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** OPINION
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** U.S. falls to its lowest ever World Press Freedom Index ranking
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President Donald Trump, speaking at the White House on Thursday. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

It has been another depressing week in the journalism world.

Last weekend, the White House Correspondents Association dinner — already a topic of awkward conversations ([link removed]) because of various ethical concerns — was scrapped because a gunman tried to enter the event.

Then on Monday, President Donald Trump and first lady Melania both called for ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be fired because they didn’t like a joke he told. And now the Federal Communications Commission, seemingly spurred on by the Trumps’ social media complaints, is reviewing ABC’s licenses.

Thursday produced even more depressing news about press freedoms in the U.S.

So let’s start today’s newsletter by talking about that. I turn it over to my Poynter colleague Angela Fu.

Here’s Angela’s report:

The United States hit a new low in the World Press Freedom Index ([link removed]) compiled by Reporters Without Borders, the organization announced Thursday. It is now ranked 64th out of 180 countries, down seven places from last year.

Reporters Without Borders first started the index in 2002, ranking the U.S. 17th out of 139 that year. Since then, the U.S.’s ranking for domestic press freedom conditions has generally trended downward. (Some years, the U.S. received a separate, much lower ranking, for its actions abroad in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan.) Clayton Weimers, the executive director of Reporters Without Borders' North America division, said in a press release that President Donald Trump “is pouring gasoline on the fire” in his administration’s “coordinated war” against press freedom.

“The United States is facing a press freedom crisis that should concern anyone who cares about democracy,” Weimers said. “A free press cannot function where it is politically targeted, legally constrained, and exposed to growing physical risks.”

An accompanying report ([link removed]) noted that under Trump, the U.S. has weaponized government institutions to detain and deport a journalist; target reporters covering protests; launch “politically motivated investigations” against disfavored outlets; and cut funding to a number of broadcasters including NPR, PBS, Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia.

Trump and his administration have also sued media outlets, verbally harassed and threatened journalists, intimidated potential whistleblowers and restricted the press’ access to certain government spaces. In just the past month, top officials and government agencies have arrested an Army veteran for leaking information to a journalist, sued The Atlantic over negative coverage, fired the ombudsman of the state-owned newspaper the Stars and Stripes and launched an unprecedented early review of Disney’s ABC-owned television station licenses.

To date, Poynter has documented via its Press Freedom Watch project ([link removed]) nearly 100 actions the Trump administration has taken against the media .

The declines in press freedom in the U.S. are part of a broader global trend, Reporters Without Borders found. More than half of the countries included in the index have been classified as having “difficult” or “very serious” press freedom conditions, and “journalism is increasingly criminalised worldwide,” especially in the Americas. The report noted that Argentinian president Javier Milei and Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele have emulated the Trump administration’s hostility against the press.

“Journalists are still being killed and imprisoned for their work, but the tactics undermining press freedom are evolving,” the report reads. “Journalism is being asphyxiated by hostile political discourse towards reporters, weakened by a faltering media economy, and squeezed by laws being used as weapons against the press.”

The country that suffered the steepest decline in press freedom was Niger, which is now ranked 120th, while Syria showed the most improvement, climbing to a rank of 117th. The top five countries for press freedom in order are Norway, the Netherlands, Estonia, Denmark and Sweden. Eritrea was ranked last.

My thanks to Angela Fu for that item.


** More about press freedom
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CNN’s Brian Stelter commented on the latest World Press Freedom index, writing, “When I'm feeling optimistic, which is most of the time, I point out that the US is still the envy of most other countries when it comes to press freedom. But this report asserts that dozens of other countries have a more supportive climate for journalists and journalism.”


** USA Today Co. posts quarterly profit thanks to AI deals and growing digital revenue
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For this item, I turn back over to my colleague, Angela Fu.

USA Today Co., formerly known as Gannett, continued to show signs of financial progress, posting ([link removed]) its first Q1 profit Thursday in three years.

The company, which is one of the largest newspaper chains in the U.S., ended the first quarter of 2026 with a profit of $19.9 million, an improvement from the $7.3 million loss it suffered during the same period last year. Total revenue decreased 4% year-over-year to $548.5 million, however. USA Today Co. executives credited the company’s success to growing digital revenue, as well as money made from content licensing deals with artificial intelligence companies.

USA Today Co. has struggled for some years now, at several points shedding hundreds of jobs in mass layoffs. But executives said this quarter’s results, along with last quarter’s, signal a turning point. It made $100 million in cuts last year and has worked to revamp its subscription strategy.

Now, total digital revenue is up and makes up 47.8% of total revenue. Total adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) also grew 44.7% year-over-year to $73.1 million.

Kristen Roberts, president of USA Today Media, said on an earnings call that the company had been investing in its entertainment and sports coverage. The company has also started experimenting with new subscription opportunities, such as limited-time offerings centered around coverage of a single event and subscriptions specifically for its games and puzzles content. The strategy of allowing customers to “stack” USA Today Co. products mirrors The New York Times’ very successful tactic of pushing subscribers to purchase a “bundle” of its various journalism offerings.

“It provides subscribers with greater flexibility by enabling them to combine complementary offerings such as USA Today, PLAY and local publications into a single, tailored experience,” Roberts said. “As our digital users adopt a more personalized mix, we expect to see increased engagement, improved retention and higher overall revenue contribution relative to single product subscribers.”

USA Today Co. is also seeing a “notable impact” from its deals with AI companies, CEO Mike Reed said. The company has been digitizing its archives and then striking licensing deals with companies like Meta and Microsoft. In response to an investor’s question about the sustainability of AI licensing revenue, Reed said that he believes the company’s “real time” content it produces every day through its journalism will be very valuable for AI companies looking to train and update their models.

“All of the AI programs out there, products out there, need to be refreshed and updated on an ongoing basis,” Reed said. “So I actually think the real time content on a go forward basis is much more valuable than the archived content… The value of our licensing agreements will grow over time.”

Thanks again to Angela Fu for taking care of the top half of today’s Poynter Report. Now onto the rest of today’s newsletter …


** What Carr is saying
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Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr said Thursday that the FCC’s decision to order an early license review for Disney’s ABC television stations has nothing to do with Jimmy Kimmel and President Donald Trump.

Last week, Kimmel made a wisecrack about first lady Melania Trump during his late-night talk show on ABC. Four days later, the first lady and the president both took to social media to call for Kimmel’s job. Then the very next day, the FCC announced that it would review all station licenses owned by ABC, even though the licenses aren’t for renewal for another two years.

Carr insists the review is about Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. He said at a press conference Thursday, “This was based on DEI conduct and not speech.”

That’s difficult to believe. Even Democratic FCC commissioner Anna Gomez said in a statement, “This is unprecedented, unlawful, and going nowhere. It is a political stunt and it won’t stick. Companies should challenge it head-on. The First Amendment is on their side.”

However, it was interesting that Carr was asked if the license review was strictly about DEI or if any of it would include looking into Kimmel and any “speech issues” involving ABC.

Carr, in part, said ([link removed]) , “Disney is going to have to come in and demonstrate that they've been operating in the public interest.”

That doesn’t exactly sound like a no, does it?


** What Trump is saying
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While Carr talks about DEI, President Donald Trump is still riled up about Kimmel, who hasn’t backed away from the controversy while poking fun at it all on his show this week.

Trump took to his Truth Social on Thursday and wrote ([link removed]) , “When is ABC Fake News Network firing seriously unfunny Jimmy Kimmel, who incompetently presides over one of the Lowest Rated shows on Television? People are angry. It better be soon!!!”


** Media news, tidbits and interesting links for your weekend review
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* Speaking of the ABC-FCC controversy, here’s The Atlantic’s Will Gottsegen with “This ABC Showdown Is Different.” ([link removed])
* The Wall Street Journal’s Ashley Wong with “How an Influencer’s Tweet About the D.C. Gunman Started a Firestorm.” ([link removed])
* The Associated Press’ Jim Vertuno and Dave Collins with “The Onion’s bid to take over Alex Jones’ Infowars is in limbo as new court battles emerge.” ([link removed])
* In his “Cannonball with Wesley Morris” podcast, The New York Times critic talks with film curator Eric Hynes in “‘Michael’ Is Pure Propaganda.” ([link removed])
* For The Barbed Wire, Mercy Solis with “‘When You Know Homeless People, You Can’t Ignore Them’: Inside ‘The Challenger,’ a Newspaper Written by and for Unhoused Austinites.” ([link removed])
* A notable journalist is on the move. Caitlin Flanagan, a longtime staffer at The Atlantic, has moved over to The Free Press, the outlet co-founded by Bari Weiss and now under the Paramount Skydance umbrella. Flanagan’s first piece for The Free Press: “Pray For America.” ([link removed])
* Flanagan’s move makes sense when you remember she wrote this piece for The Atlantic last October: “Don’t Bet Against Bari Weiss.” ([link removed]) Flanagan wrote in that story, “Weiss; her wife, Nellie Bowles; and her sister, Suzy Weiss, are the founders of The Free Press and close friends of mine, a friendship born when I met Bari over coffee when she was at the Times and learned that we share the same disgust at what has become of so much of the mainstream, legacy press.”
* Did you catch the cringy scene ([link removed]) at the Tampa Bay Rays-Cleveland Guardians baseball game on Monday? A man tried to catch a home run ball at Cleveland’s Progressive Field. He dropped it and the ball rolled a few feet away to an 11-year-old girl. She tried to pick it up, but the older man pried it away from her. So, later, a sideline reporter named Ryan Bass for the Tampa Bay Rays TV broadcast got the girl another ball, much to her delight. And, of course, social media got busy shaming the man who stole the ball. So here’s the rest of the story, including the man’s apology, from the Los Angeles Times’ Chuck Schilken: “Man apologizes for snatching home run ball from young Guardians fan. Her mom says to leave him alone.” ([link removed])
* And some more as the older fan appears on a Cleveland TV station ([link removed]) .
* David Roberts, a longtime journalist and ESPN executive who oversees the network’s entire news operation, will retire at the end of August. Roberts — ESPN’s Executive Vice President, Executive Editor, Sports News and Entertainment — has been in journalism for nearly five decades and joined ESPN in 2004. Aside from overseeing all of ESPN’s news operations, Roberts also has oversight of studio shows including “First Take,” “Get Up,” “Pardon the Interruption” and “NFL Live.” Here’s more ([link removed]) from ESPN.
* In case you missed this from earlier in the week, Poynter’s Jennifer Orsi with “Here are the winners of the 2026 Poynter Journalism Prizes.” ([link removed])


** More resources for journalists
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* Gain access to top courses and members-only webinars. Become a Poynter Member today. ([link removed])
* Master trauma-informed reporting to cover mental health with accuracy, empathy and impact. Webinar: June 9 - Enroll now ([link removed]) .
* Learn from trusted experts how to create vertical videos that reach and engage your audience. Enroll now ([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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