New administration, same bare-knuckle press tactics
Just when I thought we were out, they pull us back in.
We are 42-days removed from when supporters of former president Donald Trump stormed the Capitol, serving as the apotheosis of the last decade of one political party’s descent into madness.
As we grapple with the implications, as well as the first time a president has been impeached twice, we can also see how news organizations regress back to the mean in what they cover.
Media coverage, by definition, is navel gazing, especially the way most media reporters go about their beat. There are few who look at the machinations of the business, instead focusing on the fallibility of the humans who work inside newsrooms.
The two are connected, but few take the time to connect the dots, for example, between the decline of ad revenue brought by depressed CPMs from the advent of ad tech AND the way newsrooms operate. Understanding the business isn’t as sexy as telling the human story. I get it.
And the last four years of a Trump administration meant focusing on the existential threats to our way of life caused by the spread of disinformation, the rise of conspiracy, and the adversarial relationship between the press and the political powers they cover. Journalists, Trump (and let’s not forget his GOP sycophants) often said, were the “enemy of the people.” How does a media reporter cover the missteps of a newsroom when they are put in literal holding cages at political rallies?
Last week’s reporting of the struggles inside the New York Times newsroom (the resignations of Don McNeil and Andy Mills; though it seems the former is the more-talked about, as the discussion around intent and speech is fraught with interpretation; the latter seems more clear-cut) is an example of the media world is slowly shifting back to its pre-Trump axis, as media reporters race to breathlessly report, anonymously of course, on the Kremlinology of the NYT.
But today, reports of a Biden White House deputy press secretary threatening a Politico reporter sucks us back into the adversarial relationship between those in power with those seeking to find the closest thing from truth.
How it started:
On Monday, People Magazine wrote a puff piece about the romantic relationship between TJ Ducklo, a White House deputy press secretary and Alexi McCammond, an Axios reporter covering the Biden campaign.
Eyebrows were raised. The story acknowledges this:
They know news of their relationship will stir disapproval over the optics and the timing, at least. The way the press covers politicians in Washington, D.C., is endlessly scrutinized — too lax or too harsh, too familiar, too fond.
McCammond, a rising star on her beat, has talked about the added dynamic of being a Black woman in an industry not historically welcoming to either. And, as a group, female reporters have long faced the misogynistic accusation they become inappropriately involved with male sources.
The trouble with this piece is that it was placed to get ahead of a damning story. It was an “exclusive,” or industry talk for when a PR person sends a story in a bow to a reporter at an outlet.
But more than met the eye, it seems.
How it’s going:
According to Vanity Fair today,
A White House official tried to quash a story about his relationship with a reporter by issuing threats and using derogatory language to another reporter pursuing it, according to two sources familiar with the incident. In a sympathetic profile Monday, People revealed that White House deputy press secretary TJ Ducklo is dating Axios political reporter Alexi McCammond, who covered the Joe Biden campaign. But behind the scenes, Ducklo had previously lashed out at Politico reporter Tara Palmeri, who was reporting the story, exhibiting behavior that led to tense meetings between the Washington news outlet’s editors and senior White House officials.
The confrontation began on Inauguration Day, January 20, after Palmeri, a coauthor of Politico’s Playbook, contacted McCammond for comment while one of her male colleagues left a message for Ducklo, according to sources. Ducklo subsequently called a Playbook editor to object to the story, but was told to call the Playbook reporters with his concerns. But instead of calling the male reporter who initially contacted him, Ducklo tried to intimidate Palmeri by phone in an effort to kill the story. “I will destroy you,” Ducklo told her, according to sources, adding that he would ruin her reputation if she published it.
While speaking at his swearing-in ceremony, Joe Biden told his appointees that:
“I am not joking when I say this, if you are ever working with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot. On the spot. No ifs, ands, or buts. Everybody...everybody is entitled to be treated with decency and dignity. That’s been missing in a big way the last four years…. I’m confident you have the capacity to do it. We’re gonna be judged. We are gonna be judged whether or not we restore the integrity and competency in this government…. I need your help badly. We have to restore the soul of this country, and we’re counting on all of you to be part of that. It’s not hyperbole. The only thing I expect with absolute certitude is honesty and decency—the way you treat one another, the way you treat the people you deal with. And I mean that sincerely.”
This is a far cry from being fired:
When Biden won the White House, there were lots of stories about how his communications leadership team was staffed with women. The systemic and casual misogyny that exists in politics and media has been an underlying current for years, coming more into focus over the last four.
It’s been 23 days since Biden was sworn-in as the President of the United States, and while he’s worked hard to overturn many of Trump’s disastrous executive orders, it’s clear there are some things you can’t fix with a speech or a signature.
Thank you for allowing me in your inbox, today and every day. If you have tips, or thoughts on the newsletter, drop me a line. Or you can follow me on Twitter. Apologies for the lack of posts this week; had a few job interviews I needed to prep for. Thank you reading! Have a safe and relaxing weekend, and I’ll see you next week. (I may take Monday off as my daughter has the day off for President’s Day.)
Phish, “Fluffhead”
For grifter implosions:
Former Lincoln Project Staff Ask to Be Released From Nondisclosure Agreements (NYT)
For the effects of messaging:
A year of election misinformation from Trump, visualized (WaPo)
For the future of advertising businesses:
The ad industry is preparing for a big year of M&A as private equity circles (Business Insider)
For spy games:
The Long Hack: How China Exploited a U.S. Tech Supplier (Bloomberg)
For Facebook:
Inside the making of Facebook’s Supreme Court (The New Yorker)
For a different publisher revenue stream:
Why your favorite magazines are morphing into books (CNN)
Very well articulated, thank you. I wish this was an op-ed in NYT.
Very well articulated, thank you. I wish this was an op-ed in NYT.