Contact: kyle@kylecommunications.com

Political Campaign Theme Songs

If you were a kid growing up in the late early 1960s, you will remember the Frank Sinatra tune “High Hopes.” It’s about odds – a little ditty that starts with an ant trying to move a rubber tree plant, then a ram punching a hole in a dam, and on. You get the picture.

The tune became John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign song with the lyrics changed in 1960 to support Kennedy – “Everyone wants to back Jack.”

Not every musician is happy about their work being used by politicians – at rallies, events, for campaign themes, etc.

Can it be a little complicated? You bet – as explained here.

Artists are already objecting with lawsuits, etc.

And some artists relent. According to Verify: Mick Fleetwood said in an interview that Bill Clinton never requested permission to use Fleetwood Mac’s “Don’t Stop” as his 1992 campaign anthem, “but the band generally voted Democratic and didn’t object to the exposure,” according to the Rolling Stone. Fleetwood Mac had disbanded by the time Bill Clinton began his campaign for president, but the band reunited at Clinton’s insistence to play “Don’t Stop” at the president’s first inaugural ball, according to the Clinton Digital Library.

In the meantime, check out this song list on Wikipedia that goes back to President John Adams and current up to the 2024 campaign. Not sure it’s reliable – but a fun read. You will find at least one Indiana artist here.

WHAT ARE THE ODDS?

VIA FORBES (as of Sept. 11)

According to the Election Betting Odds tracker, which consolidates betting numbers from four separate markets, bookmakers now believe Harris has a 51.8 percent chance of winning compared to Trump’s 46.9 percent.

This is a major shift in favor of Harris, whose chances have risen by more than four and a half points in the past 24 hours, while Trump’s have plummeted by four.

Bettors on crypto-based betting platform Polymarket, who heavily favored a Trump win in the past two weeks, now believe both Harris and Trump have a 49 percent chance of winning.

On the British betting site Smarkets, bookmakers predict that Harris now has a 51.55 percent chance of winning, up from 47.5 percent, while Trump’s odds have dropped to 46.3 percent.

On Predictlt, the only platform where bettors gave Harris better odds than Trump before the debate, the vice president expanded her lead and now has odds of 56 cents per share (roughly equating to a 56 percent chance) compared to Trump’s 47 cents per share.

ETHICS SCHMETHICS

Media Harassment: A man who stormed the press area at a Trump rally in Johnstown, Penn., will be prosecuted. The man made it over a barrier ringing the media area and began climbing the back side of a riser where television reporters and cameras were stationed, according to a video of the incident posted to social media by a reporter for CBS News. People near him tried to pull him off the riser and were quickly joined by police officers and sheriff’s deputies. He was tased and detained.

More Media Harassment: A New Hampshire man was sentenced on Aug. 27, 2024 for his role in a conspiracy to stalk journalists employed by New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR). The harassment and intimidation of the victims included the vandalism – on five separate occasions – of the victims’ homes and the home of one of the victims’ parents with bricks, large rocks and red spray paint. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

Indiana Sued: Too much to say about the asset forfeiture lawsuit brought against the state of Indiana, but suffice to say more than one reporter, including myself while at The Indianapolis Star, has covered this topic. Here’s a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the topic from 2019. The Institute for Justice says Indianapolis police and prosecutors are exploiting one of the biggest FedEx hubs in the U.S. to seize cash for alleged crimes they never explain.

Via NextTV: Nexstar Media Group (owner of WXIN-WTTV in Indy) collected $10.5 million in retransmission-consent fees from DirecTV by fraudulently withholding information about one of its stations, a New York State appeals court ruled. Nexstar had appealed a July ruling by the New York State Supreme Court after DirecTV sued Nexstar to recover those fees – in a case stemming from an NBC affiliate in Maryland. DirecTV pays station groups for affiliates of the Big Four networks. It usually does not pay for independent stations, the two sides testified.

Allegedly: An AI company has sued Indiana-based Cummins for allegedly violating a contract and intellectual property law by stealing an artificial intelligence tool that reduces emissions. Via IndyStar: The legal action is the latest hurdle in Cummins' challenging path to its goal of zero emissions by 2050. Last year, Cummins had to pay $2 billion to settle a federal investigation into its use of illegal devices that prevented emissions tracking and control. The lawsuit says that Cummins hired tech company C3.ai to develop a tool that can adjust engine settings to use the least amount of fuel in different environments. The California-based artificial intelligence company alleges that Cummins used source code and information sessions to replicate the tool.

Via CNN: With Mar-a-Lago fundraisers, stays at Trump’s hotels, and flights on the former president’s private jet, Republican candidates and political groups are on track to spend more on Trump’s businesses this year than any year since 2016, according to a CNN analysis of federal campaign finance data. Between his three presidential campaigns, Trump and associated political groups have funneled more than $28 million in campaign donations to his businesses – helping convert the enthusiasm of his political supporters into personal profit.

Zuck Regret: The Hill reports that founder of Meta regrets agreeing to censor content at the request of the Biden administration – in a letter sent to a House oversight committee. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said senior Biden administration officials “repeatedly pressured” Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to “censor” content in 2021. The Meta CEO, who has come under heavy fire from the House Judiciary Committee, also said the company “shouldn’t have demoted” a New York Post story about corruption allegations involving President Biden’s family ahead of the 2020 election while waiting for fact-checkers to review it. The company has since updated its policies and processes, including no longer demoting content in the U.S. while waiting for fact-checkers, he noted. Also, no more Zuckerbucks to local communities to support election infrastructure. House Judiciary Republicans touted the letter as a “big win for free speech.” 

Via Axios Dallas: Simon Property Group, owner of the Allen Premium outlets where eight people were shot and killed in North Texas, is being sued by the survivors. Authorities have said the shooter scouted the mall and held "neo-Nazi ideation" and had posted on social media that he hoped for a race war. The victims' families also blame the busy outdoor shopping area for not having enough security. The publicly traded Simon Property Group is one of the nation's biggest shopping mall landlords, with stakes in 163 malls and outlets. Simon family members still own an estimated 10 percent of the Indianapolis-based firm, which has been run by Melvin's son David since 1995.

MEDIA MOVES

ON THE LOCAL MEDIA FRONT

Job Flash: IndyStar is hiring a “deputy” opinion editor – only two years experience required. Via the current Opinion Editor James Briggs: “I think opinion journalism has immense potential to drive conversations and help build and grow sustainable newsrooms.”

Bill McCleery, a former print J here in Indy, is the main subject of an information ad for Lilly on his Parkinson’s journey. Bill has been open, honest and vulnerable about his challenges and search for a cure.

Cathy Kightlinger, a former Indianapolis Star journo who has held lots of other comms-related jobs since leaving there, is the new director of communications for Indy Ignite – a pro volleyball team here.

Max Jones, former editor of the (Terre Haute) Tribune-Star newspaper, was awarded a Sagamore of the Wabash. Sen. Greg Goode presented it at the local chamber of commerce at a retirement celebration for Jones.

WTHR’s Anne Marie Tiernon is awarded the 2024 Inspiring Sports Storytelling award from the Indiana Sports Corporation.

WXIN-FOX/WTTV-CBS reporter and fill-in anchor Cameron Ridle announces his new baby on social media: “A Future President of The United States - Carter Alexander Ridle. Niyyinnah made deliver looks easy. Carter was ready for the how and entered the world after only 12 minutes of pushing. They both are doing great. As for me, my body hurts from the hospital couch. But seeing a kid who looks identical to me in my arms makes up for it.”

Local DJ Update from Don Stuck: “After working for Q95 and the old X103 WRZX since 1990, I have tendered my resignation to iHeart Radio. It's been a blast for the last 34 years but new opportunities including an unforeseen acting career, more gigs with The Don Stuck Band than I can handle, and some GREAT radio news coming soon pulled the trigger for me! I despise long posts but to avoid incorrect speculation, I wanted to put this out there that this was 100% my decision, as the new opportunities are just too compelling to ignore any longer. A more complete explanation, and more news on the next chapter of radio for me is forthcoming in a video. I couldn't be more thrilled and honestly, more frightened!”

Thanks to public channels WFYI/WTIU pursuing a formal complaint with the state’s Public Access Counselor, IU is found to have violated the state’s open meetings law – on a couple of fronts. Not sure why other media dropped this but anytime leadership of a university as large as IU is questioned, the community needs to know. Full article here.

And more about IU: Indiana University’s Bloomington campus fared poorly in the College Free Speech Rankings created by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). IU ranked No. 243 out of 251 schools with a “poor” rating. IU was ranked second-to-last for public schools, only ranking higher than the University of Texas at Austin. More than 58,000 undergraduate students from 257 colleges and universities were surveyed about controversial speech, censorship, disagreements and political issues on campus.  

Via LinkedIn self promo from Marc Allan (former Indianapolis Star/former Butler comms) – he’s launched a book about writing - "Better Writing In About an Hour," which is available on Amazon for the low, low price of $4.99.”  

More from current IndyStar writers: Sports writer Dana Benbow co-authored “The Black Widow: A Memoir” with and about professional pool player Jeanette Lee. It’s also on Amazon – and it’s not $4.99.

Newsmaker: Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness is joining the O'Neill Indianapolis associate faculty this fall and appears to be the first sitting mayor who will teach there. Fadness is leading a new class called The Call to Public Service. The school says it’s the first new degree program granted to IU Indianapolis.

Newsmaker: David Harris announced his new position as President and CEO at Christel House International on LinkedIn. Harris has been with the organization since 2021 and was better known by media for his lead as founder and CEO of The Mind Trust – which worked to expand charter schools over public schools.

Entertainment Maker: One of the new cast members of SNL for season 50 – Emil Wakim – is from Bloomington and attended IU.

Here’s an interesting article in IndyStar on its reporting exception (or failure to report). See if you trip on the same line I did as the cost of the Colts stadium retractable roof is discussed here. Wowza. So much for searching the archives for MIA reporting.

This is kind of cool – a very old way of printing newspapers via linotype (with 10,000) moving parts at The Republican newspaper in Hendricks County (to the west of Indy). Check out this video short on Facebook. Must be logged in to view.

Former Hoosier TV anchor Jane Pauley focuses on Hoosier Girls State – a great national program teaching high school students about elected office and civic responsibility. Pauley attended when she was a high school student in Indiana. Also, there are documentaries now on both Girls State and Boys State. If you’ve missed them, they’re both streaming on Apple TV+.

Nearby in Cincinnati: Courtis Fuller, a staple at WLWT-NBC owned by Hearst, is retiring as an anchor. Lots of turnover at this station in the last year or so.

Local RIP: Debi Reed, one of the first women in the nation to cover an NFL team and one of the first female sportswriters in Indianapolis (who covered The Colts), died after a brief illness. She was 71.

Another Indy restaurant is featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives in August – Tlaolli.

Nearby in Chicago: Demolition work started in late August to tear down the former Tribune publishing plant in the River West neighborhood to make way for a new Bally’s casino and hotel complex. It will take two years to build this 34-story development. The publishing plant had been there since 1982.

Nearby in Frankfort KY: “Carolina Caroline” is filming scenes in downtown Frankfort – about a young couple in the 90s who think they have a foolproof way to rob banks.

ON THE NATIONAL MEDIA FRONT

Post-Debate Fallout: Former President Trump is suggesting that ABC lose its broadcast license after his performance in the ABC debate. Trump also last year threatened Comcast Corp., the parent company of NBC News and MSNBC, with investigations if he is elected president, citing what he called “Country Threatening Treason.” Here’s an interesting post on growing Trump threats in case you missed those. Oh, and Trump is now refusing any more debates.

The single lady cat effect goes into full throttle with Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris. Swift shared a link to vote.gov on her IG stories. The website reported more than 400,000 people hit that – or about 3x their normal traffic.

In Springfield, Ohio, schools are shut down and public buildings get bomb threats after Trump’s claims of Haitian immigrants there eating cats and dogs. The identified racist group Proud Boys also hit the city this past weekend.

Then, an almost sniper tracked Trump on a West Palm Beach, Fla., golf course – which was reportedly a location not on the former president’s public schedule. The gunman was there 12 hours and the Secret Service admitted they did not secure the perimeter.

Meanwhile, one poll in Indiana shows voters favoring Trump. The Hill predicts the former president has a 99 percent chance of winning Indiana. The latest here.

Via Business Wire: Gannett Co., Inc. (owner of The Indianapolis Star) announced that from the beginning of the third quarter through the close of business on September 9, 2024, the Company expects to have sold approximately $13.0 million in real estate and non-strategic asset sales, including the proceeds from the sale of certain businesses. Proceeds from the asset sales are expected to be used to repay approximately $13.0 million of our five-year senior secured term loan facility. (And – some white employees who sued Gannett over DEI initiatives lost round one in their lawsuit – but have until Sept. 19 to amend their complaint.)

Via Wired: An interesting first-person take on the use of AI in a newsroom in Hawaii).

Murder Conviction: A former Nevada politician has been found guilty of first-degree murder for the death of a journalist who wrote critical stories about his time in office. Robert Telles, 47, has been jailed since 2022 for the stabbing of Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative journalist Jeff German.

Better Headlines: The KISS concept explained by Nieman. And here’s why journalists need to follow that advice, especially when covering complicated topics like Medicaid, the economy, environment, government, etc.

Variety: Paramount Television Studios are shut down by Paramount Global.

Variety: Author J.K. Rowling and Tech Bro Elon Musk have both been named in a cyberbullying lawsuit filed by Algerian boxer Imane Khelif.

Back Again: Brian Stelter is returning to CNN. He was fired by the last boss in August 2022 – and that guy is leaving CNN to start his own independent media newsletter. Stelter is returning to CNN as chief media analyst, which includes being the lead writer on the “Reliable Sources” newsletter. There was no mention of the return of the “Reliable Sources” TV show.

Via AP: Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms has shut down CrowdTangle, a tool widely used by researchers, watchdog organizations and journalists to monitor social media posts, notably to track how misinformation spreads on the company’s platform. Dozens of groups, including the Center for Democracy and Technology, the Digital Forensic Research Lab at the Atlantic Council, Human Rights Watch and NYU’s Center for Social Media & Politics, sent a letter to the company asking that it keep the tool running through at least January so it would be available through the U.S. presidential elections. Meta bought CrowdTangle in 2016. The company released an alternative to CrowdTangle, called the Meta Content Library. But access to it is limited to academic researchers and nonprofits, which excludes most news organizations. Critics have also complained that it’s not as useful as CrowdTangle.

Via Variety: Venu, a streaming sports joint venture backed by Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery has been blocked. U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett barred the three companies from launching, deciding that the FuboTV sports streaming service would likely prevail on claims that the new broadband entity would “substantially lessen competition and restrain trade.” Fubo launched in 2015 as a start-up focused on streaming sports programming. Obvious appeal in the works.

Via Axios: Team Kamala Harris bought an ad blitz on Fox News network, according to August media reports. “While Fox News is known for its conservative coverage, its viewers — particularly during the daytime — are more ideologically diverse, and the Harris team wants to reach them … The ads are largely positive about Harris' life, a sharp contrast with the network's often-critical programming about her. The Biden campaign ran Fox News ads in 2023 to counterprogram the first GOP primary debate.”

Via CNBC: Broadcast stations owned by Byron Allen — the media mogul who has expressed public interest in buying various media assets for billions of dollars — have been consistently late in making payments to network owners, angering media allies and creating distance between Allen and his would-be deal partners.

Sorry/Not Sorry Sports Fans: ESPN, Disney, ABC stations and streaming services including Hulu went dark for millions of DirecTV customers over the Labor Day weekend, with the networks pulled by network parent Walt Disney Co. over a contract dispute. The services were pulled on a busy night for sports events, with the new college football season kicking off its first full weekend and ESPN airing the U.S. Open tennis tournament. Major League Baseball game viewers were greeted with a DirecTV message that simply read: “Our contract with Disney, the owner of this channel, has expired.” Nice.

Can you vote from space? Apparently so. This report from NBC News on our two stranded astronauts.

National RIP: Phil Donahue has died at the age of 88. “The Phil Donahue Show” made its debut in 1967 on WLWD-TV in Dayton, Ohio, propelling him to a 29-year syndicated run, much of it as the unchallenged king of daytime talk television. He also gave Oprah her start in the TV landscape.

National RIP: Linda Deutsch, the AP writer who had a front row seat at the O.J. Simpson trial, has died from pancreatic cancer. For nearly 50 years she covered many of the nation’s most significant criminal and civil trials. She was 80.