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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
World health officials warn that the coronavirus pandemic is far from over, as much as we’d like it to be. In the US, states on both coasts once again broke records for new cases.
Meanwhile, what purports to be secret, heavily edited recordings of Joe Biden have emerged in Ukraine. Whether real or not, they’re already making the rounds on Trump-friendly propaganda networks in the United States.
And lastly, journalists working for newspapers and broadcast stations across the country are treating old reliable police sources with long-overdue skepticism. Apparently the brilliant police strategy of shooting reporters in the face at protests has backfired.
THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:
Dire Warnings Over Coronavirus
Six months on, the World Health Organization warns that the coronavirus pandemic is actually speeding up – particularly in countries like the United States that flubbed the response. The consequences go beyond public health. Between the pandemic itself, the related economic crisis, and school closures affecting one-billion-and-a-half billion children, the United Nations warns that the most vulnerable people are being forced into some of the world’s most dangerous and exploitative jobs.
At least six states in the US again set records for new COVID-19 cases in a single day: Alabama, Florida, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina and Oklahoma. Cailfornia reported eight thousand new cases – breaking its daily record for the third time in eight days. In Washington, DC, Anthony Fauci, the federal government’s top infectious disease expert, told a Senate committee that the US could soon see a hundred-thousand new cases every day, up from forty-thousand currently. In Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas received a threat of lynching after announcing a mandatory mask order. And just over the border in Mexico, the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in a refugee camp with two thousand people.
Finally, the Guardian reported that the Trump administration bought up the entire global supply of the first drug it approved to treat coronavirus, remdesivir, for the next three months. The drug is under patent by Gilead pharmaceuticals, and the going rate is thirty-two hundred dollars for a six-dose course of treatment. But other countries may override the US patent if they deem it necessary to ensure public health.
Biden Ukraine Tapes Emerge
According to White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany, speaking yesterday from the press room podium, Donald Trump is QUOTE the most informed person on planet Earth ENDQUOTE. If that’s true, maybe he could shed some light on some curious stories out of Ukraine. For about a week, the Washington Post reports, Ukrainian media have been reporting on heavily edited audio recordings of Joe Biden’s telephone conversations with former president Petro Poroshenko. From there, the recordings have made their way to the Trumpist propaganda outlet One America News. The Post says their authenticity cannot be verified. Poroshenko says the recordings are fake. The Biden campaign calls OAN a conduit for Kremlin disinformation and says the recordings show routine international diplomacy. Among other things, the tapes reveal Biden threatening to withhold a one billion-dollar loan guarantee from the US unless Poroshenko fires a certain prosecutor. Trump’s campaign claims this shows Biden bullying the Ukrainian leader to protect the business dealings of his family, as Biden’s son Hunter held a board seat on the energy company Burisma. The Post says there is no evidence to support that, and Poroshenko denies his involvement in international corruption. The scandal is useful for Republicans because their claims against Biden in many ways mirror the Democrats’ case against Trump during his impeachment trial. In the meantime, the current government of Ukraine wants to outlawing the publication of secret recordings of public officials. Well, that’s one way to fix the problem.
Also yesterday: Forbes reported that Biden has more billionaire donors than Trump: that’s one-hundred and six for Biden, and ninety-three for Trump. Congratulations to all the big winners!
Journalists Rethink Police Sources
American journalists have for many decades relied on law enforcement sources, often anonymous, to supply the most basic information in local news reporting. But rising awareness of police misconduct, caught on camera, combined with police assaults on working reporters, might finally put an end to that practice. According to the Washington Post,
newsrooms around the country are rethinking their over-reliance on police sources. Too often, video evidence has emerged showing a completely different series of events than police depicted in their internal reports, and in their public statements. As the Post noted, Minneapolis police failed to mention that an officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes. They said Breonna Taylor in Atlanta suffered no injuries though they shot her eight times. In Buffalo, police said Martin Gugino, who they shoved to the ground so hard his skull split open, QUOTE tripped and fell ENDQUOTE. And so on.
As one journalist told the Post, police statements are equivalent to rumors and should be handled as such in news stories. Because this awareness is growing, many newsrooms are shifting resources from old-fashioned if-it-bleeds-it-leads crime stories from the cops to more comprehensive coverage that takes systemic biases into account. And there is pressure from the public to go farther, and stop reporting routine crime stories entirely. A coalition of forty community groups in Philadelphia is asking their daily newspaper, The Inquirer, to stop running stories that rely on the police as the sole source of information. They are also asking for an appeals system so that people named in crime stories can have articles removed. That step will prove less popular in newsrooms, but expect to see more such efforts nationwide.
Separately, in Portland, Oregon, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a class-action lawsuit against the city on behalf of journalists and legal observers targeted by police in recent protests. The ACLU says the targeting of observers spreads fear among those who might otherwise bear witness to police abuse. Which is, of course, the point.
AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:
White centrist candidate Amy McGrath claimed victory yesterday in Kentucky’s Democratic party primary for US Senate. McGrath raised nearly $41 million according to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings. Her Black progressive challenger Charles Booker raised not quite $800,000, but still came close to winning. Maybe next time.
At least thirty-six members of the House of Representatives have signed on to a resolution that could lead to the impeachment of Attorney General Bill Barr. The resolution, introduced yesterday by Democratic Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee, calls for an formal inquiry into Barr and cites multiple cases where the AG abused his office to benefit Donald Trump. Cohen says Barr undermined our judicial system and perverted the rule of law. Among other things, yes.
A young woman in Oklahoma was shot four times after removing a Nazi flag from a man’s house in the town of Hunter north of Oklahoma City. The homeowner, Alexander John Feaster, forty-four, was arrested and charged with shooting with the intent to kill. The woman who tore down his swastika flag, age twenty-six, is reportedly expected to recover.
A New York State Supreme Court judge ordered a temporary halt to the publication of a new book by Donald Trump’s only niece, Mary Trump, detailing abusive behavior in the family. Judge Hal Greenwald reportedly plans to hold a hearing on July 10 to determine whether the book violates a confidentiality agreement signed during a dispute over the estate of Donald’s father Fred Trump. A lawyer for the author called the order prior restraint on core political speech that flatly violates the First Amendment. Where are the free speech warriors at?
That’s all for the AM Quickie. Join us this afternoon on the Majority Report.
July 1, 2020 - AM Quickie
HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner
WRITER - Corey Pein
PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn