White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

CAROL MELTON, POWER WOMAN

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Carol Melton and Dana Bash. Photo courtesy Dana Bash.

A DC Cheer to Carol Melton, Time Warner’s Executive Vice President for Global Public Policy, for being named to Moves Magazine annual Power Women list.

Honored at a year-end celebration gala held in Manhattan on November 10th, Melton is one of 25 women chosen this year who represent Moves Magazine mission of advocating for women’s rights, social fairness and equal opportunity.

The gala was hosted by acclaimed actors, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Isabelle Huppert, and the audience was treated to a live performance from international opera star James Valenti and Michelin star dining by chef Laurent Tourondel.

Melton was chosen for leading by example and being a role model for future generations. As EVP for TimeWarner she is responsible for overseeing the Company’s policy offices in Washington, D.C., London, Brussels, Hong Kong and Buenos Aires.

Melton serves on the Board of Trustees of JBG Smith Properties (NYSE: JBGS), the Board of Directors and First Vice President of the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., as well as the Boards of start-up incubator Halcyon and the Phillips Collection. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

#movespowerwomen

Fox News Rejects Democratic Mega-Donor’s Television Commercials

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Fox News building on 6th Avenue in NYC. Photo courtesy Jim Henderson via Wikimedia Commons.

Fox News has cancelled a contract to broadcast advertisements on the network that were purchased by a Democratic mega-donor as part of a $10 million national campaign demanding the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

Californian hedge fund manager and activist Tom Steyer confirmed on Friday that Fox News informed him October 31 it was discontinuing his ad entitled “Join Us,” which urged viewers to sign an online petition demanding Congress begin impeachment proceedings.

Brad Deutsch, an attorney for Steyer, claimed Fox News was in breach of contract after agreeing “unconditionally” on October 27 to air the ads for a second week.  Deutsch stated the network’s actions on pulling the ads early showed “a profound failure of journalistic integrity, a suppression of constitutionally protected speech, and likely a consequence of inexcusable political pressure.”

The ad campaign was the focus of a tweet sent from President Trump on the same day, saying Steyer was “[w]acky & totally unhinged.”

Deutsch wrote in a letter to Fox that “It is no coincidence that the Cancellation of the Advertisement, in the second week of its run, came on the heels of a tweet from President Trump criticizing the spot and Mr. Steyer personally.”

Steyer criticized the decision of the network, saying “[m]illions of Americans have raised their voices in opposition to Donald Trump.  If Fox News is siding with Trump and trying to silence us, they must be afraid of what we have to say.  It shows no respect for democracy.”

Fox News’s co-president Jack Abernathy said the decision to pull the ads was reached due to the “strong negative reaction” by the network’s viewers.

“Due to the strong negative reaction to their ad by our viewers, we could not in good conscious take their money,” Abernathy said.

 

High Profile Alt-Right Blogger Unmasked as Russian Troll

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Photo courtesy Pixabay

A high-profile, controversial alt-right blogger that had 70,000 Twitter followers has been unmasked as a fictional “troll” maintained by the Russian government.

Congressional investigators, with cooperation from social media companies, has confirmed Abrams was a creation of the Internet Research Agency, the Russian government’s “troll farm” in St. Petersburg.

Jenna Abrams was branded as a free-thinking American blogger promoting a return to segregation and lamenting problems stemming from “PC culture” running rampant in the nation.  Her account gained significant notoriety after “fixing” a nude photograph posted by Kim Kardashian.

On her Medium account, the Internet Research Agency published a blog post entitled “Why do we need to get back to segregation.”

“Humanity has gone full circle.  Never mind how many activists of any color died to get rid of segregation, and fought for inclusion, black people want it back.  100 percent free people made their choice, and their choice is segregation,” the fictional Russian blogger wrote.

Her posts and tweets received attention from nearly every national media outlet, including U.S. News and World Report, USA Today, The Washington Post, BBC, and The New York Times.  Her comments were also covered by Russian government-funded media outlets Russia Today and Sputnik.

Even former U.S. ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul engaged Abrams in arguments on Twitter.  During the timeframe of February 2015 through August 2016, McFaul responded to Abrams’ posts on at least ten separate occassions.

Twitter Employee Disabled Trump’s Account on Last Day

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Twitter announced late Thursday that an employee deactivated the account of President Donald Trump for 11 minutes on his last day on the job.

After an investigation, Twitter said that “[t]hrough our investigation we have learned that this was done by a Twitter customer support employee who did this on the employee’s last day.  We are conducting a full internal review.”

Trump himself seemed to brush off the incident, suggesting the employee’s actions showed the impact the president was having through social media.

The president’s Twitter account is highly watched, with 41.7 million followers viewing more than 36,000 tweets reportedly sent from Trump himself, often directing the news cycle of the day and raising controversy.

Collins Dictionary 2017 Word of the Year: Fake News

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Photo courtesy Pixabay

British dictionary publisher Collins has announced their 2017 “Word of the Year”: Fake News.

Claiming the term saw and “unprecedented” rise in usage over the past year, the term has also become synonymous with President Donald Trump, who has often utilized the phrase to criticize the media and journalists, especially on stories he perceives to be negative toward his administration.

Collins says the term has been in use for at least a decade, and defines “fake news” as “… false, often sensational, information disseminated under the guise of news reporting.”  Collins stated the word had been ranked top in its annual assessment of the most used words in the English language, with an “unprecedented usage increase 365% since 2016.”  Next year, the phrase will have its own entry in the dictionary.

President Trump recently claimed to have coined the phrase “fake news” as well.  In an interview with Mike Huckabee, he stated that:

“One of the greatest of all [the] terms I’ve come up with is ‘fake.’  I guess other people have used it — the term ‘fake’ in conjunction with ‘media’ — perhaps over the years.  But I’ve never noticed it.  And it’s a shame.  And they really hurt the country.”

Other words that were in competition for “Word of the Year” include “echo chamber,” “gender-fluid,” “gig economy” and “insta.”

You can see a sketch performed by The Free Association in partnership with Collins on “fake news” here.

Netflix Cancels ‘House of Cards’

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Kevin Spacey and the House of Cards team with David Axelrod at the 2013 White House Correspondents Garden Brunch. Photo courtesy Haddad Media

Following the news of unwanted sexual advances in 1986 by actor Kevin Spacey toward then-teenager Anthony Rapp, Netflix quickly decided on Monday to terminate House of Cards after the upcoming sixth season airs next year.

“Media Rights Capital and Netflix are deeply troubled by last night’s news concerning Kevin Spacey,’ said the companies in a joint statement. “In response to last night’s revelations, executives from both of our companies arrived in Baltimore this afternoon to meet with our cast and crew to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported. As previously scheduled, Kevin Spacey is not working on set at this time.”

Late Sunday, Rapp claimed then-26 year old Spacey drunkenly made advances toward him.  “I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually,” Rapp said.  Both actors were on Broadway at that time in a revival of Long Day’s Journey Into Night and Precious Sons.

Spacey responded by quickly apologizing, issuing a statement on social media stating he “did not remember the encounter” and that he was “horrified” by the actions described by Rapp.  “If I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.”

The sixth and final season of House of Cards is currently filming in Baltimore, and is expected to air mid-2018 on Netflix.

Reince Priebus Joins Washington Speakers Bureau, Michael Best and Friedrich Law

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Chairman Reince Priebus speaking at the RNC at the DNC opening press conference. Photo courtesy Haddad Media.

Reince Priebus, former White House chief of staff and former chairman of the Republican National Committee, announced that he will both rejoin the Washington D.C. office of the Milwaukee-based law firm Michael Best & Friedrich, LLC and be represented by the Washington Speakers Bureau.

Priebus will serve as president and chief strategist at Michael Best, where he worked more than a dozen years before his election as head of the RNC.  He will also serve as chairman of the advisory board for Michael Best Strategies LLC, the firm’s government relations and public affairs group.

“We are pleased to announce that Reince Priebus is joining Michael Best & Friedrich LLP as President and Chief Strategist in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. After serving the American people under the Trump Administration as Chief of Staff, Reince will bring his wealth of knowledge and unique understanding of federal, state, and local issues to advise and counsel the firm and its clients,” managing partner David Krutz announced via a statement on the firm’s website.

Additionally, Priebus will be represented by the Washington Speakers Bureau, giving speeches on Trump, Capitol Hill and politics in Washington.  He currently has events lined up in New York and London, as well as speaking at a dinner in South Korea last week.

“Reince has a truly 360° view of the current state of affairs in Washington. He offers insight into the inner workings of the Trump White House, forecasts the progress that is possible during the current Administration, and explains not only where the Republican Party has been but also where it’s going in the lead-up to the midterms,” said Washington Speakers Bureau vice president James Schiefer, Jr.

Priebus served as chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2011 through January 2017, when he began service as White House chief of staff under President Donald Trump until last July.

FCC Eliminates Rule Requiring TV and Radio Stations to Have Local Studios

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Photo courtesy Pixabay.

The Federal Communications Commission voted by a 3-2 margin to eliminate a decades-old rule requiring television and radio stations to maintain studios in the local communities they serve.

The three Republican commissioners said the decision would lead to cost savings for the broadcasters, which could be used to enhance “programming, equipment upgrades, newsgathering, and other services that benefit consumers.”

Enacted over 80 years ago, the rule was established to “facilitate input from community members and the station’s participation in community activities.” In today’s modern age, that rule is no longer needed because residents “can interact directly [with stations] through alternative means such as e-mail, social media, and the telephone,” the FCC said in a release announcing the decision.

“Getting rid of the rule will help broadcasters serve viewers and listeners, especially those in small towns and rural areas where the cost of compliance dissuades broadcasters from even launching stations,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai stated.

Local stations will still have an “obligation to air programming responsive to the interests of the community,” according to commissioner Michael O’Rielly. Residents will still be able to contact their local stations, because “it is more efficient and effective to call or e-mail a broadcast station, especially in times of an emergency, rather than visit the actual studio.”

The Democratic minority commissioners argued that eliminating the rule would exacerbate the problem around the shortage of stations with strong community ties.

“There are many broadcasters who do an extraordinary job serving communities during disaster,” said commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel. “But let’s be honest – they can only do so when they have a real presence in their area of license.” She continued that removing the main station rule “will hollow out the unique role broadcasters play in local communities.”

Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy predicted that because of the rule change, “local news production could be moved to places such as New York and Washington as the big networks buy up local stations.”

Attorney General Refuses To Rule Out Jailing Journalists

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By U.S. Customs and Border Protection (160120-H-NI589-0103) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

During a hearing at the Senate Judiciary Committee, Attorney General Jeff Sessions stated he could not make a “blanket commitment” against jailing journalists for reporting the news.

In response to a question posed from Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) asking him to pledge not to put “reporters in jail for doing their jobs,” the Attorney General responded:

“Well, I don’t know that I can make a blanket commitment to that effect.  But I will say this, we have not taken any aggressive action against the media at this point.”

Sen. Klobuchar commented that the president’s recent tweets suggesting the administration could look into revoking broadcast licenses for networks prompted her to ask the Attorney General for clarification.

“We always try to find an alternative way, as you probably know, Sen. Klobuchar, to directly confronting media persons.  But that’s not a total blanket protection,” Sessions told the committee.

 

FCC Extends Deadline for Public Input on Sinclair-Tribune Merger

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Photo courtesy Pixabay.

Today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it is extending the timeline allowing members of the public to comment on the Sinclair Broadcast Group’s proposed takeover of Tribune Media.

“Today we permit interested parties to submit additional comments in the proceeding for the transfer of control of Tribune Media Company to Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.  We are also pausing the Commission’s 180-day transaction shot clock in this proceeding for 15 days, until November 2, 2017,” the agency said via release.  “[W]e believe that this action will contribute to a more efficient review of the proposed transaction.”

The FCC usually attempts to complete transfer reviews within 180 days, but the Sinclair acquisition has prompted opposition from consumer groups and rival conservative media outlets.

In September, the agency requested Sinclair provide more information on the acquisition, including their plans on staying in compliance with federal restrictions regarding media ownership limits.

The announcement is intended to provide interested parties more time to communicate their concerns to Sinclair’s response, filed earlier this month.  “The Commission has a strong interest in ensuring a full and complete record upon which to base its decision in this proceeding.  Pausing the clock will ensure that commenters have additional time to review and comment on this new information,” the FCC stated.