Grumpy Editor

AWARDS SEASON INCLUDES TRUMP'S 'FAKE NEWS' LIST

With the “awards season” in full force, President Donald Trump last week reveals via Twitter the winners of his self-proclaimed ‘Fake News’ awards, observes Grumpy Editor.

GOP.com, which ran the list, notes “studies have shown that over 90 percent of the media’s coverage of President Trump is negative” and called 2017 “a year of unrelenting bias, unfair news coverage and even downright fake news.”

Topping the list is New York Times columnist Paul Krugman who predicted  the stock markets would never recover from Trump’s election.

It is followed by ABC News’ Brian Ross for his bungled report that Trump advised former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to make contact with Russian officials during the 2016 campaign.

Among others on the fake news list:

CNN falsely reporting the Trump campaign had early access to hacked documents from WikiLeaks.

A Time magazine report that Trump removed a Martin Luther King, Jr. bust from the Oval Office.

The Washington Post’s Dave Weigel tweeting that a December rally in Pensacola, Fla. wasn’t packed --- when supporters were lined up outside waiting for doors to open.

CNN footage suggesting Trump overfed fish in Japan during a visit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

A Newsweek report that Agata Kornhauser-Duda, Polish first lady, did not shake Trump’s hand.

A New York Times story that the Trump administration hid a climate change study.

 

Trump declares Russian collusion "is perhaps the greatest hoax perpetrated on the American people.  THERE IS NO COLLUSION."

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

 

 "SNOW CAR" LOOKS LIKE THE REAL THING.  A Montreal man neatly crafted a fake car made from snow and it looked real enough that when police came around to look for cars parked on the side of the road during snow-plowing hours, they wrote a ticket and left it under a real windshield wiper.

GOOD READING.  For writers, especially those who focus on books, just released is the free quarterly Writers Tricks of the Trade written by writers for writers and produced by veteran author Morgan St. James.  See it at https://joom.ag/aErL

BRIEF DEMOTION FOR SCHUMER.  Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a page one story on government shutdown in some editions of Friday’s Wall Street Journal is incorrectly identified as House minority leader.

L.A. TIMES PUBLISHER TAKES LEAVE.  Los Angeles Times publisher and chief executive Ross Levinsohn, hired five months ago, agrees to take an unpaid leave of absence while allegations of workplace misconduct at prior jobs are investigated.

TAXPAYERS HAPPY WITH ECONOMY.  A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds Americans satisfaction with the economy reaches a 17-year high and support for the Republican tax law is growing.

BETTER LOOK FOR WIDE TREES.  With the federal government shutdown, many national parks remain mostly open.  However, public restrooms are closed.

ANIMAL PROBLEMS IN AIR.  Facing a jump in problems with animals in cabins, Delta Air Lines is calling on passengers to provide more documentation for service and support animals.

AMAZON CUTS SECOND HQ LIST.  Seattle-headquartered Amazon narrows its list of a possible second headquarters city to 20.  The new facility could employ up to 50,000 workers, compared with 67,000 full timers in Seattle.

SUDDEN JUMP IN VEGAS SHOOTING EVIDENCE.  After almost four months with scant evidence available to media in the Oct. 1 Las Vegas massacre that resulted in 58 people killed and hundreds injured, a Metro Police report over the weekend says the killer left an enormous amount of evidence for investigators to go through. 

TECH GIANT SQUEEZES SUBSCRIBERS.  Amazon hikes its monthly Prime fee by 18 percent to $12.99 a month. Subscribers get free two-day shipping service. 

NEWS FEED CUT.  Facebook Inc. is cutting the amount of news in its news feed, saying it is prioritizing information from publishers that are deemed most trustworthy.

GLOBAL WARMING A FACTOR?  CNN reports "a substantial amount of snow" fell in Ain Sefra, a desert town in Algeria known as the "Gateway to the Sahara.”  The location is one of the world’s hottest places. 

BAD YEAR AT THE BOX OFFICE.  Movie attendance last year is down by 92 million, compared to 2016, but average ticket price is up 3.7 percent since 2016, reports the National Alliance of Theater Owners.

 

 

 

2017 ENDING AS BIGGEST YEAR FOR 'FAKE NEWS'

This year turns out to be the biggest for "fake news" as many writers released incorrect or made-up stories, most aimed at the White House, finds Grumpy Editor.

Could it stem from some offending writers graduating with a political science rather than a journalism background?

A constant barrage of fake news or dopey news continues to make headlines.  An example of dopey news: The mighty New York Times, on a day when Congress was kicking around a capital gains tax hike that would affect thousands of Times readers, it came up with a startling revelation that President Donald Trump drinks a dozen cans of Diet Coke each day.

Other than a hearty free plug for the Coca-Cola Co. and similar drinkers, who cares?

A few days ago the president tweeted that over the weekend there were six attacks on what he called fake news, saying the "out of control" media issues purposely false and defamatory stories.

Media members such as CNN's Jim Acosta call the misinformation "honest mistakes."

At a White House press briefing, press secretary Sarah Sanders responded, "There's a very big difference between honest mistakes and purposely misleading the American people."

Photos also have been misleading.

Latest example:  The Washington Post ran a deceptive picture on the number of attendees at a Trump rally in Florida.  It was snapped while people were waiting outside.  A Post reporter apologized --- after the president demanded an apology.

Kathleen Hall Jamieson, communications professor and director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, told Associated Press writer David Bauder that news organizations corrected themselves but fell short in explanations.

“When a mistake is made, the public really needs to understand why it was made and what corrections have been put in place to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” she added.

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE... 

TWO WORDS OF THE YEAR.  Oxford University Press, publisher of Oxford dictionaries, named "youthquake" its top word for 2017 while Merriam-Webster dictionary announced “feminism” as its top word of the year.  Youthquake is defined as "a significant cultural, political or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people.”  Oxford added youthquake also has the potential "as a word of cultural significance."  Merriam-Webster in naming “feminism” as its word of 2017, said the term was driven by women’s marches, new TV shows and films on women's issues plus a string of news stories on sexual assault and harassment claims. The dictionary defines feminism as "the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.” 

DOW CONTINUES UPWARD MARCH.  Dow Jones Industrial Average on Friday reached 24651.74, notching a new high on the upward path toward 25000, putting the year-to-date advance at 25 percent.  In today's close, the Dow set another record, up 140.46 points to 24792.20.

DON’T MENTION GLOBAL WARMING HERE.  Winter hasn’t officially arrived, but in Redfield, N.Y., the Oswego County town already has received 82.6 inches of snow.

COVERAGE CALLED MEDIA MALPRACTICE. Interviewed by Fox News’  Tucker Carlson, Stephen F. Cohen, a contributing editor at The Nation, criticized the Washington Post, the New York Times and others, stating he has "never seen media malpractice" like the establishment press's year-long effort to breathe life into what he insists has been a completely ginned-up claim that Russia tried to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

CAVUTO TO DEBUT SATURDAY PROGRAM.  Fox Business Network anchor Neil Cavuto will host a two-hour program --- "Cavuto Live” --- on Fox News Channel starting Jan. 20.  Cavuto and a panel of experts will focus on headlines impacting business and politics.

MARGARINE, SPREADS BUSINESS SOLD.  Unilever is selling its margarine and spreads business to KKR & Co. for $8.1 billion as it focuses on faster-growing food and personal-care niches. It’s the biggest leveraged buyout announced in Europe this year. 

EMPLOYEES BUY THEIR DAILY NEWSPAPER.  A group of employees at the Prince Albert Daily Herald in Canada reached a deal to purchase the publication from Alberta-based Star News Publishing and run it as an independent newspaper. The employees said they’re pleased to return the Herald to its roots as an independent, locally owned and operated news outlet.

A SOLID MENTAL CASE.   A homeless man told police in Olathe, Kan. that he dismembered his wife in a Missouri hotel room then slept in a Kansas storage unit with her remains and their two children is headed to a mental hospital.  He's also charged in the death of a California man whose body hasn't been found, said authorities.

NEW ADULT GETS BIG WELCOME TO LAS VEGAS.  Aidan Gilbert of Arizona celebrated his 21st birthday by winning $426,840 while playing Wheel of Fortune at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.  Along with his father and friends, Gilbert stopped at The Cosmo soon after dropping off luggage and headed for the machine.  It was his first visit to Sin City as an adult.