Subject: John Miller aka Donald Trump; when the WaPo phone went dead; Rusbridger gets boot from Guardian; Nate Silver on Reliable Sources Sunday; NYer cover
From: CNN's Reliable Sources <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2016 23:27:46 +0000
List-Id: 47c9040f6ff957a59bd88396emc list <47c9040f6ff957a59bd88396e.161353.list-id.mcsv.net>

By Dylan Byers and the CNNMoney Media team - [email-masked] (mailto:[email-masked])

** Meet John Miller, a.k.a Donald Trump
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Dylan Byers here, in for Brian today:  Throughout his career, Donald Trump has called reporters and pretended to be a Trump spokesperson, taking on names like "John Miller" or "John Barron" in order to brag about himself and spin stories. There's been plenty of reporting on this before (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/03/21/the-amazing-story-of-donald-trumps-old-spokesman-john-barron-who-was-actually-donald-trump-himself/?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) , but today The Washington Post actually got their hands on audio, and it's a must-listen (https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/donald-trump-alter-ego-barron/2016/05/12/02ac99ec-16fe-11e6-aa55-670cabef46e0_story.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .

The recording, from 1991, features "Miller" (aka Trump) divulging on Trump's decision to dump Marla Maples for Italian model Carla Bruni: “Have you met him?” Miller asks an unwitting People magazine reporter. “He’s a good guy, and he’s not going to hurt anybody. . . . He treated his wife well and . . . he will treat Marla well."

But get this: In an interview with NBC's "Today" show (http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/13/politics/donald-trump-recording-john-miller-barron-fake-press/?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) , Trump said it wasn't him. "It was not me on the phone," he said after they played the recording for him. "It doesn't sound like me on the phone, I'll tell you that, and it was not me on the phone."

The Washington Post is of course standing by it's story — with good reason.
#RealTalk: It was Trump, and that should bother you
The voice is Donald Trump's. The speech pattern, the inflection, the style is all Trump. He testified in 1990 to using the John Miller name "on occasion," and in 1991 told People he'd had "a good time at Marla's expense" and apologized. On Friday, the People magazine reporter, Sue Carswell, told NBC News, "it's absolutely Donald Trump." And when The Washington Post asked him about it, the line went dead (https://twitter.com/jameshohmann/status/731225038117015552?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .

So the fact that he categorically denied it on live TV should trouble you
— that is, if you believe politicians should adhere to some semblance of the truth. (Not everyone does (http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/05/heres-the-real-reason-we-all-underrated-trump.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .)

But it's not just the lying: "Miller" also told People that women flock to Trump: "He has a lot of options. Frankly, he gets called by everybody in the book in terms of women," he said. Pierre Omidyar, the eBay founder, sees (https://twitter.com/pierre/status/731179660629790720?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID])  "epic levels of insecurity" in that remark.
Elsewhere on Trump's media tour...
The presumptive Republican nominee appeared on ABC's "Good Morning America" today and needled co-host George Stephanopoulos over his history with the Clintons. (Stephanopoulos served in Bill Clinton's 1992 White House, and last year was pressured into disclosing (http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2015/05/george-stephanopoulos-discloses-75-000-contribution-to-clinton-foundation-207120?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) that he gave $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation between 2012 and 2014.)

When the conversation turned to Hillary Clinton, Trump told Stephanopoulos: "I know she’s a good friend of yours. And I know you worked for ’em and didn’t reveal it."

Unfortunately, Trump failed to stick the landing. The fact that Stephanopoulos worked for the Clintons is quite well known. (He was the White House director of communications, after all.) It was his contributions to the Clinton Foundation that he kept secret.
Alan Rusbridger out as Guardian chairman
Alan Rusbridger, the veteran editor of The Guardian,will not become chairman of the paper's ownership trust (http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/13/media/alan-rusbridger-out-at-guardian/index.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) after being forced out by the new management. His abrupt removal from the Scott Trust comes after anonymous Guardian staffers spent weeks blaming the longtime editor for the paper's financial woes. The Guardian is believed to have lost at least £45 million ($65 million) last year.

In one respect. Rusbridger, who spent 20 years as editor-in-chief, led the paper to glory, overseeing its intrepid reporting on Edward Snowden, Wikileaks and the News of the World hacking scandal. He is also credited for bringing The Guardian into the digital age: The paper's website is now the second most-read among UK newspapers.

But there's no question that The Guardian sustained major financial losses during Rusbridger's tenure. Last year's catastrophic losses have already forced the paper to cut at least 250 jobs. His detractors attribute the paper's crisis to his unwillingness to address the business side of journalism. Read my full story (http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/13/media/alan-rusbridger-out-at-guardian/index.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) here (http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/13/media/alan-rusbridger-out-at-guardian/index.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .
More Facebook fallout
Mark Zuckerberg's claim that there is "no evidence (https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10102830259184701?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) " Facebook excluded conservative stories from its "trending topics" has done little to tamp down suspicions of bias. His pledge to meet with conservatives and have "a direct conversation" may prove more effective. Whatever the case, it's clear Zuckerberg is taking this issue very seriously — as he should.

Meanwhile, Ezra Klein predicts that Facebook is only going to get more biased (http://www.vox.com/2016/5/13/11661156/facebook-political-bias?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) : "Like the newspapers before it, Facebook does not want to be known as politically biased," he writes. "But its users very much want to be known as politically biased. People like and share articles that align with their identities... [I]t's not at all clear why pushing against user bias would be good for Facebook's business. The reason Facebook created an echo chamber in the first place is because an echo chamber is what people actually want."
David Samuels responds to his critics
David Samuels, the author of the controversial New York Times Magazine profile (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/08/magazine/the-aspiring-novelist-who-became-obamas-foreign-policy-guru.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID])  of Obama "foreign policy guru" Ben Rhodes, has finally responded to his critics.

“I stand behind every single word I wrote. This newspaper does, too. The New York Times has looked closely at every complaint leveled against the piece and has found absolutely nothing to correct,” Samuels writes in a new post (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/12/magazine/through-the-looking-glass-with-ben-rhodes.html?_r=0&mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID])  on the Times Magazine's website.

Samuels’ response comes one day after Times Magazine editor-in-chief Jake Silverstein similarly (https://twitter.com/jakesilverstein?mc_cid=cb90e3f130&mc_eid=e6767fbebc&mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID])  defended (https://twitter.com/jakesilverstein?mc_cid=cb90e3f130&mc_eid=e6767fbebc&mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) the piece in a series of tweets.
Michael Strahan signs off on 'Live'...
The long, awkward goodbye between Michael Strahan and Kelly Ripa is finally over: This morning the NFL Hall of Famer made his final appearance as co-host of "Live with Kelly and Michael," closing the show with a tribute to fans and personnel.

"It's not about myself, it's not about you," Strahan told Ripa. "It's about everybody here. We have incredible staff here. We have, from producers to the staff to the crew, they make sure we're always prepared that we come out and put on a great show for you guys." Tom Kludt has the full story here. (http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/13/media/michael-strahan-last-show-kelly-ripa/index.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID])
... and looks to boost 'GMA'
Will Strahan's move strengthen 'Good Morning America' in the morning show wars? That's the question at the heart of Brian Lowry's new column (http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/13/media/michael-strahan-good-morning-america/index.html?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) :

"Strahan is obviously personable, and has been making regular appearances on the ABC morning program [that] have primarily involved lighter and human interest type stories," Lowry writes. "Yet the host is slated to land there in September, in the thick of what has already been an inordinately zesty presidential campaign, when politics will likely be front and center. That raises questions about how much more feel good news, for lack of a better term, Strahan will bring to a newscast that already features quite a lot of it."
Sunday's "Reliable Sources" is live from Hollywood
Brian emails: How does Nate Silver -- who said last fall that Trump had a 5% chance of becoming the GOP nominee -- feel about all the recent criticism of his data journalism practices? He has a blunt answer in an interview we taped for Sunday's show.

Also on the show, live from CNN's L.A. bureau: Dylan, Brian Lowry, Larry King, Janice Min... Plus Jeff Greenfield, MZ Hemingway and Kelly McBride... Sunday 11am ET...
Tweet of the Day
From The Washington Post's James Hohmann...
...Hohmann has more on all that here (https://twitter.com/jameshohmann?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .
Viceland renews five shows, adds five more
After much fanfare, Viceland, the 24-hour cable channel A&E gave to Vice, has fast become a non-story. That's because — despite enticing-sounding shows like "Balls Deep," "F*ck That's Delicious" and "Weediquette" — almost no one watches it.

But Rome wasn't built in a day. So Viceland has renewed five shows (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/viceland-renews-five-shows-including-891396?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) (including the aforementioned) and will add five more. "Blackout," a documentary series with Google incubator Jigsaw (http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/media/2016/05/8599127/vice-teams-google-incubator-jigsaw-doc-series-blackout?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) , will examine free expression (or lack thereof) around the world.
No, Ben Smith isn't going back to Politico
BuzzFeed editor-in-chief Ben Smith took a crack at guest-editing Politico Playbook, which had the chattering classes speculating that the former Politico blogger was returning to his alma mater. Even Drudge Report asked: "BUZZFEED Ben back at POLITICO?"

It's not an unreasonable assumption, given that Politico is in desperate need of a new editor (http://money.cnn.com/2016/04/04/media/politico-jim-vandehei/?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) , but there's nothing to it. Smith himself went to great lengths to dismiss the rumor: "There is a media rumor abroad in the land that I am going back to Politico," he wrote in Playbook. "Nope. But it is nice to visit with you all!"

And Playbook's future? As I reported last month (http://money.cnn.com/2016/04/28/media/politico-playbook-mike-allen-jake-sherman/?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) , that will fall to Politico reporters Jake Sherman and Anna Palmer when Mike Allen leaves the company this summer.
Speaking of... If you like tip-sheets like this one, you'll probably like this Wired column (http://www.wired.com/2016/05/rise-of-the-newsletter/?mbid=social_twitter&mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) from Clive Thompson on the "blissfully slow world of Internet newsletters."
And finally.... Next week's 'New Yorker'
Next week's New Yorker cover has Donald Trump taking a saw to the Republican Party. “This is the fourth time in less than a year that I’ve drawn Trump (or his hands),” Barry Blitt, the artist behind the cover of next week’s issue says. “It seems like a lot, but the Trump-induced rift in the G.O.P. is the least depressing of the items on the current news cycle.” See the full cover, and Blitt's other Trump covers, at NewYorker.com (http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/cover-story-2016-05-23?mc_cid=07807c1cbc&mc_eid=[UNIQID]) .

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