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Attacking the news media is a time-honored White House tactic, says media critic Brian Stelter, but to an unusual degree, this administration has narrowed its sights to one specific organization, which it has deemed part of the political opposition.

Stelter quotes a top White House staffer: Were going to treat them the way we would treat an opponent, she says. We dont need to pretend that this is the way that legitimate news organizations behave.

Stelter didnt write those words about President Donald Trump, and the rogue media organization isnt Stelters current employer, CNN. Nor is the White House aide defending the strategy of open hostility from Sarah Huckabee Sanders or Kellyanne Conway.

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Stelter wrote those words in 2009, for The New York Times, and he wrote them about President Barack Obama, who was then in the midst of furious battle with Fox News. In many ways, it was a protracted fight that presaged the one Trump is now waging against CNN and the rest of the mainstream media.

There are several key distinctions between then and now. Fox News commentatorsin particular, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and Bill OReillyfrequently maligned Obama and misrepresented his views, often in ways that seemed racially charged. On the converse, Obama didnt tweet out doctored pro wrestling GIFs or obsessively rail about fake news and ratings.

The Obama-Fox News feud is a reminder that presidents frequently clash with media outlets. In 1993, for example, Jacob Weisberg wrote in Vanity Fair about the White House press corps under Bill Clinton: Four months into the new administration, relations between president and media hit what may have been their post-Watergate low. Eleven years, Ken Auletta wrote in The New Yorker that George W. Bush sees the press as litist and thinks that the social and economic backgrounds of most reporters have nothing in common with those of most Americans.

To supporters of Trump, his criticisms of the press dont differ in substance from those of his predecessors. Rather, the key distinction is that those criticisms are filtered through his bombastic, hyperbolic personality. They are then relayed to the public not through agents of that very press but via Twitter, where those opinions have no constraint but the social networks 140-character limit.

Yet a comparison of Obamas relationship with Fox News to the near-daily skirmishes between Trump and CNN highlights just how remarkable is Trumps war on the mainstream media, how far outside the bounds of normal antagonisms between the White House and the men and women charged with covering it.

Obamas anger at Fox News was justified. In January 2007, Fox & Friends made the false claim that Obama had attended an Islamic school in Indonesia. Two months later, a Democratic debate that was to have been hosted by Fox News was cancelled after the networks chairman, Roger Ailes, deliberately confused Obamas name with that of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, telling media executives in a speech, Its true that Barack Obama is on the move.

Once he became president, Obama decided he had had enough, much as Trump has with CNN. Six months into his presidency, Obama gave an interview to CNBCs John Harwood. During their conversation, Harwood observed that Obama remained the recipient of largely favorable media coverage.

Not so, Obama countered. I've got one television station entirely devoted to attacking my administration.

I assume you're talking about Fox, Harwood said.

He was. Obama had in mind segments like the one in which Fox News commentator Sean Hannity mused, Is President Obama disloyal? One White House aide says, Yes. We have the shocking details. About three weeks after the Harwood interview ran, an op-ed published on the Fox News website called the economy Obamas Katrina, a reference to George W. Bushs inept handling of the devastation that followed the 2005 hurricane that pummeled the Gulf Coast.

Obama will get the blame for his slow response to the current recession, that article said. To the contrary, Obama has been praised for rescuing the economy and bringing the jobless rate down to historic lows.

In discussing that interview on his own show, OReilly offered an assessment that mirrors what many have said of Trump: He's a sensitive guy. And when he gets criticism, he's not used to it. Of course, Obama wasnt tweeting about Fox News at five in the morning.

The feud deepened that September, when Glenn Beck, the right-wing radio host whod recently arrived to Fox News from CNN, got his first scalp, as one blogger put it, by forcing the resignation of White House green jobs adviser Van Jones, whom Beck had depicted as an avowed, self-avowed radical revolutionary communist. (Jones has recently been a ferocious critic of Trump as a CNN commentator.)

Days later, Fox News picked up on a covert video recording in which the community group ACORN, which had supported Obama and was widely disliked by the right, was seen offering advice on tax evasion to a sex worker and her pimp. The video seemed to play on white fearsand prejudicesabout rampant leftism, corrupt democracy and a federal apparatus in the hand of the nations first African-American president.

Those fears coalesced in the Tea Party, a populist movement openly supported by Fox News. On September 12, an estimated 75,000 conservatives affiliated with Tea Party groups marched on Washington. The event was partly sponsored by 9-12 Project, a group affiliated with Beck. Fox News, in other words, was more explicitly tied to the resistance to Obama than CNN has been toTrump.

Several days after that, top Obama adviser David Axelrod met at a Manhattan steakhouse with Ailes, the Fox News chairman. According to reporting by Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times, Ailes had sought the meeting to address rising tensions between the network and the White House. Axelrod, in turn, is said to have countered with the view that Fox News had blurred the line between news and anti-Obama advocacy, in Rutenbergs words.

One wonders what the American public today would think of a secret meeting between CNN chief Jeff Zucker and Trumps top political adviser Stephen K. Bannon. Conspiracy theories would flourish. Then again, this White House will make peace with North Korea before it makes peace with CNN.

Fox News didnt turn to moderation after the Ailes-Axelrod steakhouse summit. It continued its relentless assault on Kevin Jennings, an openly-gay educator appointed by Obama as the assistant deputy secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools. In 1988, Jennings, then a teacher, had declined to report a 15-year-old male students relationship with an older man. As far as Fox News was concerned, this made Jennings a sexual predator. Did 'Safe School Czar' Encourage Statutory Rape? was the headline on Fox Nation, a news site within the Fox News constellation.

By the time Stelter wrote his column in mid-October, any possibility of a dtente seemed remote. Instead of governing, the White House continues to be in campaign mode, and Fox News is the target of their attack mentality, charged high-ranking Fox News executive Michael Clemente. The network continued to attack Obama for the next seven years, often with unsubtle intimations of racism. In 2011, for example, Fox Nation referred to Obamas 50th birthday party as a Hip-Hop BBQ.

Obama sometimes hit back. Few things seem to pique President Obama like Fox News, wrote Jeremy W. Peters of The New York Times in the summer of 2012, in the midst of that years presidential contest. Peters noted that Obama had taken to sometimes making jokes about Fox News to audiences on the campaign trail.

I think it lowers the office, Clemente of Fox News lamented about Obamas jabs. Four years later, Clemente would be among those pushed out of Fox News, along with Ailes and OReilly, as lawsuits and press reports depicted a workplace rife with sexual harassment, as well as enough political paranoia to give Richard M. Nixon pause.

As far as lowering the office, the right seems to have few qualms for treating press freedom with all the solicitude of a bloated despot in some forlorn post-Soviet backwater.

Unlike presidents before him, Trump doesnt criticize the press when he feels his policies have been misrepresented or maligned. Attacking the press is the central policy of his administration. In fact, it may the only one.

See more here:
When Obama Went to War on Fox News - Newsweek

In one of its first public statements since its launch, the Obama Foundation is issuing a call to examine the concept of digital citizenship.

Digital engagement and being a good digital citizen were focal points of the Obama Administration and it appears to be one of the early centers of interest for the former president in his private function as a global citizen.

Speaking earlier this year at the University of Chicago, the President touched on this theme, saying

[We] now have a situation in which everybodys listening to people who already agree with them. People are using social media and the global reach of the Internet to reinforc[e] their own realities, to the neglect of a common reality that allows us to have a healthy debate and then try to find common ground and actually move solutions forward, the former president said.

Now, his organization is issuing a call to start the conversation on how to improve our digital demeanors.

In a post to the Foundations Medium account, chief digital officer Glenn Otis Brown wrote:

These are big challenges, and the solutions arent self-evident. So, where to begin? We figure that the first step is simply to identify the problems and talk about them openly, together, via the very same channels that, when used without intention and awareness, help create the dysfunction in the first place.

Here are a few simple thought-starters. Respond through our site, share your thoughts on social media with #DigitalCitizen, or create your own original content and share it with us. Well update and expand on these over time feel free to pose your own questions back.

To get things moving, heres my response to the first question: A person who I think exemplifies online citizenship is Zeynep Tufecki. Zeynep takes care to explain complex technical issues to nontechnical people in an accessible way. She brings both her personal and professional experience to meaty topics of public interest particularly at the intersection of security, democracy, and technology without making or taking things personally. Shes an academic with a fierce practical streak. And even when being most emphatic, she does it with a sense of humor and humility.

Your turn. Write to us directly or drop a thought on the social channel of your choice. Add your voice.

Read the original post:
Obama Foundation issues a call for better digital citizenship - TechCrunch

Obamas third term? Photo: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

In one of his first acts as commander-in-chief, Donald Trump ordered his top military advisers to conduct a 30-day review of Americas strategy for defeating ISIS.

Given that precise timeline and Trumps past promises that he actually had a secret plan for defeating the terrorist group ready to go one might have expected the White House to unveil its vision for combating ISIS in late February or early March.

But one would have been wrong. Five months passed before the president even indicated that a new strategy was imminent: On May 21, Trump announced that he would detail his administrations plan for defeating ISIS in about two weeks.

A little over two weeks later, the president revealed that his long-awaited plan was finally, truly almost ready and he would outline it at a news conference in two weeks.

Nearly a month later, were still waiting for that news conference.

One can imagine a whole host of reasons for Trumps procrastination. Perhaps, the administration has been distracted by the alarming developments in North Korea (and/or the special prosecutors office). Or maybe gaming out a plan for defeating as singular an enemy as the Islamic State simply takes a lot of time. Or, perhaps, the president just has little interest in telling the public what his military plans are, and says thats coming in two weeks to literally any policy proposal hes ever asked about.

But the Daily Beast suggests an alternative answer. The outlet notes that U.S. forces have removed 50 top ISIS leaders from the battlefield since Trump took office down from 80, in the last six months of Obamas tenure. Further, the militants killed on Trumps watch have generally been lower-ranking than those targeted by the previous administration.

These facts dont reflect the inferiority of the Trump administrations anti-ISIS strategy so much as the sufficiency of the strategy it inherited: The military is simply running out of high-value ISIS targets to kill. Under Obama, the U.S. military was effectively wiping out ISISs leadership.

Now, you cant kill a violent, anti-American ideology by dropping American bombs in the Middle East. And you cant prevent disaffected, psychologically damaged young men from seeking meaning in acts of spectacular violence. So lone-wolf terrorists provided Trump with plenty to demagogue about in 2016. But to the extent that sheer force can solve a problem like ISIS, the Obama administrations approach was working just fine:

Trumps changes to the campaign [against ISIS] so far have been tacticalnamely, giving the military more autonomy to strike, including special operators. But the effectiveness of the current Obama-era strategy of attacking ISIS via local forces together with allies calls into question whether theres a need for more dramatic revision.

Thats presented a dilemma for those working on the Trump anti-ISIS strategy and slowed its public unveiling, U.S. officials tell The Daily Beast. The White House has asked defense officials to come up with new ideas to help brand the Trump campaign as different from its predecessor, according to two U.S. officials and one senior administration official. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive debates.

To review, the Trump administrations vision for fighting ISIS differs from its predecessors in two key ways:

1) This White House believes in giving greater autonomy to its military commanders, thereby enabling them to make the best tactical decisions, unencumbered by petty political concerns.

2) It also believes in asking its generals to alter their strategic plans, not because the administration doubts their military efficacy, but solely because it finds them difficult to brand.

Cant you just feel America being made safe again?

Some California legislators represent about 300 times as many people as some New Hampshire legislators. Does that violate the U.S. Constitution?

At an emergency meeting at the U.N., Nikki Haley said the U.S. will use military force if we must.

The White House reportedly asked the military for a new anti-ISIS plan because its first one was hard to brand as a break from Obama.

The government reportedly promised the White House cheering crowds for Trumps speech, and this is how it will deliver.

It was apparently buried by the owner of the old Danceteria nightclub in the 1980s.

Ending the Medicaid expansion will eliminate an estimated 1.2 million jobs. But the greatest jobs president God ever created doesnt seem to care.

The show set a new viewership record.

If he runs in 2020 much less in 2024 Bernie Sanders would be pushing the envelope on the maximum acceptable age of elected political leaders.

Paul Ryan: You have to remember the law is in what the actuaries tell us [is] a death spiral. Well, I happen to have some actuaries right here.

White House aides are apparently worried that Trump wont be ready to meet with the KGB agent turned strongman.

Stay in an attempt to influence a hostile administration, or go when your personal red line is crossed?

North Korea places a huge value on projecting itself as a Great Power that can deter its enemies. And thats true, whether or not it has nukes.

On July Fourth weekend, Senate Republicans either hid from their constituents or were showered in praise for not passing their health-care bill.

[T]he Senate health-care bill boils down to benefit cuts for the poor to pay for tax cuts for the rich. Heavens!

Representative Clay Higgins, once known as the Cajun John Wayne, has a knack for courting national controversy.

Miosotis Familia was a 12-year veteran of the force.

The president tried to be a bit too inoffensive when referring to Karen Pence.

Pyongyangs first ICBM test doesnt leave the U.S. with great options and tweeting probably wont help.

Christie refused to apologize for the photos, saying, I think my poll numbers show that I dont care about optics.

This appears to be getting a little excessive.

Continued here:
Trump Rejected Military's ISIS Strategy Because It Was Too Similar to Obama's - New York Magazine

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (NBC) Illinois lawmakers voted Tuesday to rename a portion of Interstate 55 after former President Barack Obama.

The state Senate voted in favor a resolution passed by the House last week to designate the stretch of I-55 from the Tri-State Tollway south to mile marker 202 near Pontiac as the Barack Obama Presidential Expressway.

State Rep. LaShawn Ford introduced the legislation in February to honor the former president, who calls Chicagos South Side home and served as an Illinois state senator before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004.

We can imagine that then state Senator Obama made many trips between Springfield and Chicago on Interstate 55, so it is very fitting that we rename Interstate 55 as the Barack Obama Expressway, Ford said at the time.

The stretch of I-55 from Lake Shore Drive in Chicago to the Tri-State Tollway is currently named after Adlai Stevenson, the late Illinois governor and two-time presidential candidate.

Ford initially wanted to rename the rest of the 270-mile stretch of the expressway to East St. Louis after Obama, but the portion being renamed was changed in March.

Renaming I-55 for President Barack Obama would not only be an honor for Americas 44th president, but it will be the right measure we should approve for Illinois very own state Senator and U.S. Senator, Ford said, adding, This would be one of the many highways and byways that will be named for Barack Obama, so it is only right that Illinois be at the forefront of the many actions that will rename streets and highways for President Obama."

The resolution asks that the Illinois Department of Transportation place signs bearing the expressways new name at locations consistent with state and federal regulations.

Original post:
Lawmakers rename part of I-55 for former president Obama - KWQC-TV6

The ex-president has been spreading a broader message that has sometimes gotten lost in the headlines.

Most of the headlines emerging following U.S. President Barack Obamas much-anticipated keynote address at the 4th Congress of the Indonesian Diaspora last week in Jakarta his first in Asia since leaving office naturally focused on his remarks that concerned Indonesia more specifically. But though Obamas speech certainly included issues related to Indonesia in particular, it also had a broader message about addressing the challenges brought about by globalization and technological change that he has sought to spread in his post-presidency so far.

Like many of his other speeches, Obamas address at the conference a biennial event established and led by the Indonesian Diaspora Global Network chairman and former U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia Dino Patti Djalal was wide-ranging. And unsurprisingly, it included a lot of references to Indonesia, where he had briefly grown up with his family from 1967 to 1971 and had returned on a ten-day holiday with his wife and daughters on this trip. Indeed, at various points, Obama broke into Bahasa Indonesia, repeatedly producing large rounds of applause among the audience.

Much of the media coverage of Obamas speech centered on his statements about Indonesian moderation and tolerance, which was no surprise considering the lingering concerns on this score following the Jakarta gubernatorial elections held in May (See: Is Political Islam Really on the Rise in Indonesia?). And, to be sure, Obama did dwell on the countrys tolerance, pluralism, and religious diversity noting the countrys constitution, religious monuments, and even the tolerant views of his own Indonesian stepfather even as he warned that this reputation ought not to be taken for granted. Obamas meeting with Jakartas governor-elect Anies Baswedan who had tarnished his reputation as a progressive, pluralist candidate by courting radical voices to garner conservative votes during his victory in the May election was also scrutinized (See: The Trouble With Indonesias Ahok Test).

Yet it is also worth emphasizing that the main point of Obamas speech was a much broader one that he has repeated often during his post-presidency thus far: that we ought to acknowledge both the opportunities as well as the challenges that globalization and technological change can bring to various groups in society, whether it be rising inequality, job losses due to automation, or rising polarization and fracturing of the media environment that can disincentivize young people from getting involved in politics.

This theme is by no means new. It is one that Obama and his administration had begun to address towards the end of his presidency when the rise of populism began to take hold whether it be his farewell address to the United Nations last September or its Future of Artificial Intelligence Initiative that examined, among other things, the impact of AI on the U.S. economy and jobs. And it is one that he has continued to harp on in his post-presidency.

In a speech at the Montreal Chamber of Commerce back in June and in remarks after receiving the Profile in Courage Award at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston in May, Obama acknowledged that during times of disruption, some may be tempted to revert to isolationism and nationalism and call for the reduction of the rights of others or a retreat to within borders or tribe. And speaking at a global food and innovation summit in Milan in May, Obama urged the audience to pay attention to from automation to inequality lest there by backlash and resistance by those who feel left behind.

Obama has also been attentive to the effects of globalization and technological change on the youth and their civic engagement. For instance, during a session with young leaders at the University of Chicago in late April, his first public remarks since leaving the presidency, Obama said that one of his concerns was how to break down barriers that would prevent the youth from participating in politics. The conversation that he had with the young leaders on stage touched on several of these, be it rising polarization or media fragmentation.

This broader theme no doubt played out during Obamas Indonesia speech as well. Indeed, he framed his speech around the fact that the world was at a crossroads, with countries like Indonesia enjoying greater prosperity from increasing globalization and technological advancement but also challenges. And rather than just praise Indonesia unconditionally, he made it clear that values like tolerance needed to be cultivated and nurtured, including among the youth, and that the fight for those values against those who promote intolerance was an important part of Indonesias future.

And apart from delivering the address and meeting a number of officials during his visit to Indonesia including President Joko Jokowi Widodo Obama also hosted a small roundtable with young Indonesian leaders as he has looked to do in other international visits including in Germany back in May. These events are part of his ongoing work to develop the Obama Foundation which he intends to serve as a way to develop the next generation of active citizens and emerging young leaders.

As Obama continues on his engagements in his post-presidency, we are likely to continue to see him deliver speeches and attend events similar to those in Indonesia. Though these will naturally be customized for the countries he visits, it is important to keep the broader message he has been trying to convey in mind.

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What Obama's Indonesia Trip Revealed About His Post-Presidency - The Diplomat