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☆ NPR C.E.O. to Retire at Year’s End
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Katie Robertson | More About Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

NPR’s chief executive, John Lansing, said on Tuesday that he would retire at the end of the year, ending a rocky four years atop the public broadcaster. He said that he had made the decision to retire after discussions with his wife, Jean. A veteran media executive, Mr. Lansing joined NPR as its chief executive in 2019 after running the U.S. Agency for Global Media. During his tenure, NPR faced serious financial difficulties, some of them brought on by the pandemic. In early in 2020, executives including Mr. Lansing took pay cuts to help with budget gaps.

Persons: John Lansing, Lansing, Jean, “, ” Organizations: NPR, U.S . Agency for Global Media, Mr

☆ Little Richard embraced fluidity in rock ‘n’ roll. These are some of the artists he influenced
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Scottie Andrew | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Editor’s Note: The CNN Film “Little Richard: I Am Everything” tells the story of rock ‘n’ roll’s Black, queer origins. Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesPerhaps the closest thing to a successor Little Richard had was Prince, the late legend who, like Little Richard, resisted easy classification and reinvented music upon his arrival. Tina TurnerTina Turner and Little Richard reunited for a performance at the 1989 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. “I couldn’t believe the power of Little Richard on stage,” he said in Little Richard’s biography. Ian Gavan/Getty ImagesLike Little Richard, the British pop maven always felt at home in front of a piano, often tinkling the keys dressed in an ostentatious garment involving feathers (Little Richard, meanwhile, mostly stuck to suits).

Persons: “, Richard, Lil Nas, Little Richard, didn’t, Prince, David Bowie, Janelle Monáe, Dick Clark, Little Richard’s, Prince Prince, Kevin Winter, ” Richard, Rosetta Tharpe, you’ll, Frutti ”, NPR’s Ann Powers, Frutti, …, ” Prince, Richard’s, Nikki ”, MTV “, ” David Bowie David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust, Bowie, ”, Ziggy, wouldn’t, ” Bowie, Tina Turner Tina Turner, Sonia Moskowitz, Ike, Turner, —, Elvis, Mick Jagger Richard, Jagger, Little, Elton John Elton John, Ian Gavan, maven, John, he’s, ” John, Beverly Hilton, Freddie Mercury, might’ve, Queen —, Elvis Baz Luhrman’s, ” dramatizes, Alton Mason, Richard careens, Elvis ”, King —, Janelle Monáe Janelle Monáe, Ethan Miller, Monáe, ” Monae, Richard . Lady Gaga, Gaga, Jo Calderone, Princess Lavonne, Lavonne, he’d, Jo, Princess Lavonne’s, ” Ashon Crawley Organizations: CNN, MTV, Roll Hall, Beverly, Warner Bros, Warner Bros ., USA, NPR Music Locations: London, New Orleans, British, Monáe

☆ The Best True Crime to Stream: Leaving the United States
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Maya Salam | More About Maya Salam | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In this podcast, one of Pakistan’s first in the true crime realm, we travel to Karachi in the late 1960s and early ’70s, when the city’s lust-fueled nightlife and high-society scandals would rival the most sensational eras of Hollywood or New York. The show’s hosts, Tooba Masood and Saba Imtiaz, Pakistan-based journalists, have been researching the circumstances surrounding Zaidi’s death for years. Over two seasons, they share their findings in great detail, attempt to apply logic to the gossip of that time and debate the legitimacy of the possible scenarios. Now, its leader, Sanjoy Sachdev, is facing allegations of extortion. As Warner puts it, “Escape is far from the same thing as freedom.”

Persons: Mustafa Zaidi, Shahnaz Gul, Tooba Masood, Saba, ’, —, Gregory Warner, Mansi, Lauren Frayer, Sanjoy, ” Organizations: Commandos, Warner Locations: Karachi, New York, Saba Imtiaz, Pakistan, India, Delhi

☆ How ‘Soul Train’ immortalized an exuberant era of Black style, movement and culture
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Brooklyn White-Grier | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

This was “Soul Train,” the music television series that served as Blackness’ binoculars. In the middle of the Black Power era and feeding from the civil rights movement, “Soul Train” provided a fresh opportunity for Black people to see and celebrate themselves. “We wouldn’t have a house party or at a club where we weren’t doing the ‘Soul Train’ line,” she said. “Those were the fits and the looks and the moves where I think ‘Soul Train’ probably had its biggest influence.”Still, Cochrane, a Gen X-er, says that her era of the “Soul Train” — and the “Soul Train” line — moved with the times. “But it was on ‘Soul Train’ that we got to see our favorite artist, hear our beloved songs, get our style trends and language.

Persons: — You’ve, you’d, ”, Chicago’s, Jackson, Dyana Williams, “, Williams, ” Williams, George E, Johnson, Ultra Sheen, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, Sly Stone, Sly, Nelson George’s, Todd Oldham, ” Oldham, It’s, Don Cornelius, Kenneth Gamble, Gamble, Huff, Naima Cochrane, Cochrane, Michael Ochs, Rosie Perez, Patrice Rushen, Fred Berry, Vivica, Cheryl Song, Nobody, ” Cochrane, ” “, ’ ” Williams, Black Television ” Organizations: CNN, TRL, Ultra, Black Power, Michael Ochs Archives, Fox, Black Television Locations: Afro Sheen, America, Washington ,, Philadelphia, Shalamar, American

☆ Tony Bennett, crooner who sang ‘I Left My Heart in San Francisco,’ dies at 96
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Catherine E. Shoichet | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

CNN —Legendary singer Tony Bennett, best known for singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” has died, according to his longtime publicist, Sylvia Weiner. From Tony Bennett Bennett was discovered by Bob Hope while performing at a New York City club in 1949. In 1963, his recording of "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" won Grammy Awards for record of the year and best solo vocal performance. ABC Photo Archives/Walt Disney Television/Getty Images Bennett and San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein hang onto the outside of a San Francisco cable car before taking a test ride in 1984. His performance of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” won Grammys for best record and best male vocal performance.

Persons: Tony Bennett, “, ”, Sylvia Weiner, Bennett, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Lady Gaga, ” Bennett, he’d, CNN’s Larry King, Susan Benedetto, Danny, Dae Bennett, Johanna Bennett, Antonia Bennett, Paul McCartney, Larry Busacca, Anthony Benedetto, Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto, Hope, ‘, ’, ‘ Anthony Dominick Benedetto, ’ ” Tony Bennett, Virginia Sherwood, Anthony Dominick Benedetto, John, Mary, John Jr, Tony Bennett Bennett, Bill Randall applauds, Patricia, D'Andrea, Daegal, Pat, collie, David McLane, Sammy Davis Jr, David Redfern, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Ley, Sandra, Malcolm MacNeil, Mirrorpix, Joanna, Howard Cosell, Dianne Feinstein, Feinstein, Jeff Reinking, David Letterman, Richard Drew, Patti LaBelle, Hans Deryk, Mark J, Terrill, Elton John, Scott Gries, Madame Tussaud's, Kevork, Tim Mosenfelder, Fernando Leon, Tina Turner, Robert Redford, Julie Harris, Suzanne Farrell, Scott Suchman, Kevin Winter, Billy Joel, York's Shea, Kevin Mazur, Duke Ellington, Brendan Hoffman, Stevie Wonder, Shahar Azran, Amy Winehouse, Kevork Djansezian, Susan, Michael Loccisano, Sean Zanni, Ball, Tony, San Francisco ”, …, ’ ” Bennett, NPR’s Terry Gross, it’s, Clinton, JP Yim, you’re, “ It’s, Danny Bennett, kd, Elvis Costello, “ Tony Bennett, Jack Benny, Charlie Chaplin, Walt Disney, Gary Gershoff, –, Sinatra, Jon Bon Jovi, Bono, ” Sinatra, “ Larry King, Ella Fitzgerald, Ella, Bing Crosby, “ Cheek, Cheek, Alzheimer’s Organizations: CNN, MTV, Recording Academy, Los Angeles Convention Center, Paramount, NBCU, Bank, Getty, Facebook, Columbia Records, Bettmann, Patrick's, NY, Smithsonian, Daily, Hulton, ABC, Walt Disney Television, San Francisco, United Nations, Super, Rainforest Foundation, New York's Carnegie Hall, San Francisco Giants, Kennedy, Apollo, New York's Radio City Music Hall, American Ballet, Children's Diabetes Foundation, Children's Diabetes, Radio City Music Hall, San, Clinton Global, New York Times, New York’s High, of Industrial Art, Kennedy Center, ”, AARP, Radio City Music, CBS Locations: San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Astoria , New York, Greenwich Village, New York City, Cleveland, St, Manhattan, Redferns, Washington , DC, View , California, Washington, Lady

☆ News outlets go all in on missing Titanic submersible. But have they gone overboard in coverage?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

It melds elements of mystery and humanity with a dose of high drama as rescuers race against time in their frantic search for a missing vessel with five souls aboard. Should a missing tourism vessel for the ultra-wealthy take precedence over other consequential stories happening around the world? While the press took heat for around-the-clock coverage of MH370, the tragedy was arguably far more worthy of coverage. And yet, the disaster did not inspire a level of coverage close to what major news organizations have devoted to the ocean submersible. Eric Deggans, NPR’s media critic and an adjunct instructor at Duke University, conceded that the coverage of the Titanic vessel has perhaps been over-torqued in recent days.

Persons: CNN —, Samuel Freedman, ” Freedman, Trump, Vincent Browne, Ylva Johansson, hasn’t, ” Alex Shephard, it’s, ”, ” Shephard, Eric Deggans, ” Deggans, Deggans Organizations: CNN, Columbia Journalism School, Malaysian, European Union, The New, Duke University Locations: Ukraine, Europe, Greece, The New Republic

☆ Taylor Swift and the Economics of Superstar Tours - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Paul Krugman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In particular, as I’ll explain, the real puzzle here is why Taylor Swift doesn’t make even more money. Inspired in part by the work of my late former colleague Alan Krueger, I have in fact weighed in on Taylor Swift in historical perspective before. So, Taylor Swift makes a lot of money. But on the surface, that’s not what’s happening with Taylor Swift or Beyoncé. They’re making huge sums not mainly from record or streaming royalties but from concerts — which is, by the way, normal.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Alan Krueger, Sherwin Rosen, ” Rosen

☆ Seeing Yourself Onscreen Is Good, but Not Good Enough
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Elamin Abdelmahmoud | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

WANNABE: Reckonings With the Pop Culture That Shapes Me, by Aisha HarrisBeing a Black critic in a time of exceptional art made by Black people has immense rewards and myriad risks. “Wannabe,” the debut essay collection from Aisha Harris, a co-host of NPR’s “Pop Culture Happy Hour,” is at its best when engaging with those risks and the thorny questions of her profession. In what ways does identity inform a critic’s work? “I don’t want to ‘just be happy’ about ‘King Richard,’” she insists. “I want interiority and surprise and characters who feel as though they have a reason to exist beyond retelling history.”

Persons: Aisha Harris, Harris, John Legend ”, cheekily, Issa Rae’s, —, Black, Will Smith, Richard ”, King Richard, ’, “, ”

☆ Jeremy Strong ‘terrified’ the ‘Succession’ creator during that last scene
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Lisa Respers France | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —It was an improvised scene the audience didn’t see, but Jeremy Strong freaked out the “Succession” creator with his performance in the series finale. The creator, Jesse Armstrong, appeared on a recent episode of NPR’s “Fresh Air” and was asked about Strong climbing over the railing at the river as if he may jump in during the improvised final scene of the Emmy-winning HBO series. I was terrified that he might fall in and be injured,” Armstrong said. “I did try and go in the water,” Strong said. Your job is to give the writing heart and a nerve and … all that stuff.”Strong said he “didn’t feel like (Kendall) could come back from what happens to him.”

Persons: Jeremy Strong freaked, Jesse Armstrong, “, ” Armstrong, ”, ” Strong, Kendall Roy, CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Kendall Organizations: CNN, HBO, Warner Bros .

☆ NPR’s Terence Samuel Is Named Top Editor of USA Today
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Terence Samuel, a top news executive at National Public Radio, will be the next editor in chief of USA Today. Gannett, the nation’s largest newspaper chain and the publisher of USA Today, made the announcement on Friday. Mr. Samuel, who will start on July 10, fills a position vacated in May by Nicole Carroll, who had led USA Today for five years. Mr. Samuel, 61, is a vice president and executive editor at NPR, where he oversees all news gathering at the network. Mr. Samuel said in a statement that he was honored to help lead USA Today, which made its debut in 1982, “into a digital future.”

Persons: Terence Samuel, Mr, Samuel, Nicole Carroll, ” Organizations: National Public Radio, USA Today, Gannett, USA, NPR, The Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, . News

☆ Opinion: Why I’m not reassured by our victory over Covid-19
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Opinion Kent Sepkowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Editor’s note: Kent Sepkowitz is a physician and infectious disease expert at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. CNN —At long last, the Covid-19 pandemic has entered its whimper phase. Last week, the World Health Organization decided to end the Covid-19 global health emergency. The US public health emergency is scheduled to end on Thursday, and beginning the following day, vaccination against Covid-19 will no longer be required for non-US travelers entering the States. Infectious diseases don’t ever really go away; they just change a little, then change some more till one day, they return bigger and fiercer than ever.

☆ 2023 layoff tracker: The latest on which companies have announced job cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +20 min

New York CNN —BuzzFeed, Lyft, Whole Foods and Deloitte all recently announced layoffs affecting thousands of US workers. With 11,000 job cuts announced in November and the 10,000 announced in March, Meta’s headcount will fall to around 66,000 — a total reduction of about 25%. The company announced in January that it was eliminating some 18,000 positions as part of a major cost-cutting bid at the e-commerce giant. IndeedJob listing website Indeed.com announced cuts of approximately 2,200 employees, representing almost 15% of its total workforce, the company said in March. The cuts come after the company announced several rounds of job cuts throughout the pandemic due to falling demand, followed by rapid hiring last year.

☆ Juggling College With a Media Job. Now Both Are Over.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Callie Holtermann | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At Mother of Junk, a thrift emporium in Brooklyn, Emma Choi examined a rubber triceratops and invented a back story for a Miss Piggy figurine. She became NPR’s first Gen Z podcast host, having started as an intern at “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!,” NPR’s comedy news quiz show. Ms. Choi was told in a Zoom call that the podcast would end, and with it her role as host. Although her sense of humor is intact, some of her optimism about working in media has faded. She said she felt proud to have made a show intended in part to usher in the next generation of NPR listeners.

☆ America’s Inflation Antihero Gets a Makeover
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Jeanna Smialek | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The years have not been kind to Arthur Burns, who led the Federal Reserve from 1970 to 1978 and is often remembered as perhaps the worst chair ever to head America’s central bank. Chris Hughes thinks he deserves another look. Mr. Hughes, 39, is a newly accepted doctoral student focused on central bank history at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Hughes then bought and for four years served as publisher of The New Republic, the liberal magazine. As a person who knows something about reinvention, Mr. Hughes thinks Mr. Burns should get one, too.

☆ NPR stops using Twitter after receiving ‘government funded media’ label
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —NPR on Wednesday said that it is suspending its use of Twitter after clashing with the social media company over a controversial new “state-affiliated media” label applied to its accounts. The move was quickly rebuked by NPR, which is publicly funded by listeners. Twitter has also faced backlash over applying a similar “government funded media” label to the BBC, which is also primarily funded by the public. Twitter has faced an exodus of advertisers, who have been concerned about increased hate speech on the platform and massive cuts to the company’s workforce. In the meantime, Musk has taken on the uphill battle of encouraging users to pay $8 per month for the platform’s subscription service.

☆ Analysis: Elon Musk escalates antics at Twitter, complicating turnaround
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Under Elon Musk, Twitter has antagonized multiple major news organizations by labeling them state-funded media, appears to have eased restrictions on Russian government accounts and made crude jokes on the front of its headquarters and on Musk’s own Twitter display name. Musk has said Twitter is working to improve the platform’s ad targeting to increase value for advertisers. But it didn’t exactly go to plan — instead of removing checks from all previously verified users, Twitter appeared to target a single account belonging to the New York Times. Days later, Twitter’s home button was temporarily replaced with doge, the meme representing the cryptocurrency dogecoin, which Musk has promoted. The company also briefly restricted Twitter users from sharing links to a rival platform, upsetting users, including one who had previously reported the so-called Twitter files using documents provided by Musk.

☆ NPR Criticizes Twitter for Labeling Its Account as ‘State-Affiliated Media’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Alyssa Lukpat | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

National Public Radio criticized Twitter Inc. for labeling its social-media account as “US state-affiliated media,” a designation the independent public broadcaster on Wednesday said was disturbing and unacceptable. Twitter’s guidelines say the company adds the designation for government-controlled news sources. NPR says on its website that less than 1% of its budget comes from federal grants, including from the government-supported Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Most of NPR’s revenue comes from corporate sponsorships, it says, along with dues and fees paid by its member stations.

☆ NPR to cut 10% of its staff in ‘a major loss’ for the public radio network, CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Jon Passantino | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —National Public Radio will lay off 10% of its staff after projecting a $30 million budget shortfall, NPR’s chief executive John Lansing wrote in a memo to staff Wednesday. In his memo, Lansing said the network was grappling with a “sharp decline” in revenues from its corporate sponsors as a result of the uncertain economy. “With approximately 65% of our budget supporting personnel costs, we will need to eliminate many of the vacant positions that have been frozen. In recent months, the media and technology sectors have taken a battering as advertisers tighten spending amid economic uncertainty. CNN, NBC News, MSNBC, Vox Media, Gannett and other news organizations have cut their workforces in recent months.

Vindman first joined Twitter while working in the Trump administration because it was often the way his then-boss, the president, made policy. His wife, liberal activist and podcaster Rachel Vindman, has almost 400,000 followers, making them a progressive Twitter power couple. In a clubby city obsessed with status and information, Twitter delivers both, all from the comfort of one’s mobile phone. No one wants to leave Twitter until everyone else does, but there’s no obvious place to go next. Some think Musk will kill Twitter regardless of whether there’s a mass exodus of its users.

But too many people didn’t agree when questions around Hunter Biden arose in the last campaign. If anything, the rush to dismiss the early Hunter Biden coverage left rumors to fester. Hunter Biden was also paid by a bank that benefited from his father’s work on personal bankruptcy legislation in the Senate. But after his father entered the White House, Hunter Biden began selling his paintings at prices as high as $500,000 per item. But it’s still worth getting to the bottom of the Hunter Biden drama.

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