ChatGPT cold opens here we come
Media statistic of the week
What’s dividing the nation? The news media, says a new survey.
“Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults say the news media is increasing political polarization in this country, and just under half say they have little to no trust in the media’s ability to report the news fairly and accurately, according to a new survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights,” reports David Klepper from the Associated Press.?
Another interesting stat from the survey: While a slim majority of Americans say they have some degree of confidence in the news media’s ability to report the news fully and fairly, only 16% say they are very confident. Forty-five percent say they have little to no confidence at all.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…. News has a branding problem. Marketing is still not valued in newsrooms, generally, and we’re paying the price for it. Americans fault news media for dividing nation: AP-NORC poll (from @AP),” tweets Katy Byron, the director of partnerships for Poynter Online.
This past week in the media industry
The text message that led to Tucker Carlson’s firing
We reported last week that Tucker Carlson is out at Fox News. This week, more news has come to light about his downfall at the network.
“A text message sent by Tucker Carlson that set off a panic at the highest levels of Fox on the eve of its billion-dollar defamation trial showed its most popular host sharing his private, inflammatory views about violence and race,” reports Jeremy Peters, Michael Schmidt and Jim Rutenberg who broke the news for the New York Times.?
Here’s the text message in full:
Peters, Schmidt and Rutenberg explain that “the text alarmed the Fox board, which saw the message a day before Fox was set to defend itself against Dominion Voting Systems before a jury. The board grew concerned that the message could become public at trial when Mr. Carlson was on the stand, creating a sensational and damaging moment that would raise broader questions about the company.”
An outside law firm was brought in to investigate Carlson’s conduct.
“Every time some new text or quote that led to his firing leaks, it’s just like ‘that’s just what his show is, did you not watch the show that you aired,’” tweets Whet Moser.?
“uh, it took this of all things for Fox executives to figure out that Tucker Carlson is racist? Did they ever watch his show?” Aaron Rupar
“I’m skeptical that this alarmed a single person at Fox,” tweets Matt Goldberg.
The writer’s strike
It feels like 2007 all over again.?
It’s official. The Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) called for a strike that began on Tuesday, May 2, reports Variety’s Cynthia Littleton and Gene Maddaus.
Here’s what the WGA had to say:
“The companies’ behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing. From their refusal to guarantee any level of weekly employment in episodic television, to the creation of a ‘day rate’ in comedy variety, to their stonewalling on free work for screenwriters and on AI for all writers, they have closed the door on their labor force and opened the door to writing as an entirely freelance profession. No such deal could ever be contemplated by this membership.”
Here’s what the WGA wants, according to Gene Maddaus for Variety:
“In a lengthy document, the guild spelled out its proposal for a TV staffing minimum, which would range from six to 12 writers per show, based on the number of episodes. That proposal is a non-starter for the studios, which declined to make a counter-offer.
The guild also wants a guaranteed minimum number of weeks of employment per season, ranging from 10 weeks to 52 weeks. The studios likewise rejected that proposal and did not make a counter-offer.”
In a show of support, the Australian and Canadian film and TV unions have joined the UK’s writers’ guild in telling their writers to down tools on U.S. shows during the strike, reports Zac Ntim, Max Goldbart, Jesse Whittock and Melanie Goodfellow for Deadline Hollywood.?
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“International sources have pointed to the possibility of the Hollywood studios looking to Australian, Canadian and UK writers to pick up U.S. work during the industrial action, but each guild has strongly advised its members against that course of action,” they write.?
Saturday Night Live has shut down after the WGA called a strike on May 1. The May 6 episode, which was set to be hosted by Pete Davidson, will not run and a rerun will air in its place, reports Rick Porter for The Hollywood Reporter.
“ChatGPT cold opens here we come ?? ♂?,” tweets Lance Ulanoff
Late night shows, including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon have also gone dark after Tuesday, according to Peter White from Deadline Hollywood.?
Media layoffs
It has certainly been a tough couple of weeks for those in the media industry who have been impacted by layoffs.
TheSkimm laid off 13% of their staff, according to Lucia Moses for Business Insider. This is the second round of layoffs this year for the company. “The round appears to have included an EVP of sales, VP of national sales, and the creative director, according to LinkedIn posts of recent days. Insiders called it a ‘mass layoff’ and ‘bloodbath,’” Moses reports.
Clubhouse is cutting more than half its employees, according to Ellen Huet for Bloomberg News. They did not disclose the exact number of employees. “Remember when Clubhouse was going to revolutionize social media?” asks Andrew Kerr on Twitter.
Vice Media is preparing to file for bankruptcy, reports Lauren Hirsch and Benjamin Mullin for the New York Times. “The company has been looking for a buyer, and still might find one, to avoid declaring bankruptcy. More than five companies have expressed interest in acquiring Vice, according to a person briefed on the discussions. The chances of that, however, are growing increasingly slim, said one of the people with knowledge of the potential bankruptcy,” they report.
What really happens at a White House press conference?
Paul Farhi from The Washington Post reveals a “dirty little secret” of White House press conferences:?
“A photo of Biden holding a notecard during the presser may have inadvertently revealed one of the dirty little secrets of presidential news conferences: They’re less spontaneous and freewheeling than they appear to be, with a fair amount of stage managing behind them.
The card in Biden’s hand, titled “Question # 1,” clearly directs the president to call on a Los Angeles Times reporter, Courtney Subramanian. The card has Subramanian’s name (including a pronunciation guide for her surname), her affiliation and even a headshot.”
The card also included a variation of the question Subramanian asked.?
“This would never fly on Capitol Hill,” tweets Farnoush Amiri.
“As I was saying, press conferences are staged. Some presidents want to know what beat reporters are concerned with so they get a chance for an answer directly. And lots of real reporting is outside pressers,” adds David Phinney.
A few more
From the Muck Rack team
With so much buzz around AI these days, as a PR pro, you’re probably asking yourself: “Can AI really make my life easier?” The answer is yes!
PR pros can use generative AI—like ChatGPT and Muck Rack’s own PressPal.ai—to generate new content ideas and analyze existing content. Since better prompts lead to better content, we’re sharing pointers on what makes a good AI prompt for PR pros.?