Bernie Sanders’ emergence as the Democratic frontrunner is yet another blow to the media’s credibility. What should have journalists running scared is that Trump and Sanders supporters share a common disdain for the media, and they have fared quite well despite negative coverage. If Mike Bloomberg and his people don’t quickly learn from the example, they likely are headed for defeat.
People who recline their seats on airplanes say their behavior is justified because airlines allow the practice. Here’s my explanation: They’re just plain selfish.
World leaders on Monday marked the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp with calls warning against the rise of global antisemitism. A day earlier, Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib promoted a false “blood libel” claim that Jews murdered a Palestinian child in Jerusalem. Jewish leaders demanded that Tlaib apologize. Here’s why I’m glad she didn’t.
Boeing’s grounded 737 MAX, which experienced two crashes and claimed 346 lives, was a cost saving move to tweak an existing airplane design rather than develop a new plane from scratch. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that nearly half of the Boeing directors who approved the initiative have ties to private equity. One of them is David Calhoun, who took over as Boeing’s CEO on Monday.
The flying public can take great comfort knowing that Calhoun is an accountant by training, as are two of the three Boeing directors who comprise the board’s aerospace safety committee. What more could possibly go wrong?
Most PR professionals will tell you the importance of getting out before the media and telling your story. Harvey Weinstein and his advisors offer a case study as to why that’s sometimes a very bad idea.
Yale faculty psychiatrist Bandy X Lee wants medical health professionals to have the final say on who’s fit to serve as president, preferably before candidates can run for office. Had the Constitution’s framers allowed for such a panel, Presidents Lincoln and Kennedy would have been deemed mentally unfit, as would Pete Buttgieg prior to December 1973. Nazi Germany provided a lesson as to what can happen when psychiatrists are allowed inordinate influence on the political process.
Mike Bloomberg on Christmas Eve immediately terminated his campaign’s involvement with a call center staffed with inmates after The Intercept reported on the initiative. While it’s possible Bloomberg’s campaign used exploited prison workers, Microsoft and other Fortune 500 technology companies are proudly involved with programs that successfully give inmates second chances. Here’s an example of the potential damaged caused when reporters make assumptions about issues they know little or nothing about.
If a Pulitzer Prize was awarded to the reporter who most rallied Donald Trump’s supporters, Washington Post’s Rachael Bade would be the journalist to beat.
My commentary in support and solidarity with the countless Air Canada passengers in 222 cities on six continents who found themselves in travel hell these past few weeks. Maybe it’s time Canadians rebelled against corporate monopolies that exploit their tolerance and good nature.
New York Times readers say the Trump presidency has impaired their health, including a New Jersey woman who blames Trump for her 20-pound weight gain and her inability to focus on anything but voter turnout. A Columbia University sociologist has quantified why Times readers are so distraught, and the Justice Department’s inspector general last week confirmed the Times and other major media published “fake news.” Some tips to avoid the Times’ carefully honed digital ensnarement.