Latest news with #Churchillian
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump Wants $25 Million To Settle His Meritless 60 Minutes Lawsuit (opinion)
President Donald Trump is currently suing one of the largest media companies in the country because one of its subsidiaries lightly edited an interview with his political opponent. This week, he apparently declined a settlement offer, even though the lawsuit itself is completely frivolous and arguably an abuse of his power as president. "Paramount Global in recent days has offered $15 million to settle," The Wall Street Journal reported this week. "Trump's team wants more than $25 million and is also seeking an apology from CBS News." The whole affair stems from an October 2024 interview that 60 Minutes conducted with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for president. (Trump declined the chance to sit for a 60 Minutes interview of his own.) In the interview, correspondent Bill Whitaker asked about Israel's war in Gaza. CBS—the broadcast network owned by Paramount—aired separate portions of Harris' answer, one on the 60 Minutes broadcast and a longer snippet on its Sunday morning show Face the Nation. Trump seized on the different clips and accused CBS of doctoring Harris' answer to make her look better. "Her REAL ANSWER WAS CRAZY, OR DUMB, so they actually REPLACED it with another answer," he wrote on X. "They took the answer out in its entirety, threw it away, and they put another answer in," he later said at a campaign rally. "And I think it's the biggest scandal in broadcasting history." Trump sued CBS for $10 billion in "compensatory damages"—amended to $20 billion after he won the election and reassumed the presidency—under a Texas law against deceptive consumer practices. The lawsuit accused CBS of "unlawful acts of election and voter interference." The lawsuit was flawed from the start: Journalists editing interviewees' answers for time or clarity is both routine and protected by the First Amendment. And Harris' answer in either clip is not exactly Churchillian: "Harris did not come across as especially forthright, articulate, or intelligent in either version, although the one that 60 Minutes showed was a little more concise," Reason's Jacob Sullum observed. If CBS were trying to do her a favor by swapping out her answer, one imagines they could have done a better job. Besides, Trump won the election; it's hard to believe he suffered any damages, much less millions of dollars worth. But in a filing this week, Trump's lawyers argued the interview "led to widespread confusion and mental anguish of consumers, including [Trump]." CBS released the full unedited video and transcript of Whitaker's interview with Harris in February, conclusively demonstrating the scandal was bullshit all along: CBS aired one part of Harris' response on 60 Minutes and another part on Face the Nation. Despite Trump's insistence, nobody "replaced" any part of her answer with another, separate answer. But instead of defending its journalists by pressing on and letting a judge laugh the lawsuit out of court, Paramount has been negotiating a settlement. CBS News staffers opposed a settlement, fearing the precedent of a journalistic outlet caving to pressure from the powerful interests it covers. Since negotiations began last month, the producer of 60 Minutes and the executive in charge of CBS News each resigned. But Paramount is in the process of being acquired by Skydance Media, and the transaction requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Around the same time as Trump's lawsuit, the Center for American Rights, a conservative nonprofit, also filed an FCC complaint for "news distortion" over the interview. And FCC Chair Brendan Carr, whom Trump elevated to the job and who has demonstrated unabashed loyalty to the president, has indicated that approval depends upon the resolution of the complaint, which he is in no hurry to get through. "It would be entirely inappropriate to consider the complaint against the '60 Minutes' segment as part of a transaction review," FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez told the Los Angeles Times. Indeed, the lawsuit—especially when paired with the FCC merger approval—smacks of corruption, with Trump trying to cow a disfavored media outlet into silence. Trump's effort is so blatant that Paramount executives reportedly worried they could be prosecuted for bribery of a public official if they settled the lawsuit. Of course, this puts Paramount, CBS, and 60 Minutes in a perilous position: If Paramount—which has been struggling for years—hopes to save itself through a merger with Skydance, it must win over the FCC, whose current head apparently delights in being referred to as "Trump's media pit bull." Doing so will apparently require bending the knee and paying a fee for hurting Trump's feelings, even though by all accounts, 60 Minutes violated neither the law nor journalistic ethics. And if Paramount does cave and pay $25 million or more—worse still, if it apologizes for the sin of doing basic journalism—it will set a dangerous precedent that powerful people can openly and unabashedly bully the journalists who cover them into silence. The post Trump Wants $25 Million To Settle His Meritless 60 Minutes Lawsuit appeared first on
New Paper
24-05-2025
- Sport
- New Paper
May 25 South Africa (Kenilworth) form analysis
Race 1 (1,200m) (10) SARDINIA BAY ran a lovely race on debut behind Churchillian. He showed some great speed early, and got tired only very late to finish just over three lengths behind the winner. Include him in all bets. (8) GETUPANDGO has been rested and gelded. He is much better than his last run on March 16. If he does not need the run badly, he should bounce back to his best form. (7) WORLD CHOICE ran against winners on debut. He was very green early, and then stayed on to finish just under 10 lengths behind North Point. Will improve. (1) CASINO KING ran a much better race last time with the blinkers fitted. If he can build on that performance, he might be able to sneak into the placings. Race 2 (1,000m) (2) INSIDE VOICE has run two great races in succession. She is a young filly with lots of ability and will be right there in the finish. (15) DU MAURIER showed good speed on debut, staying on nicely for second behind She's My World. Include her in all bets. (9) MARKETA was a lot more settled in her race last time. She sat just off the speed early and then stayed on for third in the same race as Du Maurier. If she can build on that run, she will be competitive. (7) PENNYS CHOICE completes the shortlist. Race 3 (1,600m) (2) TUNGUSKA drew deep last time and still managed to catch the eye late for second behind Show Off. From a good draw here, he should get the perfect run in transit and go very close to winning this race. (6) SIGNOR DANTE absolutely took off late to run third behind Father Christmas on May 6. He will love the step-up in trip. Include him in all bets. (4) MAGNUS THE GOOD tried to lead the field from start to finish last time. If he can build on that last run, he should be among the places from a good draw. (1) EXALTED LOVE was green early at his last start and then tried to run on very late behind Thomas Jenkins. Place value. Race 4 (1,400m) (5) PLEASE BE TRUE was definitely the eye-catcher late last time behind Dumbledore. This is a much better trip for him. He will be very hard to beat. (3) AIR RAID looks to be the nearest danger to Please Be True, even if he went a bit flat in his second start from a small break last time. (2) WORLD OF PLEASURE has been rested for 64 days. He is in good form, and he gets a nice draw for this competitive race. Good place chance. (6) GREEN GARNET won really well on April 28. If he gets to the front, he will be quite dangerous. Race 5 (1,400m) (5) HAPPY VERSE was terribly green early on debut, and then motored home to beat Bugle Boy. He will love the step-up in trip to 1,400m. He looks to have serious ability and will be right there in the finish from a good draw. (14) SUN DAZED had no luck in running up the straight last time. He was taken up for a number of strides at the 300m mark and then finished strongly to run third behind Trippi's Silk. Unfortunately the bad draw will make life tough for him, but he will be doing good work late. (4) FIRINGONALLENGINES is much better than his recent form. He can be a tricky customer, but the step-up in trip should help him improve. (13) ISCHYRO made up lots of ground to win a good race on April 28. He likes to be switched off early and then he comes with a storming run late. Watch him closely. Race 6 (1,800m) (5) BATON ROUGE ran a much better race behind Dubbelosix on April 28. If he can build on that last performance, he will have a nice each-way chance in this tough race. (4) COUNT WILLIAM improved to win a good race last time. He went to the front and pretty much led the field from start to finish. He could certainly win again. (12) TOTHEMOONANDBACK drops in trip significantly for this D stakes. He has been in good form of late, despite the negatives of a wide draw and a big weight. He could be some serious value here. Include him in all bets. (11) SPECTACULAR improved to run a fair race behind Jet A One on May 4. He clearly enjoyed the step-up in trip. If he can beat the draw, he will be competitive. Race 7 (1,800m) (3) TIME FOR LOVE returned from a break to win the Listed Ladies Mile exceptionally well on May 4. She will love the 1,800m trip and can easily win again. (5) GOLD POKER GAME ran a terrific race behind Time For Love last time. She was dropped out early and then finished like a train late. Include her in all bets. (1) BEWARE THE BOMB needed her last run badly. She was quite strong early in her race and then stayed on to be beaten just over one length behind Time For Love. Watch for improvement. (7) FUN ZONE ran the race of her life in the Listed Ladies Mile on May 4. If she gets the right run, she could be among the places. Race 8 (1,950m) (4) MUCHO DINERO ran a terrific race first-up in the Grade 3 Legal Eagle Stakes on May 4 at Kenilworth. He quickened smartly to run third to Garrix. He will love the step-up in trip. (2) OTTO LUYKEN went to the front with blinkers on last time and fought really hard all the way to the line. Include him in all bets. (7) GARRIX had to dig deep to win the Grade 3 on May 4. The only concern would be the trip of 1,950m, but he can score on class. (6) BILLY BOWLEGS might be able to sneak into the quartet on his best form. Race 9 (1,000m) (8) THE US OF A was given five points for his impressive May 4 win. He is progressive and will be very hard to beat again. (1) TOUGH TERRAIN ran a great race behind The US Of A last time. He can be a tricky ride, but jockey Muzi Yeni knows him well. He should run a good race. (7) COUNTER ATTACK ran a much better race on May 4. He finished third, beaten just over three lengths by the winner. On best form, he can earn for connections. (2) BLUFF ON BLUFF never runs a bad race. He has been quite busy over the last few weeks. If this race has not come too soon, he could snag a placing.
Perth Now
08-05-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
'Talk is cheap', coach demands action from his Waratahs
Pulling no punches, coach Dan McKellar has laid down the law to his NSW Waratahs ahead of a do-or-die Super Rugby Pacific derby with the Queensland Reds. McKellar is promising no Churchillian speeches before Friday night's showdown in Sydney, saying his charges should already know what is expected after last week's 40-17 submission to the ACT Brumbies. The sobering defeat in Canberra, a fifth from five away games this spluttering campaign, has left the Tahs in third-last spot and prompted McKellar to ring some six changes to the starting team for the must-win encounter at Allianz Stadium. "It's Queensland versus NSW so I said to the forwards earlier on, 'If you need motivation for this game, if you need me to give you something to get you up for this game, then we should change occupations'," McKellar said after Thursday's captain's run. "So it's a big game and it's important in terms of the context of our season and it's Queensland versus NSW, so we get stuck into it. "I was pretty angry after the Brumbies performance, just the second half in particular. "The players needed to know that, and they were pretty disappointed as well."But the beauty of this game is, you get the opportunity to respond pretty quickly."Talk is cheap now. It's all about our actions." Among the six casualties from the Brumbies drubbing was lock Hugh Sinclair, who captained the side during Jake Gordon's month-long stint out injured. McKellar bristled when asked if Sinclair was merely being rested. "No, we made some changes, mate. We didn't play well last week so we've made some changes," he said. "It's pretty simple. Selection is really easy. It's all about performance." Flyhalf Lawson Creighton was another victim of the fallout, with Tane Edmed winning back the No.10 jumper for the first time since round two. Edmed finished last season wearing the Wallabies gold in the last Test of 2025 and McKellar commended the 24-year-old's professionalism during his two months warming the bench, or worse, not even making the Waratahs' match-day 23. "Great attitude. Great attitude at club training. Excellent, and that's all important," the coach said. "In times of adversity, you watch how players react to it and respond and he's been good and, off the back of that, he stays at the forefront of your mind. "If they drop their bottom lip and sulk and don't want to be good team members, then you don't have a lot of thought for that. "So he's been excellent in how he's handled himself, so he'll be excited to get an opportunity this week." With Noah Lolesio heading to Japan at season's end, Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham is said to be eyeing off Edmed as a replacement playmaker in the ACT. McKellar, though, issued a polite hands off, with Edmed also very much in the Waratahs' future plans. "A NSW boy, loves the Waratahs and his family's here and that sort of thing. So, yeah, the retention of all of our players is the first thing that we look at before we recruit," McKeller said. "So he's certainly in the conversation." Also coming off a loss, to the Fijian Drua in Suva, the fourth-placed Reds enter the pivotal match seven points ahead of the Waratahs and with the chance to kill off their arch rivals' finals hopes.
The Independent
30-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
How Ousmane Dembele scored the same goal against Arsenal and Liverpool to sum up transformed PSG
It is part of footballing orthodoxy. A tough away game demands a certain approach in the opening 20 minutes. Keep it tight. Keep everyone behind the ball. Keep it 0-0. Depress the home crowd with dullness and defensiveness. Don't run forward. But Luis Enrique is not a subscriber to that school of thought. Enrique sees the pragmatists and scorns them. He approaches football matches like a Formula One grand prix, as though whoever gets to the first bend in the lead wins, even if they need a pit stop and a couple of new tyres somewhere along the way. Paris Saint-Germain were the club who were known for the tragicomic end to their Champions League campaigns. In Enrique's cultural revolution, they are notable for their scintillating starts. Arsenal tried to intimidate PSG even if, with 16 years to come up with a slogan for a Champions League semi-final, they ought to have found something more rousing than 'make it happen'. It was scarcely Churchillian. The Emirates nevertheless felt electrifying. And, after three-and-a-half minutes, Arsenal were 1-0 down. It is the PSG way, shock and awe on a footballing field. They have scored more goals in the first 15 minutes of games against Premier League clubs in England this season than Manchester United have. They struck after 11 minutes at Villa Park, 12 at Anfield. They were quicker still at Arsenal. A manager as meticulous as Mikel Arteta may not have been surprised by Ousmane Dembele's winner. It had certain similarities to his strike at Anfield, déjà vu all over again. It if it was a failure of a rejigged midfield, it is also an illustration that knowing what PSG want to do is simpler than stopping them. There are goals that sum up a footballing philosophy and symbolise the transformation of a player. This was one such. Enrique has dispensed with a specialist striker and put Dembele in the middle of his attack. He took a player with 29 goals in five seasons and helped him score 33 in one. But not as a pure penalty-box poacher. Arsenal were beaten by a move Dembele started and completed, false nine and finisher in one, arriving at the edge of the box after initially finding space in a void in midfield. He has an elusiveness. Dembele was not found in the PSG forward line for their previous visit to Arsenal, either, but for rather different reasons. He was omitted by Enrique, a disciplinarian's tough love looking still kinder with every goal that has come since then. Yet when he struck, it highlighted how Arsenal missed the banned Thomas Partey. They were left to count the cost of his silly booking in the Bernabeu. It was a chastening moment for Declan Rice, the man charged with filling Partey's boots, who was dragged out of position to follow Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. His heroics against Real Madrid had brought comparisons with altogether more glamorous midfielders. There were scarves being sold outside with the message 'Bend It Like Declan'. In an instant, he needed to track back like Thomas. But there was another contributor, the man who took Dembele's pass and picked him out with a return ball. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is an old-style dribbler operating at high speed, as though someone put a tape from the 1970s on fast forward. If every manager has a fetish, a type of footballer he collects, for Enrique, it may be wingers. For Arteta, it seems to be left-backs. Enrique's wingers are of less use when PSG get a taste of their own medicine. If a frailty in them is apparent, it is after the initial 20 minutes. If part of the key is to weather the storm, part of it lies in the counter-attack. Aston Villa were 2-0 down after half an hour, both goals scored by the visiting full-backs. They surged back with three goals of their own. Arsenal could not stage a repeat, but there were similarities in the momentum shift; again in the final third of the first half. Arsenal, too, were at the most threatening in the first 15 minutes of the second, as if Enrique's team talk has a galvanising impact before kick-off but a negligible one at the interval. PSG are not a team to exert total control: perhaps that is the trade-off from exhilarating attacking, energetic pressing and exciting youth. They are characteristics a particularly distinguished visitor from France may recognise. He may have been a rare Frenchman at the Emirates who did not savour the scoreline. But then Arsene Wenger may be the greatest manager of his generation not to win the Champions League. Arteta is yet to assemble the achievements to merit that description, but this renders it less likely that he will conquer Europe this season. And if Arsenal are to progress, they will have to survive an early assault in Paris. It promises to be another ferocious first 20 minutes.
The Independent
29-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Why PSG's electric trick caught Arsenal at the worst possible time
It is part of footballing orthodoxy. A tough away game demands a certain approach in the opening 20 minutes. Keep it tight. Keep everyone behind the ball. Keep it 0-0. Depress the home crowd with dullness and defensiveness. Don't run forward. But Luis Enrique is not a subscriber to that school of thought. Enrique sees the pragmatists and scorns them. He approaches football matches like a Formula One grand prix, as though whoever gets to the first bend in the lead wins, even if they need a pit stop and a couple of new tyres somewhere along the way. Paris Saint-Germain were the club who were known for the tragicomic end to their Champions League campaigns. In Enrique's cultural revolution, they are notable for their scintillating starts. Arsenal tried to intimidate PSG even if, with 16 years to come up with a slogan for a Champions League semi-final, they ought to have found something more rousing than 'make it happen'. It was scarcely Churchillian. The Emirates nevertheless felt electrifying. And, after three-and-a-half minutes, Arsenal were 1-0 down. It is the PSG way, shock and awe on a footballing field. They have scored more goals in the first 15 minutes of games against Premier League clubs in England this season than Manchester United have. They struck after 11 minutes at Villa Park, 12 at Anfield. They were quicker still at Arsenal. A manager as meticulous as Mikel Arteta may not have been surprised by Ousmane Dembele's winner. It had certain similarities to his strike at Anfield, déjà vu all over again. It if it was a failure of a rejigged midfield, it is also an illustration that knowing what PSG want to do is simpler than stopping them. There are goals that sum up a footballing philosophy and symbolise the transformation of a player. This was one such. Enrique has dispensed with a specialist striker and put Dembele in the middle of his attack. He took a player with 29 goals in five seasons and helped him score 33 in one. But not as a pure penalty-box poacher. Arsenal were beaten by a move Dembele started and completed, false nine and finisher in one, arriving at the edge of the box after initially finding space in a void in midfield. He has an elusiveness. Dembele was not found in the PSG forward line for their previous visit to Arsenal, either, but for rather different reasons. He was omitted by Enrique, a disciplinarian's tough love looking still kinder with every goal that has come since then. Yet when he struck, it highlighted how Arsenal missed the banned Thomas Partey. They were left to count the cost of his silly booking in the Bernabeu. It was a chastening moment for Declan Rice, the man charged with filling Partey's boots, who was dragged out of position to follow Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. His heroics against Real Madrid had brought comparisons with altogether more glamorous midfielders. There were scarves being sold outside with the message 'Bend It Like Declan'. In an instant, he needed to track back like Thomas. But there was another contributor, the man who took Dembele's pass and picked him out with a return ball. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is an old-style dribbler operating at high speed, as though someone put a tape from the 1970s on fast forward. If every manager has a fetish, a type of footballer he collects, for Enrique, it may be wingers. For Arteta, it seems to be left-backs. Enrique's wingers are of less use when PSG get a taste of their own medicine. If a frailty in them is apparent, it is after the initial 20 minutes. If part of the key is to weather the storm, part of it lies in the counter-attack. Aston Villa were 2-0 down after half an hour, both goals scored by the visiting full-backs. They surged back with three goals of their own. Arsenal could not stage a repeat, but there were similarities in the momentum shift; again in the final third of the first half. Arsenal, too, were at the most threatening in the first 15 minutes of the second, as if Enrique's team talk has a galvanising impact before kick-off but a negligible one at the interval. PSG are not a team to exert total control: perhaps that is the trade-off from exhilarating attacking, energetic pressing and exciting youth. They are characteristics a particularly distinguished visitor from France may recognise. He may have been a rare Frenchman at the Emirates who did not savour the scoreline. But then Arsene Wenger may be the greatest manager of his generation not to win the Champions League. Arteta is yet to assemble the achievements to merit that description, but this renders it less likely that he will conquer Europe this season. And if Arsenal are to progress, they will have to survive an early assault in Paris. It promises to be another ferocious first 20 minutes.
