The Kicker

On this week’s episode, Pete talks with CJR Digital Editor Nausicaa Renner about the recent decision by both Harper’s and The New York Review of Books to publish first-person accounts written by men accused of sexual assault and harassment. (Note: The podcast was recorded before news broke that Ian Buruma was out at NYRB.) Then Lyz Lenz, author of “The mystery of Tucker Carlson,” calls in from Iowa to talk about her profile of the Fox News anchor.

On this week’s episode, Pete talks with CJR Tow Editor Sam Thielman about the coverage of Bob Woodward’s blockbuster book, Fear: Trump in the White House. In taking the Trump presidency as his subject, Woodward had to assemble a reliable book from unreliable sources. Then, Sam shares what he learned about media in Iraq during his recent trip to the country. After tight controls of the press under Saddam Hussein, journalists are trying to build a vibrant media ecosystem while battling fake news.

On this week’s episode, Pete talks with Joel Simon, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, about the conviction of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. The two Reuters reporters were sentenced to seven year in prison after helping expose atrocities in Myanmar. Then, CJR Editor and Publisher Kyle Pope joins to discuss the reaction to Bob Woodward’s upcoming book, "Fear: Trump in the White House." They discuss why books do a better job of capturing Trump’s Washington than daily political reporting, and what we can expect from the reactions to Woodward’s work.

Managing Editor Betsy Morais and Senior Staff Writer Alexandria Neason join Pete to talk about the deluge of coverage following John McCain’s death. Why was the Arizona senator beloved by much of the press, and did that change in recent years? Then, they turn to the departure of Jemele Hill from ESPN. The veteran journalist became the face of the network’s struggle to navigate the political waters of the Trump era. Her exit raises the question: Is it possible to be apolitical in 2018?

On this week’s episode, Pete is joined by Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia, to discuss the reaction to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s ban on reporters at two recent campaign events. Then, Emily weighs in on Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s recent media tour. Is Twitter really ready to change? And what do necessary changes even look like?

On this week’s episode, Pete is joined by CJR Editor and Publisher Kyle Pope to discuss the flood of editorials celebrating journalism in the face of attacks by the president. Were they a worthy defense or a misguided effort? Then, CJR senior staff writer Alexandria Neason stops by to dive into the controversy surrounding a Washington Post feature that has been accused of racial insensitivity.

On this week’s episode, Pete is joined by former CJR staff writer and The Kicker’s founding host David Uberti to discuss the removal of Infowars’s content from tech platforms. Why did it take so long, and where do Facebook, Apple, and Google go from here? Then, they dive into the controversy surrounding The New York Times’s newest hire. The reaction from the Times demonstrates the difference between journalists who have grown up on the internet, and media companies still struggling to adapt.

CJR Digital Editor Nausicaa Renner and CJR Chief Digital Writer Mathew Ingram join Pete to discuss Facebook’s fight to control the narrative. The social media giant shut down more than 30 pages and accounts that it said were part of a political influence campaign potentially built to sow discord ahead of the midterm elections. But are the very public efforts too little, too late? Then, Nausicaa sticks around to talk about the vitriol toward the press at President Trump’s rally in Tampa.

On this week’s episode, Pete talks with CJR Delacorte Fellow Amanda Darrach about scenes from the New York Daily News’s black Monday. Then, CJR Editor and Publisher Kyle Pope joins to place the severe cuts at the News in the larger context of a crisis in local news. What’s the case journalists need to make in order to show how vital their jobs are? Finally, Pete and Kyle discuss CNN’s coverage of the Michael Cohen–Donald Trump tapes, and whether cable news has a problem with overselling its stories.

On this week’s episode, Pete talks with CJR Editor and Publisher Kyle Pope about the coverage of the Trump-Putin summit. Pope believes the president’s disastrous showing will be remembered as a turning point in the way the media covers the Russia story. Then, CJR Senior Staff Writer Alexandria Neason comes on to discuss the redemption narrative of the #MeToo men.

On this episode of The Kicker, Pete and Nausicaa talk about coverage of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s surprise primary victory and how certain media outlets missed the story. Then, we dive into the idea of “civility” in journalism, and the continued debate over coverage of Trump voters. Finally, we discuss Sarah Sanders’s absence from the White House Briefing Room. Is the daily televised back-and-forth even worth it?

The public outrage that forced President Trump to sign an executive order attempting to end the crisis that he created wouldn’t have happened without sustained media coverage. What caused that reporting to break through? And what do journalists need to do as the story continues?

On this week’s episode, we’re returning to one of our favorite topics—the relationship between platforms and publishers. Pete sat down with Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia, to better understand what Facebook and other platforms are up to. Emily recently presented at the Global Editors Network Summit in Portugal, speaking to world leaders in digital publishing about the Tow Center’s research into how the relationship between platforms and publishers is affecting the news business.

Journalism has a class problem. If you aren’t independently wealthy, the path into the industry isn’t easy, especially if your professional aspirations are national in scope. Yet conversations about class and journalism are largely absent from newsrooms. On this week’s episode, we talk to Sarah Jones, staff writer at The New Republic, about this taboo topic. She wrote about class for the latest issue of the Columbia Journalism Review.

On this week’s episode, Peter Corbett gives a firsthand account of an experience that’s become commonplace among journalists over the past decade. The former Arizona Republic reporter spent 23 years at the regional powerhouse before taking a buyout in 2016. He’s one of several journalists in a story by Monica Potts in our new Jobs issue. On The Kicker, he tells the story of his struggle to come to terms with the decision to leave the profession to which he’s dedicated his life.