Media Quotes of the Week: Death of US local press helped Trump demonise the media to cladding fund warns claimants not to speak to journalists

NUJ general secretary Michelle Stanistreet in a statement: “The destruction of the press – particularly the local press in the States – has left a dangerous vacuum for trusted information and news and the conspiracy theorists and extremists have moved in. Some 4,000 journalist jobs have gone in the past decade and the lack of a robust local press has unmoored citizens from their local democratic institutions; research has shown this has led to a loosening of community cohesion. This makes it ripe territory for populist demagogues to step in with simple slogans and fear mongering. It was easy for him [Trump] to demonise the press and shout fake news."

Ian W. Karbal on the Columbia Journalism Review: "As a mob swarmed the Capitol building on Wednesday, images and videos of the event spread across social media in close to real time, many going viral on Twitter and Facebook before cable news networks covering the events could verify or report them. One video showed a group of rioters surrounding a pile of Associated Press equipment, trying to burn or damage it. 'We are the news now,' they shouted. Many in the circle were capturing the moment with cellphones."

David Yelland on Twitter: "Too many journalists on the right, in the UK and in the US, now find themselves exposed by events as far too close to Fascism, to liars, to QAnon, to enemies of democracy. They have been used. But they cannot see this through their anger."

Sean Illing on Vox: "If the fantasy-industrial complex churning out lies and conspiracy theories wasn’t bad enough, we’re also dealing with a much more pervasive problem in the press.We’re facing a new form of propaganda that wasn’t really possible until the digital age, something known as 'flooding the zone with shit' It’s less about perpetuating alternative realities and more about overwhelming the public with so many competing narratives, so much misinformation, that even well-intentioned people don’t know what to believe. This isn’t going away either. I don’t know what comes next and won’t hazard a prediction, but I know this much: Without some kind of reckoning in right-wing media, there is no sustainable path forward for the country."

Amanda Andrade-Rhoades, freelance photojournalist on assignment for The Washington Post at the Capitol, interviewed by the Committee to Protect Journalists: "I had three different people threaten to shoot me over the course of the day. They weren’t armed as far as I could tell. I saw people with knives and pepper spray. If they had guns, I couldn’t see them. But I did see people in flak jackets and bullet proof vests, so clearly ready for armed combat. At one point, a guy leaned over to me and said, 'I’m coming back with a gun tomorrow and I’m coming for you'.”

Margaret Sullivan in the Washington Post: "Day after day, hour after hour, Fox gave its viewers something that looked like news or commentary but far too often lacked sufficient adherence to a necessary ingredient: truth. Birtherism. The caravan invasion. Covid denialism. Rampant election fraud. All of these found a comfortable home at Fox. In the Trump era, the network — now out of favor for not being quite as shameless as the president demands — was his best friend and promoter. So to put it bluntly: The mob that stormed and desecrated the Capitol on Wednesday could not have existed in a country that hadn’t been radicalized by the likes of Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham, and swayed by biased news coverage."

Marina Hyde in the Guardian: "Imagine being the country that has watched the last four years unfold in the US, with its bloodlines so easily traceable to the Fox sensibility, and is nonetheless thinking: let’s have a bit of that. Because that’s us, of course. In the coming months, not one but two anti-impartiality news channels will launch in the UK – GB News, backed by Discovery, and News UK, courtesy of that  adornment to international life, Rupert Murdoch."

John Sweeney on Twitter: "At the BBC I was taken aside by a senior manager and told off for the tone of my tweets critical of @realDonaldTrump. Too many powerful people in Britain appeased this monster."

The Sunday Times [£] in a leader on the Trump Twitter ban: "With this decision, however, the platforms have committed to making editorial decisions on a scale not seen before, a task that, given the vast amount of content they host, will prove to be nigh on impossible, ruinously expensive and hugely controversial. Who will pass the Twitter test and who, like Mr Trump, will be regarded as beyond the pale? And will those who are banned have a right to appeal? Once the social media platforms set themselves up as judge and jury, they are asking for trouble."

• Lionel Barber on Twitter: "The Trump Twitter ban and Facebook’s belated clampdown finally settles it: platforms are publishers, with all the responsibilities that come along with that privilege."

The Times [£] in a leader: "While it remains wise to be wary of any state attempt to police free speech, recent events have shown that greater online regulation is inevitable and indeed desirable. For too long, tech firms have turned a blind eye towards their responsibilities. It would be no better if they now swung towards self-serving censoriousness instead. The past decade has shown what happens when Silicon Valley sets the parameters of free speech for the world. In the future, it must not be up to them."

The Telegraph in the obit of its co-owner Sir David Barclay, the eldest Barclay brother: “ 'Privacy is a valuable commodity,' said Sir David – reputedly the more outgoing of the two – in one of his very few public utterances. 'There is no incentive for us to talk about our business affairs.' Many years later, replying by email to a request for an interview, he added: 'It doesn’t appeal to us to boast to others of how clever we have been or how successful we are'.”

Martina Lees and Gabriel Pogrund in the Sunday Times [£] on how the £1bn cladding fund to fix unsafe blocks of flats gags applicants from speaking to the press: "A leaked copy of the contract, which applicants must sign to get aid, bans them from 'any communication' with journalists about repairs 'without the prior written approval' of government press officers."

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Media Quotes of the Week: From 'Murder the media' mob attack press in Washington mayhem to new regional paper boss says focus on local content

Tiffany Hsu and Katie Robertson in The New York Times: "Smashed cameras. Threats. The words “Murder the Media” scratched into a door of the Capitol. As Trump supporters rampaged on Wednesday, incited by the president’s false claims of a stolen election, they hit on a secondary target: journalists. Members of the news media who were reporting from the streets and squares of Washington were threatened and surrounded, and their colleagues inside the Capitol were forced to shelter in secure locations for hours."

• A video taken by William Turton, a Bloomberg News reporter, showed a crowd outside the building advancing on a camera crew, yelling, “Get out of here,” and smashing equipment. Paul McLeod, a Buzzfeed News reporter, shared a photo of a noose the group had fashioned out of a camera cord and hung from a tree.

Samantha Jo-Ross on Twitter: "Murder the media" was carved into the U.S. Capitol today. There are no words to express how disturbing this is. A free press that's able to hold those in power accountable is what makes our democracy work. I'm proud to be a journalist & I'm thankful for my colleagues on the Hill."

Committee to Protect Journalists executive director Joel Simon: “We are gravely concerned by today’s attack on American institutions, including the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., where journalists as well as lawmakers are at risk. Journalists and news crews covering these events, which are of paramount public interest, must be able to do so freely and safely, with the support and protection of law enforcement. Intimidation and vandalism have already been carried out by violent protesters and there is a real possibility of escalating attacks on the media."

Mark Kleinman on Sky News: "The latest addition to Britain's array of 24-hour news channels is to begin recruiting more than 100 journalists after completing a £60m fundraising that it claims was significantly oversubscribed. GB News, which aims to launch later this year, said Sir Paul Marshall, a prominent hedge fund manager, and Legatum, a Dubai-based investment group, would become major shareholders in the company."

GB News chairman Andrew Neil, in a press release: "We're thrilled to have such a broad range of high-calibre investors who share our belief that many British people are crying out for a news service that is more diverse and more representative of their values and concerns." 

• The new channel says it will recruit 140 staff - including 120 journalists - and expects to reach 96% of British television households through Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, YouView and Freesat.

Robert Peston on Twitter: "GB News is real and significant. It’s backers have deep pockets. It is not hyperbole to expect that it will have an impact on the UK broadcast news landscape, because it has money and a mission."

The Times [£] reports: Nearly half of Britons think that the BBC no longer represents their values amid declining levels of trust in the broadcaster, particularly outside London, research for " suggests.
In the past year a third of the public said that the values of the BBC had become less like theirs amid controversy over its coverage of Brexit and the pandemic. Only 33 per cent now believe that it represents their standpoint."

District Judge Vanessa Baraitser ruling in the Julian Assange extradition case, as reported by BBC News: "Faced with the conditions of near total isolation without the protective factors which limited his risk at HMP Belmarsh, I am satisfied the procedures described by the US will not prevent Mr Assange from finding a way to commit suicide and for this reason I have decided extradition would be oppressive by reason of mental harm and I order his discharge."

• NUJ general secretary Michelle Stanistreet commented: "The judge rejected the defence case that the charges against Assange related to actions identical to those undertaken daily by most investigative journalists. In doing so, she leaves open the door for a future US administration to confect a similar indictment against a journalist."

Owen Jones in the Guardian: "It is not to critique the soundness of Baraitser’s legal judgment to argue that this was the right decision, but for the wrong reason. That a British court has ruled that the US prison system is too barbaric to guarantee the safety of Assange tells its own story. But this is about something much bigger than Assange: it’s about journalism, the free press, and most importantly of all, the ability to expose atrocities committed by the world’s last remaining superpower."

The Times [£] in a leader: "If the appeal fails, and his eventual release from custody concludes this long saga, Assange should be deported to his native Australia. He is a discredited figure who has long outstayed his welcome."

 Tim Walker on Twitter: "If the past year has taught us anything, it is that scientists and members of the medical profession are of a damn sight more use than politicians and journalists."

National World chairman David Montgomery after the company acquired the Yorkshire Post and Scotsman publisher JPIMedia for £10.2m, as reported by the Yorkshire Post: “We are very proud to be associated with JPIMedia’s 100 historic brands and recognise the dedication of all the staff who serve their communities in print and online, particularly in current challenging times...On a personal note I have been associated with some JPIMedia titles since I was a student journalist and witnessed over decades how their great and honest reporting has contributed to democratic and societal development - a tradition that National World will continue to champion.”

• In an email to staff, reported by Press Gazette, Montgomery said he wanted: “A journalistic formula that replaces irrelevant or clickbait stories with exclusive content to enhance local lives...National World believes that geographical and creative diversity overseen by local management will better distinguish our products, in both print and online and in video and on mobile. This strategy stands out from the current trend of media businesses pursuing a one-size-fits-all approach.”

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Media Quotes of the Week: From 2020 round-up of the journalists jailed and murdered worldwide to xenophobic headlines won't go away after Brexit

Reporters Without Borders in its round-up of journalists detained, held hostage and missing around the world: "The number of detained journalists is still at a historically high level. Worldwide, a total of 387 journalists were held in connection with the provision of news and information at the start of December 2020, compared with 389 at the start of December 2019. This lack of variation follows a 12% rise in 2019. Overall, the number of detained (professional and non-professional) journalists has risen 17% in the past five years (from 328 in 2015)."

Committee to Protect Journalists in its annual report revealing 274 journalists were jailed globally in 2020: "President Donald Trump’s harsh rhetoric throughout his term, including calling critical reports 'fake news,' gave cover to authoritarians to crack down on journalists in their own countries. Globally, 34 journalists were jailed for 'false news'."

CPJ executive director Joel Simon in a statement: “The record number of journalists imprisoned around the world is President Trump’s press freedom legacy. The incoming Biden administration must work as part of a global coalition to bring the number down.”

The International Federation of Journalists in a statement: "The year 2020 will go down in history as the year of an unprecedented global pandemic crisis, but also as the year of the resurgence of murders of journalists and media staff around the world. With 60 murders in 2020, the macabre statistics are on the rise again compared to 2019 (49). Organised criminal cartels, extremists’ insurgencies and sectarian violence continue to strike terror among journalists, scores of who have paid the ultimate price for independent reporting in the four corners of the globe."

Ex-News of the World editor Andy Coulson interviewed in The Sunday Times [£]: “There’s something called ‘editoritis.' The main symptom is that you believe yourself to be the centre of the world. That everything else revolves around you. And I definitely suffered from editoritis.”

The Sunday Times [£] in a leader: "Peter Cruddas, a spread-betting tycoon, sued The Sunday Times after our Insight team reported in 2012 that, while Tory co-treasurer under David Cameron, he had corruptly offered access to the prime minister and other senior ministers in return for donations. Although Mr Cruddas won the first round, the legal fight ended badly for him in 2015 when three appeal court judges said it had been “inappropriate, unacceptable and wrong” to offer top-level access to undercover reporters posing as potential party donors whose motives for seeking confidential meetings with Mr Cameron were explicitly commercial. That he should now become Baron Cruddas, against the advice of the House of Lords appointments commission, taints the Conservative Party."

Financial Times editor Roula Khalaf in InPublishing: “This is the story of the media during the pandemic. If you have a subscriptions business, then your subscriptions business has done well. People want to read more so there is a real vote of confidence in the news business during the pandemic.”

Nishant Lalwani and James Deane on the BBC Media Action Insight Blog: "The grim reality of the COVID-19 crisis means that many countries around the world may be facing a future with no independent journalism at all, precisely at a time when access to reliable information can be a matter of life and death...Earlier concerns that the pandemic might prove to be an existential threat to media are proving well founded. If this is allowed to happen, the democratic and development costs will be immeasurable. We call on international donors and policy makers to recognise the urgency of this challenge and mount a meaningful international response."

Alan Rusbridger in the Observer: "The BBC is not perfect. It was loathed by both sides during the drawn-out agony of the Brexit referendum. Everyone knows that its funding model needs reform. But many other countries, knowing the same thing, have already moved to different kinds of funding. Only in the UK has a government chosen this moment of information chaos – with other ways of sustaining serious journalism in dire trouble – to toy with the idea of ditching the concept of news as a public service. I suspect that Boris Johnson, who spent his entire journalistic career gleefully throwing stones through greenhouse windows, has little idea of what true public service news looks like. The rest of us should worry."

Max Hastings in The Times [£]: "In the 21st century only a handful of countries can afford to indulge the luxury of nationalism and it is doubtful that we are among them. It would be nice to think that, now the deal is done, xenophobia would be banished from the headlines of name-calling newspapers and that we could once again treat our European neighbours with the respect they deserve. This is unlikely, however. Tensions will be reignited each time an EU summit makes new decisions on trade, environmental and health standards, and much else. These will perforce affect us but we shall have no power to influence them. Accusations will continue to fly that we are being 'bullied' and 'blackmailed' by Frogs, Wops and Huns. And yes, such contemptible words will be used, perhaps by the prime minister."

David Yelland on Twitter: "Here’s a tip: Place unread copies of this weekend’s ridiculous flag-waving Brexit newspapers in a sealed bag and read them this time next year. They will look utterly mad. They are wrong on almost every single aspect of Brexit reality."

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• My Media Quotes of the Year 2020 are up on InPublishing which you can read here. I've tried to capture the best media-related quotes from a year dominated by the coronavirus crisis, which while driving huge media audiences played havoc with advertising, sales revenues and jobs. As well as the coronavirus crisis the quotes cover Trump, Boris and Cummings, Harry and Meghan, magazines, newspapers, the BBC and press freedom.

Media Quotes ­­­­­­­­­­­­of the Year 2020: InPublishing

My Media Quotes of the Year 2020 are up on InPublishing which you can read here. I've tried to capture the best media-related quotes from a year dominated by the coronavirus crisis which while driving huge media audiences played havoc with advertising, sales revenues and jobs. As well as the coronavirus crisis the quotes cover Trump, Boris and Cummings, Harry and Meghan, magazines, newspapers, the BBC and press freedom.

Quotes of the Week: Raid on journalists' homes could cost police £3 million to Joe Biden urged to make press freedom a focus of US foreign policy

RTE reports: "Two journalists inappropriately arrested over material that appeared in a documentary on a loyalist gun attack during the Troubles have settled their case against the Police Service of Northern Ireland. It is understood the PSNI has agreed to pay damages to Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey and delete material it seized when officers raided their homes and offices in August 2018. Mr McCaffrey and Mr Birney were arrested over the alleged theft of a police watchdog document that appeared in their film No Stone Unturned about the Loughinisland massacre. Last year, judges ruled search warrants used by police to search the journalists' home and their offices at Fine Point Films been 'inappropriate'."

The Times [£] reports: "The settlement is understood to comprise £150,000 for Mr Birney, £125,000 for Mr McCaffrey and £600,000 for their Fine Point Films company." 

Trevor Birney told The Times [£]: “It is a fairly conservative estimate that this escapade by Durham and the PSNI will end up costing the police £3 million. The PSNI have apologised and paid damages today but in court they have had a full legal team fighting us step by step — it took a long time for the penny to drop that they were in the wrong. There should be a wider look at press freedom in Northern Ireland. There has been a tendency for action to be taken against journalists when the state doesn’t like them poking their noses into sensitive issues."

Seamus Dooley, NUJ assistant general secretary, in a statement after two journalists working for the Sunday World were threatened: "Once again NUJ members have received serious threats from loyalist paramilitaries and criminals intent on silencing journalism in Northern Ireland. These attempts to intimidate journalists must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. We welcome the fact that the journalists concerned have received the full support of their employer. The protection of journalists and the active pursuit of those who threaten the media is essential to a functioning democratic society. The PSNI is fully engaged with both journalists and we hope that every effort will be made to ensure the continued safety of our members, their families and their colleagues."

Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden in the Telegraph on the new Digital Markets Unit regulatory regime for big tech companies like Facebook and Google: "We’re going to tackle the devastating knock-on effects that anti-competitive practices have had on our vitally important newspaper industry, which were outlined in the Cairncross Review. At the moment, tech giants can impose terms on news publishers that limit their ability to monetise their content — severely impacting their ability to thrive. Our code will make sure publishers get a fair deal from the platforms on which they rely, so that we can support the sustainability of one of the world’s strongest news publishing sectors."

John Naughton in the Observer: "Citizens of most UK towns and cities now have much less information about what’s happening in their localities than their grandparents did, no matter how assiduously they check their Facebook or Twitter feeds. And the quality of local democratic discourse has been accordingly impaired. The tech companies are not wholly to blame for these changes of course. But they have played a significant role in undermining the institutions whose business model they vaporised. Looked at from that perspective, it seems wholly reasonable that societies should require social media companies to contribute to the support of news organisations that democracies require for their functioning and survival."

Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, in a statement: “The House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee report correctly identifies the need for the tech giants to be brought to book for their stranglehold on the media industry and the unfair competition for advertising revenue. An Australian-style model to make these platforms pay for the content they presently help themselves to would be welcome...But there is scope to be much bolder. A levy of tech giants would provide the means to support innovation and plurality and help this industry out of the crisis caused by the pandemic and towards better health. A more strategic body – such as a Journalism Foundation – is needed to increase media plurality, champion public interest journalism and rebuild the present broken media model.”

BBC News reports: "Facebook will begin paying UK news publishers for some articles with the launch of Facebook News in January. The feature adds a dedicated news tab to the Facebook app, and has already launched in the United States. Facebook said it will 'pay publishers for content that is not already on the platform' and prioritise original reporting."

• BBC media editor Amol Rajan commets: "This initiative crosses a commercial rubicon. The company has always directed traffic back to publishers, but this is the first time that Facebook will pay news publishers for their work."
• Facebook says: "The first group of publishers featured in Facebook News in the UK includes Archant, Conde Nast, The Economist, ESI Media, Guardian Media Group, Hearst, Iliffe, JPI Media, Midland News Association, Reach, STV and others."

Press Gazette reports: "Carole Cadwalladr has insisted she will continue to defend her reporting against a libel case brought by prominent Brexiteer Arron Banks despite withdrawing the defence of truth. Instead the Observer journalist has said she will pursue a “robust” defence on public interest grounds when the case goes to trial next year. Cadwalladr has been ordered to pay £62,000 in costs to Banks after withdrawing her defences of truth and limitation just one day before the next hearing in the case was scheduled to take place."

Donald Trump on Twitter: "I gave a long news conference today after wishing the military a Happy Thanksgiving, & realized once again that the Fake News Media coordinates so that the real message of such a conference never gets out. Primary point made was that the 2020 Election was RIGGED, and that I WON!"

Trump snapping at Reuters reporter Jeff Mason at the news conference: “Don't talk to me that way. You are a lightweight. I'm the president of the United States. Don't ever talk to the president that way.”

The Committee to Protect Journalists in a proposal to President-elect Joe Biden: "By designating the promotion and protection of press freedom as a focus of U.S. foreign policy, President Biden has the opportunity to restore American influence in a critical area; improve the flow of information to advance U.S. strategic, political, and economic interests and those of its democratic allies; and ensure the internet remains a shared global resource. However, this can only be achieved if defense of press freedom is a matter of principle, and not expediency."

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Media Quotes of the Week: From Murdoch saved Andrew Neil over Sunday Times 'Queen dismayed by Thatcher' row to what makes a great editor

Andrew Neil in the Sunday Times [£] on how after the paper's splash on the Queen's view of Margaret Thatcher it was suggested he should resign as editor along with Palace press secretary Michael Shea: "At one stage, it was suggested that Shea would resign if I agreed to resign too. When that was knocked back, the quid pro quo was floated of me for Sir William Heseltine, the Queen’s private secretary. At least I’m now worth more than a bloody spin doctor, I thought. But still no deal.Then some of the more Establishment-minded national directors of Times Newspapers with palace connections came looking for my scalp. The proprietor, Rupert Murdoch, had to remind them their job was to protect my editorial independence, not to seek my sacking."

The Times [£] in a leader: "We report today on a unit within the Cabinet Office. Known as the freedom of information “clearing house”, it is believed to run a watchlist, or perhaps a blacklist, of journalists from publications, including this one, to identify freedom of information requests which may be deemed sensitive and then advise departments as to how best frustrate them. The same unit is believed to vet the responses from those departments. This from a government that has fought on many fronts to frustrate the workings of the press and media...If the prime minister’s promised reset is to mean anything, it should start with a commitment to far greater transparency, not least as to what the FOI clearing house is up to."

Robert Peston in The Spectator: "It is such a relief that Dominic Cummings has gone. Not for the sake of the country or the government — you can make your own mind up about that. No, no, I’m talking about me. Over the past year or so, the abuse I’ve received on Twitter and Facebook for reporting anything perceived to have originated anywhere near Cummings has been wearing. I’ve never endorsed anything he said or did."

Amal Clooney accepting the 2020 Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award  from the Committee to Protect Journalists: "Americans voted in a new leader who can reclaim moral leadership on the world stage. They rejected the candidate who called the press enemies of the people and shrugged off the murder of a Washington Post columnist."

Marina Zolotova, the editor of Tut.by, an independent news website in Belarus, quoted in The Times [£]: “Blue press jackets and press badges have become targets. When journalists go to cover a protest they cannot be sure that they will come home. This is a real war by the authorities against independent journalism and their own people.”

Suzanne Moore on Unheard on her departure from the Guardian after the staff letter accusing her of being transphobic: "Mistakenly, I thought my editors would stand up for me because that was my experience at other papers; or they might issue a public statement. They didn’t. There was some internal email, and I hear it was discussed at the Scott Trust, which governs the paper. What this means I genuinely have no idea. Nor do I understand what editorial independence means any more. Do they? Not in my book. This to me was utter cowardice. Shouldn’t you stand by your writers? But on this issue the Guardian has run scared."

BuzzFeed founder and ceo Jonah Perettti in a statement after BuzzFeed acquired HuffPost: “I have vivid memories of growing HuffPost into a major news outlet in its early years, but BuzzFeed is making this acquisition because we believe in the future of HuffPost and the potential it has to continue to define the media landscape for years to come.”

• Emily Bell on Twitter: "BuzzFeed and HuffPost for all their issues represented prototypes of good faith digital news operations. As they consolidate, and possibly shrink a little, consider the political money currently growing bottom-feeding wildly misleading networks of local and national news."

BBC head of news gathering Jonathan Munro, quoted in The Times [£]: "We don’t want all our editorial meetings to be dominated by what white people think. We don’t want any single group in society to dominate our editorial thinking, because we are not being diverse in our thought process.”

BBC Media Centre promoting new BBC 2 three-part documentary The Fall of the House of Maxwell: "From Robert Maxwell’s beginnings as impoverished survivor of the Holocaust, via the extraordinary creation and collapse of his multimillion pound media business, his apparently accidental death and revelations of fraud on a grand scale, to the prosecution of his daughter thirty years later for her alleged involvement in grooming underage victims for sexual abuse, it’s the tale of the rise and fall of the first great modern media mogul and of the unravelling of his deeply troubled family."

Alan Rusbridger on Press Gazette: "The best editors have passion as well as calm; breadth as well as focus; nerves of steel as well as powers of empathy. They must have cool judgement and, preferably, a backbone. Most of the time it is the reporters, not the editors, who are most exposed and who are taking the most risks. The editor is there to back them and bring the institutional protection of the organisation to shield them."

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