Mark Jacob

Chicago

Freelance Writer and Editor, Local News Initiative at Freelance

Ex-editor at Chicago Tribune & Sun-Times. Co-author of 10 books. Subscribe to my free newsletter on politics & media at https://t.co/K4nW7WYdyZ

Articles

One of Trump’s few talents: media manipulation

3 days ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

This past weekend was a festival of Trump playing the fiddle and many in the mainstream media dancing to it. One of Trump’s few talents is media manipulation. He knows the value of being the first to frame a news development. He knows that many in the media feel obligated to act like the president is telling the truth, even when the president is the most notorious liar of our time. And he knows how to change the subject.
News outlets over-rely on the phrase ‘critics say,’ this critic says

1 week ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

A lot of today’s journalists are scared of facts. They don't like to state things as flat-out true. They’d rather play it safe and employ a cop-out phrase like “observers say” or “critics claim,” even when the facts are not in serious doubt.
WaPo should apologize for endorsing Pam Bondi

2 weeks ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

In an editorial in January, the Washington Post gave a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down to each of Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks. Among those who got an endorsement was Pam Bondi for attorney general:But in Bondi’s first few months as AG, she has been the fascist enforcer that many of us thought she’d be. She’s working for a would-be dictator – certainly not for the American people or for due process in a democracy.
‘Division Street Revisited’: How Studs Terkel’s Legacy Lives On in a New Podcast

3 weeks ago | better.net | Mark Jacob

In the 1960s, Myra Alexander fought against racism. Bill Koza craved tolerance toward gay people. Della Reuther protested against war. Ben Bearskin preserved Native American culture. Mary Ward Wolkonsky promoted the civic role of women. Leon Beverly battled for union workers and neighbors. And Blanche Gates, a widowed mother of 15, kept her family strong.
5 ways major media can seek redemption

3 weeks ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

The Trump regime is defying the courts. Federal agents are grabbing people off the streets and jailing them for exercising their 1st Amendment rights. Trump is extorting universities and law firms. It’s a dictatorship-in-progress. The mainstream news media have helped bring us to this disaster with both-sidesing, sane-washing, and cheap fascination with Trump’s supposed “entertainment” skills. They had a duty to warn, and they largely failed.
Karoline Leavitt is a professional liar

1 month ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

Before Karoline Leavitt became White House press secretary, she made a video for the radical Project 2025. Advising future right-wing political appointees, she said: “Sometimes you’re going to have to ‘fake it till you make it’ a little bit.”But Leavitt is faking it more than a little bit.
20 ‘rude’ questions the media should ask

1 month ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

Newsmakers know journalists have a short attention span. They know if they can stave off questions long enough, most reporters will move on to something else. And if the reporters keep asking tough questions, some politicians will deny them access. The journalists may even get in trouble with their own bosses if their questions come across as rude. That’s why newsmakers get away with a lot these days.
The New York Times is on the wrong side of history

1 month ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

Over the weekend, the New York Times published a pompous editorial headlined, “The Democrats Are in Denial About 2024.” The editorial wasn’t wrong – much of the party’s leadership is indeed in denial – but the obvious, ignored fact is that the Times is in denial too. During the 2024 campaign, the Times sane-washed Trump’s mental unfitness, downplayed MAGA fascism, and sometimes treated a political turning point for our country as a source of lighthearted amusement.
How people power can beat MAGA money and meanness

1 month ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

The pace of the MAGA power grab is breathtaking. We’re seeing capitulation among Big Tech, universities, lawyers, and the news media. On the other hand, there’s a growing sense of outrage among Americans who understand the nightmare that’s descending. We need more people to be alarmed and take action. It’s not too late. Here are some steps to take. Get out and protest.
The Trump regime retreats on promised Agent Orange cleanup

1 month ago | stopthepresses.news | Mark Jacob

The Trump administration’s reckless mishandling of a promised Agent Orange cleanup in Vietnam is the topic of a strong ProPublica story that Steven Beschloss and I highlight in a new On-Target video. The U.S. is trashing its credibility around the world by pulling back on commitments made under USAID, the foreign aid agency under attack by Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Beschloss is author of the outstanding “America, America” newsletter. Consider subscribing.