May 6, 2025

■ Meet the 32 ‘new media’ outlets the White House invited to its press pool (Poynter)

■ CPB tells stations to stop Ready To Learn work following termination by Department of Education (Current) / CPB statement on U.S. Department of Education terminating Ready To Learn grant (CPB) 

■ NPR, PBS stations raise money, plan cost cuts after Trump order (Wall Street Journal) / Indiana public media regroups after state erases funding (Chicago Tribune)

■ Comcast's cable spinoff to be named Versant, picked to emphasize corporate versatility (CNBC) / ‘Memo from Mark Lazarus, chief executive of Comcast's SpinCo.’ (Ben Mullin)

■ C-SPAN’s 7-year effort to secure a spot on streaming giants (Washington Examiner) / Telemundo’s big Upfront bet? Live TV. A lot of it. (Hollywood Reporter) / Fox News projecting $500 million in non-cable TV revenue for 2025 (Axios) 

■ A student journalist covered a pro-Palestine protest. Soon, her graduation came under threat. (Columbia Journalism Review) / ‘Barnard responds to our story post-publication.’ Read the statement (Meghnad Bose)

■ ‘After a nearly yearlong investigation, the AP says Nick Ut will keep his photo credit for the "Terror of War" photograph after the Sundance documentary "The Stringer" called its veracity into question.’ (Corbin Bolies) / AP statement on ‘Terror of War’ report (Associated Press) 

■ The big tech news bills (Medill Local News Initiative) / Bill to have big tech pay for local news advances in Oregon Legislature (OPB) 

■ The Guardian plots U.S. expansion following record revenue year (Axios)

■ Gannett to lay off 109 employees at Sterling Heights printing facility (MLive) 

■ Bob Pisani to step back from role as senior markets correspondent at CNBC (Deadline) / Wikimedia CEO is leaving (Axios) 

■ CNN hires Choire Sicha to lead features as it makes digital subscriber push (Hollywood Reporter) / Rachel Stassen-Berger is returning to the Des Moines Register as new executive editor (Des Moines Register) / Bloomberg hires Ailworth to cover grain markets (Talking Biz News) / John Ruwitch is NPR's new tech correspondent (NPR) / Pacific Biz News hires Lugo to cover real estate (Talking Biz News)

Show your receipts: Advice for mitigating legal risks

“Reporters covering contentious issues or beats — immigration, campus protests, the #MeToo movement — should take extra care to make sure their reporting doesn’t allow the audience to read between the lines. … Link early and often to the basis of your reporting, says Charles Ornstein, managing editor, ProPublica. Have your receipts. It is critical to have the public records, documents, and other materials that support the reporting. Those documents will prove essential in the event of litigation.”

-- Amy Kristin Sanders, John and Ann Curley Chair in First Amendment at Penn State, excerpt from “Don’t get SLAPPed: Minimizing the risk of vexatious libel lawsuits” (Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute)

Resources

• Applications Open: 2025 Kozik Environmental Justice Reporting Grants (Deadline: May 27)
• What is pre-reporting — and do you really need to do it? (The Open Notebook) 
• Lo-fi podcasting tips (International Journalists' Network)

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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