media

The Rise and Fall of "Girls Gone Wild"

Joe Francis's media empire of exploitation was inescapable in the culture of the early 2000s. Here's how he ran afoul of the law and cultural disapproval of sexism—though that's not necessarily how he remembers it. 

With Tucker, Fox Painted Itself Into a Corner

by Nicole Hemmer

Carlson was the key figure that allowed Fox News to avoid being eclipsed by MAGA and the ability of Donald Trump to command media attention without the network's help. Now the network must reckon with the costs – in legal settlements and journalistic legitimacy—of letting Carlson run the show. 

Tucker Carlson Embodies the GOP's Cynicism

by Tom Nichols

"If you were trying to undermine a nation and dissolve its hopes for the future, you could hardly design a better vehicle than Tucker Carlson Tonight."

How Fox News Helped Break the American Right

by Matthew Dallek

The Republican Party has long struggled to keep extremists within its ranks at bay, if partly for political reasons. But the rise of Fox News has destroyed the guardrails older generations of mainstream conservatives set up against conspiracists, hatemongers, and bigots. 

How One News Desk Got Iraq Right When Others Failed

by John Walcott

The former head of Knight-Ridder's national security desk explains how his agency passed by the agency bigshots, interviewed experts and analysts closer to the intelligence, and followed up on red flags that others missed in the runup to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, instead of protecting their access to the administration. 

Teaching, Writing, and Hollywood IP Battles (and Maybe a Workout) are All in a Day's Work

Natalia Petrzela's work as a historian goes far outside the classroom and the library, into the practice of the fitness culture she researches, social media, podcasting, and the politics of intellectual property on streaming services.  

Fox's Handling of the "Big Lie" was Cowardly, but Not Unusual

by Kathryn J. McGarr

News organizations' standards of objectivity have long allowed public figures and politicians to proclaim lies without pushback, leaving the public to be arbiters of truth and falsity. 

Fox News Texts Show Long History of Ideological Media

The revelation that Fox hosts promoted what they knew were lies about the 2020 election reflects what Nicole Hemmer calls a 70-year effort by the right to sow distrust in mainstream media. 

On "Cancel Culture"

by Thomas Zimmer

The alleged "cancellation" of Scott Adams shows that many pundits decrying "cancel culture" from the center are actually more interested in holding the power to declare ideas out of bounds than in letting the marketplace of ideas sort them out. 

20 Years After Iraq Invasion, Need for Dissenting Perspectives is Clear

by Matthew Duss

A left foreign policy analyst argues that labeling opposition to Ukraine's NATO membership as "pro-Putin" echoes the worst moves of the runup to the Iraq war, and that good policy grows from open discussion. 

Evidence of Political Pressure in Firing of West Va. Radio Reporter

Insiders claim a growing pattern of political pressure from the office of Governor Jim Justice to use the threat of defunding to defang public radio coverage of state affairs. 

America's Lost Faith in the News

by Louis Menand

Politicians' success in demonizing and discrediting unfriendly news media threatens to undermine "the facts" as a shared social reality. Is anyone prepared to live in that world? 

Posthumous Limbaugh Book Skirts His Toxic Legacy

The collection of transcripts from Rush's radio program emphasizes the positive ways he built solidarity with his audience while occluding the negative ways he maintained it by stirring resentments against others and lying about his political opponents. 

Remembering Victor Navasky: Editor was a "Ringmaster" at "The Nation"

As the editor of the left-leaning magazine, Navasky was comfortable allowing (and sometimes encouraging) liberals, socialists, and radicals of other varieties duke out their intraleft disagreements in print. 

Antisemitism is Resurgent. Why are News Organizations Screwing Up the Story?

When journalists turn to representatives of legacy Jewish organizations as authentic voices of American Jewry, they often end up generating reporting about antisemitism that strips away historical nuance and fails to accurately describe the forces driving attacks on Jews today. 

The Good News and the Bad News about (Mis)Information – Historians Included

Recent studies of media consumption and conspiracy theory adherence suggest misinformation is not terribly influential on political behavior. Unfortunately, neither is mythbusting, given the social and cognitive complexity of belief. 

Ms. Magazine Turns 50

The current editors of Ms. consider the publication's legacy as a maker, not just a reporter, of news. 

Are Conservatives Really Pulling Ahead in the Comedy Race?

Does a ratings boost for Greg Gutfeld's late-night show mean that today's conservatives are the funny ones and liberals are too "woke" to laugh? Answering the question means looking past party loyalty to ask what makes humor, says humor historian Teresa Prados-Terreira. 

Musk Just Latest in Right's Push To Acquire Media Platforms

by A.J. Bauer

The history of conservative media acquisitions reflects the anxiety on the right that their ideas are broadly unpopular. 

How a Major Christian News Organization Lost its Way

by Marvin Olasky

The Christian news magazine "World" once combined a religious perspective with editorial independence and investigative reporting. Today's Christian nationalist climate has no room for that, says the former editor.