My review of Tara Henley's "The Trust Spiral" for @theartsfuse.bsky.social: A provocative but flawed overview of what's wrong with the media. artsfuse.org/331572/book-...

Important monkey-related news. With video. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/15/s...

Yikes. I suppose this was already in the works. "Salad Is a Star, Not a Side, in This Summery Spread" cooking.nytimes.com/article/sala...

The nonprofit National Trust for Local News acquires two papers in Georgia, reversing a long period of retrenchment. The Trust also owns papers in Maine and Colorado. www.editorandpublisher.com/stories/geor...

Trump orders that ICE resume traffic stops — terrible news for public safety, but also bad news for Susan Collins. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

New at Media Nation: The @bostonglobe.com goes all in on covering the fatal ICE shooting in Maine. dankennedy.net/2026/07/15/t...

Per Contrarian Boston, the @bostonglobe.com will acquire @instatrac.bsky.social, which compiles state and local government data for a fee. I remember founder Michael Segal giving me a demo when I was at The Boston Phoenix 30 years ago. #mapoli scottvanvoorhis.substack.com/p/platner-al...

I don’t understand why proof of submitting fraudulent signatures isn’t enough to get bounced from the ballot. Why does the challenger have to use certified mail to file their complaint? #mapoli www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/14/m...

I don’t know if the Berenstain Bears are still protected by copyright. I suspect they are, and I hope someone is on it. This is demented.

An interesting new podcast idea from @lauraamico.bsky.social and @journalistbrain.bsky.social, both of whom have @northeasternu.bsky.social journalism ties. "A Curiosity-Inspired Career Pivot Leads to a New Journalism Venture" niemanreports.org/scene-in-bos...

The Black-focused national-and-local news outlet Capital B is ready to open a third local newsroom. www.niemanlab.org/2026/07/capi...

Claude's getting snarky with me. I asked a question about "the late Senator Lindsey Graham." Here's part of the answer. Well, excuse me!

New at Media Nation: How Maine's news outlets are covering yet another killing at the hands of ICE. dankennedy.net/2026/07/14/h...

A rare (and successful) model of a podcast covering just one community. www.cjr.org/local_news/h...

Some interesting stuff about union protections in this article. "The next AI debate is unfolding within the news organization itself" www.editorandpublisher.com/stories/the-...

Todd Blanche’s war against journalism. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

“The NYT added an editor’s note to nine pieces by Nicholas Kristof after the famed columnist failed to disclose some subjects in his pieces donated to his political campaign.” www.status.news/p/paramount-...

Protesters marched into ICE enabler Susan Collins' office after agents gunned down an immigrant in Biddeford, Maine. Collins voted in favor of $70 billion to fund the rogue agency. www.pressherald.com/2026/07/13/s...

>>>@theajp.bsky.social awards $1 million over three years to the nonprofit @themainemonitor.org to "substantially enhance its outreach, engagement, and operational capacity" and to reach currently unserved parts of the state. themainemonitor.org/monitor-rece...

The Portland @pressherald.com is posting to a paywall-free live blog about the ICE shooting in Biddeford, Maine. www.pressherald.com/2026/07/13/s...

Trump will sue the AP for refusing to change its entry for "USA." At Trump rallies, drunken bros will spontaneously burst into chants of "The Guardian of the Hormuz Strait! The Guardian of the Hormuz Strait!"

I'll be at the Salem Athenaeum this Friday, July 17, at 6 p.m. to talk about "News and Democracy in a Time of Crisis" as well as some solutions to the local-news crisis. It would be great to see you there. (Date now corrected!) salemathenaeum.net/event/salon-...

New at Media Nation: Mitch McConnell resurfaces, sparking ludicrous conspiracy theories and AI-generated fakes. dankennedy.net/2026/07/12/m...

Although it's hard to imagine that Lindsey Graham died from anything other than natural causes, he was a harsh critic of Russia who had Trump's ear and had just returned from Ukraine. I hope and assume there will be a thorough investigation.

A reminder that the First Amendment doesn’t protect journalists from being ordered to identify their sources, and there is no federal shield law. The subpoenas of four NYT reporters are outrageous but not unconstitutional.

🚨BREAKING: Trump renounces assassination as a legitimate weapon of war. Will he turn himself in at The Hague?

New at Media Nation: From the Trump regime to a rogue judge in New Jersey, the First Amendment is under assault. dankennedy.net/2026/07/11/f...

Anyone have any insight into this marketing message from the @bostonglobe.com? The Globe is notorious for not offering any gift links except one-to-one emails. And this was sent to my work account, where I already have a free subscription. Weird.

Obviously no national security issue with what the NYT reported as long as Trump stays off the insecure Air Force One. “Times Journalists Subpoenaed as Trump Escalates Pressure on Media” www.nytimes.com/2026/07/11/b...

East Boston man sues over the way he says he was manhandled, thrown in a windowless cell and robbed by ICE www.universalhub.com/2026/east-bo...

Best wishes to @bostonglobe.com columnist @jeffjacoby.bsky.social, who writes that he's been dealing with serious but undiagnosed health problems. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/10/o...

News publishers — among them Gannett/USA Today — are getting ready to opt out of Google search to protect themselves from AI scraping. www.adweek.com/media/publis...

NYT executive editor Joe Kahn distances himself (slightly) from that Nick Kristof piece claiming Israeli forces used dogs to rape Palestinian prisoners, noting that Kristof doesn’t work for him. www.thewrap.com/media-platfo...

Great job, Trump. “Even as Iran stages a weeklong funeral for its slain leader, the Islamic Republic today is acting with a bold and newfound confidence born of a war that analysts say may have saved the regime from a post-protest erosion of legitimacy.” www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle...

The Concord (N.H.) Monitor is hiring an education reporter. www.journalismjobs.com/1693426-educ...

Why Media Nation is dumping ads. dankennedy.net/2026/07/09/w...

In this week's newsletter for paid supporters of Media Nation, two luminous versions of Stephen Foster's "Hard Times Come Again No More," by Bob Dylan and Mavis Staples. Plus a roundup of the week's posts and some patriotic photography. Please join for $6 a month. www.patreon.com/dankennedy/p...

I don't want to dwell endlessly on Platner, but I've been struck by the extent to which young progressive women and Blacks were onto him from the start. (So were a few of us old guys.) I think @marisakabas.bsky.social deserves to have the final word. www.thehandbasket.co/p/graham-pla...

Congratulations to the finalists for the 2026 @lionpubs.bsky.social Sustainability Awards. There are several on this list who are either in our book, "What Works in Community News," or have been on our podcast, "What Works: The Future of Local News." lionpublishers.com/meet-the-45-...

The New York Times is launching a local newsletter in Minneapolis-St. Paul and says it's doing so specifically because it already has "a vibrant media ecosystem." Well, OK... www.nytco.com/press/the-ne...

That’s it. Now let’s beat Collins. mainemorningstar.com/2026/07/08/g...

Any idea if this afternoon’s Markey-Moulton debate is online somewhere? #mapoli

Just 65 days? I thought Twinkies were immortal. www.wsj.com/business/ret...

A cross-section of Illinois news entities get $4.3 million from state. localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu/posts/2026/0...

Three WHDH-TV (Channel 7) camerapeople sue over work they say they were ordered to do during blizzards but didn't get paid for. Via @universalhub.com. www.universalhub.com/2026/three-w...

Over on Threads, we're getting to the he-hasn't-been-found-guilty-in-a-court-of-law stage of Platner denialism.

The Midcoast Villager in Camden, Maine, is hiring a reporting fellow. www.midcoastvillager.com/news/from/oh...

New at Media Nation: A New England Muzzle Award to Plymouth County (MA) Sheriff Joseph McDonald for keeping detainee health records secret on behalf of ICE — and in violation of state law. dankennedy.net/2026/07/08/a...

How Warren betrayed her ideals in her zeal to replace Chuck Schumer.

From the @csmonitor.bsky.social: Local journalism's unique niche in the U.S. www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/t...