Forward

EXEC SUMMARY: This is Oliver Darcy, filling in for Brian Stelter. Apologies for sending the letter so late. I lost my internet connection at work for some reason, and had to steal an editor's computer to put the finishing touches on it!

Scroll down for James Mattis' response to Trump calling him the "most overrated general," Mark Zuckerberg's speech on free expression, and tributes from journalists to Elijah Cummings. But first...

White House: Don't believe your eyes & ears

"WHITE HOUSE IN CLEAN-UP MODE AFTER PRES. TRUMP'S CHIEF OF STAFF ADMITS TO QUID PRO QUO WITH UKRAINE."

That is the chyron which has been accompanying much of CNN's programming Thursday night after Mick Mulvaney attempted to walk back comments he made earlier in the day. At a shock press conference, Mulvaney admitted a quid pro quo was related to $400 million in Ukrainian aid.

Mulvaney said the money was tied to President Trump's desire for an investigation into a conspiracy theory involving the whereabouts of the DNC's computer server. But in a statement released just hours later, Mulvaney reversed himself. He claimed there was "absolutely no quid pro quo between Ukrainian military aid and any investigation into the 2016 election."

Put simply: Mulvaney's statement did not square at all with what he told reporters from the White House podium. As NPR's David Folkenflik tweeted, he was asking everyone "not to listen to the words he said earlier out loud."

Reporters gave him opportunities to clarify

What makes Mulvaney's attempted walk back so absurd is that reporters asked him during the briefing whether he meant what he had said about a quid pro quo -- and Mulvaney said he did. As The Daily Beast's Asawin Suebsaeng noted, ABC's Jon Karl followed up repeatedly with Mulvaney. Here's part of that exchange:

KARL: "But to be clear, what you just described is a quid pro quo. It is funding will not flow unless the investigation into the Democrats' server happens as well."

MULVANEY: "We do that all the time with foreign policy."

What happened?

Immediately after making the remarks, reporters were floored. So why did Mulvaney make them in the first place? According to a story from CNN's Jim Acosta and Jeremy Diamond, White House lawyers and press staff prepped Mulvaney, but focused mostly on questions related to the selection of Trump National Doral as the 2020 G7 meeting site.

"White House aides spent only a short time prepping Mulvaney on impeachment questions and did not expect he would go as far as he did in describing the freeze of aid to Ukraine," Acosta and Diamond reported, adding that a source close to Trump said the President was "not happy" with the performance.

WSJ's scoop: Trump agreed Mulvaney needed to walk back comments

This is how you know Trump was not happy with Mulvaney's comments. According to WSJ, Trump even agreed Mulvaney needed to walk back his comments. Yikes...

NYT page one: "Mulvaney Erodes Denials By Trump Over Ukraine Aid"

FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE

-- Mulvaney addressed the violent video depicting a massacre scene of a fake Trump attacking his political opponents and members of the press, saying, "I think we've condemned that..." (Mediaite)

-- Before Mulvaney's press briefing, the top story across most news organizations was related to Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, testifying that Trump directed diplomats to work with Rudy Giuliani on Ukraine... (CNN)

-- NBC's Geoff Bennett was trying to ask Sondland a question ahead of his testimony when a man tried to brush him aside. Bennett responded, "As a respected attorney, I'm sure you understand how the free press works..." (MSNBC)

-- Another shocking headline from Thursday: "Pence announces Syria ceasefire that appears to give Turkey everything it wants..." (CNN)

-- Speaking of the agreement, Richard Engel said the claim the Kurds are "very happy with this deal" is "completely delusional..." (Twitter)

Mulvaney grilled by reporters on selection of Trump's Doral resort for G7 summit

Before Mulvaney made his stunning remarks on Ukraine, he made the stunning announcement that the White House had selected the Trump National resort in Doral, Florida, to host the 2020 G7 summit. Mulvaney attempted to convince the press corps that it was the best place to hold the event, and that its selection was not because Trump happens to own it.

Reporters repeatedly questioned Mulvaney on the topic. Fox's Kevin Corke told Mulvaney that it was "wince inducing." NBC's Kirsten Welker asked, "How can the White House really make the argument that this was the only place the G7 summit could be?" The lengthy grilling was actually, as NYT's Maggie Haberman noted, "[The] first time any administration official has answered extensive q's on Trump conflicts in some time."

Napolitano: "Direct and profound violation of Emoluments Clause"

Over on Fox, Judge Andrew Napolitano remarked that the selection of the Doral resort was "about as direct and profound a violation of the Emoluments Clause as one could create." Napolitano said that it didn't matter if Trump was making a profit off the G7 or not, arguing the framers "were concerned about a gift or cash coming directly or indirectly to the president of the United States." Napolitano added, "That's exactly, exactly what the Emoluments Clause was written to prohibit."

Confessore's point

NYT's Nick Confessore hit the nail on the head with this tweet: "It's striking that, as he faces intensifying legal and political jeopardy, and with more of the public favoring impeachment, President Trump is doing more — not fewer — things likely to invite criticism, disapproval, and investigation."

David Fahrenthold is a national treasure

Brian Stelter writes: The decision to hold the G7 at Doral "is without precedent in modern American history: The president used his public office to direct a massive contract to himself," the WaPo's team rightly notes.

One of the bylines belongs to David Fahrenthold, who has been covering Doral and Trump's other businesses for years. One of the big Q's on his beat, he tweeted Thursday, is this: "Is Trump using his power to force people to pay him money? Today, the answer was a huge yes."

In other posts, he pointed out that Doral has fallen on hard times... And that the resort is "usually empty" during the hot month of June, with only 38 percent occupancy in June 2017... Now -- because Trump "has awarded the summit to himself -- it will be full." Through FOIAs and source work, he and his colleagues have lots of info about Trump's properties, some of which contradicts Trump's claims...

"All in plain sight"

WaPo's Greg Miller tweeted, "All in plain sight today: Trump awards major global summit to his own golf resort in Miami; WH chief of staff admits aid to Ukraine held up for Trump political ends ("Get over it.") EU ambassador testifies was told by Trump to take orders on US-Ukraine relationship from Giuliani."

JUST IN:

Mattis responds to Trump calling him the "world's most overrated general"

Delivering the keynote address at the annual Al Smith dinner, former Defense Secretary James Mattis responded to Trump privately calling him on Wednesday the "world's most overrated general." Mattis said, "He called Meryl Streep an overrated actress. So I guess I'm the Meryl Streep of generals."

FRIDAY PLANNER

NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir will conduct the first all-female spacewalk after the event was scrapped back in March. They are scheduled to leave the ISS at 7:50am ET, to be streamed on NASA TV...

Zuckerberg delivers major speech on free expression

"Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sought to recast the challenges facing his company in a historical light on Thursday, describing social media as a kind of 'Fifth Estate' and describing politicians' calls to clamp down on tech companies as an effort to restrict the freedom of expression," Brian Fung reported for CNN. "In a speech citing landmark Supreme Court cases and historical figures such as Frederick Douglass, Zuckerberg told an audience at Georgetown University that during times of social upheaval, policymakers have instinctively sought to limit the freedom of speech."

>> Key quote from Zuck: "The impulse is to pull back from free expression," he said. But, he continued, "We are at a crossroads. We can either stand for free expression ... or we can decide the cost is simply too great. We must continue to stand for free expression."

Defends allowing politicians to lie in ads

Zuckerberg said during his speech that he "considered" whether to ban ads from politicians altogether, noting "the controversy certainly is not worth the very small part of our business that they make up." But he said he decided against the ban, arguing that ads can be an "important part of voice" for local candidates.

...but says he worries "about an erosion of truth"

While Zuckerberg continued to defend permitting politicians to lie in ads, he also said he is concerned about the deterioration of truth. "People worry, and I worry deeply, too, about an erosion of truth," Zuckerberg told WaPo's Tony Romm. "At the same time, I don't think people want to live in a world where you can only say things that tech companies decide are 100 percent true. And I think that those tensions are something we have to live with."

Biden campaign: Facebook "unprepared" for "this unique moment in our history"

"Facebook has chosen to sell Americans' personal data to politicians looking to target them with disproven lies and conspiracy theories, crowding out the voices of working Americans," said a statement from Bill Russo, deputy comms director of the Biden campaign.

Russo added, "Zuckerberg attempted to use the Constitution as a shield for his company's bottom line, and his choice to cloak Facebook's policy in a feigned concern for free expression demonstrates how unprepared his company is for this unique moment in our history and how little it has learned over the past few years."

Warren: Facebook "helped elect Donald Trump once. They might do it again—and profit off of it"

In a Twitter thread, Elizabeth Warren also zinged Zuckerberg. It read, in part, "Here's the thing, Mark. Trump isn't just posting a lie on his own page for his own followers. Facebook is accepting millions of dollars from Trump to run political ads, including ones with misinformation and outright lies. Ads that TV stations won't even run. Facebook is actively helping Trump spread lies and misinformation. Facebook already helped elect Donald Trump once. They might do it again—and profit off of it."

Fung's big takeaway

Brian Fung emails: The big takeaway from Zuckerberg's Thursday remarks is his framing. In Zuckerberg's view, Facebook is at the center of an epic, centuries-long struggle of ideas against authoritarianism and illiberalism. To help make his case, he cited historical figures who took advantage of the right to free speech and who in some cases redefined it, like Martin Luther King, Jr., Black Lives Matter and Frederick Douglass. In this view, Facebook is helping those who would continue their work.

But modern-day figures closely linked to civil rights movements aren't buying it. From King's daughter to the co-founder of BLM, they slammed Zuckerberg for invoking black activists as a way to defend his company's position. Whether by allowing disinformation to thrive on the platform or by failing to reach out to minorities with the same perceived zeal with which he courts conservative thinkers, they say, Zuckerberg doesn't represent them.

>> The result? A curious tension -- one in which Zuckerberg's speech appeared to alienate those whose rhetorical support could have helped Facebook the most.

Preview of Fox's Friday interview

Zuckerberg sat down with Fox's Dana Perino for an interview airing Friday. The network released an early preview of it Thursday night. In it, Perino asks Zuckerberg whether he believes there is a "bias against conservatives" in Silicon Valley. Zuckerberg refuted the idea of bias in the actual services, but acknowledged California "is an overwhelmingly left-leaning place." More here...

FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO

-- Erik Wemple spoke with Trump supporters about the resignation of Shepard Smith. The supporters were gleeful... (WaPo)

-- Will Sommer examined who Rudy Giuliani follows on Twitter. Sommer said, "It is the worst that the right-wing internet fever swamp has to offer..." (The Daily Beast)

-- "Viacom has quietly debuted a conservative news channel on Pluto TV, a digital platform it acquired for $340 million in March... (THR)

-- Brian Stelter emails: Ronan Farrow's "Catch and Kill" is now on its third printing, publisher Little, Brown and Co. says...

Journalists remember Elijah Cummings

The country woke up on Thursday to terrible news: the death of Elijah Cummings. The 68-year-old Maryland Democrat died of "complications concerning longstanding health challenges," his office said in a statement. Throughout the day, journalists paid tribute:

-- Joe Scarborough wrote in WaPo that he considered Cummings "a member" of his "extended family." Scarborough described him as "a good man, a great leader and a dear friend of mine. We worked closely together in Congress, and my wife, Mika, and I were deeply honored when he agreed to officiate our wedding..."

-- Chris Hayes said on his show that Cummings was "a rare combination of laser intellect, grace, forbearance, empathy, righteousness and equanimity..."

-- Wolf Blitzer paid tribute to Cummings on "The Situation Room," calling him "a truly great American" who he was "fortunate to know.."

-- Politico's Maya King tweeted, "So many young black reporters have a good Cummings story about how he pulled us aside and gave us a word of advice or support when we were navigating the Hill or covering events. It speaks so much to who he was. He always wanted to see us win..."

-- Lisa Respers France emails: The Baltimore Sun is my hometown newspaper and where I started as a customer service rep in college. I was a young reporter covering a community which was part of Cummings district when I first had the chance to speak with him. I told him I was one of his constituents, having grown up in his district where I still lived with my parents. He put his hands on my shoulders and said "We are proud of you daughter." It meant the world to me and I have never forgotten it.

Motherboard dives into NYT's reluctance to hyperlink

Kerry Flynn emails: NYT is notorious for not linking to the work of reporters from other news organizations. On Thursday, Motherboard tackled the issue in a story that said, "Journalists at the New York Times and its own standards editor say that getting continually dragged by other journalists for not giving credit is embarrassing." So what's the cause? Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai and Jason Koebler, reported editors who "do not get it" play a role. So do "harried journalists not getting around to doing so."

"Linking should be the default"

Flynn adds: Despite NYT's reputation for not linking, Franceschi-Bicchierai and Koebler obtained a memo written earlier this year by NYT standards editor Phil Corbett which encouraged the papers journalists to do so. The memo plainly stated, "Linking should be the default. It's free and easy. Readers like it. It deepens our journalism and may increase our audience. Our journalistic colleagues appreciate it. Why wouldn't we do it?"

Pelosi reveals backstory behind viral photo

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Nancy Pelosi offered details related to the viral photo of her standing up to Trump. Pelosi said at that moment she was about to walk out of the room. "At that moment, I was probably saying all roads lead to Putin," Pelosi said.

"One woman standing up" to "table with all men"

On "New Day," CNN's Dana Bash discussed the symbolism of the photo. Bash observed that it showed "one woman standing up and, you know, giving it to the President of the United States at a table with all men."

FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE

-- Take a look "inside the modern design of WarnerMedia's new NYC headquarters with Jeff Zucker..." (THR)

-- Ben Smith published a text message of a Kamala Harris aide complaining to him about a joke from editor and reporter Katherine Miller: "Here's a little glimpse at some of the nonsense that shoots back and forth between campaigns and reporters..." (BuzzFeed)

-- WaPo announced Thursday it had updated its parental leave policy, expanding it to 20 weeks of paid leave for each parent... (Twitter)

-- NBCUniversal says it won't conduct a new Matt Lauer investigation: "We are very confident in the report that was conducted..." (THR)

Megyn Kelly interview rakes in 4.06 million viewers

A ratings hit. That's what Tucker Carlson's sit-down with Megyn Kelly turned out to be. The segment drew in 4.06 million viewers, sending Carlson's show to the top of Wednesday night's ratings.

@OverheardNewYork's print paper

Kerry Flynn emails: Media brand Overheard, known for Instagram accounts like @OverheardNewYork and @OverheardLA, launched a pop-up coffee store in NYC's Union Square Thursday where they handed out physical papers titled "Overheard Post New York." They did a similar marketing stunt in LA last spring.

Overheard founder Jesse Margolis told me this afternoon, "We've had over 2,000 people stop by the Overheard Newsstand to pick up a copy, enjoy free coffee and take photos. Our dedicated millennial newsies will be in tie dye roaming the streets for the next three days for extra surprise moments throughout the city."

Maven had "substantial doubt" it could last through 2019

Kerry Flynn emails: Business Insider's Lucia Moses dug through SEC filings of Maven, the startup that took over Sports Illustrated, and found management had "sustainable doubt" it could last through 2019 due to lack of funds including $8 million in losses as of June 30, 2018. Earlier this week, Maven raised $20 million and detailed its expansion plans in an investor deck...

Colbert inks new deal at CBS

Frank Pallotta emails: Stephen Colbert has signed a new contract that keeps him as host of CBS' "The Late Show" through 2023. "I've been asked by CBS to host 'The Late Show' until 2023, and I have every intention of honoring their subpoena," Colbert said in a statement.

Colbert's other late night cohorts have also signed contracts in the last few years. Jimmy Kimmel has a deal with ABC through 2022. NBC's Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers are both under contract through 2021 and Trevor Noah will be on Comedy Central through 2022.

Studio Ghibli films to stream exclusively on HBO Max

Pallotta sends one more: Studio Ghibli, the revered Japanese animation studio behind "My Neighbor Totoro" and the Academy Award-winning "Spirited Away" will have its film library stream exclusively on HBO Max. This is big news for animation fans since this is the first time the studio's classic films have been licensed to a streaming platform.

FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR

By Katie Pellico:

-- Kurt Sutter was fired from FX after "multiple complaints" about his behavior, Lesley Goldberg reported... (THR)

-- Netflix still plans to drop "The Laundromat" on Friday, despite a lawsuit their lawyers are calling "laughable..." (IndieWire)

-- Bleacher Report is co-producing its first pilot, THR reports. "'Battlestations' will showcase the personal video game rooms of stars from the NBA and beyond, hosted by esports star Doug 'Censor' Martin...." (THR)

-- EW's James Hibberd goes inside "The Irishman" and Martin Scorcese's "decades-long battle to make his best-reviewed movie ever..." (EW)

Paul Rudd pulls double duty in 'Living With Yourself'

Brian Lowry writes: Paul Rudd plays a double role — as a guy and his clone — in Netflix's "Living With Yourself," an inventive and even thought-provoking comedy, which keeps writing itself into interesting corners, then escaping them. Read Lowry's full review here...

FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE

By Lisa Respers France:

-- Rise and Shine meme featuring Kylie Jenner is bringing sunshine to the internet...

-- Bella Hadid is the most beautiful woman in the world, according to "science..."

-- Elton John is not a fan of the new "Lion King" and doesn't feel the soundtrack has the same appeal as the original he worked on 25 years ago...

A reminder: Netflix is cherrypicking the numbers

Brian Lowry emails: Netflix is again playing peekaboo with its user data, cherrypicking numbers about the audience the services attracts for series like "Unbelievable" or movies like "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie."

The problem is that the data the company cites doesn't directly equate with conventional means of measuring viewership, and that even a lot of media reporters don't really know how to process it in any way that makes sense relative to the Nielsen numbers that we regularly see reported.

Thanks for reading! I love your feedback (and your tips), so do get in touch. Shoot me an email or find me on Twitter. I'll see you tomorrow!