“To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle.”-George Orwell.
For previous entries, click here.
This is not a healthy way for a president and a cabinet secretary to talk about the media. It is antithetical to the First Amendment.
It is especially problematic when joined with this headline via the BBC: Paramount to pay Trump $16m to settle 60 Minutes lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit filed in federal court in Texas, CBS aired two versions of the Harris interview in which she appeared to give different answers to the same question about the Israel-Gaza war.
Interviewer Bill Whitaker asked the Democratic nominee about the Biden administration’s relationship with Israel. The network later aired two different versions of her response, according to the claim.
One clip aired on Face the Nation and the other on 60 Minutes. Trump claimed Harris’s “word salad” answer had been deceptively edited in one version to shield her from backlash.
CBS said it edited Harris’s answer for time, in accordance with television news standards.
Trump sued, originally claiming for $10bn (£8.5bn) but that figure was later increased to $20bn ($17bn) for damages.
In May this year, the company offered $15m (12.7m) to settle the suit but Trump wanted more than $25m (£21m).
[…]
According to both the Wall Street Journal and New York Times, the settlement was agreed – with the help of mediator – so as to not affect Paramount’s planned merger with Skydance Media, which the Federal Communications Commission has been reviewing and therefore Trump technically has the power to halt.
Let me not bury the lede: this is Paramount paying out a settlement to a case they know they would win because they fear Trump would use the presidency to scuttle a business deal. This is essentially a shake-down of a corporation by a sitting president.
Never mind that the practice was normal. Never mind that there were no damages to Trump (what would they even be? He won the election).
Also, a trip down memory lane via NPR: ABC settles with Trump for $15 million. Now, he wants to sue other news outlets.
BTW, also in front of our noses as per the photo at the top of this post: the president advertising his merch during official duties. Moreover, it is part of an ever-present move to replace unifying national symbols with Trump-centric symbols. For those worried about the erosion of patriotism and national pride, take note of who is actively denigrating shared symbols/replacing them with personalistic ones.
