Top News:
Harper's:
Over 150 journalists, academics, and writers sign a letter criticizing what they see as narrowing boundaries of debate and increasing self-censorship — We welcome responses at letters@harpers.org — Our cultural institutions are facing a moment of trial.
Discussion:
New Republic, Fox News, @harpers, @mattwelch, @parkermolloy, @lindaholmes, @ositanwanevu, @juddlegum, The Wrap, @jonathanchait, The Daily Beast, @popehat, @sanasaeed, @ericrweinstein, @labuzamovies, @nilegardiner, @wwwritingclub, @aidanctweets, @catespice, @originalspin, @davereaboi, @asteadwesley, @tage_rai, @tage_rai, @jonhaidt, @tage_rai, @paulbloomatyale, @paulbloomatyale, @jk_rowling, Mediaite, @mathewi, @internethippo, @sharonwaxman, @sharonwaxman, @sharonwaxman, @mathewi, @musiccitymark, @mathewi, @gothamgirlblue, @scottmgreer, @sbarolo, @mazmhussain, @horowitz39, @sapinker, @owillis, New York Post, @megbasham, @brinyfeminist, @blueboxdave, @aetherlev, @mountain_goats, @maxwellstrachan, @juliacarriew, @juliacarriew, Hiding in Plain Sight, @erinbiba, Breitbart, Business Insider, @lindaholmes, @lindaholmes, @lindaholmes, @erinbiba, @ggreenwald, @rottenindenmark, @paulconstant, @dianelyssa, @kerrymflynn, @courtneyscoffs, @samsacks, @thomaschattwill, @thomaschattwill, @sineadactually, @anitathetweeter, @velocciraptor, @jordanfreiman, @rafiletzter, @ctuckerprof, @prettycritical, @paulg, @coriewhalen, @inezfeltscher, @mattbc, @rubinreport, @nototally, @kerrymflynn, @elijahdelmedigo, @mathewi, @shane_burley1, @popehat, @monachareneppc, @erinbiba, @nototally, @paulcrider, Sarah Haider, @jackshafer, @edmerea, @boringstein, @umm_catie, @thomaschattwill, @bariweiss, @ggreenwald, @mobute, @rrrrnessa, @thomaschattwill, @parkermolloy, @jackposobiec, @tressiemcphd, @parkermolloy and New York Times
Discussion:
Osita Nwanevu / New Republic: The Willful Blindness of Reactionary Liberalism
Joseph Wulfsohn / Fox News: Liberal writers, activists sign open letter calling to end ‘cancel culture’
@harpers: A statement signed by 150 people incl. Bill T. Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Jennifer Finney Boylan, Noam Chomsky, J.K. Rowling, Margaret Atwood, and Salman Rushdie expresses concern over the illiberal trend intensified by our national reckoning. https://harpers.org/...
Matt Welch / @mattwelch: Here is a joint letter signed by Noam Chomsky, J.K. Rowling, David Brooks, @bariweiss, Wynton Marsalis, Salman Rushdie, @kmele, and 140-odd other people, in case anyone's in a mood to argue. https://harpers.org/...
Parker Molloy / @parkermolloy: the funny thing about that letter is that the press release was like “We're soliciting response to the letter, A SELECTION OF WHICH will appear...” So some opinions MUST be heard while others are only heard if the magazine CHOOSES them. Gosh, seems not very “open debate” of you. https://twitter.com/...
@lindaholmes: That Harper's letter, to me, is in large part from people who are unhappy that they're not leading the current conversation, addressed to the many other people they believe are also unhappy that they're not leading it.
Osita Nwanevu / @ositanwanevu: Again, it's hard to take claims like this seriously, especially when it's plain that people are complaining about an unprecedentedly free and open speech environment. We're all talking and acting before the world now. That world includes people who'll call you stupid & offensive. https://twitter.com/...
Judd Legum / @juddlegum: 1. This letter perfectly illustrates my issue with the “cancel culture” trope The signatories of this letter have bigger platforms and more resources than most other humans. They are not being silenced in any way https://harpers.org/...
J. Clara Chan / The Wrap: JK Rowling, Fareed Zakaria, Wynton Marsalis Decry Rising ‘Intolerance of Opposing Views’ In Public Letter
Jonathan Chait / @jonathanchait: Criticism of the letter seems to be split evenly between “they're rich/privileged/enjoy large platforms” and “they're has-beens embittered about being ignored.” https://twitter.com/...
Laura Bradley / The Daily Beast: J.K. Rowling and Other Assorted Rich Fools Want to Cancel ‘Cancel Culture’
DystopianHat / @popehat: I like and respect many of these people. But i continue to struggle with the concept. The distinction between “silencing” and more/responsive/critical speech eludes me. I see instead the problem of the preferred first speaker. https://harpers.org/...
Sana Saeed / @sanasaeed: anyway still waiting on that letter from the free speech warriors condemning the state-led violent attacks on anti-racist protestors' right to free speech and peacefully assemble
Eric Weinstein / @ericrweinstein: Great to see you guys. Very brave. Now if you'll excuse me, we've been trying to hold this hill since...[checks watch]...oh...2011 and the “Dear Collegaue letter” so there are lots & lots & lots of dead to bury and very little left standing. So do feel free to pick up a shovel. https://twitter.com/...
Peter Labuza / @labuzamovies: Genuinely crazy @OsitaNwanevu published his amazing take on free speech before the Harper's thing broke, just an amazing pulse for how “the online” unfolds. Read now: https://newrepublic.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Nile Gardiner / @nilegardiner: J.K. Rowling has gone way up in my estimation. Disagree with her on many issues, including Brexit. But she has taken a brave stand in support of free speech against the ugly intolerance of the far Left mob. This is courage. https://twitter.com/...
@wwwritingclub: More writers standing up 🙏🏻🔥 “As writers we need a culture that leaves us room for experimentation, risk taking, &even mistakes. We need to preserve the possibility of good-faith disagreement without dire professional consequences.” https://twitter.com/...
Aidan Comerford / @aidanctweets: J.K. Rowling, with her 14.3 million followers, and her multi-millions, threatened to sue a trans woman with 4000 followers on Twitter over a tweet. When J.K. tweeted her “TERF WARS” blog, she did so with the Twitter replies turned off. “Free speech for me, but not for thee.” https://twitter.com/...
@catespice: I find it deeply ironic that J.K. Rowling has signed and tweeted this letter, since she refuses to speak to any trans people who are not ‘Gender Critical’ in their views. You can't call for open debate and then refuse to engage with the other side. That's incredibly dishonest. https://twitter.com/...
Jeff Yang / @originalspin: This letter is an elegantly written affirmation of white and white-adjacent privilege. It's sad that people I respect have signed it—alongside people who are serial bad actors, bigots, hypocrites and thin-skinned smearmongers. https://twitter.com/...
David Reaboi / @davereaboi: Some thoughts: (1) I'm glad you're suddenly horrified by your comrades on the Left. (2) I will greatly enjoy watching them devour you. https://twitter.com/...
Steadman&trade / @asteadwesley: A letter on justice and open debate https://twitter.com/...
Tage Rai / @tage_rai: @paulbloomatyale It's simply not censorship to call for someone to lose their job if they've done a bad job. That's just performance evaluation
Tage Rai / @tage_rai: @paulbloomatyale Ugh god this letter is so terrible Paul. How can the intellectual divide on this issue be so great? My only disappointment is that you and intellectual hero Noam Chomsky could agree w/it.
Jonathan Haidt / @jonhaidt: I am very pleased to have joined @thomaschattwill and 148 other writers, with a wide range of views, on this “letter on justice and open debate.” @Harpers https://twitter.com/...
Tage Rai / @tage_rai: Let it be said that this is an edge case that doesn't capture the cases referenced in the letter. For ex., the NYT Editor admitted to not READING THE OP-ED. Still, I have said before that I have zero problem with the *concept* of my employer punishing me over offensive tweets 1/ https://twitter.com/...
Paul Bloom / @paulbloomatyale: @tage_rai of course, I agree with that. But suppose I started a petition for you to be fired as editor for Science because I was offended by your tweets. Totally fine performance evaluation?
Paul Bloom / @paulbloomatyale: This is a terrific letter, and it's truly heartening to look at the impressive list of signatories. https://twitter.com/...
J.K. Rowling / @jk_rowling: I was very proud to sign this letter in defence of a foundational principle of a liberal society: open debate and freedom of thought and speech. https://harpers.org/...
Leia Idliby / Mediaite: J.K. Rowling, Bari Weiss and Noam Chomsky Among Dozens to Sign Open Letter Calling for End to Cancel Culture
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: If you are still under the impression that “cancel culture” is a real thing, you should read this piece from @OsitaNwanevu in The New Republic from last year, it's an excellent deconstruction of the concept and why it's a straw man: https://newrepublic.com/...
Chief Posting Officer / @internethippo: i've read this thing several times and i still don't understand what the ask is. what exact policies is this advocating for https://harpers.org/...
Sharon Waxman / @sharonwaxman: @mathewi @musiccitymark There are dozens of examples littered through our society in the past weeks not to mention previous decade as “cancel culture” has arisen. As a journalist/publisher I worry about squelching voices we don't like - narrowing “acceptable discourse.” History is a lens not to ignore
Sharon Waxman / @sharonwaxman: @mathewi @musiccitymark You are assigning “fault” but cancel culture suggests this would be a win. I blv letter-signers are concerned abt the overall atmosphere this creates of intimidating speech, driving out debate, “intolerance of opposing views.” They give examples, though not specifics.
Sharon Waxman / @sharonwaxman: @mathewi @musiccitymark Yes, there are so many I'd like to be thoughtful about it. And when you say “well-deserved” “consequences” for their speech - who decides what is deserved? You? Me? Twitter? Entire issue is bound up in accepting that certain views must be “disappeared.” Which is a problem.
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: @musiccitymark @sharonwaxman In order to respond with disagreement, the letter would need to include specifics. As it stands, it's just a vague statement of outrage about something amorphous. Is it because James Bennet published a poorly fact-checked op-ed he didn't read that justified violence? Then good
Mark Mosley / @musiccitymark: @sharonwaxman @mathewi I have yet to see anyone actually respond to the letter with any genuine disagreement. Mostly name calling or dismissing because they are “rich”. It's really weird but I seemingly driving their point home even more.
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: @sharonwaxman @musiccitymark If an editor refuses to publish a book or a publisher fires an editor because of some critical comments on Twitter, is that the fault of the editor or publisher, or is it somehow the fault of people who made comments on Twitter?
@gothamgirlblue: Surprise: People in power uncertain about changing power structures 👀 https://twitter.com/...
Scott Greer / @scottmgreer: This will lead to absolutely nothing and carries zero weight https://twitter.com/...
Scott Barolo / @sbarolo: Well, if you needed a list of 150 prominent people who don't understand the basic concepts of “freedom,” “consequences,” or “culture,” here it is https://twitter.com/...
Murtaza M. Hussain / @mazmhussain: This level of self-seriousness in a markedly ironic age is not helpful. https://twitter.com/...
David Horowitz / @horowitz39: The left has turned our university system into a one-party state and you can't protest the totalitarian trends in the left, its Jew hatred and cancel culture without covering your asses by blaming Trump. Pathetic. https://twitter.com/...
Oliver Willis / @owillis: “cancel culture” circa 1990. i remember actually reading this overblown piece as a pre-teen. h/t @RockShrimp for making this connection https://twitter.com/...
Tamar Lapin / New York Post: J.K. Rowling, Noam Chomsky among dozens to call for end to ‘cancel culture’
Megan Basham / @megbasham: “Editors are fired for running controversial pieces; books are withdrawn for alleged inauthenticity; journalists are barred from writing on certain topics; professors are investigated for quoting works of literature...” That this is coming from left-wing POV is significant. https://twitter.com/...
@brinyfeminist: Hey Jo? You forgot we have freedom of speech too. You know what you don't have freedom of? Consequences. Put your lawyers on that one. https://twitter.com/...
David Marcus / @blueboxdave: Is it so hard to understand that they are speaking on behalf of those with smaller platforms who do suffer harm? Progressives are baffled that anyone does anything out of any motive other than self interest. https://twitter.com/...
Claire Ryan / @aetherlev: “Woe is me, people are giving me shit for my horrible opinions and I don't want to listen to them!” FFS put everyone on mute and go enjoy your millions, you TERFy spanner. https://twitter.com/...
@mountain_goats: Almighty God, You Who made the oceans and the mountains, You who set the stars in the firmament, please distract people who would write letters to the editor decrying the “silencing” of “robust debate.” Teach them to cultivate a window garden, O Lord
Maxwell / @maxwellstrachan: the harper's signees include people who survived plagiarism scandals, made transphobic statements, pushed objectionable racial theories, or are david brooks without professional consequence. i think the free exchange of ideas is doing ok.
Julia Carrie Wong / @juliacarriew: If you're railing from your sinecure against non-masthead staff having a say in who runs their institution and what values inform it, you're not a brave fighter for intellectual freedom. You're just a scab.
Julia Carrie Wong / @juliacarriew: James Bennet got fired because a small group of Black NYT staffers collectively violated a company policy that stifled their ability to engage in debate. They risked their jobs to assert their right to be heard. After they took that step, other staff followed in solidarity
Hiding in Plain Sight: I'm tired of being your intellectual fodder for a made up debate and you chafing at my discomfort with that
Erin Biba / @erinbiba: ANYWAY remember that time Bari Weiss tried to get me fired from my freelance gigs because I swear on twitter and then she signed an open letter in Harper's saying she was deeply concerned about the trend of people getting fired for saying things people don't like on the internet?
@lindaholmes: It's also completely fair to say this, on my part, isn't a response to the body of the letter, which is mostly because I don't think it offers anything new to respond to. I'm more curious about why this was done in this way right now than I am in repeating this discussion.
@lindaholmes: A couple clarifications based on things people have asked: Of course, there's not merely one conversation. Of course. What I mean by that is I think some people with institutional roles that traditionally offer authority don't feel like that authority is holding.
@lindaholmes: So yes, I entirely agree that I'm answering it as a curiosity and its publication as an event, more than I'm going another round at a discussion that's literally been going on all my adult life. It made me wonder about this group of folks thinking this was what they wanted to do.
Erin Biba / @erinbiba: Imagine having access to an outlet like this and the audience they all have - the enormity of that collective platform - and they use it to.......whine that the internet holds them accountable for their own words. PHEW
Glenn Greenwald / @ggreenwald: Here are the results of the European hate speech laws which @OsitaNwanevu argues are compatible with liberal democracy. These outcomes don't seem particularly democratic, let alone liberal, to me: https://newrepublic.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Michael Hobbes / @rottenindenmark: It is still not clear to me what these people actually want? This entire letter just sounds like prominent figures whining about people criticizing them online. https://twitter.com/...
Paul Constant / @paulconstant: It's heartbreaking that Margaret Atwood and Noam Chomsky signed on to a letter railing against “cancel culture” just four days after President Trump gave a racist speech at Mount Rushmore railing against “cancel culture.” https://twitter.com/...
@dianelyssa: one of the best things about this letter signed by 150 crybabies is bari weiss — who tried to get a freelance writer fired for saying a bad word and went to her boss after her black colleague wouldn't have lunch with her — signing it. good job, y'all saved the first amendment! 👏🏾 https://twitter.com/...
@kerrymflynn: ^ 6 years between statements. Sometimes it feels like so much has changed and other times we're having the same debates over and over again. I wish this letter helped drive the conversation forward rather than rehashing, as Judd said in this thread: https://twitter.com/...
Courtney Kirchoff / @courtneyscoffs: It's a decent first step, sure. But until free-speech advocates on the left acknowledge that it's the left trying to silence them for wrong think, we're not going to make much progress. https://twitter.com/...
Sam Sacks / @samsacks: Excellent piece by @OsitaNwanevu, correctly identifying the Chait, Taibbi, Greenwald, Tracey, IDW project as “reactionary” https://newrepublic.com/...
@thomaschattwill: What this diverse group of signatories shares is the ardent belief that: “The restriction of debate, whether by a repressive government or an intolerant society, invariably hurts those who lack power and makes everyone less capable of democratic participation.”
@thomaschattwill: One more thing: this letter is not a statement about everyone agreeing with every position every signatory has. The diversity of its signatories is its strength—not a weakness.
Sinad Naoimh / @sineadactually: didn't you throw a massive temper tantrum just last week when stephen king tweeted trans women are women? https://twitter.com/...
Anita Singh / @anitathetweeter: I'd love to know how a bunch of authors compose a joint letter. I imagine a couple of them draft it and then Martin Amis emails back “I'm sorry but this sentence structure is AWFUL” https://twitter.com/...
Carli Velocci / @velocciraptor: I don't even have to read this to know that it's a bunch of rich and privileged people mad they can't tweet anything they want. https://twitter.com/...
Jordan Freiman / @jordanfreiman: The fact that I am constantly made aware of the opinions of jk rowling, matt yglesias, jesse singal, and bari weiss despite having zero desire to do so and never once seeking them out leads me to view this thesis with some amount of skepticism https://twitter.com/...
Rafi / @rafiletzter: Everyone who signed the goofy harpers letter should be forced to respond in detail to @OsitaNwanevu's complete preemptive dismantling of its core ideas. https://newrepublic.com/...
Cynthia Tucker / @ctuckerprof: I was proud to sign, too. https://twitter.com/...
@prettycritical: The whole reason these people were tapped to sign this letter addressed to absolutely no one is because they are “big” names. And they are big names because they have platforms. And they have platforms because they not been censored lol. https://twitter.com/...
Paul Graham / @paulg: Cancel culture is finally provoking a serious immune response. Look at the list of people who've signed this letter. https://harpers.org/...
Corie Whalen / @coriewhalen: “This stifling atmosphere will ultimately harm the most vital causes of our time. The restriction of debate, whether by a repressive government or an intolerant society, invariably hurts those who lack power and makes everyone less capable of democratic participation.” 👏🏼 https://twitter.com/...
Inez Stepman / @inezfeltscher: Imagine going back in time and telling yourself in 2003 that the left would go too far for Noam Chomsky. https://twitter.com/...
@mattbc: Personally, I wouldn't sign my name to a letter alongside an immensely powerful billionaire author with one of the largest platforms in the world who is using her immense power to harm my trans family members, but you do you, I guess.
Dave Rubin / @rubinreport: Silly self-important letter by liberals who will sit and watch the world burn rather than turn to their conservative counterparts for help on how to fix it. They think rationale and logic can fix this mess. Nope, won't work. Plus several signers here have tried to cancel me! https://twitter.com/...
@nototally: This idea of “democracy” and the intertwined idea of free markets conferring success only upon those who deserve it results in successful folks retroactively believing that their success was preordained because of their goodness, their rightness
@kerrymflynn: Finally read the Harper's letter pushing back against “silencing” of ideas: https://harpers.org/... Similar vibes to Michael Bloomberg's 2014 speech at my college graduation. This was when students at several schools were protesting planned speakers: https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
@elijahdelmedigo: What the hell is the “Chait, Taibbi, Greenwald, Tracey, IDW project”, that's like three different, entirely separate, groups of people you happen to dislike https://twitter.com/...
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: Not surprised to see aging wankers like Martin Amis on something like this, or thin-skinned right-wing attention hogs like Bari Weiss and David Frum, but it's kind of sad to see people like Jeet Heer and Noam Chomsky putting their names on such a vague, fear-mongering statement https://twitter.com/...
Shane Burley / @shane_burley1: I'm really glad to see that Noam Chomsky, David Brooks, and J.K. Rowling are all speaking up against the great silencing they have faced. It's unfortunate no one can hear what they have to say since they have deplatformed and have clearly gone broke. The tragedy of 2020.
DystopianHat / @popehat: “The problem of the preferred first speaker” is the tendency to impose norms of civility, openness, productiveness, and dialogue-encouraging on a RESPONSE to expression that we do not impose on the expression itself.
Mona Charen / @monachareneppc: Good statement. Postscript: Those who've been unjustly driven from their jobs should be reinstated with apologies. That would show we're calming down and getting sensible. https://harpers.org/...
Erin Biba / @erinbiba: I have so many opinions about that terrible Harper's letter I don't even know where to start LOL it's legitimately HILARIOUS. Imagine signing your name to that!! Imagine wanting to be in the company of the people who singed their name to that!!!
@nototally: Half of these people are pretty obviously just tired of getting rightfully owned on twitter for their awful takes https://twitter.com/...
@paulcrider: Anyway in these cases it's always good to recognize the preemptive cancellation of marginalized voices should also be considered a free speech issue, as described by @nberlat. https://www.liberalcurrents.com/ ...
Jack Shafer / @jackshafer: I won't be satisfied until the Harper's letter controversy drags @davidfolkenflik in—on either side.
Sadmerea / @edmerea: Beliefs don't exist in a void, they cannot be defeated with rationality—they arent material things. What's important is that beliefs inform our every action, which do not have equal & equivalent consequences across mutually exclusive beliefs. Thats the lie at the heart of this. https://twitter.com/...
Catie / @umm_catie: can someone tell these ppl that “getting fired from a job” isn't a violation of free speech and holding people accountable for their harmful opinions isn't either? cool have a good one. https://twitter.com/...
@thomaschattwill: We have an extraordinarily diverse range of signatories spanning the ideological spectrum here, from Nell Irvin Painter to @SalmanRushdie to @jk_rowling, to Margaret Atwood, @dwaynebetts, Wynton Marsalis, Noam Chomsky, @heerjeet, @michelleinbklyn, @Yascha_Mounk nearly 150 more.
Bari Weiss / @bariweiss: Proud to stand alongside @jk_rowling, @thomaschattwill and so many others. https://twitter.com/...
Glenn Greenwald / @ggreenwald: Fascinating set of signatories on this Open Letter in @Harpers warning of the dangers of “a new set of moral attitudes and political commitments that tend to weaken our norms of open debate and toleration of differences in favor of ideological conformity” — including Noam Chomsky https://twitter.com/...
@mobute: Interesting how @Harpers refused to publish a list of who didn't sign. I guess their commitment to a free exchange of ideas only goes so far. https://twitter.com/...
@rrrrnessa: Put it in my stack of letters I won't read penned by people who think they're a lot more important than they actually are and can't handle the fact that they now get to be criticized too! Also, Chomsky is genocide denier and minimizer. https://twitter.com/...
@thomaschattwill: 🚨At a time when the range of acceptable discourse is narrowing on multiple fronts, I'm proud to have signed this Letter in Defense of Justice and Open Debate. Our resistance to the authoritarian threat mustn't be allowed to harden into dogma or coercion🚨 https://harpers.org/...
Parker Molloy / @parkermolloy: And that's it right there. The biggest form of “censorship,” so much as that applies to this situation, is the gatekeeping system in place. Editors choose which pitches to accept, what views get heard.
Tressie McMillan Cottom / @tressiemcphd: I read pretty well and I don't even know what this letter is about or what it means. It *feels* like one of those faculty solidarity statements. And maybe that's the right want to think of it. Our secular faculty rebuking their students but not realizing its summer session. https://twitter.com/...
Parker Molloy / @parkermolloy: Last year, in researching for this piece I wrote about Bret Stephens and Bari Weiss' obsession with college campuses ( https://www.mediamatters.org/ ...) I noticed something: every single piece the two of them have written for NYT fit into just 5 or 6 categories.
Ross Douthat / New York Times: The Religious Roots of a New Progressive Era
CNN:
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the US is “looking at” banning TikTok and other Chinese social media apps amid rising tensions between US and China — Hong Kong/Washington (CNN Business)The United States is “looking at” banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday.
Discussion:
Arjun Kharpal / NBC News: U.S. ‘looking at’ banning TikTok and Chinese social media apps, Pompeo says
Hannah Klein / Slate: TikTok Caught Up in Geopolitics Once Again
@walter_cruz99: This is why Trump wants to ban Tik Tok not because its spyware. If it was because of spyware then it would have been banned a year ago. https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Zack Budryk / The Hill: Pompeo: US ‘certainly looking at’ ban on Chinese social media apps like TikTok
Onye Nkuzi / @cchukudebelu: This is why the Indian decision to ban TikTok is significant; others will follow suit and ban it. I predict a US ban on TikTok before the end of this year. China can't have a “Great Firewall” and expect the rest of the world to use its apps. https://edition.cnn.com/...
Kara Swisher / @karaswisher: As usual the Trump hacks dealing with a complex tech issue (230, hate speech etc) that needs careful discussion and debate with all the delicacy of someone throwing a hammer at a piano to make music. https://twitter.com/...
@kerrymflynn: TikTok's statement to Pompeo's comments about looking into banning Chinese social media apps — a clear reason why the company hired an American CEO (aka Kevin Mayer) https://www.cnn.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Marcelo P. Lima / @marceloplima: If only Facebook had invested tens of billions in servers to host video and ML workloads, engineers and AI talent; and had a monetization engine ready—all to build a TikTok competitor and unleash it into the world! After a ban would be the perfect time. https://twitter.com/...
Mike Masnick / Techdirt: Pompeo Says US May Ban TikTok; It's Not Clear That It Can
Sen. Marsha Blackburn / @marshablackburn: The curtains have opened and the strings are showing — @tiktok_us is China's puppet. This isn't a social media platform; it's a tool for the Chinese Communist Party. https://www.google.com/...
Donie O'Sullivan / @donie: TIKTOK responds to Pompeo: “TikTok is led by an American CEO, with hundreds of employees and key leaders across safety, security, product, and public policy here in the US” https://www.cnn.com/...
Libby Cohen / The Daily Dot: U.S. says it's considering banning TikTok
Fadel Allassan / Axios: Pompeo: Trump administration is “looking at” TikTok ban
RELATED:
Ina Fried / Axios:
TikTok will pull its app from Google Play and App Store in Hong Kong following the new security law, saying it doesn't and wouldn't share data with China — TikTok said Monday night that it would pull its social video platform out of the Google and Apple app stores in Hong Kong amid …
Discussion:
Reuters, New York Times, Reuters, Fortune, Breitbart, @penamerica, Mercurial Space, @maggieserota, @freedomofpress, MediaNama, Adweek, @joshbutler, @arielbogle, @rhaccart, @tinssoldier, @sumilvs, @karsonwhy, @alexsalvinews, @jaskiratsb, @antd, @tmclaughlin3, @inafried and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Kanishka Singh / Reuters: Pompeo says U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok
PEN America / @penamerica: Google, Facebook, and Twitter said they were reviewing China's punitive new national security law for the city, a rare public questioning of Chinese policy by major U.S. tech companies. They have yet to decide to cooperate with parts of the law. https://www.nytimes.com/...
Kairon / Mercurial Space: Tech vs the World
@freedomofpress: While there are plenty of serious privacy concerns with TikTok, the idea the Trump admin is going to “ban” Americans from downloading social media apps is ridiculous and chilling. https://www.reuters.com/...
Scott Nover / Adweek: TikTok Pulls Out of Hong Kong Over National Security Law
Josh Butler / @joshbutler: TikTok is pulling out of Hong Kong “in light of recent events” - i.e. the controversial new national security laws, which would make it “difficult — if not impossible” for the company to maintain its pledge not to share data with the Chinese government https://www.axios.com/...
Ariel Bogle / @arielbogle: Big move by TikTok, especially as it's doing its best to convince the US, Australia and India that it can separate itself from CCP demands. I don't think it will hurt TikTok's business much to leave Hong Kong, so could be considered more PR than anything https://www.axios.com/...
Renaud Haccart / @rhaccart: Weird as it seems, this is an ironic admission that HK is now just like China in ByteDance's eye. TikTok has been trying to distance itself from China's long shadow by not operating in China (ByteDance has another app for that). So now, the message is HK = China. https://twitter.com/...
Kristine Servando / @tinssoldier: “In light of recent events, we've decided to stop operations of the TikTok app in Hong Kong,” spokesperson tells @axios, after China's national security law came into effect. TikTok's operator has said it hasn't shared data with the Chinese government nor would it, report says. https://twitter.com/...
Sumil Sudhakaran / @sumilvs: TikTok to pullout of HK, reports @axios. But then again TikTok isn't available in China either. Bytedance has a separate version for mainland China, Douyin. I guess this move is a precursor to introducing Douyin to Hong Kong? https://www.axios.com/...
Karson Yiu / @karsonwhy: TikTok to pull out of Hong Kong...does that mean HK goes into the Douyin bubble? https://www.axios.com/...
Alex Salvi / @alexsalvinews: TikTok said Monday night that it would be pull its social video platform out of the Google and Apple app stores in Hong Kong amid a restrictive new law that went into effect last week. (@inafried) https://www.axios.com/...
Jaskirat Singh Bawa / @jaskiratsb: TikTok to pull out of Hong Kong. Incidentally, the new #NationalSecurityLaw forces companies doing business in HK to provide user data to the Chinese government as well as to comply with censorship requests. https://www.axios.com/...
Antony Dapiran / @antd: Unexpected headline of the day: https://twitter.com/...
Timothy McLaughlin / @tmclaughlin3: “TikTok said last September it had 150,000 users in Hong Kong. While that number has probably gone up since, it is still a small market and not yet a profitable one either, according to the company.” https://twitter.com/...
Free Press:
After meeting between leaders of Facebook, ADL, Free Press, NAACP, and Color Of Change, boycott organizers are unconvinced meaningful change will occur at FB — Contact: Timothy Karr, 201-533-8838 — WASHINGTON — On Tuesday afternoon, leaders of four of the organizations coordinating …
Discussion:
New York Times, @sarafischer, @mikeisaac, @charlesarthur, CNBC, @shiraovide, @mcbyrne, @cliffordlevy, @schmidtlepp, @morganbenjamin, @joshsternberg, @joshsternberg, @joshsternberg, @freepress, @accountabletech, The Week, @dylanbyers, @donie, @candacejeanne, @donie, @jason_kint and Sheryl Sandberg, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Sara Fischer / @sarafischer: NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson: - “Facebook called this meeting” - “No media outlet would allow what FB is allowing on their platform” - “We should expect more from a company like Facebook.” -" We've watched conversations blossom into nothingness" for 2 years
Rat King / @mikeisaac: In a meeting today with civil rights groups who organized the widespread ad boycott, Facebook failed to appease organizers, saying it doesn't respond to demands under financial pressure. w/ @tiffkhsu https://www.nytimes.com/...
Charles Arthur / @charlesarthur: People have been telling Facebook that it's causing real-world problems for years, in all sorts of places - Myanmar, Indonesia, the UK, US. It listens and then does very little, if anything. https://twitter.com/...
Shira Ovide / @shiraovide: So the meeting, it did not go great? https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Cliff Levy / @cliffordlevy: Zuckerberg & Sandberg met with civil rights leaders. Harsh response: • FB reverted to “spin.” • “Same old talking points.” • “They showed up to the meeting expecting an A for attendance. Attending alone is not enough.” https://www.nytimes.com/... By @MikeIsaac @tiffkhsu
Christopher Lauer / @schmidtlepp: It does to demands of dictatorships, though. https://twitter.com/...
Benjamin Morgan / @morganbenjamin: I'm sorry but isn't “responding to demands under financial pressure” ... sort of the definition of capitalism? https://twitter.com/...
Josh Sternberg / @joshsternberg: Funny how both Facebook and the civil rights groups levy the “P.R. exercise” at each other. My guess is that the latter group has more to gain with this stunt than the former has to lose. I also wonder how much money these orgs have raised off the back of the boycott/P.R. stunt.
Josh Sternberg / @joshsternberg: Also curious why, after 15 yrs of bad behavior, we would expect it (i.e. Zuckerberg) to change. If you want to hurt Facebook, deactivate your account and not make the Faustian bargain of using to spread your msg while vilifying its role in spreading hate. https://twitter.com/...
Josh Sternberg / @joshsternberg: But look at all the coverage. “Organizers disappointed...” Of course! We knew this would be the result from the jump. It's also hard to reconcile how an organizer is telling advertisers to not spend while at the same time spending. Anyway. Good P.R. job everyone.
Free Press / @freepress: @NAACP @ColorOfChange @ADL @Facebook @JGo4Justice .@JGo4Justice: “This isn't over. We will continue to expand the boycott until @Facebook takes our demands seriously.” #StopHateForProfit is only growing. We have to keep up the pressure. https://www.freepress.net/... 3/3
@accountabletech: NEW — @JGo4Justice: “Facebook approached our meeting today like it was nothing more than a PR exercise. But boycott coalition leaders and advertisers understand that the #StopHateForProfit effort is about the lives, safety and freedom of our communities.” https://www.freepress.net/... https://twitter.com/...
Brendan Morrow / The Week: Facebook ad boycott organizers ‘deeply disappointed’ following meeting with Zuckerberg
Dylan Byers / @dylanbyers: @donie + More names here, plys Ime Archibong, Carolyn Everson, etc. https://twitter.com/...
Donie O'Sullivan / @donie: “Facebook approached our meeting today like it was nothing more than a PR exercise,” @JGo4Justice says after talking to Zuckerberg and Sandberg
@candacejeanne: Leaders of the #StopHateForProfit coalition met with Mark Zuckerberg of @Facebook this afternoon. The concerns that have motivated the nearly 1000 advertisers to drop advertising this month have NOT been addressed...not even remotely. https://www.freepress.net/...
Donie O'Sullivan / @donie: “I'm deeply disappointed that Facebook still refuses to hold itself accountable to its users, its advertisers and society at large” https://www.freepress.net/... https://twitter.com/...
Joanna Partridge / The Guardian:
Reach, owner of the Daily Mirror and hundreds of UK regional papers, to cut 550 jobs, 12% of its workforce, and centralize editorial as revenue fell 27.5% in Q2 — Publisher also owns regional papers including Manchester Evening News and Birmingham Mail — The owner of the Daily Mirror …
Discussion:
David Sharman / HoldtheFrontPage: Reach to axe 550 jobs after coronavirus hits business
@carolinejmolloy: This comes on top of existing cuts. Since being taken over by this group my local paper has hardly any journos left, most pages now PR puff pieces about local businesses, or barely localised versions of cut & paste generic national articles. What do we do? https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/ ...
Karl Holbrook / @karldholbrook: Anybody responding to this in any way other than acknowledging how terribly sad it is, is just delusional. Reach isn't alone. All publishers face incredibly tough decisions and we all have a part to play to help turn the tide by supporting (and paying for) our news #therewithyou https://twitter.com/...
Martin Booth / @beardedjourno: More bloodletting set to take place at local newspapers. With the BBC's recent announcement of job cuts, it continues to be very worrying times for local journalism. https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/ ...
John Lucas / @johnlucas_news: More journalism job cuts will mean courts going uncovered, councils, politicians, police etc not being held to account, local and national history going unrecorded, more hatred, ignorance and division via unchecked social media. A real disaster for our society https://twitter.com/...
Peter Geoghegan / @peterkgeoghegan: COVID is revealing the huge problem of over-centralisation of government and media. The response - in both - looks like to be more centralisation and even less local/regional awareness. https://twitter.com/...
@pressgazette: Mirror publisher Reach to cut 550 jobs in response to massive Covid-19 revenue hit. Plans for some merging of national and regional editorial teams to ‘remove duplication’ https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/ ...
Jay McKenna / @jaymckenna87: Sad news this. Those losing their jobs have worked hard and like us all have bills to pay. The job of regional media will be hugely important in the coming months and years as we make sure our voices are heard https://twitter.com/...
Andy Street / @andy4wm: These are difficult times for local news, but I hope Reach will be able to find savings away from the brilliant @birmingham_live and @live_coventry. The coronavirus pandemic has underlined the importance of good, local journalism, and we must not allow that to be diminished. https://twitter.com/...
Pippa Crerar / @pippacrerar: Grim news. In addition to national titles, Reach is one of Britain's biggest newspaper publishers with 240 regionals. We have never needed journalism more. https://www.theguardian.com/ ...
Simon Gilbert / @thesimongilbert: What an absolutely crap time for people in an industry sweating their bits off to cover the biggest crisis in a generation. People have been turning to them for information in time of need. Now they're going to be out of jobs. Thoughts with former colleagues at Reach today. https://twitter.com/...
Carolyn Hitt / @carolyn_hitt: The potential impact of this on Welsh journalism is very worrying. https://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/ ...
Luke Pollard MP / @lukepollard: Grim news for the talented team at @plymouth_live @WMNNews as owner Reach plan to cut 550 jobs. Our local papers do such a good job telling our local story. Hope they are not too affected by these cuts. We need good quality local journalism. https://www.theguardian.com/ ...
@pressgazette: More details on restructure in Reach email to staff: - Goal to create single editorial division rather than national/regional split - Editorial and circulation staffing numbers set to fall by around 325 - Covid-19 caused “three years of impact in the space of three months” https://twitter.com/...
Brian Welk / The Wrap:
AMC, Regal, Cinemark BJK Entertainment, and Bow Tie Cinemas sue the state of New Jersey for keeping theaters closed amid the pandemic as other venues reopen — Major theater chains including AMC, Regal, Cinemark BJK Entertainment and Bow Tie Cinemas have sued the state of New Jersey …
Discussion:
Fortune: Movie theaters are suing New Jersey for the right to reopen—claiming they're safer than church
Chris Evangelista / /Film: AMC, Regal, and Cinemark Are Suing New Jersey to Open Theaters Sooner
Exhibitor Relations Co / @ercboxoffice: Great move, NATO. I guess if you're gonna go down...make sure you try to take everyone that loves you, with you. Movie Theaters Sue New Jersey Claiming First Amendment Right to Reopen https://variety.com/... via @variety
Rich Greenfield / @richlightshed: First movie theaters thought masks were a political issue so they did not want to mandate their use to theatergoers, now they are literally suing the governor of NJ to allow them to open movie theaters are on the wrong side of history #goodlucktheaters https://variety.com/...
Charles Barfield / The Playlist: AMC, Regal & Other Cinemas Sue New Jersey To Reopen Sooner Than Planned
Brendan Morrow / The Week: Movie theaters sue New Jersey for not yet letting them reopen
Kyle Pope / Columbia Journalism Review:
The pandemic and the George Floyd protests are a good chance for US media to set aside superficial trivia and focus on systemic and institutional failures — Good riddance to the political coverage that was — In the summer of 2015, as Donald Trump began his campaign for the presidency, a bacterium was spreading in New York City.
Discussion:
Jay Rosen / @jayrosen_nyu: This is from the editor of @CJR. You don't get more mainstream than that. “Good riddance to the political coverage that was. We have the chance to set aside superficial trivia and focus on systemic and institutional failures. We can tune Trump out.” https://www.cjr.org/...
Matthew Keys / The Desk:
Nielsen announces the elimination of 3,500 jobs and says it will focus on consolidation and automation where possible — Nielsen Holdings, the dominant provider of data that measures media consumption across broadcast and streaming platforms among others, says it will eliminate thousands …
Discussion:
Josef Adalian / Vulture:
Under Chris McCarthy, Comedy Central is pushing animation, planning to make 10-20 films a year, rethinking its identity: “We're not channels. We're content.” — Sometime last year, Charlamagne Tha God took a meeting with Comedy Central execs and pitched them an idea for a talk show.
Discussion:
Variety, Mediaite, @vulture, @loudmouthjulia, @viacomcbs, @alexweprin, Hollywood Reporter, @loudmouthjulia and The Wrap
Discussion:
KJ Edelman / Mediaite: Charlamagne Tha God Tapped To Host Weekly Comedy Central Show After Viral Biden Interview
@vulture: Behind Chris McCarthy's plan to transform the ViacomCBS network from a linear cable channel to a multi-platform content machine, @tvmojoe reports https://www.vulture.com/...
Julia Alexander / @loudmouthjulia: Big news in @TVMoJoe new piece (new Charlamagne tha God show! Sack Lunch Bunch specials!) but also a dive into ViacomCBS' animation plans/why we're seeing so many MTV announcements. At the heart of it: how a cable network survives in Streaming's 2020. https://www.vulture.com/...
@viacomcbs: It's official: @ComedyCentral plans to expand @TheDailyShow and welcome @cthagod & @mulaney to its big roster of talent. Read more about its transformation under leader Chris McCarthy @Vulture. https://www.vulture.com/...
Alex Weprin / @alexweprin: Big news here. Charlamagne Tha God getting an interview show, and The Daily Show expanding to an hour a night. https://twitter.com/...
Lacey Rose / Hollywood Reporter: John Mulaney Inks Comedy Central Deal for More “Sack Lunch Bunch” Specials
Julia Alexander / @loudmouthjulia: Mature cartoons are a hard thing to program on linear networks. Adult Swim figured it out through super cool programming features not many other networks were using, (HBO Max, I BEG you to bring back bumpers) But on streaming? Cartoons reign. Hulu's said that, too.
Casey Newton / The Interface:
Reframing “tech vs. journalism” discussion as “managers vs. employees” shows why journalists who have called attention to workplace activism have become targets — Last week, the worlds of technology and journalism were transfixed by a conflict that played …
Discussion:
@caseynewton, @anthonyha, @rowlsmanthorpe, Beyond Search, @kantrowitz, @joshconstine, @jackiehluo, @loganlahive, @htsuka, @cwarzel and @taylorlorenz, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Casey Newton / @caseynewton: I wrote about the clarifying power of reframing “tech vs. journalism” as “managers vs. employees” — and how Twitter has given employees the upper hand for a change https://www.getrevue.co/... https://twitter.com/...
Anthony Ha / @anthonyha: This is a smart reframing by @CaseyNewton, though I also suspect there are plenty of tech employees who don't see themselves as “labor” per se and don't care one way or another about the spat between VCs/CEOs and journalists https://www.getrevue.co/...
Rowland Manthorpe / @rowlsmanthorpe: Tech versus journalism is really workers versus managers. Smart column as always by @CaseyNewton - I wonder whether the constant insecurity experienced by journalists has had them more sympathetic to the claims of workers https://www.getrevue.co/...
Stephen E. Arnold / Beyond Search: High Schoolers: The Cafeteria Jibes Continue
Alex Kantrowitz / @kantrowitz: Very good stuff on the tech vs. journalism battle. Workers are more comfortable speaking up than ever, this threatens managers who'd rather they kept quiet. Journalists bring these workers' stories to the public, so they've become a target. https://twitter.com/...
Josh Constine -SignalFire / @joshconstine: Under the surface, journalists vs tech is really employees vs managers, and guess who the underpaid, overworked, quite essential reporters are siding with? https://www.getrevue.co/...
Jackie Luo / @jackiehluo: so glad that someone wrote this take—here's @CaseyNewton on how the conflict between vcs/founders and journalists is fundamentally a labor issue https://www.getrevue.co/...
Logan LaHive / @loganlahive: This piece by @CaseyNewton nails it... We spend so much time focused on the VCs, the CEOs, and the media... Workers are done being left out of the conversation. They are seeing their voice has power. They are demanding to be heard. ✊ https://twitter.com/...
Hayley Tsukayama / @htsuka: Got to this part, and a little bell in my head went “ding ding ding ding”. I have my own biases of course, but I think this is smart framing. https://www.getrevue.co/... https://twitter.com/...
Charlie Warzel / @cwarzel: agree w/ @CaseyNewton - this part about asymmetric advantage is crucial to understanding the public reckoning going on in most industries (in the media industry I Immediately thought of @WesleyLowery's anecdotes abt getting called in by editors for tweets) https://www.getrevue.co/... https://twitter.com/...
Esther Kezia Thorpe / Digital Content Next:
Skift launches Skift Pro, a daily news membership product, for $365 per year as it shifts to subscription-first model with three articles per month — Travel industry intelligence site Skift has become the latest publisher to put membership at the forefront of their business.
Discussion:
Esther Kezia Thorpe / @estherkeziat: I spoke to @jasonclampet about @skift's new launch and why memberships are such an important shift for the publisher in a piece for @DCNorg https://digitalcontentnext.org/ ...
@rafat: “The launch is the very first phase for us. We need to be constantly evolving the product experience...it is going to be very different from what it is a year from now, and hopefully we'll have made a lot of smart decisions.” by @jasonclampet https://digitalcontentnext.org/ ...
Thanks:@estherkeziat
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Comcast plans to invest $2B in Peacock by 2021, expects it to generate $2.5B in revenue by 2024 with 30M-35M users, says users gravitate to its curated channels — In September 2019, Steve Burke, then NBCUniversal chief executive, called Matt Strauss, with a question: Would he take the wheel of the Peacock project?
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