06.07.23
Anti-Social Media – TWITTER
Last night, Tucker Carlson debuted his new show on Twitter, and the results are in. It was a rousing success... unless you listen to the people who hate him. "Tucker On Twitter" drew 20 million viewers, but that audience being about seven times what he would get on Fox News is not noteworthy, for some reason.
At CNN, their media guru Oliver Darcy unsurprisingly was not impressed by anything. In describing the quality of "a conspiracy-peddling talk-show," Darcy describes the self-produced program:
The debut video looked like a meager shell of Carlson's former show. The production quality was bare bones, with the audio gently echoing in the background as Carlson used his spare hand to scroll through the teleprompter himself.
Darcy also dismisses the audience size simply for the reason that he does not want to praise it:
What counts as a video view on Twitter is unclear. Musk himself said that 'it simply counts if you saw the post on the X/Twitter app or via web browser, not how long you watched.' In contrast, Nielsen, the gold standard of television ratings, provides data on the average number of concurrent viewers, not the cumulative number of views. The two sets of data are apples and oranges.
Reporting on the Mirror – FOX NEWS
After his program, word came out that lawyers from Fox News came forward to inform Carlson he was in breach of contract for broadcasting on Twitter last night. What is in the lurch is that Carlson has previously said his contract allowed for social media posts, and the newly created video option on the platform means he is clear to put up shows.
What is the curiosity is why Fox wants him silenced. If this was a move in relation to the defamation suit, Tucker on Twitter does not appear immediately connected to this.
🚨Scoop: Fox News informed Tucker Carlson's lawyers last night that he breached his contract with the network when he launched his own Twitter show on Tuesday
— Sara Fischer (@sarafischer) June 7, 2023
— Carlson's lawyers argue Carlson has the right to free speech on social media
With @mikeallen https://t.co/jHnjjOoYT4
Reporting on the Mirror – CNN
- His inability to fix the unfixable was the cause.
The big news has been – obviously – the announcement that CNN's CEO Chris Licht was let go from his post, along with a number of his staff. While not surprising, this is a curiosity all the same.
The man had the desire to move the network to a more neutral journalistic position, but the bulk of CNN staffers resisted this change. So now that he is gone, will the network adhere to its current course, which has proven to be a ratings fiasco for years, predating the arrival of Licht? It remains to be seen what direction CNN will go and how it will repair the deep and significant damage.
My initial thoughts on CNN, Chris Licht parting ways.
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) June 7, 2023
BREAKING: Chris Licht Is OUT at CNN After Failed, Tumultuous Stint https://t.co/Yn1uJrJ01x
Blue-Anon – CNN
Almost as if it wanted to display the very type of coverage that has depleted the integrity of the network, CNN had a breathless story about the investigation into the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case that has an impending indictment of Donald Trump.
The prosecutors looking into the case have leaked to CNN that they wanted to view surveillance tapes from the compound to see if any documents had been moved ahead of the FBI raid at the resort. In doing so, they made a discovery. A maintenance crew member had drained a pool on the property and may have done so to impact the videos:
An employee at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence drained the resort's swimming pool last October and ended up flooding a room where computer servers containing surveillance video logs were kept, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
In the lengthy piece detailing plenty of alleged questionable behavior on the property, CNN manages to nestle one small mention of a disqualifying detail in the midst of all its accusatory bluster. The primary component of this entire piece appears not to have been an issue at all:
Prosecutors have heard testimony that the IT equipment in the room was not damaged in the flood, according to one source.
A flood in a room where surveillance footage was kept raised suspicions among prosecutors in Donald Trump's classified documents case, sources say https://t.co/5CJQybq2ST
— CNN (@CNN) June 5, 2023
DNC PR Firm – POLITICO
- "We got ya back, Joe, not to worry."
Grudgingly we see the press is forced into acknowledging that the Democrats might have to contend with other candidates in the upcoming presidential race. Many in the press see it as perfectly acceptable that the party has already – 18 months out – declared there will be no primary debates, but the reality is looming.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced his bid to unseat Jose Biden, and currently, he has a more than noticeable 20% support in the polls against Biden's continuously shrinking approval numbers. But with this challenge slowly looming, it is clear the strategy from the Biden camp will be similar to the 2020 run – go hide, and let the press cover for him.
Biden world's plan is to ignore him. The overwhelming sense inside the campaign and White House orbits is that any other posture would elevate him from a gadfly with a good name to a genuine contender. They are counting on reporters and other Democrats to do the work of informing voters about Kennedy's well-established views.
Playbook: What do you do with a problem like RFK Jr.?
— Leave Our Children Alone (@Babs_in_Pa) June 6, 2023
Why is he a problem, @Politico? Because he is polling well? It doesn't matter if his policies don't fall inline with Democrats. He is polling well. Deal with it. He has every right to run. https://t.co/yygVxBUN7U
Legalized Press-titution – ABC NEWS
- Oh sure, but if FOX were to do this…!
Chris Christie has tossed his name into the GOP field for the election and is making the media rounds. One stop was with George Stephanopoulos on "Good Morning America."
Small matter that Christie is an employee of ABC News, and they are giving him free airtime, but what is a little ethical integrity regarding one of your own?
NEW: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, appearing on @GMA, makes clear that any path to the Republican nomination in 2024 means taking down former Pres. Trump. https://t.co/bURt0ybRti
— ABC News (@ABC) June 7, 2023
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