The anti-censorship movement has an unlikely ally

Advocates of press freedom and free speech, and opponents of censorship, may have what you would consider an unlikely champion:

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

The Wall Street Journal’s Amrith Ramkumar reports that Cruz wants the legal system to offer better protections against government censorship.

Ramkumar writes, “Cruz plans to introduce a bill in the coming weeks that would codify protections against government-driven censorship, and make it easier for consumers to win monetary damages in lawsuits, he said in an interview. Cruz, the head of the Senate Commerce Committee, said he also plans to focus on the topic in a series of hearings that are expected to include Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr.”

You might recall that just a few weeks ago, Cruz was outspoken in his support for late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, whose show was suspended by Disney after comments Kimmel made on air about the shooting death of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk.

Cruz didn’t defend what Kimmel said. In fact, he said he hated what Kimmel said and was “thrilled” that Kimmel was booted off the air. But, Cruz ultimately defended Kimmel’s right to say it, and was mostly bothered by what appeared to be threats by Carr to have Kimmel’s show taken off the air. At the time, Cruz said, “I think it is unbelievably dangerous for government to put itself in the position of saying, ‘We’re going to decide what speech we like and what we don’t, and we’re going to threaten to take you out there if we don’t like what you’re saying.’”

Cruz even compared Carr’s comments to those of the “mafioso.”

Many on the right were furious with Kimmel and celebrated his show being taken off the air temporarily. But Cruz’s comments were acknowledged by Kimmel, who thanked the senator when his show returned to the air.

Ramkumar wrote, “Cruz is among the few Republicans challenging the Trump administration’s handling of free-speech issues and other priorities including tariffs and taking equity stakes in companies.”

Democrats, of course, have been speaking out against any form of censorship, and especially rallied behind Kimmel. Cruz told Ramkumar, “Perhaps that poses an opportunity for us to work together in a bipartisan way.”

Ramkumar wrote, “The Cruz bill would create a new procedure for plaintiffs bringing such cases and introduce new definitions that courts and government agencies would have to follow. It would include exceptions for government investigations and wouldn’t include speech that isn’t protected, such as nonconsensual intimate imagery.”

To be clear, Cruz is not a fan of Kimmel. However, he even said he would be willing to go on Kimmel’s show to promote the new bill.

Now, there might be a self-serving aspect to what Cruz is doing. He said a few weeks ago, “It might feel good right now to threaten Jimmy Kimmel. But when it is used to silence every conservative in America, we will regret it.”

Whatever Cruz’s motivations, he is now putting legislative action behind his words.

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Pushing back

The association that represents reporters covering the Pentagon is speaking out against potential new U.S. military restrictions on press access

In a lengthy statement, the Pentagon Press Association says the new policies “appear designed to stifle a free press and potentially expose us to prosecution for simply doing our jobs.”

This all started last month when the office run by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said credentialed reporters in the Pentagon would have to sign a pledge promising not to publish unauthorized material, including even information that was unclassified.

After much pushback from reporters and media advocacy groups, the Pentagon updated its proposal. But not that much has changed.

Under the new plan, the media does not need approval to publish material not authorized by the military. However, military personnel “may face adverse consequences for unauthorized disclosures,” and reporters who try to get nonpublic information could be seen as “security risks” and have their credentials pulled.

Reporters were given one week to sign the new draft.

The Pentagon Press Association said in its statement, “Limiting the media’s ability to report on the U.S. military fails to honor the American families who have entrusted their sons and daughters to serve in it, or the taxpayers responsible for giving the department hundreds of billions of dollars a year. The American people deserve to know how their military is being run. They deserve more information from this administration, not less.”

The association also said it was “surprised and disturbed” to learn that the new draft also includes plans to move reporters from their dedicated workspaces inside the Pentagon.

The association wrote, “While we don’t know the location to which the Pentagon is preparing to move the press corps, we can surmise from restrictions imposed earlier this year that the changes will further isolate reporters, making it harder to interact even with the spokespeople inside the Pentagon who are entrusted to approve information for public release.”

They have asked the Pentagon to reconsider its policies.

Let’s take a look

Just how much government security clearance does Elon Musk have? We might soon find out. A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the Pentagon must provide that information to The New York Times after the Times filed a Freedom of Information Act request nearly a year ago seeking “a list of security clearances” given to Musk, including “any details about the extent and purview of each of the clearances.”

Initially, the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, which handles security clearances, denied the Times’ request, arguing that the “privacy interest” of Musk “outweighs disclosure.” The Times then filed a motion to have the records released.

Musk runs SpaceX and Starlink, and was heading the Department of Government Efficiency under Trump. So it’s natural that the Times, or any news outlet, would want to know what kind of access Musk had.

Ironically, Musk’s own words led the judge to rule in the Times’ favor.

The New Republic’s Robert McCoy wrote, “U.S. District Judge Denise Cote ruled that Musk himself had reduced his privacy interest by publicly boasting that he holds a ‘top secret clearance’ — and discussing his drug use (including ketamine and marijuana) and contacts with foreign leaders (including Russian President Vladimir Putin), both of which are factors that the DCSA is supposed to consider for security clearance decisions.”

Cote noted in her ruling, “His posts on X on these topics have collectively garnered over 2 million views.”

It also appears that the Times was clever in its request. McCoy wrote, "The Times’ request was far from sweeping, covering only a single two-page list of the security clearances …”

Mediaite’s Sarah Rumpf wrote, “This list of security clearances was not related to personally sensitive matters like medical records, the judge reasoned, and Musk himself had waived any secrecy surrounding his security clearances and relevant factors like his drug use by publicly mentioning them and posting on X to his millions of followers. The narrow focus of the Times’ request also weighed in favor of disclosure.”

The judge gave the Trump administration until Oct. 17 to propose specific redactions to the two-page document to “the extent any detail in the document invades Musk’s personal privacy beyond the issues discussed (in the opinion).”

Meeting the staff

The big media news this week has been former New York Times opinion columnist Bari Weiss taking over as editor-in-chief of CBS News — a move that is being questioned because Weiss has no TV network news experience. In addition, Weiss’ The Free Press was purchased by Paramount for $150 million in cash and stock, and will continue to operate independently under the Paramount umbrella.

Weiss met with CBS News staff in a Tuesday editorial call that, reportedly, had a few people rolling their eyes. That moment came when Weiss, according to Semafor’s Max Tani, closed the call by saying, “Let's do the (expletive) news.”

One CBS News employee told The Independent’s Justin Baragona, “I’m not joking. She actually said that.”

That person told Baragona that there were “eye rolls for sure” and that Weiss was “cosplaying as a broadcast journalist.”

Another employee said Weiss was making “cringey movie references and a half-assed pep talk” about winning.

Baragona wrote, “The sarcastic reaction from some CBS journalists to Weiss’ first full proclamation to the newsroom isn’t entirely unexpected, considering that much of the staff had not only expressed trepidation over her impending arrival but were ‘literally freaking out’ over the wholesale changes new Paramount owner David Ellison has been implementing at the Tiffany network.”

The Guardian’s Jeremy Barr wrote, “In conversations with the Guardian, six current network employees who were not authorized to comment publicly expressed a mixture of apprehension, skepticism and frustration over the appointment, though several stressed they wanted to wait to see what it would really mean for their network — and themselves.”

One staffer told Barr, “It’s utterly depressing. Somebody who has zero experience in television news or even hard news for that matter … but with a clearly defined political agenda. It’s hard to see this as anything more than an attempt to bend the knee completely.”

That person added, “It’s early days and we don’t know exactly how it’s going to pan out … or what she will do with her role, but she is the last person who should be brought in to CBS.”

On Tuesday’s editorial call, CBS News’ president, Tom Cibrowski, praised Weiss, saying, “Bari’s energy and passion is infectious and you will feel it, big time.”

As Baragona noted, that echoed some of the things being said by Ellison, who made the decision to hire Weiss. She will report directly to Ellison.

In the memo to staff announcing her hiring, Ellison wrote, “I’ve seen the Bari who you will get to know: a person of incredible energy, judgment, and perception for what will resonate with audiences. Working alongside our exceptionally talented colleagues at CBS News, she will help ensure that our reporting remains relevant, accessible, and — most importantly —trusted in this new era for American media.”

Meanwhile, The Verge’s Elizabeth Lopatto has a new piece: “Memo to Bari Weiss Regarding CBS News: You’re doomed.”

Scratch that

If you would’ve said just a couple of years ago that Bill Belichick, arguably the greatest football coach ever, would leave the New England Patriots and end up coaching college football at the University of North Carolina, fans of the Tar Heels and Saturday football would have been thrilled.

If nothing else, it would be a fascinating story. In fact, Belichick’s first season at North Carolina was all set to be chronicled in a documentary series on Hulu.

But after a putrid 2-3 start to the season, including three blowout losses, and negative PR because of his relationship with his 24-year-old girlfriend (he is 73), it appears the doc is being scrapped.

On3’s Jeremiah Holloway reports the planned series is “no longer happening.”

The feeling is that the project is being shelved because of Carolina’s on-field problems.

During an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take,” college football talk-show host Paul Finebaum said, “We’re talking about Bill Belichick, who is the greatest NFL coach in history. He’s working toward being the worst coach in college football history. That’s how bad he is. There’s nothing to be happy about; it’s an abject disaster. I feel badly for the guy.”

There was one report this week that North Carolina was looking into a “possible exit strategy,” meaning finding a way to eliminate or minimize the buyout of Belichick’s contract so the university could fire him.

While Carolina’s season hasn’t gone anywhere close to what was hoped, parting ways with the greatest coach of all time before a full season seems unlikely, although not impossible.

Either way, it won’t be televised in a series on Hulu.

Media tidbits

• NPR’s Rachel Treisman with “Dozens of Bob Ross paintings will be auctioned to help public TV after funding cuts.”
• Mediaite’s Colby Hall with “One-on-One With Mark Thompson — The Man Hired to Save CNN.”
• CNN’s Hadas Gold with “He used to work for X. Here’s what he says is wrong about Musk’s stance on the mainstream media.”
• Phil Gailey, a longtime editor of editorials at the Tampa Bay Times, died over the weekend. Times viewpoints editor Graham Brink remembers Gailey in “Phil Gailey could tell a story. His friends and coworkers can too.”
• Sports books author, podcaster and former Sports Illustrated writer Jeff Pearlman has a new book, but it’s not about sports. It’s about Tupac Shakur. It’s called “Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur.” Awful Announcing’s Michael Grant has a Q&A with Pearlman about the book.

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

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