Morning Media- POLITICO Media
With Cristiano Lima and Alex Weprin
SO MUCH GROUND TO COVER, WHERE TO EVEN BEGIN? How about with Donald Trumps lawyer making headlines once again. You may remember Marc Kasowitz from his threat to sue The New York Times for libel last October. Or from his boxing on behalf of Bill OReilly during the sexual harassment scandal that cost the longtime cable news host his Fox News job earlier this year. Now, on the heels of James Comeys must-watch Senate testimony, all eyes are on Kasowitzs statement yesterday accusing the former FBI director of illegality based on Comeys leaking, via a surrogate, of details from his private conversations with President Trump.
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There was at least one glaring factual inaccuracy: The public record reveals that The New York Times was quoting from these memos the day before the referenced tweet. Not so, as Times White House correspondent Julie Davis pointed out on Twitter: Kasowitz is mistaken re NYT stories on Comey memos. We never quoted memos prior to Trump's 5/12 tweet re tapes; 1st story doing so was 5/16.
Doh! Awkward scene as Kasowitz tried to escape with no press questions, tweeted Bloomberg New White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs. He and aides stood in elevator staring at us. Forgot to push down button.
You might also remember the name Kasowitz from this: His firm is the one that sent me mistakenly, I was told a private email conversation between several lawyers (including Kasowitz) and OReilly, as the group plotted a Hail Mary pass to try and save the anchors job.
TIPS AND COMMENTS: jpompeo@politico.com / @joepompeo. Morning Media is edited by Alex Weprin (@alexweprin / aweprin@politico.com) and produced with writing/reporting help from Cristiano Lima (clima@politico.com / @ludacristiano). Archives. Subscribe.
COMEY V. NEW YORK TIMES - It was rather remarkable that Comey divulged how he leaked, through "a good friend of mine who's a professor at Columbia Law School" (later confirmed to be Prof. Daniel Richman), the contents of his bombshell Trump memo that became the basis of a big New York Times scoop on May 16. Thats perhaps what also makes it particularly interesting that Comey trashed a separate Times story from February (Trump Campaign Aides Had Repeated Contacts With Russian Intelligence), of which he said, in the main, it was not true.
As of last night, the Times was standing by its reporting, the basic facts of which were not in dispute. And there was no reason to think the Times would change its tune unless, as one Times insider familiar with the matter told Morning Media, the FBI or Comey elaborate.
Full statement: The New York Times has published an examination of Mr. Comey's statements today, which reviews our previous coverage and found no evidence that any prior reporting was inaccurate. In fact, subsequent reporting by The Times and other media outlets has verified our reporting as the story makes clear. Neither the F.B.I., nor Mr. Comey would comment or elaborate.
From the Times story on the matter: Multiple news outlets have since published accounts that support the main elements of The Timess article, including information about phone calls and in-person meetings between Mr. Trumps advisers and Russians, some believed to be connected to Russian intelligence. Mr. Comey did not say exactly what he believed was incorrect about the article, which was based on information from four current and former American officials, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because the information was classified.
GOOD RUNDOWN OF THE MEDIA RELEVANCE OF COMEYS TESTIMONY: A Leakers Admission: How the Media Covered, and Factored Into, Comeys Testimony, by Sydney Ember and Michael Grynbaum in the Times. An interesting point from the piece: It is highly unusual in Washington circles for powerful officials to admit to being the source of a leak. But the reality, veteran journalists say, is that such leaks are a day-to-day occurrence -- perhaps even more so during the Trump administration.
TAKES:
-- Margaret Sullivan: Flawed: yes. Fake: no. And, sometimes, extremely useful. That was the portrait of the mainstream news media that emerged from former FBI director James B. Comeys appearance Thursday before the Senate Intelligence Committee. At various times, Comey portrayed journalists as getting the story wrong. Yet much of Comeys testimony reinforced or confirmed the bulk of the reporting that has dominated the news.
-- Paul Farhi: Something happened on Thursday that hardly ever happens any more: The news media stopped and collectively focused on one event. There was no other story in this otherwise fragmented news world; James B. Comeys congressional testimony was it and only it.
-- Hadas Gold: Former FBI director Jim Comeys testimony on Capitol Hill either completely vindicated President Donald Trump or further implicated him. That depends on which media is reporting the story. That mainstream outlets and conservative outlets would focus on different aspects of the testimony isn't entirely surprising, but reflects the extent that conservative media is backing Trump when even some Republican senators are condemning his handling of Comey.
SOUND BITES:
-- As an editor, when I tell a reporter I hope he'll do something I expect him to Deride &ridicule me in private and ignore me. [Gene Weingarten]
-- NB: Intriguing Comey had memos leaked to NYT in May given contempt he now expresses for NYT's reporting back in February. [David Folkenflik]
-- Can't recall a public figure ever explaining how he leaked a story [Ron Fournier]
-- Hearing didn't get to another reported detail in memo -- Trump urging Comey to consider jailing journalists for publishing classified info. [Michael Calderone]
-- Marc Kasowitz is wrong about leaks. Congress passed numerous laws to protect whistleblowers. We encourage whistleblowers to leak to press. [Rep. Ted Lieu]
JAMES COMEY, STUDENT JOURNALIST - via The Chronicle of Higher Education: Trying to maintain a veneer of neutrality while investigating a potentially explosive topic, James B. Comey found himself at the center of a fight between a brash antagonist and a group of rank-and-file professionals desperate to protect themselves and their institution. The year was 1980, and Mr. Comey, the future director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, was a student journalist at the College of William & Mary. Years later, after the release on Wednesday night of his sworn testimony to the U.S. Senates Intelligence Committee, several people would applaud his prowess as a storyteller. But Mr. Comeys work at The Flat Hat, the colleges student newspaper, received far less applause that fall semester. More: The Story of James Comeys Most Explosive Investigation -- in College
TODAYS DAILY NEWS FRONT PAGE WAS GETTING A LOT OF ATTENTION LAST NIGHT - Its a picture of Trump with the word LIAR overlaid on his mug. Its a strong and damning cover with a critical point of view, but at the same time, its still notably more even-handed than the newspapers swashbuckling anti-Trump crusade of 2016. If you look at the display copy, the News is not calling Trump a liar, per se, but rather, LIAR refers to Comeys explosive accusations. (If New York tabloid Kremlinology is your thing, theres lots more where that came from in my feature from March: An anti-Trump tabloid pulls back.)
SIDENOTE: THE DAILY NEWS IS DOING A FICTIONAL TRUMP E-BOOK - Its written by News columnist and New York tabloid veteran Gersh Kuntzman, and its called, COUP! Mike Pence and a skeet-shooting pothead, Rick Perry's dance leotard, a waterboard and Ivanka save America from Donald Trump. According to the promo copy, which was shared with Morning Media: Using the Constitution's obscure 25th Amendment, Pence secretly convinces a majority of cabinet members to overthrow the 45th President, setting off a hilarious battle for power that culminates with a civil war, a President in exile and a new Trump brand rising like a phoenix from the ashes. Available for download in the Kindle store on Monday, $3.99 a pop.
MUST READS:
-- Comeys devastating indictment of President Donald Trump [POLITICO]
-- 5 Clues James Comey Just Left Behind [The Daily Beast]
-- What it Feels Like for a Woman and James Comey [W]
-- Security Breach [Harpers]
-- Oldest Homo sapiens bones ever found shake foundations of the human story [The Guardian]
REVOLVING DOOR:
-- The Atlantics newest contributor is Face the Nation moderator and CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent John Dickerson, who will write regularly for print and the web. His first piece landed right as James Comey began testifying on the Hill: Donald Trump Is an Impossible Boss.
-- Glamour has signed Washington Post White House reporter Ashley Parker as a contributing editor covering Washington and politics. Per the mags announcement: Building on the brands long history of political coverage, Parker will be responsible for bringing top politicians and coverage of important policy issues to Glamours pages.
OREILLY BACK ON TV - NewsmaxTV. Hat tip, Jim Rutenberg: O'Reilly appears on Newsmax, which has been open about wanting to hire him post-Fox. You can watch the video and read the accompanying article, O'Reilly: I Should Have Fought Back Like Sean Hannity, here. Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy told us last month that he thinks very highly of OReilly and would be very open to working with him.
BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK RELAUNCH SET FOR JUNE 15 - A Bloomberg rep revealed the street date to Morning Media last night, while declining to give us any specifics about what the makeover will entail. We have, however, confirmed one change: BWs quirky back-of-book Etc. section, which is chock full of culture, fashion and lifestyle goodies, is going away. (I was a regular Etc. contributor when it first launched with the initial Bloomberg-ified redesign of 2010. RIP.)
SOUNDTRACK: The Clash, Straight to Hell
EXTRAS:
-- Accused Intercept leaker Reality Winner pleaded not guilty and was denied bail. [CNN]
-- Al Jazeera says it came under cyberattack yesterday. [AJE]
-- Interview: Ezra Klein Explains it All [WWD]
-- Witnesses are being cross-examined in the ABC News pink slime lawsuit. Heres Eriq Gardners latest dispatch from Elk Point, South Dakota. [THR]
Read the rest here:
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