'Killing people' with misinfo; White House passes interview milestone; Stirewalt dismisses Wolff's reporting; OAN to launch Spanish network; Taylor expected to finish NBA Finals; RIP Biz Markie

Oliver Darcy here with a look at what's streaming this weekend, a list of long-reads, and Sunday's "Reliable Sources" lineup...

View this email in your browser. Share it on Facebook or Twitter. Subscribe here. Welcome to the weekend! Oliver Darcy here at 10:00pm. The Biden White House has now participated in more than 1,000 local interviews, Chris Stirewalt is responding to Michael Wolff's reporting about Fox News, One America News is launching a Spanish sister network, the New York Post is reporting Maria Taylor will finish out hosting the NBA Finals, and more. Plus, a list of weekend reads and a guide to what is streaming this weekend. But first... "Killing people" with misinfo   Facebook is being criticized like never before. While the social media company has weathered its fair share of crises in the past, never before has it exactly been accused by the US President of killing people.    But that's exactly what President Biden did on Friday as his administration steps up the pressure on the platform over vaccine misinfo being circulating on it. "They're killing people," Biden said. "I mean they're really, look, the only pandemic we have is among the unvaccinated, and they're killing people."   It shouldn't be lost on anyone what a significant remark that is. It's one thing for the White House to criticize Facebook. It's another for the US President to bluntly accuse a private business of "killing" people in the country...   Facebook fires back    In a statement, Facebook shot back at Biden. "We will not be distracted by accusations which aren't supported by the facts," a spokesperson said. "The fact is that more than 2 billion people have viewed authoritative information about COVID-19 and vaccines on Facebook, which is more than any other place on the internet. More than 3.3 million Americans have also used our vaccine finder tool to find out where and how to get a vaccine. The facts show that Facebook is helping save lives. Period."   >> NBC's Dylan Byers quoted an unnamed Facebook official who added, "In private exchanges the Surgeon General has praised our work, including our efforts to inform people about COVID-19. They knew what they were doing. The White House is looking for scapegoats for missing their vaccine goals..."   "Both things are semantically true"   As Charlie Warzel pointed out, the Biden White House can be correct and Facebook can be correct. In fact, "Both things are semantically true." Facebook has indeed served up authoritative information to users and it has helped many find a location to receive a vaccine. But it has also allowed those who peddle conspiracy theories and disinformation about the vaccines to find an audience -- often a large audience. Providing large swaths of users with good information doesn't excuse also providing other users with bad information...     Inside the meetings   Our own Donie O'Sullivan reported Thursday that meetings between Facebook and the White House have been "tense." On Friday evening, NYT's Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Cecilia Kang added to that reporting. "Despite repeated requests by the White House, Facebook has not shared even basic data on how much vaccine misinformation exists and if the company's efforts to stop its spread are working," the duo wrote, citing a source. "When administration officials presented data from CrowdTangle, a content tracking tool owned by Facebook, that showed vaccine misinformation was soaring, company officials dismissed its accuracy...."     Meanwhile, in right-wing media...    Fox's Peter Doocy asked Jen Psaki at Friday's White House press briefing, "For how long has the administration been spying on people's Facebook profiles looking for vaccine misinformation?" Psaki replied by pointing out that it was "quite a loaded and inaccurate question." But it is worth pointing out that the theme Doocy was getting at in his question is very pervasive on the right.    Since the White House announced a more aggressive stance toward vaccine misinfo, right-wing outlets have been far more focused on the idea the White House is engaged in "censoring" Americans. They've paid much less attention to the dangers the misinfo that is being spread poses to Americans. Of course, that is probably because these outlets are some of the main culprits peddling bad info...     Rupert must be smiling   One thought I had amid all this focus on Facebook: Rupert Murdoch, who was among the first in the world to receive a coronavirus vaccine, but who pays people who intentionally fear-monger to millions of people about them, must be smiling about all the attention Facebook is getting. Facebook is allowing for the spread of misinfo, but at least, unlike Fox News, has made some effort to reduce it. WEEKEND PLANNER Game 5 of the NBA Finals airs Saturday at 9pm on ABC...   The 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup between the US and Canada airs Sunday on Fox...   "100 Foot Wave" premieres on HBO Sunday at 10pm...   The latest "Power" spinoff, "Power Book III: Raising Kanan," premieres on Starz... Sunday on "Reliable:" Former FB VP Brian Boland   Brian Stelter writes: "Brian Boland, former vice president in charge of partnerships strategy at Facebook, will join me on Sunday for his first TV interview. Boland recently spoke out and said 'the most senior leadership in the company does not want to invest in understanding the impact of its core products.' Also on Reliable: 'Landslide' author Michael Wolff, WaPo columnist Perry Bacon Jr., TIME correspondent Charlotte Alter, sociologist Barry Glassner, and maybe a surprise or two. See you Sunday at 11am ET on CNN..." FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE  -- CNN's Friday scoop: "Senior Biden officials finding that Covid lab leak theory as credible as natural origins explanation..." (CNN)  -- The FCC is under pressure to crack down on a "network of savvy affiliate marketers," including "high-profile spreaders of vaccine disinformation" that are using deceptive tactics to push health and wellness products, Cat Zakrzewski reports... (WaPo)    -- "Mad about the new mask mandates? Blame Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson," Steve Lopez writes... (LAT)    -- Fox's "dismissive vaccine coverage is particularly dangerous for its relatively old audience," Philip Bump writes... (WaPo)    -- "A big study supporting ivermectin, Fox's latest miracle COVID treatment, was just retracted," Matt Gertz writes... (MMFA) FIRST IN RELIABLE:   Biden White House passes 1,000 local interviews   The Biden White House hit an important milestone Friday: Passing 1,000 interviews with local media outlets. An admin official told me that more than 350 of those interviews have focused on the coronavirus pandemic, 85 have been about the economy, and more than 50 on climate change. Jen Psaki and Karine Jean Pierre have together done 80 local TV interviews, and the press team as a whole has done almost 150. That's in addition to the normal work they do with regional outlets...   >> Senior regional comms director Paige Hill: "We know the majority of Americans get their news from local TV and our priority has always been to meet people where they are. Every day we look for opportunities to demonstrate how what we're doing here in D.C affects their day to day lives and what this Administration is doing for them..." FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO  -- "Pro-Trump right-wing cable outlet One America News is launching a Spanish-language sister network that should debut this fall," Justin Baragona and Aswan Suebsaeng scoop... (Daily Beast)    -- Kyung Lah talked with an Arizona conservative radio host who is breaking with Trump over election conspiracy theories... (CNN)    -- Disinfo attacks on businesses "are multiplying fast," Ina Fried reports... (Axios) "I wouldn't say that it was getting too combative"   Remember all those awkward fights between Juan Williams and Jesse Watters? Well, the Fox News VP who oversees "The Five," Megan Albano, says she doesn't believe things were all that bad. "I wouldn't say that it was getting too combative with Juan," Albano told LAT's Stephen Battaglio for a story about whether political talk shows can make room for dissent. "I think just the topics that we were covering had higher stakes, and that's what we all have been living through in the last year." Watters himself seemed to concede, however, that things did get a bit overheated: "Having everybody in separate studios, you can't read body language, there's a two-second delay, your humor is off, your timing's bad, and you just stare into the screen and just unload like a machine gun..." Stirewalt dismisses Wolff's reporting   Chris Stirewalt, the former Fox News politics editor, is shooting down Michael Wolff's reporting about how the network made its decision to call Arizona for Biden. Stirewalt was asked by Eliana Johnson about Wolff's reporting that Murdoch green-lit the call. Stirewalt said he did not talk to Wolff for the book and described the reporting as "false." Stirewalt pointed to Bill Hemmer's "surprised" reaction to the call as evidence no one was given a heads up. Stirewalt said "the scam" about Wolff is that he is someone who will "grant anonymity" to people and "let them lie" to him... FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE  -- "The New York Times has suspended star sports journalist Karen Crouse, and her future at the paper is being heatedly debated among the paper's top editors," Lachlan Cartwright and Lloyd Grove report, citing sources. The move comes "following revelations she failed to disclose her deal to write a book with Michael Phelps while reporting on the Olympic swimming icon..." (Daily Beast)    -- "'CBS Evening News' executive producer Jay Shaylor is out after fewer than two years on the job." Recently-promoted producers Alturo Rhymes and Elizabeth Turner "will oversee the show until a permanent replacement for Shaylor is named. This represents the first significant, high-level staffing change by the new regime at CBS News..." (TVNewser) Kasie Hunt set to join CNN   Kasie Hunt surprised viewers on Friday when she announced on her show "Way Too Early" that it would be her "final broadcast" and that she would be departing MSNBC. Hunt didn't officially announce the "new adventure" she teased, but Variety's Brian Steinberg reported that she is heading to CNN where she will "focus largely on content that is produced for streaming viewers." CNN PR was mum when asked for comment... NY Post: Maria Taylor expected to finish out NBA Finals   NBA Finals host Maria Taylor is expected to finish out the games, despite the fact that her contract is up Tuesday, the NY Post's Andrew Marchand reported Friday. Marchand, citing sources, said Taylor and ESPN "have agreed to a mini-extension" that would allow her to work Game 6 and a potential Game 7. Taylor might not get much of a break after those games either. Earlier this week, Marchard reported that NBC "has designs on signing Taylor to work this upcoming Olympics, which start airing on the network next Friday..." FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR  -- Trump says he is "not on any social media platform in any way, shape, or form, including Parler, GETTR, Gab, etc." He adds, "When I decide to choose a platform, or build or complete my own, it will be announced..." (Twitter)  -- A Google VP has parted ways with the company "after uproar over his manifesto renouncing his antisemitism," Jennifer Elias reports... (CNBC)    -- "Twitter users now have the option of seeing automated captions for voice tweets," Ann-Marie Alcántara writes... (WSJ)    -- "Clubhouse's hot new feature is… text," Amanda Yeo writes... (Mashable) Weekend reads   By Katie Pellico:    -- Orion Rummler writes about "why we need more empathy in journalism..." (The 19th)    -- Jared Holt finds that "conspiracy-driven extremists in the United States have produced content under the banner of the broader #FreeBritney campaign, collectively attracting millions of viewers in recent weeks..." (DFR Lab)    -- Tom Jones responds to "pushback" from newsletter subscribers, explaining "why we still pay attention to Donald Trump..." (Poynter)    -- A related weekend listen: David Frum is on this week's "Reliable Sources" podcast, discussing Trump coverage and his change-of-heart on the "F-word..." (CNN)    -- "If you want a preview of next year's Emmy Awards, just take a walk past your local bookstore." Alexander Manshel, Laura B. McGrath, and J. D. Porter explain how TV adaptations are "changing contemporary fiction..." (The Atlantic)    -- Steven Zeitchik takes you to "closed-door meetings at MTV," where creators are working with mental health professionals, "grappling with how to make entertainment more responsible..." (WaPo) FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE  -- "Harry M. Rosenfeld, who barely escaped the Holocaust as a child in Nazi Germany and who became a key Washington Post editor during its Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the Watergate break-in and resulting scandal, died July 16 at his home in Slingerlands, N.Y. He was 91..." (WaPo)   -- "Black first, journalist second: HBCU students leave an emotional school year with lessons for self," Jaden Edison writes... (Poynter)   -- Another magazine exec heads to Netflix: Whembley Sewell, EIC of Them, said she's leaving Condé Nast after four years to join the streaming platform's editorial and publishing team... (Twitter)   -- The Athletic's annual subscription price is changing for the first time, from $59.99 to $71.99. CEO Alex Mather said the increase is so the company can "continue to build" its newsroom of "450 reporters, writers, editors, producers..." (Variety) Fox twists MLB ratings to suit partisan talking points   Brian Lowry writes: "I've written before about how ratings coverage gets twisted to suit partisan hackery, but there was a pretty good example of it in this Fox segment, in which contributor Joe Concha compares ratings for baseball's All-Star Game to 1980 – before Fox broadcasting as well as a host of cable networks existed – while glossing over across-the-board drops in linear viewing. Nor did it mention that the ratings actually ticked up from last year, or that the Home Run Derby hit a four-year high. But, you know, other than that, good job, guys..." FOR THE RECORD, PART SIX  -- "AMC and Frank Darabont have reached a settlement that will end the long-running 'Walking Dead' profits participation lawsuit between the two. AMC will pay $200 million to Darabont and CAA..." (TheWrap)    -- "Reported earnings by WGA West members were down nearly $185 million last year, a 10.5% decline from 2019 because of the pandemic and months of shuttered film and TV production, according to the guild's latest annual financial report..." (Deadline) Rapper Biz Markie dies at age 57   "Biz Markie, who infused his music with so much fun and humor that he became known as 'The Clown Prince of Hip Hop,' has died, his manager, Jenni Izumi, confirmed to CNN. He was 57," CNN's Lisa Respers France and Andy Rose reported. Read their full obit here... and remember: nobody beat the Biz.   >> Izumi: "Biz created a legacy of artistry that will forever be celebrated by his industry peers and his beloved fans whose lives he was able to touch through music, spanning over 35 years..."   "Naomi Osaka" portrays athlete wrestling with weight of stardom   Brian Lowry writes: "LeBron James is having a big week as a producer, with not only 'Space Jam: A New Legacy' but 'Naomi Osaka,' a three-part Netflix project (really just a 110-minute documentary diced into three parts) that focuses on the tennis star finding her political voice, and the public demands placed on a young athlete who is clearly uncomfortable with them. The irony, of course, is letting a camera crew follow her over a two-year span as she articulates those points..."     Elsewhere in streaming...   Lowry writes: "Apple TV+ premieres 'Schmigadoon!,' a talent-rich series made by and for people who love old musicals, as the title telegraphs, is clever (it's produced through 'SNL' patriarch Lorne Michaels' company), but finally a little too cute for its own good..." FOR THE RECORD, PART SEVEN  -- "Bill Murray is among the cast of Wes Anderson's new film that will begin production in Spain in August," Naman Ramachandran reports... (Variety)    -- "Paramount+ has given a formal green light to 'Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies,' a prequel series to the classic 1978 film," Nellie Andreeva writes... (Deadline)    -- "The Alchemist" movie has fallen apart again, Borys Kit and Mia Galuppo report... (THR)    -- "Loki" director Kate Herron talks with Tim Baysinger about how the series was "designed to leave more questions than answers..." (The Wrap) How some celebrities come back from being "canceled"   Marianne Garvey writes: "With Chrissy Teigen writing another social media post this week (on Instagram) about being canceled for old tweets of hers that resurfaced, I wondered when or if the public will forgive her. I asked a few crisis experts and a sociology professor what the effects cancel culture can have on a person emotionally and financially, and if you can ever really come back. Here's what they told me..." SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST...   Pet of the day   Reader Bob Bogda emails: "This is Frank, a faithful reader in Ontario, CA. He's all about comfort..."   Thank you for reading! Send us your feedback and submit your furry friend for Pet of the Day by emailing us a photo and short caption. We'll be back Sunday... Share this newsletter: You are receiving this message because you subscribed to CNN's Reliable Sources newsletter.   ® © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc. A WarnerMedia Company. 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