White Paper: The Optional Self
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New White Paper by Media Institute’s Stuart N. Brotman Examines Three Digital Proxies and Their Profound Impact on Selfhood and Free Expression
Paper Offers a Five-Principle Policy and Design Framework Defining Human Functions That Cannot Be Delegated to Machines FOR RELEASE: October 26, 2026 Contact: Richard T. Kaplar The Media Institute 571-244-0815 McLean, Va., Oct. 26, 2026 – A new white paper released today by The Media Institute examines the rapid rise of three kinds of [...]
Judge Deals Another Blow to White House Media Bans
By Scott Nover, washingtonpost.com, 10-14-26 A federal judge on Oct. 14 extended CNN, MS NOW, and Politico’s access to the White House following President Donald Trump’s decision in September to ban the news outlets. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who was appointed by Trump to the federal bench in 2017, issued a preliminary injunction [...]
Supreme Court Keeps Political Ad Rate Rules Intact
By InsideRadio.com, 10-14-26 Broadcasters will not face another court-driven change to political advertising discount rules before Election Day after the Supreme Court blocked an appeals court order that would have forced the Federal Communications Commission to immediately rule on a challenge to its lowest unit rate policy. The decision keeps the agency's existing guidance [...]
DOJ Investigating 5 TV Networks Over White House Pool Coverage
By Perry Stein, Miriam Waldvogel, and Scott Nover, washingtonpost.com, 10-10-26 The Justice Department is investigating five major television networks for potential antitrust violations, the department’s top spokesperson said Saturday night, as the Trump administration’s battle with the mainstream press intensifies. The networks – ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC – had collectively suspended [...]
White House Pool Coverage Resumes Briefly Before CNN Blocked Again
By Scott Nover, washingtonpost.com, 9-25-26 Network television cameras on Friday, Sept. 25, resumed shooting and distributing footage of President Donald Trump, one day after CNN had its White House press access reinstated by a court order. The pool coverage resumed with CBS serving as the day’s primary designated pooler. CNN covered a midday event [...]
CNN, MS NOW, Politico Reporters Regain White House Entry
By Scott Nover and Victoria Craw, washingtonpost.com, 9-24-26 Journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico on Sept. 24 were allowed reentry to the White House days after being banned by the administration, and hours after U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ordered their credentials restored. This followed a chaotic morning in which journalists from all [...]
Networks Suspend White House Pool Coverage in Protest
By Todd Spangler, Variety.com, 9-21-26 In an unprecedented move, four of the five TV networks that provide White House pool coverage of President Donald Trump – ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, and Fox News – have joined in solidarity with CNN, which is the fifth TV pooler, announcing they are suspending coverage of [...]
Paramount Settles With States Over WBD Merger
By Hannah Knowles, Miriam Waldvogel, Scott Nover, and Victoria Craw, washingtonpost.com, 9-21-26 Paramount Skydance has reached a settlement agreement with California and 11 other states that sued two months ago to block the company’s $110-billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, paving the way for a blockbuster unification of two Hollywood giants. California Attorney General Rob [...]
MS NOW, CNN, Politico Sue Trump Over First Amendment
By Brian Steinberg, Variety.com, 9-21-26 MS NOW, CNN, and Politico are suing President Donald Trump and other administration officials over a decision by Trump to ban the three news organizations from newsgathering at the White House, the latest fracture in the relationship between the president and the national media. “This morning, we notified the [...]