The Kicker

Latest Episodes:

Podcast: Tabloids in the age of Trump Aug 04, 2017

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On the latest episode of The Kicker, Meg has an interview with journalist and novelist Julia Dahl. They discuss her experience working at the New York Post and how tabloids shaped the early years of Donald Trump. Then, we run through the week’s biggest stories: the narrative surrounding new White House chief of staff John Kelly, and buyouts at the New York Times. Plus, a short conversation with Peter Sterne, a senior reporter at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, about the new US Press Freedom Tracker.

The media is bad at covering drugs Jul 28, 2017

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On the latest episode of The Kicker, Meg has an interview with Leah Finnegan, features editor for The Outline. They discuss what journalists get wrong when reporting on drug addiction and how they can do better. Then, we run through the week’s biggest stories: how a health-care vote went down in cinematic style, a White House communications chief who doesn’t understand the basic rules of talking to the press, and progress in how journalists cover the president’s tweets.

Time to rethink the media’s Trump coverage? Jul 21, 2017

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On the latest episode of The Kicker, we run through some of the week’s biggest stories: what media mergers mean for both journalists and consumers, how to parse all of those anonymously sourced stories, and why Donald Trump keeps sitting down with reporters from The New York Times. Then, Pete Vernon talks with CJR Editor and Publisher Kyle Pope about the press’s coverage of the Trump White House, and why it’s time for a new approach.

“It is, I promise, worse than you think” Jul 14, 2017

Show notes

On the latest episode of The Kicker, we run through some of the week’s biggest media stories, including how the White House’s response to Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer demonstrates a press shop in crisis, why net neutrality matters for journalists, and how to make environmental reporting connect with audiences. Then, Pete talks with Jesse Thorn, host of The Turnaround, about the art of the interview and what Thorn has learned from talking with people like Ira Glass, Terry Gross, and Jerry Springer. (1:11) Communication issues from the White House(4:00) Net neutrality in the news(6:50) Making climate reporting matter(12:27) Interview with Jesse Thorn

Breaking down CNN's Reddit fiasco Jul 07, 2017

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On the latest episode of The Kicker, we run through some of the week’s biggest media stories, including Al Jazeera getting caught in an international diplomatic crisis, Fox Sports’s embrace of “pivot to video,” and the legwork that went into capturing Chris Christie’s day at the beach. Then, we move on to CNN’s controversial decision to identify, but not name, the creator of a video that President Donald Trump tweeted out over the holiday weekend. The article in question stirred up lots of chatter over what stories are newsworthy and whether CNN was implicitly threatening a private citizen with exposure. Finally, Dave talks with Dave Mistich, digital managing editor of 100 Days in Appalachia, about covering Trump country without stereotypes or tokenism. (0:56) News Rundown(9:36) CNN’s controversy(19:45) Interview with Dave Mistich(30:22) #PersonalNews

What are "women's publications" for? Jun 29, 2017

Show notes

We critique The Washington Post's new product targeting Millennial women, The Lily, and debate what, if anything, makes a good "women's publication." Then, Dave chats with CJR correspondent Trudy Lieberman about media coverage of the secretive Republican push to overhaul the US healthcare system.

The journalist and the arms dealer Jun 23, 2017

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This week, we analyze the push for unionization at digital media properties and break down a new effort by NPR to reach younger audiences. Then, Dave talks to CJR Managing Editor Vanessa Gezari about how a Wall Street Journal correspondent cozied up to an Iranian-born arms dealer, exposing the dark underbelly of national security reporting.

Megyn Kelly gets trolled Jun 16, 2017

Show notes

We run through some of the week’s biggest media stories, including layoffs across the industry, New York Times stories in search of a public editor, and how a single erroneous tweet can spark a fake news cycle. Then, we move on to Megyn Kelly’s upcoming interview with Infowars’s Alex Jones. How should mainstream journalists report on trolls? Finally, Dave talks with RealClearPolitics’s James Arkin about what it’s like to cover Congress in the Trump era and how Capitol Hill reacted to this week’s shooting. (1:15) News rundown(11:11) Alex Jones and Megyn Kelly(22:27)Covering Congress

How the Comey/Russia story is playing outside the media bubble Jun 08, 2017

Show notes

On the latest episode of The Kicker, Dave and Pete run through some of the week’s biggest media stories, including tech giants’ domination of the digital ad market, Breitbart’s Trump-era slump, and the lack of attention toward Scott Pelley’s departure from CBS Evening News. Then, we move on to Reality Winner and the first leak prosecution of the Trump administration. Finally, we talk with Brendan Fitzgerald, editor of CJR’s United States Project, about the way local newspapers around the country have—or haven’t—covered the Trump-Russia story.(1:06): News rundown(12:14): Trump's first leak prosecution(22:03): The Trump-Russia story

The end of the public editor era at The New York Times Jun 01, 2017

Show notes

On the latest episode of The Kicker, we run through some of the week’s biggest media stories, including a look at the future of The Chicago Sun-Times, the troubling trend of press norms being violated in the Trump era, and Twitter ethics for journalists. Then, we move on to the news of the day: The New York Times’s decision to eliminate the public editor position. Finally, CJR’s David Uberti interviews Simon Van Zuylen-Wood, author of an excellent piece in CJR’s spring print issue about why local TV news never changes. (1:12): News rundown (11:50): New York Times eliminates public editor position(19:08): Interview with Simon Van Zuylen-Wood on local TV news

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