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** OPINION
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** How press freedoms are under attack in America
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President Donald Trump, shown here during a speech in Pennsylvania last week. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Journalists being threatened. Journalists being sued. News organizations being banned from certain events. News outlets having their funding taken away.

These are the kinds of extreme attacks on the media that are often seen in dictatorships and authoritarian regimes.

But these things are happening right now. Here. In the United States.

Ever since Donald Trump — the man who turned phrases such as “fake news” and “enemy of the people” into rallying cries and conservative talking points — returned to the White House for the second time in January, press freedoms have been under attack in America.

That is the topic of the latest episode of “The Poynter Report Podcast.” ([link removed]) It features a conversation between me and my colleague, Angela Fu, who has been extensively covering these attacks on the media. Fu has been a media business reporter for Poynter, and she says there are a lot of similarities between covering the business of media and attacks on the press.

“They're both beats with lots of bad news … pretty depressing beats,” Fu said. “I think another big similarity is that in my job, I'm taking lots of complicated topics and trying to make them comprehensible for the reader. So, for example, I did a lot of labor reporting — talking about labor laws and what actually goes into the unionization process, and trying to help the reader understand that. And then with all of the press freedom reporting — I think it was Brian Stelter of CNN who compared media reporting today to legal reporting. Because I'm reporting on tracking so many lawsuits between Trump and various media organizations, and having to explain to the reader: What is a TRO, a temporary restraining order? What is a preliminary injunction? What is actually happening? What is the status of all of his attacks? And so I think that's the other big similarity between the two.”

Fu and I get into some of the details of Trump’s attacks — from banning The Associated Press from press pools to suing CBS’s parent company to going after news outlets such as Voice of America, NPR and PBS. So be sure to check out this episode — the first episode of season three. And please like and subscribe and give us a good review.

Aside from watching on YouTube ([link removed]) , you can also find the podcast on Apple ([link removed]) , Spotify ([link removed]) , and most places where you find podcasts.

A MESSAGE FROM POYNTER
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** That brings us to …
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… this piece, by Poynter managing editor (and editor of this newsletter) Ren LaForme, which includes a significant announcement: “We’re tracking the rising threats to press freedom.” ([link removed])

LaForme went into many of the more egregious attacks on press freedoms, including the AP, CBS, ABC and Voice of America, and writes, “Any one of them would have drawn bipartisan condemnation under previous administrations. Taken together, they signal a sharply escalating federal hostility toward the free press. It’s hard not to look to places like Hungary, Turkey and Brazil — where strongmen have eroded their countries’ news ecosystems — and wonder how far this might go.”

He then adds, “At Poynter, we haven’t been idle. Our newsroom has often focused on the financial and structural challenges facing journalism, but now we are adding a dedicated effort to document this growing threat.”

That’s where Fu’s work comes in.

In addition, LaForme writes, “Soon, we’ll launch an online resource that will track and document the threats the current administration, and those who follow its playbook, have made against the First Amendment. If the press is the immune system of democracy, we’re in a fever dream. We’re here to document and describe the erosion of press freedom — clearly, publicly and before it’s too late.”


** How to contact us about press freedom issues
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If you have a tip or an idea for a story about the ongoing threats to press freedom, you can reach media reporter Angela Fu via email at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or on Signal at angelafu.74.


** The latest attack
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So, of course, Tuesday was another day of Trump going after the media. As has been expected, Trump and the White House budget office are asking Congress to take back about $1.1 billion set aside for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which supports NPR and PBS.

Lawmakers now have 45 days to either approve or ignore the proposal. Approving the proposal, which means rescinding the funds, only requires a simple majority. Republicans hold slim majorities in both the House and Senate, meaning they can approve Trump’s request without any help from the Democrats. However, because their majorities are slim, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is hoping to convince a few Republicans to kill the deal.

For more on all this, check out the story from my Poynter colleague, Angela Fu: “Trump asks Congress to revoke $1 billion in already approved funding for public broadcasting.” ([link removed])

Fu writes, “Every year, CPB receives more than half a billion dollars, which it then distributes to NPR, PBS and more than 1,500 local radio and television stations in the form of grants. Congress approves funding for CPB two years in advance, so the White House’s request is an attempt to revoke the funding Congress granted CPB through September 2027.”


** President Poster
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Since Donald Trump has taken over as president for the second time, he has made plenty of noise about tariffs and attacked the press, and his pen might be running out of ink after signing all of his executive orders and presidential pardons. But what might be the most dominant part of his presidency so far?

His social media use.

The Washington Post’s Drew Harwell, Clara Ence Morse and Emily Davies reported ([link removed]) that Trump posted 2,262 times to his company’s social network Truth Social in the 132 days since his inauguration. That’s an average of 17 a day — while trying to do what is, theoretically, one of the hardest jobs in the world.

Harwell, Morse and Davies wrote, “Trump is posting on the internet with a velocity and ferocity far beyond that of his first term, surprising aides with predawn messages fired off at a blistering pace.”

In fact, the Post reports, his social media posts are three times as many as the first 132 days of his first term.

The Post wrote, “The data portrays an influencer-in-chief whose reach has grown vastly larger than during his first term. The heightened volume is not just the handiwork of Trump’s thumbs; he now has a team of aides who help him post throughout the day. And many of his posts leap to other platforms with help from an active base of administration leaders, right-wing influencers and MAGA media figures who amplify them far and wide.”


** One more thing
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What else does Trump like to do a lot? Watch TV, apparently. His social media activity often coincides with something airing on TV, especially Fox News.

Take Tuesday, for example.

Media Matters’ Matt Gertz discovered ([link removed]) that Fox Business mentioned at 9:12 a.m. Eastern that Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul wasn’t going to vote for Trump's Big Beautiful Bill because he didn’t want to raise the debt ceiling. At 9:18 a.m., Trump posted ([link removed]) , “Rand Paul has very little understanding of the BBB, especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming. He loves voting ‘NO’ on everything, he thinks it’s good politics, but it’s not. The BBB is a big WINNER!!!”

Gertz then reported that Trump recorded Newsmax from the night before when the conservative network aired a story about Poland electing his ally, Karol Nawrocki. Trump then posted ([link removed]) , “‘TRUMP ALLY WINS IN POLAND, SHOCKING ALL IN EUROPE.’ NewsMax. Congratulations Poland, you picked a WINNER!”

Gertz also pointed to two additional times that Trump tweeted about stories from Newsmax.


** X marks the spot
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While we’re on the topic of social media, did you see what Elon Musk posted on Tuesday? The billionaire, who up until last week worked finding what he perceived to be waste inside the federal government, lashed out in a social media post Tuesday that appeared aimed at Trump.

Musk posted on X ([link removed]) , “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.”

As The Washington Post’s Amber Phillips wrote in her “The 5-Minute Fix” newsletter, “Musk didn’t elaborate, but it’s not hard to see where his criticism might be coming from: Until recently, he was working on a project to cut federal spending that fired tens of thousands of federal employees and effectively dismantled agencies. Its confirmed cuts to government spending fell far short of the trillions Musk promised — at most $150 billion. But now that he’s finished, Republicans are moving a tax bill that is estimated to add trillions to the federal deficit.”

Musk’s tweet was applauded by Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who told reporters, “I agree with Elon Musk!”

Politico’s Lisa Kashinsky, Mia McCarthy and Katherine Tully-McManus wrote ([link removed]) , “Whether Musk, with all the power he wielded in Washington over the past several months, will now be able to shape the megabill — or kill it entirely — is another question, though. The answer is, probably not, according to several mostly exasperated Senate Republicans who weighed in Tuesday.”


** Go ahead, make up my day
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Clint Eastwood, shown here in 2020. (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Well, this is bizarre.

Last week, in what appeared to be a heck of an exclusive, the Austria-based newspaper Kurier published a Q&A with legendary actor and director Clint Eastwood.

But on Monday, Eastwood put out a statement saying he gave no such interview. He told Deadline ([link removed]) , “A couple of items about me have recently shown up in the news. I thought I would set the record straight. I can confirm I’ve turned 95. I can also confirm that I never gave an interview to an Austrian publication called Kurier, or any other writer in recent weeks, and that the interview is entirely phony.”

Turns out, Eastwood’s quotes in the newspaper story — which included criticism of remakes and franchises and a lack of original storytelling in movies these days — were things Eastwood actually did say. Just not in an exclusive interview. The writer of the story aggregated quotes from past roundtable interviews that Eastwood had done.

The newspaper has now cut ties with the writer. Kurier’s editor, Martin Gebhart, said in a statement, “Even though no quotes were fabricated, the interviews are documented, and the accusation of fabrication can be refuted, we will no longer work with the author in the future because transparency and our strict editorial standards are paramount to us.”


** Media tidbits
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* The New York Times’ Benjamin Mullin with “The Washington Post Plans an Influx of Outside Opinion Writers.” ([link removed])
* The Washington Post’s Dan Merica and Matthew Choi with “TACO Tuesday — and why it bothers Trump.” ([link removed])
* Also from the Post, Travis M. Andrews with “Kennedy Center subscription sales fall 36 percent from previous year.” ([link removed])
* For Nieman Lab, Abby Youran Qin with “Why some towns lose local news — and others don’t.” ([link removed])
* Writing for Columbia Journalism Review, Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Will Bunch with “Some NYC Teens Have a New Hobby: The School Paper.” ([link removed])
* The Guardian’s Rachel Hall and Rachel Keenan with “More than half of top 100 mental health TikToks contain misinformation, study finds.” ([link removed])
* Variety’s Brian Steinberg with “‘Good Morning America’ Aims to Rouse Audiences With 50th Anniversary Celebration.” ([link removed])


** Hot type
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* Planning a trip to New York City? Or, do you live there? Or do you just like reading about food and places to eat? It’s always fun to have lists like this: The New York Times with “The 100 Best Restaurants In New York City 2025.” ([link removed])
* Awful Announcing’s Matt Yoder with “The Top 10 funniest moments in ‘Inside the NBA’ history.” ([link removed])


** More resources for journalists
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* New TV producers: Level up your content, get guidance to manage journalism demands and learn how to become a newsroom leader. Apply today ([link removed]) .
* Join Poynter leaders and Pulitzer winners on June 16 for a webinar navigating sourcing challenges in journalism. Enroll today ([link removed]) .
* Learn how to “lead your leaders” in this virtual intensive for journalism managers handling big responsibilities without direct reports. Apply today ([link removed]) .
* New reporters: Get essential reporting techniques, effective storytelling methods, and newsroom navigation skills. Register today ([link removed]) .

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

The Poynter Report is your daily dive into the world of media, packed with the latest news and insights. Get it delivered to your inbox Monday through Friday by signing up here ([link removed]) . And don’t forget to tune into our biweekly podcast ([link removed]) for even more.
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