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Scott Pruitt is nominated to head the Environmental Protection Agency

Without Scott Pruitt on the ground at the Environmental Protection Agency to provide the appropriate set of alternative facts, theres a chance someone at the EPA might reveal an actual fact. AndDonald Trump ishaving none of that.

And while the flow of information out of the EPA has been locked down, its far more than press releases that have ceased to flow.

EPA staff has been instructed to freeze all its grants an extensive program that includes funding for research, redevelopment of former industrial sites, air quality monitoring and education, among other things and told not to discuss this order with anyone outside the agency, according to a Hill source with knowledge of the situation.

These grants powereverything from sampling pollution around Superfund sites to community recycling programs and environmental education programs used in schools. The grant lockdownfollows reports that Trump intends to cut $815 million from the EPAs budget,destroying not only the ability to fund research, but to enforce existing standards.

Requests for commentfrom the EPA drew noresponse. Of course.

Link:
EPA under a gag order as Trump team shuts down grants, press communication - Daily Kos

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First days of Trump presidency have been marked by escalating feud between the administration and establishment media. Americans expected the inauguration coverage that celebrates democratic process, peaceful transition of power, breath and scope of the incoming administrations undertaking, instead, the establishment media engaged in an array of vicious attacks ranging from fake news and modified coverage to a CNN-run segment that may be construed as inciting action harmful to elected officials. In the end, the worldwide audiences have been deprived of opportunity to savor this historic moment in American history by the militant elite media virtually taking meaning of peaceful out of the peaceful transition of power, while acting incensed when publicly scourged by the administration for journalistic malpractice and dishonest coverage of events.

Perhaps, the most harmful salvo came on the first day of the Trump administration. As the presidential visit to CIA headquarters was wrapping up, a number of establishment media networks attempted to perpetuate an imaginary of a chasm that allegedly exists between President Trump and the intelligence community sworn to serve his office. Even Obamas political appointee Brennan could not help himself and stepped into the spotlight to chide President Trump for openly criticizing the establishment leadership for poor workmanship, mismanagement and politicization of federal agencies, pursuit of favors at the expense of work ethics and truth.

In an interview with NBC News Andrea Mitchell, a former aide to John Brennan at the CIA said: Former CIA Director Brennan is deeply saddened and angered at Donald Trumps despicable display of self-aggrandizement in front of CIAs Memorial Wall of Agency heroes. Brennan, Shapiro said, believes Trump should be ashamed of himself.

What the establishment media ignored to mention is that only recently some 50 American spies said their war-intelligence was cooked on its way to the White House to bring it in the sink with Mr Obamas official narrative. Intelligence analysts complaints even prompted the Pentagons inspector general to open an investigation into the alleged manipulation of intelligence. We will be well served by the reminder that flawed intelligence cited by the Bush administration helped political establishment to make the case for invading Iraq nearly 14 years ago at a great expenditure in blood and treasure, and to the detriment of our international repute. Today we can posit that the causality in failed Middle Eastern and Central European policies, metastasis of radical Islamist terrorism, mass populations-displacements over the past decade all tied to intelligence communitys leadership systemic failure to deliver truthful and compelling analysis.

Spirited political discourse and collective action are Americas time-honored way for challenger to enter the polity as well as for the political establishment to defend its stay in power and access to scarce economic resources. However, collective action by the establishment controlled media proactive in harming American presidency is the new phenomenon in Americas political landscape.

The American public for nearly decade was subject to open propaganda and misinformation by the handful of elite media networks engaged to advance political and economic interests of the establishment class. Subordinate to anti-Trump establishment elites, perpetrators of the intrastate information and ideological warfare engaged in dissemination of media reports supportive of the political establishment-friendly new-liberal policies and event-prone narratives created by the virulent leftist vector. This media operators calculus is clearly centered on forcing Trump administration to adopt failed policies of the past, denied by the majority electorate. Such misinformation efforts have been exemplified by the 2011-Benghazi event coverage and talking points designed to cover up the inept executive management at the state department, and politics instead of human-life centered administration response; allegations of Russian influence in presidential election designed to delegitimize president Trump; assertions of impending deleterious effect of president Trump policies on economic continuity of the economy; allegations of internecine racial and religious radicalism exhibited by Trump administration; even reports of a Martin Luther King Jr. bust disappearing from the oval office having potential to reignite racial tensions on the day when leftist and anarchists attempted to rain havoc on the streets of America.

Just how do promulgators of fallacies expect to get away with their concerted efforts to dupe Americans and damage a presidency?

In an effort to delegitimize president Trump, the establishment media strategies of misinformation employ armed propaganda and the speed strategy effectively exploit speed versus accuracy dilemma. The speed strategy allows the media to control operational tempo, seize the initiative and place Trump administration in a position of weakness in constant reactionary state. The office of the president is bound by obligation to deploy message with speed is impeded by the time required to access information with accuracy; speed sacrifices accuracy as we have seen in some of Trumps tweets. The anti-Trump media establishment on the other hand become adept at exploiting this weakness in its own asymmetric incursions against its own domestic audiences as exemplified by the aforementioned examples of Benghazi event, Russian hacking myth, MLK bust-controversy. In all cases the elite establishment media and their allies dont bind themselves by moral obligations to present truthful account of events; they are hindered by hidden agendas and conveniently incompetent intelligence sourcing. They use new-liberal media networks in barrages of armed propaganda attacks to influence rather than in attempt to inform audiences, catching Trump administration in constant reactive cycle of trying to counteract every piece of misinformation further drawing attention of the community and, by virtue of doing so, amplifying their own message. In their pro-active state, the establishment media quickly reacts to president Trumps message inconsistencies, actual or perceived, creating shock points, pushing the administration to tactically advantageous reactive state, in which media establishment control operational tempo, owns initiative.

The table can be turned on media personalities and their networks who are, in words of President Trump, among the most dishonest human beings on earth It will require multidimensional, jarring, broad in scope and depth of devastation measures designed to increase costs of collective action by the media willing to engage in dissemination of disinformation damaging to the office of presidency and interests of American people; encouragement of popular support for media networks whose coverage is consistently fair and balanced ready to expose hypocrisy and corruption of establishment elites; enforcement of ethical standards in media and printed journalism; and lastly, deliver on promises that President Trump gave to American people.

See the original post:
Trump's Media Wars - Daily Caller

The Thai Journalists Association has called a meeting for Sunday on a pending bill to give government a direct hand in setting media's 'professional standards'.

Media organisations will step up efforts to oppose a bill governing rights protection, ethical promotion and professional standards of media professionals with the National Reform Steering Assembly.

ThisSunday, several media groups will announce their stance at the Thai Journalists Association, TJA president Wanchai Wongmeechai said.

"The NRSA's draft law can lead to conditions that allow interference in the media's work," Mr Wanchai said.

"This is not media reform but an attempt to control the media."

Last December, six professional media organisations released an open letter opposing the NRSA's draft in which the permanent secretaries of four ministries have been included as members of the national media council.

The bill also requires every media professional to have a licence. These specifications in the long run could allow political intervention and affect the independence of the media, Mr Wanchai said.

The six media organisations are the National Press Council, the News Broadcasting Council of Thailand, the TJA, the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, the Online News Providers Association, and the Thailand Cable TV Association.

The NRSA media reform steering committee, led by ACM Kanit Suwannate, had discussed the bill with media organisations many times. ACM Kanit insisted on his committee's draft, TJA vice-president Chairith Yonpiam said.

Meanwhile, a source from the committee, who asked not to be named, said the NRSA has scheduled a meeting to consider the bill on Jan 30.

Chairman of the National Press Council of Thailand Chavarong Limpattamapanee said: "We do not refuse all regulations governing the media. But the NRSA's version of the draft law is for controlling the media, not for the protection of people's rights as claimed. We proposed an alternative version but it was not considered."

Mr Chavarong said other laws are in place to regulate the media and prevent them from violating people's rights.

Mr Wanchai said the Confederation of Thai Journalists, which comprises 10 media organisations, including the TJA, will discuss the issue tomorrow, and again submit a letter to the NRSA.

In their earlier open letter to the NRSA, the organisations said the NRSA's version was not based on the principles of the protection of media freedom but on the principles of controlling the media using state powers to interfere in the media's work.

They said it was not in line with the principles of the draft constitution that has passed the referendum, which aims at allowing media self-regulation which is free from state intervention.

Link:
Media groups renew 'control' bill battle | Bangkok Post: news - Bangkok Post

John de Mol, the creator of hit TV shows Big Brother and The Voice, has countered a rival bid for Telegraaf Media Groep NV with his own 274 million euro ($294 million) offer to take control of the Dutch newspaper publisher.

De Mols Talpa Holding made an unsolicited cash offer of 5.90 euros a share for TMG, publisher of the Telegraaf daily and a number of regional newspapers in the Netherlands, according to a statement Monday. The offer follows a 5.25 euros-a-share proposal fromclosely held Belgian group Mediahuis NV and VP Exploitatie announced on Dec. 14. De Mol built a 18.4 percent stake in TMG this month, according to a filing with regulator AFM on Jan. 17, and has since raised his holding to just above 20 percent.

TMG will compare Talpas proposal to the rival Belgian bid and a stand alone strategy and other strategic alternatives, the company said Monday in a statement.

Buying TMG would give De Mol control of a number of Dutch media assets including Amsterdam-based De Telegraaf,which ditched 121 years of broadsheet format in 2014 in favor of tabloid sizing. TMG and De Mols Talpa have partnered to deliver more online video in recent months, combining Talpas television expertise with TMGs content in an app and on the web.

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Talpa Holding owns one-third of SBS Nederland, which operates a string of Dutch TV and radio stations. De Mol, a 61-year-old billionaire, founded the company in 2004 after leaving Endemol, where he created Big Brother.

Shares in TMG advanced 1.6 percent to 5.901 euros, just above the offer price.

Talpa Media, formerly part of Talpa Holding, was sold to U.K. broadcaster ITV Plc. Talpa Media produces shows including The Voice, The Voice Kids and Dance Dance Dance.

Follow this link:
'Big Brother' Creator De Mol Bids to Control Dutch Publisher TMG - Bloomberg

Neal Urwitz Published 4:02 p.m. ET Jan. 22, 2017 | Updated 11 hours ago

President Donald Trumps counselor Kellyanne Conway said White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer used alternative facts when he falsely called the crowds at Trumps swearing-in ceremony the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration." Time

In Times Square on Jan. 20, 2017.(Photo: Mary Altaffer, AP)

Since Donald Trump upended everything we thought we knew about politics, hands have been wrung and ink has been spilled about the "post-factual age." How could the candidate with the worstPolitifactrating in the 2016 campaign come out on top? How could fake news causea man to shoot up a pizzeriain a quiet Washington neighborhood?How could the Trump administration claim its new press secretary was using "alternative facts"?

Do facts still matter and if they dont, will real journalism stay relevant? Or is the lamestream media a relic?

We shouldnt overreact. Now that President Trump has taken the oath of office and the business of governance has begun, the impact of fake news and alternative outlets will be revealed as vastly overblown. Traditional media will still control the national conversation. Policymakers will still have to build their days around what the mainstream media reports. The scandals,conflictsand reality checks the mainstream press unearths will dominate the headlines, as they didjust before the inauguration. Those of fake news sites will not.

Lets start with the numbers. Infowars, which received tremendous attention as a haven for conspiracy theories during the campaign, has about 6 millionunique monthly visitors. Breitbarthad roughly19 millionin October2016 when interest in the presidential campaign was peaking.

The USA TODAY NETWORK,on the other hand,hadmore than 122 millionunique visitors in November.CNN's monthly average is about 105 million. The Washington Postand The New York Times, meanwhile, rose to about 100 million apiece just before the election. It is hard to deny that mainstream media outlets reach a huge swath of Americas news consumers.

USA TODAY

Why Facebook should hire a chief ethicist: Column

USA TODAY

Trump makes Buzzfeed believable: Christian Schneider

Its not just the sheer numbers, though its also who reads which outlets.Politicopolledcongressional staffersand lobbyists on what they read,and the results were no surprise. Among the most read wereThe Wall Street Journal,The Washington Post,The Hill,Roll Calland, of course,Politicoitself. Most congressional offices also read their hometown papers religiously.

People working in Washingtons other policymaking centers like the Department of Defense or the Department of Education read large national publications. They also read outlets that focus on their respective industries, such asDefense NewsandEducation Week, and those mainstream trade publications matter.Education Week,for instance, has 1.1 millionunique monthly visitors, and you can bet the people crafting federal regulatory interpretations take their stories seriously.

As forsites like Infowars, "credible people cannot cite them and remain credible, at least not with policymakers. Former Georgia congressmanJack Kingston, for instance, tweeted a link to an Infowars story.A reporter from themainstream The Atlanta Journal-Constitutionand conservatives from across the countrylambastedhim for it, and Kingston deleted the tweet in an hour. If citing an outlet can shame a former member of Congress, let alone a current one, it is fair to say that outlets impact on the national policy conversation will be limited at best.

Finally, few things control the national conversation like a scandal, but the scandal must have some grounding in fact in order to matter. Fact-based scandals dominated the conversation around the campaign, whether it wasClintons emails orTrumps locker room talk aboard theAccess Hollywoodbus. That is all the more true while a president is in office. Consider how the Clinton administrations legislative agenda groundto a halt during the MonicaLewinsky scandal, or how the George W. Bush Administrations political capital evaporated following the botched response to Hurricane Katrina.

POLICING THE USA:Alook at race, justice, media

USA TODAY

Media beware, your credibility is all you have: Column

The scandals unearthed by alternative outlets dont have the same impact. For instance, when Alex Jones reported that Hillary Clinton was a devil worshipper, the Clinton campaign, to put it mildly, did not feel compelled to offer a denial. The next four years will doubtlessly see unreliable news outlets produce hundreds of "scandals," none of which will have much effect on Americas governance.

Yes, people are sharing fake news through Facebook and Twitter. People are increasingly using social media platforms to receive news through a filter bubble, where they will only end up reading the news and opinions they already agree with, regardless of whether those facts are actually true. In the long run, that will bepoisonousto our nation, convincing everyone that their own opinions are infallible and the opposition is at best stupid or at worst evil.

None of that, however, precludes the traditional media from playing a critical role in the governance of the United States. Even in the post-factual age, when fake news proliferates and fringe conspiracies creep into online interactions, the lamestream media will still control the national conversation. Facts still matter.

Neal Urwitz is director of external relations at the Center for a New American Security.

You can readdiverse opinions from ourBoard of Contributorsand other writers ontheOpinion front page,on Twitter@USATOpinionand in our dailyOpinion newsletter.To submit a letter, comment or column, check oursubmission guidelines.

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Don't panic about 'alternative facts': Column - USA TODAY