"Twelve states sued to block Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery on Monday, arguing that the $81 billion merger would “extinguish competition” in Hollywood and lead to fewer choices for consumers across the U.S."
"The Trump administration has appointed a noted skeptic of mainstream climate science to lead the government-wide program that compiles the National Climate Assessment, the country’s flagship report on the impact of global warming on the United States."
"The Justice Department subpoenaed several New York Times reporters on Friday to testify about their reporting, the latest instance of federal officials taking the unusually aggressive step of demanding that journalists appear before grand juries." "The Times confirmed that the reporters received the subpoenas, saying that in some instances, federal agents showed up to the reporters’ homes to deliver the legal demands."
"Anyone who has watched an episode of “9-1-1: Nashville” could be forgiven for thinking the city is constantly beset by tornadoes that turn outdoor concerts into scenes of carnage and blow scooter-riding tourists onto the tops of water towers."
"Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III issued a defense of the National Museum of American History to staffers on Tuesday, in response to a caustic White House report accusing the museum of pushing “extreme political activism.”
"A federal judge on Thursday ruled in favor of The Washington Post, throwing out a $3.8 billion defamation lawsuit filed in 2023 by President Donald Trump’s social media company, Trump Media and Technology Group." "The social media company failed to identify convincing evidence that The Post acted with actual malice, a federal judge in Tampa ruled."
"Exclusive: Campaigners argue news channel’s attacks on climate action ‘work in financial interests’ of Sir Paul Marshall"
"Tour de France riders are set to face scorching conditions as a new heatwave sweeps through the country, with temperatures around Carcassonne, where Tuesday's fourth stage begins, forecast to reach 41 degrees Celsius (106 Fahrenheit)."
The spike in prices at the pump in recent months, thanks largely to the U.S.’s war with Iran, offers energy and environment reporters numerous local reporting angles, writes the latest TipSheet. A quick perspective and backstory, then more than a dozen story ideas to pursue, smart questions to ask and useful reporting resources to tap.
As if it’s not already hard enough for reporters to talk to civil servants, the Trump administration wants all federal government employees to sign a nondisclosure agreement that could cost them their jobs if they do. The new WatchDog Opinion column spotlights the dangers of such a policy and details the widespread opposition it has engendered.
