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August 2017

President Trump, Calling Journalists ‘Sick People,’ Puts Media on Edge

President Donald Trump’s angry condemnation of the news media during a campaign-style rally heightened the fear among journalists that verbal attacks on the profession could lead to physical attacks. While criticizing media coverage has long been a surefire tactic to rile up crowds, the depth of the president’s most recent jabs took even seasoned journalists by surprise. He called journalists “sick people,” accused the news media of “trying to take away our history and our heritage” and questioned their patriotism.

“I really think they don’t like our country,” he said. “To see this sort of attack coming yet again from the president is deeply disturbing,” said Courtney C. Radsch, the advocacy director for the Committee to Protect Journalists. “It creates an environment in which attacks on the press, both verbal and potentially physical, could become common.”

Wall Street Journal Editor Admonishes Reporters Over Trump Coverage

Gerard Baker, the editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal, has faced unease and frustration in his newsroom over his stewardship of the newspaper’s coverage of President Donald Trump, which some journalists there say has lacked toughness and verve. Some staff members expressed similar concerns on Aug 23 after Baker, in a series of blunt late-night e-mails, criticized his staff over their coverage of President Trump’s rally in Phoenix, describing their reporting as overly opinionated.

“Sorry. This is commentary dressed up as news reporting,” Baker wrote at 12:01 a.m. on Aug 23 to a group of Journal reporters and editors, in response to a draft of the rally article that was intended for the newspaper’s final edition. He added in a follow-up, “Could we please just stick to reporting what he said rather than packaging it in exegesis and selective criticism?” Several phrases about President Trump that appeared in the draft of the article reviewed by Baker were not included in the final version published on The Journal’s website.

RTDNA Warns Journalists About Trump Vilification

The Radio-Television Digital News Association is warning broadcasters to be careful out there following arguably President Donald Trump’s most extended attack on the news media to date.

“Throughout his campaign, and throughout his first seven months in office, the president has consistently tried to make responsible journalists the villains in his effort to fire up his political base. We know that this kind of rhetoric has emboldened some people who don’t like, or don’t understand, the news media to act out against reporters and photojournalists at the national and local levels,” said Dan Shelley, RTDNA incoming executive director. “As long as the person with the most powerful bully pulpit in the world continues to attack verbally the news media, journalists are at risk. We urge reporters and photojournalists to be vigilant, and to take whatever steps they feel necessary to protect their personal safety while fulfilling their Constitutionally-guaranteed duty to seek and report the truth.”

Trump’s vicious attack on the media shows one thing clearly: He’s running scared

[Commentary] As with so much about President Donald Trump, his Phoenix rally was two contradictory things: both shocking and completely predictable. Shocking because it was the most sustained attack any president has made on the news media. (“It’s time to expose the crooked-media deceptions and challenge the media for their role in fomenting divisions,” Trump ranted, as he charged that reporters invent sources and make up stories. “They are trying to take away our history and our heritage.”) And predictable because this is exactly what Trump does when he’s in trouble. He finds an enemy and punches as hard as he can.

Announcement of Sept 18 Consumer Advisory Committee Meeeting

The next meeting of the Consumer Advisory Committee will take place on Monday, September 18, 2017, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Commission’s headquarters building. At its September 18, 2017 meeting, the Committee is expected to consider a recommendation from its Robocalls Working Group regarding blocking of unwanted calls. The Committee will also receive briefings from Commission staff on issues of interest to the Committee.

FTC: We won’t stand in the way of pending Amazon-Whole Foods merger

The Federal Trade Commission has formally allowed Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods to go forward. According to a statement released Aug 23 by acting FTC director Bruce Hoffman, "Based on our investigation, we have decided not to pursue this matter further. Of course, the FTC always has the ability to investigate anticompetitive conduct should such action be warranted."

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