heavily on the old-fashioned technology of satellite trucks than it has in the recent past because of the expectation that wireless and cellular signals will be overloaded in areas where large groups of eclipse-gazers congregate. 'We might not even be able to get our cell phones working,' he said..." | | -- Fox's Pat Ward: "Tons of pressure on the moon to deliver the goods tomorrow, lotta people will be watching. #EclipseGlasses"
-- CNN's John Berman: "Bonnie Tyler is coming on my show." Yes, the "Total Eclipse of the Heart" singer... live in the 10am hour...
-- Politico's Blake Hounshell: "Some huge news story is gonna drop during the eclipse, isn't it?" | | At the time I'm sending this email out, 10 US Navy sailors are missing "after a US Navy guided-missile destroyer collided with a merchant ship east of Singapore early Monday." CNN will have constant updates here.
When POTUS arrived back at the W.H. Sunday night, a reporter shouted a question about the incident. The president was heard responding: "That's too bad. That's too bad."
-- NYT's Maggie Haberman tweeted: "Imagine the reaction if Obama, Bush, Clinton said" that... HuffPost's Matt Fuller: "If that were Obama's reaction, Fox News would scandalize it for a month..." | | New time for CNN's town hall | | | CNN's town hall with Paul Ryan, moderated by Jake Tapper, was slated for 9pm Monday, but due to the president's address about Afghanistan, the town hall will now start later in the evening... after the speech... | | Media week ahead calendar | | -- Monday: Two new shows on HLN: Carol Costello's 11am ET newscast and SE Cupp's 7pm show...
-- Tuesday evening: Trump's prime time rally in Arizona...
-- Wednesday 11am ET: Samsung holding an event to launch the Galaxy Note 8...
-- Wednesday 11pm ET: $650 million Powerball drawing...
-- Friday: Another deadline for Ofcom to provide an update about the Fox/Sky deal...
-- Sunday evening: "Game of Thrones" season finale... | | How much $$$ Apple, Facebook and YouTube are willing to pay... | | | The WSJ recently reported that Apple is budgeting $1 billion for shows in the next 12 months. What about Facebook and YouTube? John Koblin takes a look at all three in Monday's NYT. He says "Facebook has told people in the industry that it is willing to spend $3 million to $4 million an episode on new programming." And YouTube? Execs there "have said they will spend up to $2 million an episode on a comedy, and more than $3 million on a drama," according to sources... | | -- "Gov. Chris Christie has pulled himself out of contention for a post-gubernatorial job as a sports radio host on WFAN..." (NorthJersey.com)
-- Brian Lowry emails: The next edition of CBS' summer newsmagazine "CBSN: On Assignment" includes a segment by Manuel Bojorquez on the "staggering number of journalists" being gunned down in Mexico as part of the drug war. It airs Monday night...
-- I missed this while I was away: the WSJ says the government review of AT&T-Time Warner "has reached an advanced stage." Approval with conditions coming next month? (WSJ)
-- An op-ed by two leaders of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education: "Why Even Nazis Deserve Free Speech..." (Politico)
-- Margaret Sullivan's Monday column is on the same topic... (WashPost) | | | Joe Scarborough, Ana Navarro, Glenn Thrush, and other prominent media types were apparently fooled by an old LATimes story on Sunday. The story from May 1 is titled "Trump adviser Sebastian Gorka expected to leave White House." It hasn't happened... yet... but the link keeps resurfacing and people keep sharing it like it's breaking news. Via Twitchy: "It's pretty careless of all these folks to share such an out-of-date article..." | | White House in silent mode | | Sarah Huckabee Sanders and other W.H. spokespeople have basically said nothing in public since Trump's presser last Tuesday. There were zero W.H. officials on the Sunday shows, despite many booking pleas.
"The White House was unable, or perhaps unwilling, to provide a guest, right down to the White House press secretary," Chuck Todd said on "Meet the Press." He noted that members of the GOP leadership in Congress also declined to come on.
"Of course with no administration officials playing ball, that left plenty of room on the Sunday shows for Trump's critics," Daily Mail's Nikki Schwab wrote... | | Uncomfortable Q's about the president's fitness | | Here's how I introed Sunday's "Reliable Sources:" The president's "actions and inactions in the wake of Charlottesville are provoking some uncomfortable conversations" and questions like these: "Is the president of the United States a racist? Is he suffering from some kind of illness? Is he fit for office? And if he's unfit -- then what?"
My point: These are upsetting, polarizing questions. But we in the national news media can't pretend like our readers and viewers aren't already asking. They are asking. So what are the right ways for journalists to address these Q's head-on?
On the program, Carl Bernstein reiterated that "Republicans in Congress, the highest of intelligence officials, the highest of military officers in our country, leaders of the business community" believe Trump is unfit, though only say so privately. "It is an important, crucial, dangerous story that reporters need to start making their business," Bernstein said.
Jackie Wattles has a complete recap of the segment here... | | Brinkley calls Trump a "sick man" | | On the program, I described how some Republican lawmakers, like U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, have joined Democrats in publicly raising questions about Trump's fitness for office. Douglas Brinkley, a CNN presidential historian, called Corker "a real leader among Republicans" for bringing it up. He called Trump a "sick man" who's "not mentally stable."
-- POV from former journalist turned Ted Cruz campaign comms director turned CNN commentator Alice Stewart: "I think if people are raising this question, it's a valid topic for journalists to cover," Stewart said. But she said what needs to be examined is "whether it is more of a political difference as opposed to a serious medical problem..." | | Bannon talking about launching a TV network? | | Is Steve Bannon, now a couple of days removed from the White House, really plotting the creation of a Fox News competitor? Probably. Jonathan Swan and Gabriel Sherman both says it's been talked about. Will such a network ever actually launch? Put me down as skeptical.
--> Joshua Green on Sunday's "Reliable:" "I certainly think it's a possibility." But "Bannon has always said that, you know, 'TV is not where it's at...' That they are internet-based." Watch our full segment about "Bannon weaponizing Breitbart" here... | | What Bannon told Green in a conversation on Friday: "He is looking to go global. He is going to grow Breitbart News in some way, shape, or form. It's just not clear yet what that medium is going to be..."
-- Sherman's first piece for Vanity Fair is about Bannon: "Last week in New York, he huddled with his billionaire benefactor, Robert Mercer, and discussed ways to expand Breitbart into TV, sources said... A partnership with Sinclair remains a possibility..."
-- Or what about Newsmax? Jim Rutenberg reached Chris Ruddy, who said Bannon "wouldn't be a good fit..."
-- Kurt Bardella's bold comment on "AM Joy:" "Who knows what's going to happen over the next couple of weeks and months... I think there's a real likelihood that Steve could be building something that gives Trump an out later in the year..." | | Weekend reads about Bannon | | -- NYT's Monday tick-tock based on interviews with a dozen sources: "Bannon Was Set for a Graceful Exit. Then Came Charlottesville."
-- The Daily Caller's Alex Pfeiffer reading the Bannon/Breitbart tea leaves: "Breitbart Goes After Ivanka And McMaster After Trump Gives Site His Blessing" | | Notable quotes from Sunday's show | | -- In news coverage, race is too often treated "like a trend" rather than "something that people live," CNN's Tanzina Vega said. I highly recommend this segment with Vega and Nikole Hannah-Jones...
-- The AP's Jonathan Lemire offered a behind-the-scenes look at the Trump Tower presser, where one W.H. aide's "mouth literally dropped..."
-- Was James Murdoch's $1 million donation to the ADL a P.R. move? | | Trump's sole tweet on Sunday... | | | He posted a critique of the news media as he was about to take off from NJ: "Heading back to Washington," he tweeted, "after working hard and watching some of the worst and most dishonest Fake News reporting I have ever seen!" | | | "Enough is Enough," the liberal LATimes editorial board said Sunday in the seventh part of a series titled "Our Dishonest President." The editorial called Trump "a danger to the Constitution" and "a threat to our democratic institutions..." | | -- Howard Cohen emails: A Ku Klux Klan leader threatened Univision anchor Ilia Calderon with racial slurs and promises of mass murder... (Mediaite)
-- Francesca Giuliani-Hoffman emails: Inspired by ElectionLand, Pop-Up Newsroom is looking to bridge the gap between tech and editorial, and to make collaboration easier. (Journalism.co.uk)
-- Julia Waldow emails: Film producer Joel Silver, known for his work on "The Matrix" and "Die Hard," is being sued for his alleged involvement in the "wrongful death" of his former personal assistant... (Variety) | | Quoting from Todd Leopold's obit: "Jerry Lewis, the slapstick-loving comedian, innovative filmmaker and generous fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, died Sunday after a brief illness, said his publicist, Candi Cazau. He was 91." More...
-- NYT's Dave Kehr: "Lewis knew success in movies, on television, in nightclubs, on the Broadway stage and in the university lecture hall. His career had its ups and downs, but when it was at its zenith there were few stars any bigger. And he got there remarkably quickly..." | | Weekend box office report | | | "'Logan Lucky,' a heist comedy directed by [Steven] Soderbergh, arrived to about $8.1 million in ticket sales, a weak showing for a well-reviewed film starring the likes of Channing Tatum and released in 3,031 theaters in North America," NYT's Brooks Barnes reports. The weekend's No. 1 movie was "The Hitman's Bodyguard," which collected "a stout $21.6 million from 3,377 theaters..." | | | Brian Lowry emails: An afterthought on "Logan Lucky:" The whole point was to do a small-scale movie with a different financial model. But as noted in my initial review, it's also the kind of movie that doesn't offer many compelling reasons to rush out to the theater. In other words, it's the kind of movie that will play just as well when it hits pay cable... | | | Email reliablesources@cnn.com... we appreciate every message. The feedback helps us craft the next day's newsletter! | | | Get Reliable Sources, a comprehensive summary of the most important media news, delivered to your inbox every afternoon. | | | | | |
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