National Precarious Radio
Plus: Republican attorneys take on Trump, Anthony Weiner runs for city council, and an arborcide most foul.
Trump finally pulled the trigger on his arch-nemesis: NPR. He signed an executive order directing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cease federal funding for NPR and PBS, claiming left-wing bias in their coverage. NPR has challenged this, and it seems like they have a solid case, all things considered.
My take is that while conservatives have criticized government funding and the leftward tilt of NPR since Mr. Hooper was on Sesame Street, lately the broadcaster has itself to blame for a lot of the legitimate criticism coming its way. I’ve documented many of those shortcomings, here, there, and on NPR’s air. It is true that NPR’s current president, while a private citizen, did tweet that she wishes Hillary Clinton would stop saying boy and girl, and other silly things that many stereotypical NPR listeners also probably tweeted. It’s true that NPR, over the last few years, vastly over-indexed for social justice content, told in social justice jargon, and stepped on some specific rakes that were unforgivable to the Trump administration in particular. But the network has been correcting. The good it does outweighs the forehead-smackingly cringe.
Ultimately, in this age of media intimidation and emaciation, given the choice between siding with Trumpism, which elevate Tim Pool and Gateway Pundit as journalists, versus having to suffer through another dozen stories with too much cello scoring and use of the phrase “historically marginalized populations” the choice is not a hard one. As with policing (according to activists who got hours of airtime in 2020) NPR needs to get better, defunding is not the path toward improvement. Plus, PBS has this cool Revolutionary War series coming out.
Welcome to the Gist List—a news roundup, interesting things you should know, and my thoughts leading up to today’s podcast episode.
Here’s what’s on my mind:
⚖️ Republican Attorneys v. Republican President.
🌳 An arborcide most foul.
🙈 Why Temu products are missing for American consumers.
🎖️ Trump renames Veterans Day.
🗳️ Anthony Weiner is running for New York’s city council.
🏀 The Clippers’ “The Wall” proves effective.
The Gist List
Harvard tapped attorneys with GOP ties to sue Trump in funding freeze showdown (Business Insider)
Trump has also dealt a blow to his other arch-nemesis, Harvard. Today, he posted on Truth Social saying, “We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!”
Now, if you’re thinking, there’s got to be some legal issues with this, you’d be right. The tax code prohibits presidents from interfering with IRS audits or investigations. But Harvard has a secret weapon: A council of conservative counsel, including William Burck, a former Bush White House lawyer and Trump Organization advisor; Robert K. Hur, a former Trump-appointed U.S. attorney; and a couple of former clerks for Justices Kavanaugh and Alito.
Who Killed the Sycamore Tree? Britain’s Latest True Crime Thriller (WSJ)
In the quiet hours past midnight, along Hadrian's ancient wall, a most peculiar crime was committed that would shock Britain. An arborcide of a 150-year-old—a pillar of the community—was cut down in under three minutes. Hikers discovered its dismembered trunk the next day.
The game is afoot now that two suspects are standing trial for cutting down the tree, although they plead not guilty, which is more of an Ordeal by Innocence scenario. But what of the tree’s own shady history? Did the entire village take a stab at it?
Temu Blocks US Shoppers From Seeing Products Shipped From China (Wired)
Your Temu habit is about to take a hit now that the site is hiding goods from outside the U.S. This is in direct response to an executive order ending the de minimis exception, which allows buyers to import up to $800 without paying any import fees. China has certainly gotten a great deal on the de minimus exception because they were able to import so much cheap crap without having to warehouse it in the U.S. But this policy change means they might have to start warehousing things here, adopting more of an Amazon logistics model, and branching out into Europe.
Trump to rename Veterans Day as ‘Victory Day for World War I’ (Politico)
President Donald Trump, in his ongoing campaign to [verb] America’s [noun] again, wants to celebrate America’s victories by renaming Veterans Day to “Victory Day for World War I,” and Victory in Europe Day (May 8) to "Victory in World War II Day."
To be fair, there is confusion over America’s military holidays. For example, Memorial Day and Veterans Day are not the same thing. Yes, they have a similar vibe, but are categorically different, so this might add some clarity to what you’re actually taking the day off for. Although at the rate he’s going now that “Liberation Day” is taken, he might start running out of ideas.
Is Anthony Weiner Ready to Go Another Round? (The Atlantic)
Anthony Weiner, best known for his appearance on Not Even Mad, is running for New York’s city council. Now, considering the former Congressman’s textual history, maybe this sounds crazy, but I’m not so sure. The current Council Member voted against the city’s budget (it passed anyway) because it did not defund the police. Weiner’s best-known rival is best known for a fairly brilliant John Mulaney Saturday Night Live sketch, which mocked his name. If you believe in rehabilitation (which I do), and you believe that New York City council gets nothing done (and they don’t), then maybe you need someone like this fast-talking ideas guy.
Steve Ballmer’s Intuit Dome Wall Hits Target With Free Throw Misses (Sportico)
The Clippers have been having a great season, particularly since their home turf is designed for it. Their new $2 billion arena features "The Wall,” a 51-row block of seating where only card-carrying Clippers fans can sit, cheering for the opposition is verboten, and season tickets are reasonably priced. What it creates is a wall of distraction for the opposing team, resulting in these less-than-impressive stats for the visiting team:
74.8% free throw percentage overall (second-lowest in NBA)
73.4% when shooting at The Wall's end (2.6% lower than the other end of the court)
33.5% on three-pointers (also second-lowest)
The strategy appears off this series. The Denver Nuggets, a team that made 77% of their free throws overall during the regular season, had only shot 69% while playing on the Clippers’ court this postseason. But oddly, they’ve shot 61% on free throws in the first half (no “The Wall” ) and a better-than-average 79% in the second half (the “The Wall” half).
Yesterday on the show: What Really Happened on the Rust Movie Set
Rust director Joel Souza joins for an interview about finishing a film that nearly killed him—and did kill talented cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Souza speaks candidly about grief, safety failures, and his estrangement from Alec Baldwin, as well as why completing Rust became a moral obligation rather than a commercial one.
There’s more where that came from. Listen to The Gist, and upgrade to Pesca Plus for the ad-free version.
Have a story you want us to talk about or an opinion you want to share? Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com or share your thoughts in the comments. We might give you a shoutout in our next newsletter or on the air.
The issue with NPR is not so much left wing bias, although I’d be curious to see the reactions if CPB funded, say, the Daily Wire or equivalent, it is that is has been unlistenable for at least a decade. The constant schoolmarming, the condescending tone, the build-up of every story to be viewed through the angle of racism, transphobia, the end of the worldism with climate change, the intense Palestinianism that is so anti-Israel etc… Why should we all contribute through taxes to this flotsam? Ah yes, the local and rural radios… Here in Maine MPBN has always been pretty amateurish, plus woke a little later than most, but with the same intensity. Put a fork in it.