Nov. 5, 2025

■ Election night ratings: MSNBC tops primetime cable news coverage with 2.9 million viewers (The Wrap)  / CNN’s All Access election night ‘watch party’ might not be the network’s future (The Guardian) / Big media takeaways from Mamdani’s victory and the Democratic sweep (CNN) / 'Today's New York Post featuring mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani with a hammer and sickle on the cover has sold out on news stands across Manhattan...' (Scott Nover)

■ ‘Axios co-founder Jim VandeHei announces cuts affecting 19 individuals on the product, tech and design teams…’ (Ben Mullin)

■ PBS SoCal cuts 10% of workforce (Current) 

■ ‘McClatchy, the 168-year-old newspaper chain, has gutted its national news operation — another reminder of how once-towering newspaper giants are struggling to survive.’ (Status)

■ New York Times profit, revenue rise as bundle subscriptions grow (Wall Street Journal) 

■ Indiana University facing lawsuit after claims it tried to censor student newspaper (NPR) / A partial victory for freedom of the press at Indiana University (Inside Higher Ed) 

■ WBD targets Christmas deadline for announcing a sale or split, leaving Paramount in limbo (CNBC) / California DOJ says Warner Bros. Discovery sale, more Hollywood consolidation 'does not serve' economy or consumers (The Wrap) 

■ David Ellison’s Paramount inks five-year streaming deal for Professional Bull Riders’ Unleash the Beast Tour (Variety) / Chiefs-Bills draws 30.8M on CBS, second-biggest of the season (Front Office Sports) 

■ The company quietly funneling paywalled articles to AI developers (The Atlantic) / People Inc. strikes Microsoft AI licensing deal as Google’s AI Overviews hit programmatic ad revenue (Digiday) / ‘During a town hall with staff today, Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner was pressed about the company’s use of AI. “Does it replace jobs here and there? No doubt about it,” he said. …’ (Max Tani) 

■ ProPublica promotes Eisinger to assistant managing editor (Talking Biz News) / Eduardo Castillo named Greater China news director (The Associated Press) / Politico names Miller its transportation editor (Talking Biz News) / Jaimy Lee appointed health editor with MarketWatch (MarketWatch via Editor & Publisher Magazine) 

■ When the food journalist needs food stamps (Bon Appétit)

How to build trust with sources

“Getting out from behind the phone and computer matters. If you show up — at community forums, city council meetings, neighborhood block parties — when you're not chasing a story, you become more than a reporter. You become part of the scene. That presence builds trust and that trust pays off. It's often in those moments, without a recorder or notebook in hand, that you encounter the voices others miss: An essential worker who's been tracking the cracks no one's fixing; A tenant organizer who's already knocked on every door; A neighbor who can put a human face on the story.”

-- George Bodarky, reporter trainer for NPR Training, excerpt from “How to build — and keep — a source's trust (Hint: Start way before deadline)” (NPR Training)

National Press Club awards The Associated Press with its highest press freedom award

The National Press Club is honoring independent global news organization The Associated Press with the John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award, in recognition for its leadership in defending press freedom and standing for the right of all Americans to speak freely without government retaliation or control.

The AP sued the government in February after the Trump administration barred its journalists from covering White House events when the global news organization continued to use “Gulf of Mexico” in its independent reporting, rather than “Gulf of America.” In January, President Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. government to comply with the name change. Citing its editorial style guidelines and international audiences, The Associated Press continues to both use “Gulf of Mexico” and acknowledge the new designation, as the executive order only has authority within U.S. jurisdiction — not globally. (Read more about the case here.)

“The Associated Press stood its ground for a simple reason: Journalism must be independent to be free,” said National Press Club President Mike Balsamo. “A newsroom that lets the government decide its words gives up its voice. The AP chose principle over permission — and in doing so, defended every journalist’s right to report without fear or favor.”

The John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award is named for a former National Press Club president who fervently advocated for press freedom. Each year, the Club’s Board of Governors selects both a domestic and an international honoree. By selecting The Associated Press as the domestic honoree, the Club is committing resources from its Press Freedom Center to supporting the wire service and amplifying the implications of its case.

The National Press Club will confer the 2025 Aubuchon awards, along with the Neil and Susan Sheehan Award for Investigative Journalism during its annual Fourth Estate Award Gala honoring Robert Costa on Dec. 9 in Washington, D.C. 

Tickets are available:   

For information on sponsoring the gala please email the National Press Club Journalism Institute at npcgala@press.org.

Resources

• SciLine Briefing: What SNAP delays could mean for health and hunger (Nov. 6, 2 p.m. ET) 
• Launching nonprofit newsrooms: Practical strategies for funding and growth (Journalism Courses by Knight Center) 
• Video Replay: 3 takeaways from webinar on the Supreme Court and tariffs (The Journalist’s Resource)

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

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