For the Record

BuzzFeed: Clarity Nearly Purchased Federalist in 2016

According to a report from BuzzFeed News' Rosie Gray, Clarity Media, the parent company of the now-defunct Weekly Standard and the Washington Examiner, considered purchasing The Federalist in 2016.  The proposed acquisition would have been a "potentially awkward ideological fit; The Weekly Standard stayed determinedly anti-Trump throughout the election, while The Federalist adopted more of an anti-anti-Trump or pro-Trump stance." The funding mechanism behind The Federalist remains opaque, with Senior Editor Mollie Hemingway recently saying: "We don't talk about it."

Splinter Prevails in Lawsuit:

A federal judge ruled in favor of Splinter, Managing Editor Katherine Krueger and Gizmodo Media Group Tuesday in a $100 million defamation lawsuit brought by former Trump campaign spokesperson Jason Miller. Miller, who was designated as the administration's communications director in 2016 before failing to take the post due to an extramarital affair with colleague A. J. Delgado, filed the lawsuit as part of his custody case with Delgado.

Karem Ruling Forthcoming:

Following a Tuesday hearing, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras said he will rule later this week or early next on whether to restore Brian Karem's White House press credentials. The Playboy correspondent's suspension is set to end on September 14.

Spotify and Pandora Go Podcasting:

According to Nicholas Quah of NiemanLab, the recent launch of Spotify's podcasting dashboard and the Pandora for Podcasters hub (both of which allow manual uploads by third-party producers) may present "oodles of yet-to-be-converted folks" who previously used these platforms to listen to music. However, Quah cautions that it is unclear "whether all these shifts will lead to a proportionally acceptable win-win for these new platforms and for podcast makers as a class."

Trump Attacks Swan:

In a Tuesday tweet, President Trump denied awareness of Axios (despite having been interviewed by the news organization) and disputed Jonathan Swan's report that he has suggested employing nuclear weapons to destroy hurricanes. Swan stands by his article and expressed surprise that "[Trump] didn't own it."

Trade Publications on the Hill:

The erosion of Washington newspaper bureaus over the past two decades has led to growth among trade publications followed by businesspeople and government officials, including the agriculture-focused Hagstrom Report, Aviation Week and Inside Mortgage Finance. "The people we write about [...] the ecosystem that we mingle in, the world of Capitol Hill, executive agencies, K Street, academia, think tanks, corporate America — they know us and respect us," said Michael Doyle, a reporter for the energy and environment-oriented E&E News.

Stephens Leaves Twitter:

Mediaite's Ken Mayer reported Tuesday that 2013 Commentary winner Bret Stephens has announced the deactivation of his Twitter account following a spat with George Washington University public affairs professor Dave Karpf.

A New Generation of Sales:

According to Digiday's Max Willens, the increasing prevalence of service-based, media-owned software platforms (such as The Washington Post's Arc Publishing suite) has resulted in a need for "highly specialized salespeople." "You want to make sure you have somebody who's not just trying to sling software," said Vox Media COO Trei Brundrett, who prefers individuals "with experience in launching brands at media companies" or those with "publisher product-side experience."

PEN, WHCA File Amicus Briefs in Karem Case:

PEN America and the White House Correspondents' Association filed amicus briefs Monday in support of the restoration of Playboy White House Correspondent Brian Karem's press credentials. "The First Amendment prohibits the misuse of government power to exact retaliation against a free press," said Suzanne Nossel, CEO of the former organization. Karem's motion for an injunction that could restore his pass will be heard by U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras Tuesday.

Sanders Announces Media Policies:

In a Monday op-ed for Columbia Journalism Review, Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Bernie Sanders vowed to "reinstate and strengthen media ownership rules" and "[require] major media corporations to disclose whether or not their corporate transactions and merger proposals will involve significant journalism layoffs," among other potential policies. "We can and will restore the media that Joseph Pulitzer and Walter Cronkite envisioned, and that America so desperately needs," he said.