Archives for December 2020

The News Media Alliance and a number of leading news media organizations, including the Public Broadcasting Service, National Association of Broadcasters, and the National Press Photography Association, sent a letter to the committee in charge of advising the CDC on COVID-19 vaccine distribution to request that front-line journalists be included among the early phases of vaccine deployment, reports Radio Online.

The news organizations were careful to acknowledge that healthcare workers, first responders, and the most at-risk populations should be prioritized for vaccine distribution. However, the letter also urges the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to consider the essential role journalists play in “educating Americans about the importance of vaccination, as well as aiding in the monumental task of informing the public about the logistics of the vaccine’s dispersal around the country.”

The letter pointed out that front-line journalists are regularly at risk of contracting COVID-19 while they are covering the plights of healthcare workers and patients, as well as rallies, protests and public events.

“To continue providing these critical services,” the letter reads, “journalists cannot simply work from home, but must interact with government officials and the public to report on the stories that matter, regardless of the risks they must assume. Despite efforts to protect themselves and the public, members of the media are necessarily exposed to the COVID-19 virus while doing their jobs and serving as ‘first informers’ in local communities across the country.”

The National Press Photography Association filed a similar request, separately, pointing out that visual journalists were particularly vulnerable due to the requirements of their work, reports the Poynter Institute. NPPA’s legal counsel, Mickey Osterreicher, demands “that journalists who have direct contact with the public on a regular basis, and particularly visual journalists, be expressly included in the phase of the COVID-19 vaccine that includes the essential and critical infrastructure workforce.”

Osterreicher argues that, “Visual journalists cannot work from home, and have put their health and lives at risk on a daily basis to cover both the COVID-19 pandemic and other matters of public concern, including matters critical to the health and safety of the public and critical to our democracy. These journalists must work in the conditions they find — regardless of the risk.”

The full list of signatories include the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the News Media Alliance (NMA), the America’s Public Television Stations (APTS), the Asian Americans Journalists Association (AAJA), the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), the National Newspaper Association (NNA), the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA), the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA), the News Leaders Association (NLA), NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) and Society for Professional Journalists (SPJ).

Donald Trump’s climatic final year as president has inspired two new books from Washington Post reporters Robert Costa, Bob Woodward, Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker, reports Politico and Axios.

Robert Costa has joined Bob Woodward as co-author for a new book about Trump’s final days in the White House and the beginning of Joe Biden’s presidency soon to follow. This will be Bob Woodward’s 21st book, all with Simon & Schuster, and co-author, Washington Post National political reporter Robert Costa’s first. This is only the second time Woodward has added a co-author.

“We’re two pure reporters — what happened and why — and this is a perfect landscape for that kind of work,” Woodward told Axios reporter Mike Allen. Robert Costa will remain a national political reporter for Washington Post, on leave, as he is expected to focus primarily on the book during the coming year. 

Costa is also the host of Washington Week on PBS. In his three years hosting, he has managed to double the show’s ratings.

Announced on the same day, Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker will be working on a follow-up to their number one New York Times Best Seller, “A Very Stable Genius,” named after President Trump’s own self-aggrandizing quote.

“I’m teaming up again with Carol Leonnig to write a book about President Trump’s final year in office,” said Philip Rucker over Twitter. “We’ll pick up where we left off with ‘A Very Stable Genius.’ I’m thrilled to be working again with the great Ann Godoff and the all-stars at Penguin Press!”

These two books will add to a growing list of titles exploring the era of Trump’s presidency. As Washington Post nonfiction book critic and author of the book on Trump books Carlos Lozada observed in a recent essay, “One of the ironies of our time is that a man who rarely reads has inspired an onslaught of book-length writing about his presidency.”

According to The Hill, New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman also announced last month that she would also be working on a new book on Trump’s final months in the office of the President.

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have announced the Senior Leadership Team of their Presidential Inaugural Committee in preparation for their swearing-in ceremony on January 20th, reports Politico.

According to the press release, the Biden team has named Delaware State University President Tony Allen to be CEO of the Presidential Inaugural Committee. Biden-Harris campaign senior staffers Maju Varghese and Erin Wilson also secured leadership positions along with Nevada State Senator Yvanna Cancela, who was one of Biden’s earliest supporters.

A stage for the event being built on the West Front of the Capitol can accommodate up to 1,600 spectators, and the National Mall is prepared for much more. However, faced with an ongoing pandemic, one can expect smaller crowds and social distancing at the event, writes the New York Times. 

“This year’s inauguration will look different amid the pandemic,” said Allen. “But we will honor the American inaugural traditions and engage Americans across the country while keeping everybody healthy and safe.”

Incoming Chief of Staff Ron Klain echoed this sentiment, suggesting that virtual inauguration might be the best practice.

“You know, we ran a very effective and I think engaging Democratic convention this year in August, in a way that was safe for the people to participate and watch it, in a way that communicates with the American people,” Klain said.

The Inaugural Committee has begun accepting donations; up to $500,000 from individuals and up to $1 million from corporations. However, according to CNBC, the committee has banned donations from lobbyists and “fossil fuel companies (i.e., companies whose primary business is the extraction, processing, distribution or sale of oil, gas, or coal), their executives, or from PACs organized by them.”

The ban on donations from fossil fuel companies is a continuation of the Biden-Harris Campaign rules against accepting donations from registered lobbyists, foreign agents, and anything over $200 from fossil fuel company employees.

For more information on President-elect Joe Biden’s swearing-in ceremony, you can go to BidenInaugural.org or follow @BidenInaugural on Twitter.