ABC News turmoil deepens; Ida rocks Northeast; abortion ban rockets to top story; Rogan catches Covid; AP names new exec editor; 'Top Gun' postponed

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Oliver Darcy here at 11:05pm ET on Wednesday, September 1, with the latest on Joe Rogan, Hurricane Ida, Julie Pace, Clarissa Ward, Tom Cruise, and more. But first...

Godwin angers her Disney bosses

ABC News President Kim Godwin hasn't even been on the job for six months, but she has already infuriated her bosses over at Disney.

When Godwin called for an independent, third-party probe into how allegations of sexual assault against former "GMA" boss Michael Corn were handled (allegations Corn denies), Disney General Entertainment Content Chairman Peter Rice was angered. That's according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to me on Wednesday. Also upset with Godwin: Disney General Counsel and Executive Vice President Alan Braverman, according to one of those sources.

A Disney spokesperson didn't respond to repeated requests for comment on Wednesday. And I reached out to Godwin as well, who did not respond. But one of the sources told me, Burbank is "really pissed" at her...

"A ghost"

Inside ABC News, multiple people familiar with the dynamic said, morale is low. Those people also pointed out that Rice has been MIA. In fact, The Culture Council, a group of peer-selected employees who are working with leadership to promote change inside the company, even reached out to Rice. These employees wrote Rice "requesting that he personally address the News Division," according to an email the council sent to staffers and which I obtained.

That has not happened. Instead, Rice has been "a ghost," as one source candidly put it to me. Indeed, Disney and Rice have been silent, failing to answer basic questions about events that have rocked the newsroom. For example, will the company grant Godwin her wish and green-light an independent investigation into what happened at "GMA"? Disney won't say. In fact, I can't even get the spokesperson for the company to even acknowledge my emails...

Who knew what?

Brian Stelter writes: "Oliver and I are both hearing versions of this same question from inside ABC News: 'Who knew what when?' Godwin was not at ABC when the alleged incidents at 'GMA' took place. But lower-level execs were. Several of them were named in the lawsuit. Who was there when formal complaints were lodged with the company in February to the company? Rice. One of my sources pointed out that rumors relating to Corn's abrupt departure have been circulating for months. So none of this newfound controversy should have been surprising to Disney. 'We were supposed to be a network where the culture was changing,' one veteran ABCer said to me with a sigh..."

Godwin's note

Godwin appeared to reiterate her call for an independent investigation into the matter on Wednesday. "We are going to invest in additional resources to support our group," she wrote in a memo, "and call upon both internal and external expertise to help guide us." Notice her inclusion of the word "external" there.

In her note, Godwin interestingly praised The Culture Council, the same group that wrote Rice asking he address the newsroom. She said the group's work is "more important than ever" and that its members are "working hard to help us create positive change." She added, "We need to continue to support and promote this work, to push it forward, and to continue to evolve it."

Godwin also announced that, for now, ABC News will be expanding its Human Resources team. "For GMA and the DC Bureau, we are taking immediate steps to assign dedicated HR business partners to those teams," Godwin said. Godwin ended her note saying that "this is just the beginning..."

THURSDAY PLANNER

At 11:30am, President Biden will deliver remarks on the federal response to Hurricane Ida... At 1:45pm Biden will meet virtually with rabbis to mark Jewish High Holy Days...

Jen Psaki will hold a press briefing at 1pm...

At 3:30pm, Nancy Pelosi will lead a press conference on the Build Back Better Act...

Abortion ban takes effect in Texas

At the stroke of midnight Central time, this law became the top story in Texas and across the country. It's "monumental," CNN anchor and lawyer Laura Jarrett said on "Early Start" first thing Wednesday morning. It's front page news 24 hours later:

>> Some of the best coverage is coming from The 19th, which carried a story titled "67 abortions in 17 hours: Inside a Texas clinic's race to beat new six-week abortion ban..."

>> KUT, the NPR affiliate in Austin, explained how "anti-abortion groups are prepared to enforce" the new law...

>> Lis Power of the progressive watchdog Media Matters tweeted, "I literally watch the news for a living, and I had little to no knowledge of this abortion ban in Texas until late last night. It's a huge indictment of cable news that something this impactful can occur with practically no cable news coverage until after it's too late..."

On Thursday's morning rundown...

The Texas ban will continue to top headlines... Along with Ida's impacts, which are still being felt, from Louisiana to New York... Tornadoes in New Jersey and flash flooding from Philly to NYC sparked emergency efforts overnight... In NYC, the National Weather Service even issued a "flash flood emergency" for the first time in its history... Residents posted pictures of surprise flooding on social media... In NOLA, meanwhile, the power is slowly coming back...

Are cable news networks too slow to breaking news?

The Northeast was hit with a historic weather event on Wednesday evening. Social media was flooded with stunning images documenting the storm and its effects. The Weather Channel was live.

But noticeably absent? The big cable news networks. I didn't see much live coverage of the storm throughout the night. It's an example of how cable news networks are sometimes slow to respond to big breaking news events...

Rogan says he has Covid

Joe Rogan said Wednesday that he has tested positive for Covid-19. Rogan, who questioned earlier this year whether young people should get the safe and effective vaccines, also announced that he had attempted to treat the virus, in part, with ivermectin. That is the anti-parasitic drug commonly used on livestock which health officials have said is not effective against Covid and have warned people from taking. Meanwhile, it's unclear whether Rogan had been vaccinated prior to his infection. Here's the full story from CNN's Kerry Flynn...

Remember when he said most healthy people shouldn't worry?

A couple things worth noting: First, it is hard to underscore how many people follow Rogan's advice. There are influencers, and then there are people like Rogan. What he says matters and the fact that he is boasting about taking ivermectin is unsettling, given many in his audience will almost certainly follow his lead. Second, it is worth noting that Rogan had essentially said earlier this year that healthy people who exercise should not worry much about Covid. And yet, after he tested positive, he says he threw the "kitchen sink" at the virus. If it's nothing to worry about, then why do that?

"He has a podium to really affect change"

Speaking on "CNN Tonight," Dr. Jonathan Reiner noted that Rogan has an opportunity right now to deliver an important message about the seriousness of the coronavirus. "He has a podium to really affect change," Reiner said, noting that Rogan can (and should) acknowledge the seriousness of the virus and encourage his audience to get vaccinated. Will he do that though? I'm not holding my breath...

When is Fox going back to the office?

Back in March, Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch set September 7 — the day after Labor Day weekend — as a target date to return to the office. But since that note went out, and with just days left until that date, there has not been updated guidance sent to Fox employees. They've been left in the dark. It seems obvious at this point that Fox will not have its employees return to the office next week. But the company, which has been the loudest about moving past pandemic restrictions, is staying mum. I asked a Fox Corp. spokesperson this week for info, but didn't hear back...

FOR THE RECORD, PART ONE

-- Paul Farhi's latest: "Four conservative radio talk-show hosts bashed coronavirus vaccines. Then they got sick..." (WaPo)

-- A depressing scoop from Joshua Eaton and Joe Murphy: "Pharmacies and state governments in the United States have thrown away at least 15.1 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines since March 1..." (NBC News)

-- "If you expected the anti-vaccine crowd to stand down after the Food and Drug Administration gave final authorization to Pfizer's COVID-19 shot, we have some bad news for you. These people have come up with a new conspiracy claim about the shot," Michael Hiltzik writes... (LAT)

-- Another day, another headline like this: "Minnesota health officials decry COVID vaccine misinformation..." (Star Tribune)

The AP's new exec editor

Brian Stelter writes: "Julie Pace, the reporter turned chief WH correspondent turned DC bureau chief, is the AP's new executive editor, succeeding Sally Buzbee, who departed the AP last spring for The Washington Post. Pace is starting in the new role immediately. She is 39 years old, making her one of the youngest newsroom bosses in the US – part of a rising generation of new leadership. Here's my full story..."

>> The AP's media reporter David Bauder says Pace rose to the top job with a "promise to accelerate the AP's digital transformation." She spoke of "more digital-friendly" and "more social-friendly" journalism...

>> NYT's Katie Robertson also interviewed Pace. Standout quote: "Being a fact-based news organization does not mean that everybody on every side of an issue gets equal hearing, gets equal voice. In certain cases, the facts are just really clear, and we want to make sure that we are amplifying the facts and not muddying the facts. So Covid vaccines are safe. Climate change is real. There was no widespread fraud in the U.S. election. Those are not political positions; those are fact-based positions."

"To reduce it all to black and white is to do a disservice"

The "framing of the political debate" surrounding Afghanistan has bothered Clarissa Ward, she wrote in an Instagram post. Ward wrote about the "false binary" that has been presented to people over the last few weeks: "If you support ending the war then you can't feel sad about how it all ended and empathetic to the suffering and desperation of the Afghan people and conflicted about America's legacy. And if you do feel depressed about the whole thing, that means you must support the endless continuation of the war." She added, "To reduce it all to black and white is to do a disservice to the complexity of emotion and empathy and history. Taking a moment to pause and reflect, to be humble and considerate, to grieve even- well, that strikes me as a mark of strength, not weakness..."

FOR THE RECORD, PART TWO

-- Justin Baragona writes about how Fox News has "leaned heavily" on retired four-star Gen. Jack Keane during Afghanistan coverage, but has not disclosed his "current role as an executive for a defense contractor that has profited a great deal from the 20-year war..." (Daily Beast)

-- John Avlon's latest "Reality Check" segment is about how foreign disinfo is on display over the Afghanistan withdrawal — and how in some cases, such disinfo is mimicked by right-wing personalities... (CNN)

-- "Reporters Sans Frontières says it believes fewer than 100 of Kabul's 700 female journalists are still working and only a handful are continuing to work from home in two other Afghan provinces. Others have been attacked and harassed," Kim Willsher reports... (Guardian)

Jan. 6 committee also wants records from right-wing platforms

The House Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection sent letters to several right-wing social media platforms, in addition to Big Tech companies. That is according to reporting Wednesday from Protocol's Issie Lapowsky. Lapowsky published the full list of companies which were sent letters — a list that includes the likes of Gab, Parler, and Rumble. It will be interesting to see whether these companies cooperate with the committee and, if they do, what their users think of it...

FBI needs help finding these rioters who attacked NYT photog

CNN's Marshall Cohen writes: "The FBI released a new video Wednesday of pro-Trump rioters attacking a NYT photojournalist inside the Capitol on January 6. Authorities have already charged some rioters in connection with this assault, but they are still looking for more of the suspects."

Dems demand answers on Facebook and Google

"Four Democratic members of Congress are calling for an investigation into whether an alleged secret 2018 agreement between Google and Facebook concerning digital advertising violated federal antitrust law," The Verge's Kim Lyons reported on Wednesday. The senators are Elizabeth Warren and Richard Blumenthal and the representatives are Pramila Jayapal and Mondaire Jones...

FOR THE RECORD, PART THREE

-- "Texas is set to pass a new law banning Facebook from censoring conservatives," Makena Kelly reports... (The Verge)

-- Olivia Nuzzi writes about Rudy Giuliani's unwise use of Cameo... (NY Mag)

-- Another Twitch steamer heads for YouTube: "TimTheTatman" announced he is leaving his seven million followers on Twitch... (Polygon)

-- "Twitter is starting to roll out Super Follows, its new feature that lets users charge for subscriber-only content," Kait Sanchez reports... (The Verge)

-- Twitter is also launching a new feature called Safety Mode that will "automatically block accounts that add unwelcome replies..." (Twitter)

-- Kate Lindsay writes about getting back on Snapchat after five years and spending "24 hours in a barren social media time capsule..." (Embedded)

Nielsen loses MRC support

Brian Lowry writes: "Variety's Brian Steinberg reported Wednesday on the Media Rating Council withdrawing its support from Nielsen, due to longstanding concerns about whether the ratings service was accurately measuring viewing, a process that has grown increasingly complex through the years. According to Steinberg, there has also been discussion about media companies launching a rival service to supplant Nielsen, which, it's worth noting, has been contemplated before and almost invariably fallen apart. The companies might get their act together, but historically, inspiring media conglomerates to agree/cooperate on these sort of ventures has been just this side of herding cats..."

FOR THE RECORD, PART FOUR

-- "Big broadcasters responded with relief [Wednesday] to a judge's ruling from Tuesday granting an injunction against television streaming app Locast from transmitting their local TV streams to customers," Jill Goldsmith reports... (Deadline)

-- "Britney Spears will not be charged with any crimes related to an incident that occurred at her residence involving her housekeeper, the Ventura County District Attorney announced Wednesday..." (THR)

No "Top Gun" this November

"Paramount has pulled the ejector seat on 'Top Gun: Maverick's' November release date," THR's Aaron Couch wrote Wednesday, summarizing the news that the movie studio had delayed two Tom Cruise films. "'Top Gun: Maverick' is departing its Nov. 19 date and will now open May 27, 2022. Meanwhile, Cruise's 'Mission: Impossible 7' is leaving that May 27, 2022, date and will now open Sept. 30, 2022..."

>> Also delayed: "Jackass Forever" which is moving from October 2021 to February 2022...

FOR THE RECORD, PART FIVE

-- Carson Rowland and Jordan Gonzalez have joined the cast of HBO Max's "Pretty Little Liars" reboot, Alexandra Del Rosario reports... (Deadline)

-- "Shang-Chi" director Destin Daniel Cretton talks with Adam Vary about battling stereotypes: "I love that Shang-Chi's journey as a superhero who is out of place and living in another country..." (Variety)

-- "CBS' comedy 'B Positive' is making some big changes for its second season," Rick Porter writes. "The Chuck Lorre-produced comedy will overhaul its premise and cast for its second run..." (THR)

SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST...

Pet of the day!

Reader Jody Newman writes: "LEXX gets most of his news the old fashioned way, 'in the wind,' except when he listens intently to me recite the highlights of human life in your newsletter at the end of each day..."