The Latest: Debt ceiling coverage; A #MeToo scoop that was killed; News+AI deals?; ‘Not touching that story!’

May 30, 2023

■ A British reporter had a big #MeToo scoop . Her editor killed it. (New York Times)

■ China, India kick out nearly all of each other’s journalists as rivalry escalates (Wall Street Journal)

■ CBS, Cox, Fox will pay $48M to end ad price-fixing claims (Law360)

■ News execs weigh deals with AI companies (Axios)

■ Missteps and miscalculations: Inside Fox's legal and business debacle (New York Times) / Tucker Carlson, Fox News hacks tied to FBI search of Tampa council member's home (Tampa Bay Times)

■ CNN shifts goals for Spanish-language operations, cutting U.S. jobs, linear content (Variety) / As CNN departs downtown Atlanta , reflections on its hometown (Axios)

■ Axios Local slows its rapid expansion after missing revenue goals (AdWeek)

■ WFAA special hears from survivors of mass shootings (Marketshare)

■ In rare move, Birmingham gives $150,000 to NABJ (Journal-isms)

■ New York Times Union agrees to contract after two-year fight (Wall Street Journal)

■ 2 top editors to depart Wall Street Journal (New York Times)

■ Third editor quits The Messenger over 'nonstop gerbil wheel' of clickbait (Mediaite) / News editor quit The Messenger days before launch: ‘That’s not journalism ’ (Daily Beast) / The Messenger Chief Growth Officer Neetzan Zimmerman, a star of online media's meme-happy early days, is trying to recapture the best of the old blogosphere (Semafor)

■ ‘Not touching that story!’ CNN anchor avoids report about people flocking to touch nun’s exhumed corpse (The Wrap)

■ With help from Succession, New York Magazine tops 1 million email subscribers (Ad Week)

■ Eight Idahoans take on record for wrapping a person in newspaper (UPI.com)

Press freedom

■ 2 Iranian female journalists who reported on Mahsa Amini’s death go on trial (VOA)

■ Pro-Imran Khan Pakistani TV journalist returns home after being freed (Associated Press)

■ Imprisoned Myanmar journalist sentenced to additional 10 years on terror charge (Committee to Protect Journalists)

■ Turkey to investigate media outlets over election coverage (VOA)

"We needed to dig into the nonprofits’ IRS filings to assess the patterns . But stuck within 15,851 cumulative pages of 'bad' PDFs (we counted) was data we could use to reconstruct their financial claims. ... [We] first had to download all of the available PDFs for these nonprofits from the IRS and double- and triple-check them. I wrote code to analyze each PDF and extract every reported donation and expense — more than 136,000 transactions over nine years. After untangling the transactions, the task was, relatively, simple. The key to unwinding the 527 groups’ questionable practices came down to pivot tables."

-- Tiff Fehr, web developer in the Interactive News group at The New York Times, “Finding order in a thicket of nonprofit data ”

"Before tweaking your resume and sending it out to every organization you think you might be able to tolerate working for, take 24 hours to really define your desires. What kind of job would be truly fulfilling for you and also meet the financial needs of you and your family? What size organization are you interested in working with? Are you looking for a position with upward mobility? What sort of company culture would excite you? Are you willing to relocate? When you get clear on what you need to be and feel successful, it will be much easier to identify positions that hold true potential versus those that might be a waste of your time and energy."

-- JournalismJobs.com tipsheet: What to do after you've been laid off

Editor’s Note: The National Press Club Journalism Institute is hiring two positions based in Washington, D.C. If you are interested in using your talents to support journalists and press freedom, check out the job descriptions for:

A Director of Training to help create an engaging, meaningful slate of programs and published resources that supports journalists around the world. Learn more.

A Development Manager to execute strategies that will enhance the Institute’s fundraising efforts to include institutional, individual, and sponsor support. Learn more.

“[The community aid network] really created a space of compassion and care where a lot of times we find a lot of anonymity in media layoffs. It took off very quickly. ... We can challenge the idea that [layoffs are] a personal failure you shouldn’t talk about and that you shouldn’t seek help. We’re stronger together .”

-- Kati Kokal, education reporter at the Palm Beach Post, “She started an aid network for laid-off journalists and it spread like wildfire ”

Resources

This newsletter is written & edited by the National Press Club Journalism Institute staff: Beth Francesco and Holly Butcher Grant. Send us your questions and suggestions for topics to cover.

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The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest.