The Ledes

Wednesday, July 2, 2025

New York Times: “The Rev. Jimmy Swaggart, who emerged from the backwoods of Louisiana to become a television evangelist with global reach, preaching about an eternal struggle between good and evil and warning of the temptations of the flesh, a theme that played out in his own life in a sex scandal, died on July 1. He was 90.” ~~~

     ~~~ For another sort of obituary, see Akhilleus' commentary near the end of yesterday's thread.

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Marie: Sorry, my countdown clock was unreliable; then it became completely unreliable. I can't keep up with it. Maybe I'll try another one later.

 

Commencement ceremonies are joyous occasions, and Steve Carell made sure that was true this past weekend (mid-June) at Northwestern's commencement:

~~~ Carell's entire commencement speech was hilarious. The audio and video here isn't great, but I laughed till I cried.

CNN did a live telecast Saturday night (June 7) of the Broadway play "Good Night, and Good Luck," written by George Clooney and Grant Heslov, about legendary newsman Edward R. Murrow's effort to hold to account Sen. Joe McCarthy, "the junior senator from Wisconsin." Clooney plays Murrow. Here's Murrow himself with his famous take on McCarthy & McCarthyism, brief remarks that especially resonate today: ~~~

     ~~~ This article lists ways you still can watch the play. 

New York Times: “The New York Times Company has agreed to license its editorial content to Amazon for use in the tech giant’s artificial intelligence platforms, the company said on Thursday. The multiyear agreement 'will bring Times editorial content to a variety of Amazon customer experiences,' the news organization said in a statement. Besides news articles, the agreement encompasses material from NYT Cooking, The Times’s food and recipe site, and The Athletic, which focuses on sports. This is The Times’s first licensing arrangement with a focus on generative A.I. technology. In 2023, The Times sued OpenAI and its partner, Microsoft, for copyright infringement, accusing the tech companies of using millions of articles published by The Times to train automated chatbots without any kind of compensation. OpenAI and Microsoft have rejected those accusations.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I have no idea what this means for "the Amazon customer experience." Does it mean that if I don't have a NYT subscription but do have Amazon Prime I can read NYT content? And where, exactly, would I find that content? I don't know. I don't know.

Washington Post reporters asked three AI image generators what a beautiful woman looks like. "The Post found that they steer users toward a startlingly narrow vision of attractiveness. Prompted to show a 'beautiful woman,' all three tools generated thin women, without exception.... Her body looks like Barbie — slim hips, impossible waist, round breasts.... Just 2 percent of the images showed visible signs of aging. More than a third of the images had medium skin tones. But only nine percent had dark skin tones. Asked to show 'normal women,' the tools produced images that remained overwhelmingly thin.... However bias originates, The Post’s analysis found that popular image tools struggle to render realistic images of women outside the Western ideal." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The reporters seem to think they are calling out the AI programs for being unrealistic. But there's a lot about the "beautiful women" images they miss. I find these omissions remarkably sexist. For one thing, the reporters seem to think AI is a magical "thing" that self-generates. It isn't. It's programmed. It's programmed by boys, many of them incels who have little or no experience or insights beyond comic books and Internet porn of how to gauge female "beauty." As a result, the AI-generated women look like cartoons; that is, a lot like an air-brushed photo of Kristi Noem: globs of every kind of dark eye makeup, Scandinavian nose, Botox lips, slathered-on skin concealer/toner/etc. makeup, long dark hair and the aforementioned impossible Barbie body shape, including huge, round plastic breasts. 

New York Times: “George Clooney’s Broadway debut, 'Good Night, and Good Luck,' has been one of the sensations of the 2024-25 theater season, breaking box office records and drawing packed houses of audiences eager to see the popular movie star in a timely drama about the importance of an independent press. Now the play will become much more widely available: CNN is planning a live broadcast of the penultimate performance, on June 7 at 7 p.m. Eastern. The performance will be preceded and followed by coverage of, and discussion about, the show and the state of journalism.”

No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land. -- Magna Carta ~~~

~~~ New York Times: “Bought for $27.50 after World War II, the faint, water stained manuscript in the library of Harvard Law School had attracted relatively little attention since it arrived there in 1946. That is about to change. Two British academics, one of whom happened on the manuscript by chance, have discovered that it is an original 1300 version — not a copy, as long thought — of Magna Carta, the medieval document that helped establish some of the world’s most cherished liberties. It is one of just seven such documents from that date still in existence.... A 710-year-old version of Magna Carta was sold in 2007 for $21.3 million.... First issued in 1215, it put into writing a set of concessions won by rebellious barons from a recalcitrant King John of England — or Bad King John, as he became known in folklore. He later revoked the charter, but his son, Henry III, issued amended versions, the last one in 1225, and Henry’s son, Edward I, in turn confirmed the 1225 version in 1297 and again in 1300.”

NPR lists all of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize winners. Poynter lists the prizes awarded in journalism as well as the finalists in these categories.

 

Contact Marie

Email Marie at constantweader@gmail.com

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The Commentariat -- Nov. 1, 2015

Internal links removed.

Scott Wong of the Hill: "New Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Sunday dismissed Democrats' calls for a paid family leave law as another 'federal entitlement,' and said his position isn't at odds with recent remarks that he wants to spend weekends with his young family in Wisconsin.... Ryan has said he wouldn't be like other modern Speakers who criss-cross the country on weekends to raise cash for the party; instead, he said he'll return home each weekend to his native Janesville, Wis., where his wife and three children live. But Democrats pounced on him, saying he's a hypocrite for wanting time with his own family while denying mandatory paid time off for other hard-working Americans."

Matt Sedensky & Nomann Merchant of the AP: "In a yearlong investigation of sexual misconduct by U.S. law enforcement, The Associated Press uncovered about 1,000 officers who lost their badges in a six-year period for rape, sodomy and other sexual assault; sex crimes that included possession of child pornography; or sexual misconduct such as propositioning citizens or having consensual but prohibited on-duty intercourse." ...

... Here the AP cites "10 cases from across the U.S. that reflect how such crimes can occur, and the devastation they leave behind. Most of the officers have been convicted and are serving time. Some await trial."

Diane Horvath-Cosper, in a Washington Post op-ed: "m an obstetrician-gynecologist. Among the many medical services I provide my patients, I perform abortions for women who need them. That's made me a target for harassment online and in person over the course of my career.... Last year, a survey conducted for the Feminist Majority Foundation found that nearly 20 percent of clinics have been subject to the most severe types of anti-abortion violence, including stalking, facility invasions and blockades.... Americans of good conscience can disagree about the morality of abortion, but we should all agree that no physicians ought to be terrorized for doing their jobs."

Guardian: "Secretary of State John Kerry said on Saturday American special operations troops being sent to Syria would only fight Islamic State militants and would not become involved in the country's long-running civil war. As he did so, US-backed rebels attacked Isis in the north-east of the country. Deputy secretary of state Antony Blinken, meanwhile, told a policy conference in Bahrain Moscow's intervention in the Syrian conflict would have the unintended consequences of drawing Russia into a quagmire and alienating Sunni Muslims across the region."

Presidential Race

John Wagner of the Washington Post: "Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Saturday that he thinks the Democratic race for the White House has become too personal as supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton have accused him and his campaign of taking on a sexist tone. 'I do, and I think that is unfortunate,' Sanders told reporters at a news conference called [in Concord, N.H.,] to tout endorsements from a statewide postal workers union and two local trade unions.... Sanders has been fending off suggestions of sexism from Clinton boosters since late last week, when Clinton took issue with one of Sanders's comments on gun control from the first Democratic debate in Las Vegas. Sanders said that he favors sensible solutions to reduce violence but told Clinton that 'all the shouting in the world is not going to do what I hope all of us want.'"

Nick Gass of Politico picks out the "13 must-read Clinton e-mails." CW: If you don't read them, you'll survive. They sound like your e-mails & mine, except Ben Affleck never writes to me (as far as I recall). Also, I never want to learn how to access emoticons. I'd like to learn how to get rid of them, tho -- they pop up when I try to put letters or in parentheses. 😒

Seinfeld on the Potomac -- A Party about Nothing. David McCabe of the Hill: "mer Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) says he saw 'very little substance' on display at Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate. 'I felt that the entire portion that I watched, maybe the first hour and 20 minutes, once again was a good bit of showmanship. Very little substance in terms of what candidates are prepared to do for this country,' he [said]...." ...

, Ctd. Trip Gabriel of the New York Times: "With 10 Republican presidential candidates together at a forum [in Des Moines, Iowa,] on Saturday, three days after their raucous debate in Colorado, several took shots at their new common enemy: the debate moderators, eliciting loud applause from hundreds of Iowa voters.... But some other candidates ... argu[ed] that facing critical questions is part of auditioning for the job of presidential nominee. 'If you can't handle that stage, you’ve got no chance of handling Hillary Clinton,' said Gov. Chris Christie...." ...

... Bradford Richardson of the Hill: "Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) says the moderators at CNBC's GOP presidential debate were 'left-wing operatives' trying to weaken Republican presidential candidates. He added future debates should be hosted by moderators who have voted in the Republican primary at least once in their lives." CW: Yeah. Like Tea Party-instigator Rick Santelli & supply-sider Larry Kudlow (who is running as a Republican for the Senate). This doesn't show how right-wing Ted is; it shows what a grifter he is. He's fundraising on standing up to "left-wing operatives."

     ... So then Cruz said that instead of having to endure the "attacks" of "left-wing liberals" (a tautology, but so what?), the debates should be moderated by "real journalists." C'mon, Ted, name names: "[He] suggested a debate should be hosted by conservative radio hosts Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and Mark Levin." Real journalists, all. ...

... Dave Weigel, et al., of the Washington Post: "The list of possible reforms to future Republican debates is growing as several campaigns get ready for a Sunday evening meeting in a northern Virginia hotel. There's one point of agreement: Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus has let them down, and it is time for the candidates to take over the process."

I say this somewhat in jest, at least there was someone who fared worse in the last debate than me: CNBC. I know I have to get better. I don't have this gigantic ego that says, 'Well they're just stupid. Iowa voters don't understand me.' But also, I'm a really competitive guy. -- Jeb Bush, at a Des Moines, Iowa, rally, Saturday ...

... Maureen Dowd, as is her wont, psychoanalyzes the Dubya & Jeb! dynamic.

Beyond the Beltway

Matt Steiner of the Colorado Springs Gazette: "Gunfire rang out Saturday morning east of downtown Colorado Springs, leaving bullet-riddled bodies lying in ... North Prospect Street and in front of a Wendy's restaurant.... Police confirmed Saturday afternoon that three victims were killed by a gunman with a rifle. The suspected shooter was killed in a shootout with police. He was gunned down by Colorado Springs police after he apparently turned and began shooting at police."

News Ledes

Washington Post: "A Russian plane that crashed in Egypt over the weekend broke up in midair, a senior Russian aviation official said after visiting the crash site in the Sinai Peninsula on Sunday. All 224 people aboard were killed. It was too early to tell what caused the disaster, said Viktor Sorochenko, an official with the Interstate Aviation Committee, according to Russia's Interfax news agency."

BBC News: "A Bangladeshi publisher of secular books has been hacked to death in the capital Dhaka in the second attack of its kind on Saturday, police say. Faisal Arefin Dipon, 43, was killed at his office in the city centre, hours after another publisher and two secular writers were injured in an attack. A local affiliate of al-Qaeda said it carried out the attacks. There has been a series of attacks on secularists since blogger Avijit Roy was hacked to death in February."

AP: "Searchers using high-tech sonars have discovered the deep-water wreckage of a vessel believed to be the cargo ship El Faro, which went missing Oct. 1 with 33 crewmembers during Hurricane Joaquin, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said late Saturday. The federal agency said the wreckage is some 15,000 feet below the water's surface and its identity still must be confirmed by sending down a remotely operated deep ocean vehicle."

Guardian: "Turkish voters are going to the polls in parliamentary elections that could end more than a decade of single-party rule by the Justice and Development party (AKP). Voting stations around the country opened on Sunday morning in the snap elections, which were called by the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan, after negotiations to form a coalition with the opposition following an inconclusive vote in June fell apart." ...

     ... New York Times UPDATE: "In a stunning electoral comeback, the Islamist party of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan regained its majority in Parliament on Sunday, ensuring Mr. Erdogan's continued dominance of Turkish politics after months of political turmoil and violence. The result will permit Mr. Erdogan to maintain his position as the country's pre-eminent political figure while pushing the boundaries of the constitutional limits of the presidency, a largely ceremonial position."

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Reader Comments (1)

About the sexual misconduct of law enforcement, "(California & New York)they have no statewide system to decertify officers for misconduct". In this day and age of universal taking off of shoes at airports or nail clippers on airplanes or metal detectors at Federal buildings, what is it with the lack of policing the police? We have created metrics for everything from shoe sizes to dress sizes to pet food kibble sizes and our government can't put together a database about bad cops?
Any push-back against ungoverned institutional authority is exactly why Barry O or Hillary are so much better for the body politic than any of the Republican jokers who never met an authority they didn't want to commandeer and misdirect to their own purposes. Women, minorities and the young will seldom get ahead when the appeals process to injustice is governed exclusively by the haves.

November 1, 2015 | Unregistered CommenterCitizen625
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