The Latest: Trump bump 2.0; Introducing NY’s LOCAL Act; The ‘napalm girl’ photo

Jan. 27, 2025

■ Wall Street Journal labels RFK Jr. ‘dangerous to public health ’ ahead of hearings (The Hill) / Analysis: The Wall Street Journal’s editorial page takes on Trump (Semafor)

■ Inside a new documentary's provocative allegations about a famed Vietnam War photo (Los Angeles Times) / Associated Press stands by disputed ‘napalm girl’ photo, but is 'ready to review' new information (The Wrap)

■ ‘Inside The Washington Post, staffers are "in utter despair" and "hopeless" under publisher Will Lewis. Meanwhile, owner Jeff Bezos doesn't seem to care.’ (Oliver Darcy)

■ NYT says IDF assaulted reporter Aaron Boxerman, who was conducting interviews, and pointed a rifle at another, during a raid on the home of a freed Hamas member (New York Times)

■ DOJ inspector general releases report on journalist records seizures (Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press)

■ NewsNation’s Chris Stirewalt named political editor of The Hill (The Hill) / CNN appoints Andrew Roy to key London bureau chief role (CNN) / Jess Testa moves to The New York Times Media team (New York Times) / KFSN Fresno ups Sara Sandrik to VP-news director (TV News Check) / CoStar hires Rebecca San Juan as a reporter (Talking Biz News) / WVIA welcomes bilingual journalist to News Team (WVIA)

■ LOCAL Act to support small businesses advertising in local media introduced in New York (Empire State Local News Coalition via Editor and Publisher)

■ Inside a network of AI-generated newsletters targeting ‘small town America’ (Nieman Journalism Lab)

■ Meta’s free-speech shift made it clear to advertisers: ‘Brand safety’ is out of vogue (Wall Street Journal) / Digging deep into Meta’s controversial decision on fact-checking (Poynter)

■ The 19th Turns Five: Half a decade of critical journalism and a bold vision for the future (The 19th)

Trust & The Government: What journalists need to know to guide political coverage. Free webinar on Friday, Feb. 7, 12 pm ET.

Public trust in the government has dipped to historic lows in recent years after being on the decline for decades. In 2024, just 23% of Americans reported that they trust the federal government, down from 35% in 2022, according to a national survey conducted by the Partnership for Public Service.

Within hours of President Donald Trump taking office, he signed a flurry of executive orders pulling back protections for federal employees and altering government operations, making it more important than ever for journalists to understand what the public expects of its government and how these policies might impact civil servants on a local level.

Join the National Press Club Journalism Institute and Partnership for Public Service for a briefing that will prepare journalist to cover the federal government with their audience in mind, while noting their unique role in how the public perceives — and trusts — their federal government.

Registration is open for this free briefing on Friday, Feb. 7, from noon to 1 p.m. ET.

Who you’ll hear from:

Max Stier, founding president and CEO, Partnership for Public Service
Moderator: Elliot C. Williams, training coordinator for the National Press Club Journalism Institute

Fact-checking: A new burden for media

“With Facebook basically disavowing themselves from having to correct anybody and leaving everyone up to self-moderation, it really puts a lot more pressure on us as media to try to call this stuff out. And it's a scary thing to do because when you call somebody out, you're opening up yourself to charges of being biased . You're opening up yourself to charges of trying to censor the right. People are … wedded to their opinions.”

-- Randall Yip , founder & editor at AsAm News, said during a conversation on “Voting Patterns Across Communities .” This discussion was part of "Covering A Divided Nation: Lessons from Black and Brown Media," a summit presented by URL Media and the National Press Club Journalism Institute. Watch the interview and see more highlights from the event here .

Resources

This newsletter is written & edited by the National Press Club Journalism Institute staff: Beth Francesco, Holly Butcher Grant, Elliot C. Williams, and Mitch Harle. 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. The Institute's tax ID number is 52-1750908.