Variety

Inside the Intense, Combative World of Covering the Trump White House

Most reporters share a sense that covering President Donald Trump is a challenge like no other, at a time when political journalists and the First Amendment are under siege. With the easy accessibility of social media, some political reporters find themselves getting death threats. 

Facebook Under Fire: How Privacy Crisis Could Change Big Data Forever

The biggest risk to Facebook — and the digital-ad business overall — would be a wide-ranging privacy-protection law on the order of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act in the banking sector. That established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, designed to keep predatory lenders in check, along with a host of new regulations.

AT&T-Time Warner Trial: Comcast Executive Says ‘No Reason’ to Believe Merger Will Change Leverage

A top executive at Comcast testified at the AT&T-Time Warner antitrust trial that he has “no reason” to believe that the massive merger will have an impact on their company’s negotiations for Turner channels or HBO.  A key argument in the Justice Department’s case is that the merger will give AT&T-Time Warner increased leverage to demand more onerous fees from distribution rivals, ultimately driving up prices for consumers.

China to Put Media Under Cabinet-Level Control, Abolish SAPPRFT

China is to abolish the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) and is expected to set up a new media body answerable to the Cabinet, further tightening the Communist government’s control of media and entertainment. SAPPRFT, the regulatory body which currently oversees the media and entertainment sector, would be replaced by a new state radio and television administration attached to the State Council, or Cabinet. The proposal is being put to China’s ongoing national legislative session for deliberation.

Democratic Reps Seek Documents From Attorney General on Decision to Challenge AT&T-Time Warner

A group of Democratic Reps are seeking documents from Attorney General Jeff Sessions relating to the Justice Department’s decision to file a lawsuit to block AT&T’s planned merger with Time Warner. They are interested in whether the decision was in any way impacted by President Donald Trump’s disdain for CNN, a unit of Time Warner. Makan Delrahim, the chief of the Antitrust Division, denies that the lawsuit was influenced by the White House.