| Welcome to Friday the 13th. Brian Stelter here at 11:13pm ET on Thursday, August 12 with the latest on Disney, Rachel Maddow, Discovery, Jamie Spears, Fox Sports, Don Lemon, and much more...
Evacuation
The US presence in Afghanistan, often lamented as the "forgotten war," is front of mind right now. The lead story on the NYTimes.com home page is "Afghanistan collapse accelerates as 2 vital cities near fall to Taliban." CNN's live updates page is titled "US to send troops to help evacuate personnel in Afghanistan." And the troop deployment was the lead across all the network nightly newscasts on Thursday evening. ABC's David Muir: "The State Department saying today this is not an evacuation, but at this hour, that's exactly what this looks like."
On the ground
A small number of correspondents for Western news outlets are in Afghanistan and are giving voice to the citizens there. For example, CNN's chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward filed a report from Kandahar last weekend. Flash forward a few days, and she says "the wedding hall we visited... is now under Taliban control."  Ward reported from Kabul on Thursday and described pleas for help from Afghans who worked with the US coalition and now fear Taliban retaliation. "I'm getting messages every hour now" from concerned individuals, she said, with one man even threatening to stand in front of the US Embassy and set himself on fire if he doesn't hear back about his paperwork soon. "There's absolutely a sense of palpable fear and near-panic in the capital right now," Ward said.
The CBS and NBC nightly newscasts also carried live reports from Kabul. "The mood here is grim," Roxana Saberi said on CBS. On NBC, Kelly Cobiella interviewed a former interpreter for the US military who fears for his family. "Thank you and stay safe," Lester Holt told Cobiella.
What's it like elsewhere in the country? The BBC's Secunder Kermani filed a report about "life in a town taken by the Taliban in Afghanistan," featuring his interviews with Taliban members in Balkh, not far from Mazar-e Sharif. And the WSJ has a story in Friday's print edition titled "Afghans Tell of Executions, Forced 'Marriages' in Taliban-Held Areas."
Dreaded images
Megan Stack, a contributor to The New Yorker, is my guest on this week's "Reliable" podcast. As we recorded the episode on Thursday, new headlines kept crossing the wire about the Taliban taking control of Herat, the country's third largest city.
In the episode, we discussed Stack's recent article about the Pentagon's "de-facto press blackout" during the Afghan withdrawal this summer. Stack also analyzed the Taliban's advances and the fear of a "Fall of Saigon" moment. "It is possible that we will end up seeing people, in fact, getting evacuated by helicopter off the roof of the embassy, which is exactly the image that came out at the end of Vietnam and which has haunted the US through this whole withdrawal process," she said.
>> Pentagon officials "know that any photograph that looks sort of unvictorious, that looks like 'giving up' and kind of quitting — which, of course, is in fact what the US is doing — it's also something that might be useful to some foreign adversaries," she added. "It's useful for Taliban propaganda..."
>> Stack also reflected on two decades of Afghan war coverage: "I found it very difficult to reconcile how little the US public does seem to understand or engage with the extent of what's happened and what our government has done. I find that very jarring, especially because I gave so many years of my life and I have friends who died covering those stories, and it's sort of frustrating. I feel like people have done great coverage over the years and it just hasn't quite penetrated."
>> Check out our conversation via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, or your preferred podcasting app...
Then versus now
This is the beginning of Jeanne Bourgault and Ahmed Rashid's guest essay for The New York Times: "Twenty years ago, Afghanistan was an information desert. Under the Taliban, there were no independent media outlets. There were no female journalists. There was no public debate. The voices of ordinary people were silenced and sidelined. Taliban edicts served as 'news.'" But "over the next two decades, that completely changed," they wrote. "Today, vibrant networks of radio, television and online media reach all 34 provinces." They described how the international community "can help Afghans preserve their media."
Along those same lines, Committee to Protect Journalists exec director Joel Simon penned a Washington Post op-ed urging the US to intervene to save the lives of Afghan journalists. Otherwise, he wrote, "an entire generation of reporters will be lost." It already seems to be happening...
Prayers and fears for Afghan journalists
Due to the Taliban's advances, "over 90 media outlets have closed down and concern for the safety of the country's journalists has increased levels," VOA reported on Wednesday.
An anonymous female journalist in northern Afghanistan penned this chilling piece for The Guardian after the Taliban took control of her city: "Last week I was a news journalist. Today I can't write under my own name or say where I am from or where I am. My whole life has been obliterated in just a few days."
"All my female colleagues in the media are terrified," the anonymous journalist wrote. She said "all I can do is keep running and hope that a route out of the province opens up soon. Please pray for me." FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE -- Reporters for Fox, CBS and other outlets challenged spokespeople for the Pentagon and State Department on Thursday... (Mediaite)
-- The White House is obviously calculating that "after all this time and with more than enough blame to go around in both parties, Biden will not suffer politically from leaving behind an unwinnable war," Susan Glasser wrote. "Put bluntly, there is a strongly held belief in Washington that Americans simply do not care..." (TNY)
-- WaPo is rolling out previews of its new book "The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War," which comes out at the end of the month... (WaPo) "Discovery to Charge Warsaw With Violating US-Poland Investment Treaty"
Discovery (which is seeking to merge with CNN's parent WarnerMedia) "has formally notified the Polish government that it will take legal action" in response to pending legislation, THR's Scott Roxborough reported Thursday. "Discovery claims that Poland's right-wing government is unfairly targeting the Discovery-owned Polish network TVN in an effort to force the American broadcaster out of the country and to silence TVN's popular all-news channel TVN24, one of the few networks that regularly criticizes the Warsaw government." Details here... Five takeaways from Disney earnings
-- The company reported "better-than-expected earnings and a return to revenue growth for the first time in five quarters," Moira Ritter reported for CNN Business...
-- Disney parks "saw a strong rebound in visitors as people left their pandemic cocoon, but the company acknowledged uncertainty ahead because of the coronavirus Delta variant," the WSJ's R.T. Watson wrote...
-- Disney+ surpassed 116 million subscribers in the quarter, also beating expectations. "All of Disney's streaming services grew significantly," THR's Alex Weprin wrote...
-- Bob Chapek portrayed Scarlett Johansson's lawsuit as an abberation: "Since Covid has begun, we've entered into hundreds of talent arrangements. And by and large they've gone very, very smoothly..."
-- In a filing, Disney revealed that it recently "exercised its right to buy the NHL's 10% stake in streaming technology services group BAMTech for $350 million," Deadline's Jill Goldsmith noted... Will Rachel Maddow stay at MSNBC?
The Daily Beast has been on a scoop streak lately. Thursday's example: "Rachel Maddow Seriously Considers Leaving MSNBC." I had been chasing the same tip, but Lachlan Cartwright and Max Tani beat me to it. Citing "six people familiar with the situation," they said Maddow "is seriously considering leaving the network when her contract ends early next year as negotiations drag on and the temptation to take her brand elsewhere or start her own lucrative media company has grown." They also said Jeff Shell and Cesar Conde are "focused on retaining her, and are gearing up to offer her a major contract extension in order to do so."
What might she do instead? Well, one vision for Maddow's future looks like this: A multimedia smorgasbord fit for the Substack era, based on direct relationships with paying subscribers. One of my sources said newsletters, podcasts and streaming TV shows have all been discussed. Certainly streaming suitors like Netflix would be interested in talking with her.
But Maddow's new reps at Endeavor sought to tamp down such speculation on Thursday. Mark Shapiro told the Beast that "nothing has been decided. We are deep into it with NBCUniversal and Rachel has an excellent relationship with them."
What the decision will hinge on
Everyone who knows Maddow emphasizes how hard she works, how much she prepares for her show. It has made her rich but tired: She's been helming the 9pm ET hour for thirteen years, and at this point she has mixed feelings about the grind of a live nightly program. MSNBC will certainly offer her some more flexibility, some more days off, etcetera, but at some point soon, she will have to decide whether she wants to commit to the nightly routine for years to come. If she leaves, it will be a serious blow to the fortunes of MSNBC... FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO -- "How a Political Dynasty Bites the Dust:" This is a compelling read by Miriam Pawel, a journalist who started covering Mario and Andrew Cuomo way back in 1983... (NYT)
-- Happy Census 2020 day. The findings could fill entire books – and will. Here are some of the main takeaways, starting with the fact that the US "is more diverse and more multiracial than ever before..." (CNN)
-- Aidan McLaughlin writes: "Rudy Giuliani admitted he lied to Fox News hosts. What should they do about it?" (Mediaite)
-- Rumble, "a fast-growing YouTube rival popular with conservative influencers," has a "new strategy to expand its online audience: Paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to well-known media personalities" to post videos there first. Glenn Greenwald and Tulsi Gabbard are among the new partners... (WaPo)
-- Donie O'Sullivan's must-watch report from South Dakota: "Mike Lindell's election fraud 'proof' implodes in front of a live audience." But hey, as Donie said, "he still has a lot of pillows to sell..." (CNN) Larry Elder under scrutiny
Now that conservative talk show host Larry Elder is the "leading opponent in the recall fight against California Gavin Newsom," he's coming under scrutiny from multiple directions. A few of this week's examples:
-- The LAT's James Rainey and Seema Mehta wrote about Elder's radio rhetoric that may repel many CA voters: "He has on occasion fueled skepticism of climate change, depicting global warming as a 'crock' and a 'myth.'" He has "described abortion as 'murder' and said rules governing the procedure should be left to the states." He has "given airtime to misinformation" about Covid. And so on...
-- Newsweek's Paul Bond wrote about Elder being hit by the far-right for accurately saying that President Biden won "fairly and squarely." Elder has engaged "in some damage control" since then...
-- McClatchy's California opinion teams interviewed Elder and found that he made "numerous false statements" and several "easily debunkable claims..." After Dominion suit, OAN continues to air election lies
Oliver Darcy writes: "Dominion Voting Systems filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against OAN earlier this week, but the tiny far-right channel is apparently undeterred as it continues to saturate its airwaves with conspiratorial election nonsense. According to the progressive media watchdog Media Matters, OAN has aired more than 22 hours -- much of it commercial free -- of MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell's so-called 'cyber symposium' that aims to prove the election was stolen. (Spoiler: It wasn't)." FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE -- CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says she is "really struggling with how to communicate to people who are worried about politics" re: Covid-19... (WSJ)
-- Ron Brownstein's latest: "The vaccinated, across party lines, have kind of had it with the unvaccinated, an array of new polls suggests..." (The Atlantic)
-- Don Lemon helmed a special edition of his show on Thursday about the Covid crisis in Louisiana. He visited Baton Rouge General, the hospital where he was born, and talked with doctors and patients... (CNN)  Warner's vaccine mandate
"WarnerMedia will require salaried and non-union U.S. employees to get vaccinated before returning to work, joining many companies, including Disney, Facebook and Google, in recently enacting vaccination policies for their workforces," Variety's Jordan Moreau wrote Thursday. (Within CNN, a mandatory vaccine requirement has been in place for anyone coming into an office or working in the field since June 1.)
>> Another significant change: WarnerMedia's parent, AT&T, said Thursday that it is implementing "the CDC's new guidance on face coverings at work locations," which means face coverings will be "required in ALL domestic offices until further notice," Jeff Zucker told CNN staffers...
Facebook delays return-to-office
Meanwhile: Facebook said Thursday it will delay its return-to-office plans. "Data, not dates, is what drives our approach for returning to the office," the company said. "Given the recent health data showing rising Covid cases based on the Delta variant, our teams in the US will not be required to go back to the office until January 2022. We expect this to be the case for some countries outside of the US, as well." Rishi Iyengar has more here... FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR -- "The potential antitrust breakup of Facebook's digital media empire could start with GIFs," Brian Fung reports: "Facebook could soon be required to spin off Giphy in response to concerns by UK regulators..." (CNN)
-- "Snap creators say they're leaving the app's Spotlight feature as payments dry up..." (CNBC)
-- Rachel Abrams' new profile of former National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard, who has teamed up "with an Italian publisher for a publication aimed at the Hamptons crowd," is full of eye-popping quotes, including from Howard's reps... (NYT) NYT to offer subscriber-only newsletters
Oliver Darcy writes: "Want to read Kara Swisher's new newsletter? Or perhaps John McWhorter's? NYT is going to ask you subscribe for access. The outlet announced Thursday that it is launching a 'curated collection of more than 15 new and existing News and Opinion newsletters available only to Times subscribers.' Other notable names include Jane Coaston, Frank Bruni, Janelle Bouie, Paul Krugman, and others. NYT chief product officer Alex Hardiman told NYT's Katie Robertson that the outlet believes it needs to make sure it's 'adding much more distinctive value to what it means to feel' like a subscriber.' Robertson has more on the announcement here... NYT tech workers union ask management to 'stop the delay'
Kerry Flynn writes: "The back and forth between NYT management and the NYT Tech Guild is getting even more heated. On Thursday, NYT submitted its position on who should be included in the unit, choosing to leave out 230 workers, the union said. The Beast's Max Tani scooped a leaked memo about management's strategy, stemming from a lawyer unintentionally cc'ing a NewsGuild organizer on an email. 'We are calling on management to stop the delays, to stop the disenfranchisement and to let tech workers vote now,' Amanda Hess, NYT critic-at-large and svp of the NewsGuild of NY, said on a Zoom press conference..." FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE By Kerry Flynn:
-- Substack is recruiting writers globally, "raising questions about how the company plans to navigate threats to press freedom," Andrew Deck reports... (Rest of World)
-- Charlotte Klein explores how Montclair, NJ "became a magnet for the media elite," particularly for a contingent of NYTers... (VF)
-- Kara Swisher's newest guest on "Sway" is LA Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong. About his decision not to vote on the Alden takeover, he said, "I can't be responsible for Baltimore, Florida, Chicago Tribune personally if I stop this deal..." (NYT)
-- "Journalists across NPR are now tracking the demographics of their sources in real time thanks to a new piece of software that launched last month," Angela Fu writes... (Poynter) Thursday's best TV event  The "Field of Dreams" game on Fox was nothing short of sensational. I liked the way Sportsnet summed it up: "With the Iowa horizon behind them, stretching beyond where eye sight can reach, the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox emerged from rows of corn and stepped onto a field built for their arrival." Kevin Costner came out first, in a sequence that was corny but shared all across social media. The MLB is already teasing another "Field of Dreams" game next year... Stirring new documentary about activist Ady Barkan
Brian Lowry writes: "You probably won't rush out to see 'Not Going Quietly' in a theater, but when you have the chance this documentary – opening in limited release in NY and LA this weekend, gradually rolling out to additional cities – is well worth finding, offering a deeply moving portrait of healthcare advocate Ady Barkan, whose life was upended by an ALS diagnosis at age 32. 'I've got a lot to say and not a lot of time left to say it in,' Barkan notes grimly at one point, wrestling to find a balance between spending time with his loved ones in the time he has left and accomplishing the public-policy changes that he seeks. It's a stirring portrait of his commitment to a cause, despite the weight of crushing adversity..." Jamie Spears says he intends to step down
Lisa Respers France and Chloe Melas write: "After months of public pressure from supporters of Britney Spears, Jamie Spears, the singer's father, signaled in a legal response Thursday that intends to step down as conservator of the singer's estate, according to a prepared copy of the response obtained by CNN." Read on...  R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to Lowry
Brian Lowry writes: "'Respect' is an almost painfully earnest biopic, providing a showcase for Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin but otherwise never really sparking to life. Although Franklin's family criticized a National Geographic miniseries devoted to the Queen of Soul, 'Genius: Aretha,' the two actually complement each other, with the latter having the latitude to offer a fuller portrait of the singer and the forces that shaped her life and career." Keep reading... FOR THE RECORD, PART SIX By Lisa Respers France:
-- LeVar Burton fans' love is not in "Jeopardy!" as they are angry about him getting passed over as host of the game show...
-- Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis proved their family is actually in favor of showering by posting a video of bath time in their house...
-- Kim Kardashian West credited Kanye West for boosting her confidence...
-- Brendan Fraser got emotional about the support he's receiving on TikTok...
-- John Cena posted his "Black twin," a Black UK personal trainer who bares an uncanny resemblance to the actor...  The worst form of TV measurement except for...
Brian Lowry writes: "The major networks are tussling with Nielsen over its methodology – and failing to keep pace with changes in the way people consume media – as Variety's Brian Steinberg details here. While the frustration is understandable, undermining the ratings service brings to mind Churchill's famous quote about democracy being the worst form of government 'except for all the others that have been tried.' Lacking a perfect solution, it's perhaps best not to seriously damage the most viable one that's available..." FOR THE RECORD, PART SEVEN -- "The action-thriller Gunpowder Milkshake shot to the top of Nielsen's latest movie streaming chart in its Netflix debut on Aug. 14..." (THR)
-- FX has dropped the first full trailer for "American Crime Story: Impeachment..." (YouTube)
-- Joe Adalian says HBO Max has a plan to "fix its glitchy app..." (Vulture) SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST...
Pet of the day!
The Atlantic's Ed Yong emails: "Here's Typo. He's an extremely sweet corgi puppy, whom we got at the start of this year. His full name is Typography K. Neeley--the last bit is my wife's surname, and we don't know what the K stands for, but it means that his initials are TK and that we have clearly overthought this joke. Earlier today, I had to stop him from spinning around furiously as he tried to bite a piece of poop that was hanging out of his ass by a hair, which coincidentally is exactly what it's been like to cover America's response to the pandemic..."  You are receiving this message because you subscribed to CNN's Reliable Sources newsletter.
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