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TCinLA's avatar

You're spot on to the "why." CBS, NBC, ABC and CNN are owned - respectively - by Paramount Global (a company in major financial distress), Comcast-Universal, Disney (kind of having financial problems) and Warner Brothers-Discovery (a company with major financial problems). All these companies - I call them the intergalactic widgetmakers after 40 years of watching them fuck up Hollywood - want to sell the "legacy media" they own because they're circling the bowl in this world of streaming. But to do so, those media companies have to be "profitable" to attract an idiot who will buy them. They all lost half their viewers after Trump left in 2020. They all remember what Jeff Zucker the Fucker (as we used to call him here in Okeefenokee West) said when he was criticized for CNN showing Trump's hatealongs in 2016: "Donald Trump brings high ratings!" (high ratings = mucho dinero)

It's always: Follow. The. Money.

And the low achievers of the upper middle class who go to Jurnilizm Skool, where they are taught by failures too talentless to actually work in the field, and parrot back what the failure "teaches" them, are all in terror of being cut loose in the next "restructuring." So we get to what Orwell was talking about when he said it is difficult to get someone to see the truth when their paycheck demands they not see it.

Follow. The. Money.

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Mitch Moncrief's avatar

I never liked absolutes. There are plenty of good journalists and just last night I was watching George Conway talk about the narcissism of the orangeman. And then the usual panel of talking heads.

But The Atlantic has a deep bench of hard hitting journalists, some for members of the GOP w articles calling out the lies, scams, lack of policies ( except the fascist project 2025). The New Yorker too. I look forward to Washington Week in Review where stupid statements, gibberish really, is picked apart. Even Hoover’s conservative/moderate, Firing Line, has had enough is the GOP craziness (or should I say weirdness?).

Despite many in the mainstream doing a poor job of exposing bribes and staying on the story, it still looks like it will be a blowout for Harris. If I were her I would not do pressers.

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TCinLA's avatar

There are good ones. They're just not the majority. Kamala should follow your advice.

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SPW's avatar

If she doesn’t then she’ll give the failing NYT a really big mad. Oh well…………guess they’ll have to bite that big one too.

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Carrie Duncan's avatar

She could always make pressers contingent on how they start treating Karine Jean-Pierre. Just outrageous most of them don't have their credentials yanked.

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bruce somers's avatar

Peter Doocy makes every press conference with Karine Jean-Pierre into a Fox News primetime soundbyte.

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Jeff's avatar

He and his dad are the Doocy Dickheads.

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bruce somers's avatar

He was at the convention last night, sticking a mic in front of Dems and asking some stupid, meaningless questions,like 'is Beyonce here?? Do you want her to come out?'...one Dem responded 'We're here to discuss issues,not your nonsense' Bravo!.

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Zija Pulp's avatar

Mitch, you are so right. SHE doesn’t need to do pressers. THEY (MSM) need her—so they can ask her stupid questions and twist whatever she says. Nah. Who’s got time for that make-believe? Journalists are going to have to get serious before any credible politician answers their inane queries. Until then, read my lips.

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Mitch Moncrief's avatar

I remember the CNN interview of Kaitlin Collins interviewing trump and he just steamrolled over her. It was a travesty. The CNN CEO lost his job over this.

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Ethereal fairy Natalie's avatar

She came from working for Tucker Carlson, so she wasn't ready for primetime. They promoted her over it, I believe it was a quid pro quo. Licht was a disaster, that was just the cherry on top. He was just doing what Malone the owner wanted him to do.

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Marian Goldsmith's avatar

Or better yet ZP. “Read my mind”. Then she makes it very clear doesn’t plan or have to say anything to them.

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Doc Blase''s avatar

A++ post TC.

And "hatealongs"!!! Gonna 'borrow' that for awhile.

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TCinLA's avatar

It's open source! :-)

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bruce somers's avatar

Brilliant post TC!!!

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TCinLA's avatar

Thank you.

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Marla's avatar

Ah…

I had the sad misfortune to work at NBC when Jeff Zucker took over. Referred to by those of us in the trenches as, ‘that bullet-headed troll who took NBC from first to worst’, we all couldn’t believe our bad luck. Zucker was the kind of craphead who consistently failed upward, starting out as a numbers statistician for the Olympics and weaseling his way into producing the Today Show, then the head of NBC Entertainment and so on.

He’s running MSNBC, has an inappropriate relationship with an underling and gets sent to the wilderness. OK, good. Cue Jeff Shell. Shell, a very talented exec, is done in by a bunch of completely unsubstantiated rumors of hanky panky. Rumors are investigated and found wanting. Shell is shown the door regardless.

Flash forward to now. Ellison Jr. is taking over Paramount Global and wants to hire Jeff Shell. Suddenly, the rumors about him spout anew. Who’s behind them? My guess—the bullet-headed troll, who’s now with Redbird Capital and who made their own failed bid for Paramount Global.

Show business…ain’t it grand?

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Mitch Moncrief's avatar

Did you know Chris Licht?

There are many who fail up. Recently the WP’s editor tried to hire a British editor that did some unsavory things for the Murdock owned media overseas.

I remember when Discovery was a local cable channel with excellent programming ( based in Silver Spring , MD) and then the private equity/corporate execs got a hold of it and its never been the same.

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Mitch Moncrief's avatar

I’m not sure if Robert Winnick, the failed WP hire worked for the Murdochs

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Marla's avatar

I believe he did--at the Telegraph. Will Lewis, the CEO of WaPo, definitely did. He was involved in the hacking scandal up to his eyeballs.

I didn't know Chris Licht, but I believe he was a victim of his own hubris more than incompetence. He stepped on his own dick when he gave The Atlantic all that access. He made himself the story, which was a fatal error.

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SPW's avatar

Always!

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Ethereal fairy Natalie's avatar

So well said. Absolutely agree with your points, If I recall correctly, I believe it was Upton Sinclair quote.

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TCinLA's avatar

If it was, Orwell would have approved. :-)

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Ethereal fairy Natalie's avatar

I hesitated to mention it, because I'm sure Orwell said something very similar!

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