David Folkenflik
Appearances
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
Trump's legal team argued that CBS had engaged in, quote, unlawful acts of election and voter interference through malicious, deceptive, and substantial news distortion. What CBS said was this is part and parcel of what journalistic choices involve all the time. What journalists like you are confronted with in compressing a longer interview to meet the time imperatives of the programming
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
This is frivolous. And I've got to tell you, every legal expert I've spoken to on this say that this is essentially an abuse of the courts. There's no legal grounds that they can point to in precedent that would support this as voter interference. And in fact, of course, Trump won. Trump won in Texas. Trump won in the country. It doesn't feel as though somehow this interview harmed him.
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
This really is a moment where journalists are watching their corporate owners bend to power. I've talked to former and current executives at CBS and their rivals. I've spoken with legal scholars. I've spoken with corporate attorneys. And I've spoken with journalists.
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
What is happening now, almost uniformly in the views, is that Trump is exerting pressure to intimidate the press from doing things that he will take issue with. He's also doing it to show that he can do it.
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
They believe he wants to make sure they don't act as a check on his power and that they are aware that he's going to make it hard for them to do so or raise the pain threshold to them for doing so.
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
One of the things that you see chronically in government is it's very hard to get rid of things that don't work so that we can then invest in the things that do. And the penny ends up being, I think, a good metaphor for some of the larger problems that we've got.
Apple News Today
It costs 3 cents to make a penny. Trump says it’s time to stop.
CBS is the avatar for Trump's multi-front assault on the media and the news media in particular.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-25-2025 7PM EST
Some fans are castigating MSNBC. Some MAGA loyalists are performing a victory dance on social media. But the network doesn't appear to be softening its ardent political bent. Alex Wagner is being replaced by Jen Psaki, who was President Joe Biden's press secretary. Enjoy Reed's time slot. Viewers will find a trio of other MSNBC hosts, not a Trump supporter among them.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-25-2025 7PM EST
Two weekend hosts are having new extended shows built around them, and the third is remaining as a correspondent. MSNBC chief Rebecca Cutler is taking steps to get ahead of the network split with parent NBC. They're now part of different corporations, and she has to reshape the lineup without its reporters or its infrastructure. David Folkenflik, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-02-2025 7PM EDT
Under questioning from members of the Senate Commerce Committee, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg admits production flaws and lax oversight led to a door plug blowing out of an Alaska Airlines 737 in flight in January of last year.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 04-02-2025 7PM EDT
Changes that Ortberg says will improve the quality and safety of Boeing planes. But family members of those killed in two Boeing 737 MAX crashes want the company held accountable for its design and production flaws and for deceiving safety regulators. For NPR News, I'm David Shaper.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 01-21-2025 6PM EST
The case involves allegations that for years, the Murdoch tabloids hacked into voicemail messages and otherwise illegally got access to confidential information. Washington Post publisher Will Lewis was a top Murdoch executive 14 years ago when the scandal was at its peak. Harry and politician Tom Watson say Lewis helped to orchestrate the destruction of millions of emails and lied to police.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 01-21-2025 6PM EST
News UK and Lewis deny that, and Lewis is not a defendant in the case. Harry had said he would not settle because he wants to make sure the Murdoch papers are publicly held to account. Yet he'd be on the hook for Murdoch's huge legal fees if he does not win a judgment greater than the settlement Murdoch offered. David Folkenflik, NPR News, London.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 01-29-2025 8PM EST
Yeah, this was a designed-to-be nuclear test location originally, and now we do only subcritical experiments in this location.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-06-2025 2PM EST
The network's founder, Rupert Murdoch, met with Trump at the Oval Office earlier this week, signifying their ongoing alliance of convenience. Fox has been a pillar of Trump's political base, and except when its stars deviate from supporting him, his fans have rewarded the network with strong ratings. Fox has now named his daughter-in-law Lara Trump the host of a show on Saturday nights.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-06-2025 2PM EST
Lara Trump was a producer on the tabloid TV show Inside Edition years ago and married Eric Trump during that time. She has worked on Trump's behalf repeatedly since. Fox News briefly hired her as a commentator after then-President Joe Biden took office. More recently, Lara Trump helped to lead the Republican National Committee. Her show is to debut later this month. David Folkenflik, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 03-16-2025 4PM EDT
Journalists found themselves locked out of their studios Saturday morning. Within a few hours, more than a thousand journalists at Voice of America were told they were on immediate, indefinite paid leave. Similar moves would strip its sister networks of all federal funding, including Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 03-16-2025 4PM EDT
These networks were set up first in World War II and the Cold War to offer uncensored news that also modeled American democracy, including bad news and dissent from official positions. Trump officials took aim at Voice of America at the end of his first term. Some of their actions were later found to be abuses of power. It's unclear whether there will be legal challenges this time.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-14-2024 7PM EST
Back in March, Stephanopoulos was pushing his guest, a U.S. representative who was herself raped as a young woman, on why she would support Trump. He incorrectly referred to a court verdict from last year in which a jury found that Trump was liable for sexual abuse of E. Jean Carroll and but not rape.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-14-2024 7PM EST
The judge in that case said what transpired as determined by the jury fit the commonly understood definition of rape, but not the narrow one under New York state law. ABC will pay the $15 million to a foundation for Trump that's typically used to fund a presidential library and a million dollars for Trump's legal costs.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 12-14-2024 7PM EST
Both Trump and Stephanopoulos were to be questioned under oath for Trump's defamation suit in coming days. David Folkenflik, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-01-2025 8PM EST
That said, broadcasters, including CBS, have challenged plenty of FCC edicts in court. Some CBS journalists are incensed. They consider the raw transcripts as part of their work product. But CBS is at a delicate moment. Its controlling owner is selling its parent company, a transaction the FCC gets to review. David Folkenflik, NPR News.
NPR News Now
NPR News: 02-01-2025 8PM EST
Trump had claimed CBS had edited the interview to make Harris look more coherent. His lawsuit was filed in Texas under a deceptive trade practice claim. CBS has argued that's an intrusion into journalistic choices. Now, in a statement, CBS says it's legally required to comply with the demand from Trump's newly elevated FCC chairman, Brendan Carr.
Up First from NPR
House Budget Plan, DOGE Resignations, Battle Against Bird Flu
But also a tool that reduces chances for human infection.
Up First from NPR
Deadline For Federal Workers, Reaction To Trump's Gaza Plan, Future Of US Foreign Aid
No, no, never. I don't know anybody who's considering taking it who wasn't already planning on retiring.
Up First from NPR
Deadline For Federal Workers, Reaction To Trump's Gaza Plan, Future Of US Foreign Aid
Federal workers face a deadline today to take an offer to resign. I don't know anybody who's considering taking it who wasn't already planning on retiring.
Up First from NPR
Myanmar Quake, Who Pays Tariffs, E.O. Impacts On Arts
Hello there, Amita. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Up First from NPR
Myanmar Quake, Who Pays Tariffs, E.O. Impacts On Arts
For the most part, the pass-through, as far as we could measure it, was close to 100%. What that means is that American importers paid for the cost of the tariffs on virtually all Chinese products coming to the United States.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
Thanks.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
Well, let's set aside the never-Trumper right. Let's start with the most important part of the conservative press, and that's the Murdoch media. There are really four big parts of that. There's the Wall Street Journal news section, the editorial pages of the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and, of course, biggest of all, Fox News.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
All in various ways, some of it quite gentle, some of it less so.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
are pushing back on Trump on this, reflecting in the terms of the Wall Street Journal's, I think, rigorously reported news pages, reflecting their own coverage, but also in the other elements, fulfilling their brand promise to various constituencies they're trying to take care of and also reflecting what Rupert Murdoch really wants, which is to kind of gently ease Trump into what he thinks is the right thing, predictable, stable markets and not trade wars.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
Well, you've seen these big headlines in Wall Street Journal reporting, you know, particularly on fears about chief executives and finance chiefs and real concerns about how consumers are hurting up and down the household income levels and how they're accelerating fears about what they can do. Take the New York Post's front page last week.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
You saw this huge cartoon of Trump plunging straight down the incline of a roller coaster headline, Buckle Up, Markets Plunge. You saw the Wall Street Journal's editorial page talking about tariffs. They called his moves on Canada and Mexico the dumbest trade war in history a few weeks ago and sort of doubled up a few days ago, repeating the line again.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
And then there's a very gentle explainer by Fox News anchor Brett Baier explaining why tariffs don't really work the way the president claims that they actually end up really hitting the American consumer. And even Fox host Maria Bartiromo, a true Trump loyalist. Here's what it sounded like when she mixed it up recently with Trump's Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
And that's somebody who goes out of her way to frame things in the best possible way for Trump most of the time. She just got an appointment from Trump to the board of the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
I think you look at the four Ds, defend, deflect, deny, disregard. You've seen that in a bunch of right-wing pro-Trump outlets. Take Newsmax's Rob Finnerty. He recently debated Ontario Premier Doug Ford about Canada's reaction to Trump's tariff moves.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
There are other right wing and pro-Trump sites that simply are focusing the blame on former President Joe Biden for whatever is going wrong now or might in the future.
Up First from NPR
Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
Well, I think these things are both a leading and a lagging indicator. They tell you where these outlets think their audiences are. And in the case of Fox, where they hope to get the president to, because they know few people are watching Fox and the media more closely than he does.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
Right. The National Transportation Safety Board investigators outlined the exact paths both aircraft were flying that Wednesday night. One important thing to note about aviation, which is the safest mode of transportation, is that even experienced, skilled pilots often undergo training and retraining and they are tested on their skills.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
So the Black Hawk helicopter was on what they call a check ride in which the crew is being tested, other use of night vision goggles and flying by instruments. And they were flying along this familiar corridor along the Potomac while the American Airlines CRJ regional jet was approaching for a landing at Reagan National Airport. Investigators say cockpit voice recordings.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
indicate that an air traffic controller seemed concerned that the helicopter was flying toward the path of the incoming plane and asked the Black Hawk pilots to fly behind it. Here's NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
Homendy says the mic in the helicopter cockpit was keyed open for just a second or two, but the pilots may have missed the key words, passed behind the. That's critical instruction that had the pilots actually heard and followed, this disaster might have been averted.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
Yes. You know, Hamidi says the helicopter pilots might not have been receiving correct information about their exact altitude. Hamidi says a radio altimeter, which uses radio waves bounced off the ground to measure the aircraft's altitude, and information gleaned from a flight data recorder were in conflict and showing different altitudes.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
Hamendi says it's still not clear why there was erroneous or conflicting data, and the investigation is still in its early stages. But she says this is definitely something the NTSB is focusing on.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
Well, investigators did say that the crew of the American jet did pull up aggressively just before the impact, indicating that they likely saw the helicopter at the very last moment.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
In addition, they did confirm the Blackhawk crew was likely wearing night vision goggles, and they acknowledged there is some concern in an area with a lot of aircraft lights and city lights that it could have been difficult to see the airplane. Chair Homendy says the NDSB will conduct a visibility study to try to determine what the pilots could and could not see.
Up First from NPR
The Future of Ukraine ... and a US Consumer Agency. More on Black Hawk Crash
You're welcome, Scott.
Up First from NPR
Federal Worker Confusion, European Leaders In DC, German Election, Greenpeace Lawsuit
And now it's going to be difficult for this sort of grand coalition, but it needs to deliver reform. Otherwise, the AFD may be even stronger during the next German election. And even now it cannot be ignored because it will be the largest party in the opposition.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
Good morning, Steve.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
So let's go back to March. Donald Trump, former president, surging in the Republican primaries. Stephanopoulos on the Sunday Public Affairs show this week, he was speaking with Nancy Mace. She's a Republican congresswoman from South Carolina, used to be a real critic of Trump, became a supporter of him. She had talked poignantly about how she'd been raped as a teen.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
And George Stephanopoulos is saying, well, then why do you support Donald Trump? And he kept saying relentlessly, look, uh, he was found liable in a civil suit of rape. Well, that's not actually quite right. He was found guilty of sexual abuse, and the jury in that civil trial did not find him liable of rape.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
What the judge said in the case, pointedly, however, was that what he was found liable for did fall under the definition of what everybody in America in common conversation might understand to be rape, but that it didn't fit under the precise technical definition of rape under New York state law.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
Sure. I spoke to six First Amendment media lawyers over this weekend, and they kind of agreed with my gut instinct on this. They said what George Stephanopoulos did was a screw up. And a number of them said they would have expected ABC and Stephanopoulos to clarify the distinction pretty promptly.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
But they also said this should have been a pretty easy call to defend in court because what Stephanopoulos said was close to what the judge said. But in precise, there's kind of a case law defense of something being substantially true. And as you point out,
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
Public figures under a major court case decided by the Supreme Court called New York Times v. Sullivan 60 years ago, they gave great protections to what people say in the press and in public about public officials to allow for sort of a rolling and roiling freedom of speech about politicians that you don't have to be perfect.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
And so you can say things that are critical about public figures and they can't just use the courts against you. A president or a former president or a future president would be somebody at the very top of the pyramid of public figures.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
Well, it remains a mystery why they didn't clarify, but why did they settle? They say they're happy to be past it. We don't know exactly, but this is a major amount of money, particularly for a public figure. It also comes at a time as a number of news organizations and a number of owners and leaders of news organizations appear trying to make peace with Trump.
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
You think of the killed endorsements of Vice President Harris in the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, you know, a top executive over ABC News was seen at Mar-a-Lago meeting with a key incoming figure in the new Trump administration. And finally, this is all, of course, at a time when incoming President-elect Donald Trump and the officials around him have suggested a strong
Up First from NPR
Syrian Minorities Fear Retribution, Israel-Hamas Talks, ABC Settles Trump Lawsuit
not only willingness, but intent to use the powers of government against the press, the powers of regulation, desire to go after reporters and publishers over printing government secrets, and now very much the courts as well.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
So let's go back to August of 2021 and the chaos that ensued when the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan and the Taliban extended its control to the country. Security contractor named Zachary Young offered services for a fee to get people out, many thousands of dollars apiece. CNN reported that Afghans who were trying to get relatives out felt they were being price gouged.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
They used the words exorbitant prices, the term black market. Young's attorneys say, look, The character of our client was maligned. He was not doing this for individuals who are desperate simply, but for deeper pocket organizations like corporations, non-government organizations from the U.S. and Europe, and that he lost millions of dollars as a result of this story. All right.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
So what does CNN say? So the network says a couple of things here. It apologized some months later. The story originally appeared on The Lead with Jake Tapper. A substitute host, Pamela Brown, apologized on the air saying the network shouldn't have applied the label black market, didn't mean to apply that to Mr. Young and it shouldn't have been in the story. And then it said,
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
We're just reflecting the concerns of the Afghans we spoke to here. But its lawyers also have taken a more aggressive tone in legal documents filed and motions for this case. They said, look, we learned that Young lied to our reporters during the reporting of stories, and we were unable to confirm that he evacuated anybody as he claimed. How strong is this case against CNN?
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
Well, it's really interesting to go through and look at the documents. And let's remember that any kinds of exchanges from Slack or emails or text or whatever in any kind of case like this are going to be necessarily a narrow window into it.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
It may not reflect the full context, but you're seeing editors right as the story is going to air and is about to, a fuller version of the story is about to be published online. These editors internally at CNN are expressing real misgivings. They say, we don't have the goods here.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
In one exchange, like, look, let's just hope that we just keep with the video version of the story and not do anything with the written story. It's about 80 percent emotion and maybe 20 percent facts. We don't have it there. I spoke to two prominent First Amendment lawyers, one an expert on it at the University of Florida, where the case is being held.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
Another used to be the chief global counsel for Bloomberg News. And they say these are all red flags. In fact, the one formerly with Bloomberg News lawyer named Charles Glasser said CNN simply should settle here. It got this wrong.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
Right. Well, you're seeing just an enormous surge of defamation lawsuits against news organizations in recent years, including, let's be honest, NPR. And there's no, no ties between Zachary Young, or at least on my part, known between Zachary Young and incoming President Donald Trump. But the incoming president and his allies have promised an assault against the press. You've seen it rhetorically.
Up First from NPR
Ex-U.S. Capitol Police Officer Remembers Jan. 6, CNN Defamation Trial, Golden Globes
They've promised to use the powers of government's And the courts, and let's use one example recently. The Walt Disney Company just agreed to pay $15 million to a Trump foundation, a million in legal fees to settle a Trump defamation suit against ABC News. First Amendment lawyers told me that case seemed easier to defend.