Russia. Russia. Russia.
That seems to be the monotonous key word heard in most broadcast stories relating to President Donald Trump, especially with almost wall-to-wall coverage on MSNBC and CNN, notes Grumpy Editor.
Now, seven months after the election, Russia continues to grab air time and print space with mainstream media.
That includes consistent mentions of meeting with a Russian banker and a Russian ambassador --- before Trump entered the White House.
Imagine, meeting with a banker and an ambassador.
Now think about that.
As Kimberley A. Strassel points out in her Friday column in the Wall Street Journal: “The country is no better informed about exactly how Russia interfered in the election than it was in October, when intelligence agencies issued a statement expressing their belief that Moscow had helped hack emails. Not a single useful fact has since been added, nor a single investigation completed, not a single official report produced. Until those inquiries are completed, we will have no new real facts. Yet every day a new Russia story.”
With the heavy focus on Russia, newsworthy stories from around the U.S. and elsewhere are being sidetracked.
While Russia is on the minds of most media, what is being overlooked by most editors is the potential threat of North Korea and its loony leader Kim Jong-un with efforts of sending a missile toward the U.S.
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Saturday warns that North Korea is a “clear and present danger.”
Through the weekend, Russia chatter abated somewhat with a new (yet old) subject grabbing attention: climate change.
Meanwhile, Media Research Center President Brent Bozell says a MRC campaign will focus on informing the public and corporate advertisers about leftist shows and on-air personalities who use their programs to spread vicious lies and hate.
“We are putting the radical left on notice that we are on to them. We know the inside-outside game that radical organizations are playing with their leftist allies in the ‘news’ media,” adds Bozell.
“Every network and cable news channel is today on notice that the MRC will be closely monitoring their leftist opinion programs and informing their advertisers and the American public when these programs and hosts go beyond political commentary and engage in smear, hate and political extremism,” continues Bozell.
IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…
Despite mainstream media attempts to inject negative news, the U.S. economy last month added 138,000 jobs and on Friday U.S. equities rose to record levels as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all soared to new highs.
Interesting to observe contrasting headlines from the Washington Post and New York Times.
From the Post: U.S. jobs market stumbles in May, adding just 138,000 jobs.
From the Times: Unemployment at 16-year low as U.S. adds 138,000 jobs.
Meanwhile, newspaper circulation and advertising revenue ebb. Estimated total daily newspaper circulation (print and digital combined) at 34.6 million for weekday and 38 million for Sunday, represents an 8 percent drop from 2015. Weekday print circulation sinks 10 percent while Sunday decreases 9 percent. Estimated newspaper industry advertising revenue for 2016 was $18 billion, 10 percent below the 2015 level.
The New York Times offers buyouts aimed at cutting the number of editors in the newsroom. Along with that, The Times is eliminating the position of public editor, an accountability role the paper created in 2003…In a Donald Trump tweet, “covfefe” is labeled “a mysterious term” by media and gets much air time and print space over the past several days. Example from one news agency: “The White House is keeping the U.S. and the world guessing about the meaning --- if there is any.”…City officials in Gardendale --- a town near Birmingham, Ala. --- say teenagers wishing to mow lawns for extra summer cash will have to show a city-issued license (cost: $110) before cutting grass…Berkeley, Calif. continues its war on plastic as officials introduce an ordinance that would ban straws that aren’t biodegradable…Hot cash. Would-be ATM thieves in Everett, Wash. thwarted their own burglary attempt by using a blowtorch in an attempt to access the cash box. The only problem --- they accidentally set the money on fire.
Tomorrow marks the anniversary of 1944’s D-Day in World War II. Usually, media emphasize important anniversaries.
So will that famous event (or Russia ) grab media attention?
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