Why Journalists Speak Out

Over many decades of teaching classes, appearing on panels, speaking at ethics seminars, not to mention doing or supervising hundreds of reporting projects, one of the most frequent questions I faced was how journalists were supposed to possibly stay objective when doing this work.

The short answer to that is that we can’t. And we don’t.

In the course of producing stories, we learn so much about the various people and institutions we cover, it is simply not possible to avoid drawing conclusions and forming opinions about them.

So of course we do. And the more informed we become, the stronger our opinions tend to become. It’s only human.

The question is what do we then do with our opinions? Can we keep covering the same stories, pretending to be objective?

Traditionally, in newspapers, there was a strict line between the reporting we did in news coverage and the opinions expressed on the editorial page. Beat reporters rarely ventured over to the opinion side, which was considered unseemly. But there was more than a bit of irony in that as we were often the best-informed people employed by the paper on the subjects on the editorial page.

One attempt to bridge this gap was to have the beat writers produce analysis pieces, which bridged the gap between reporting and opinion and were traditional journalism’s answer to the objectivity problem.

The distinction between analysis” and “opinion” was largely fictional but it was a useful fiction that newspapers employed successfully for many years.

Another aspect of the objectivity problem was that the ownership of the newspaper often held different opinions and loyalties on the major topics of coverage from the reporters and editors who provided that coverage on a day-in, day-out basis.

This led to a great deal of tension on occasion between the news staff and those in charge of the editorial pages. Trust me, anyone who ever visited the nearest bar to a big-city newspaper office knows exactly what I am talking about.

When baby boomers — the largest generation ever to hit American workplaces including media — came along, we brought a new level of tension to this traditional dichotomy between news and opinion — and the myth of objectivity.

For one thing, we were better educated than the older generation and way too many of us had been shaped by the civil rights and anti-war movements to remain neutral on the great issues of the day. We weren’t neutral at all on questions like racism or colonial wars — we knew right from wrong.

Furthermore, we didn’t like what we found of the culture inside most newsrooms, which was all too often misogynistic, racist, homophobic and more like an arm of the local police union than a force for truth.

At the same time, we met heroes — established reporters and editors who resisted all those entrenched prejudices and practices that simply acted to reinforce powerful interests. These guys challenged those very interests on more than one occasion.

We also discovered that there were plenty of enlightened owners and executives in media who would support the type of crusading journalism we aspired to, so we worked for them whenever possible and joined the great muckraking traditions that long have served as a counterweight to mainstream, by-the-books news mongering in America.

When it came to remaining objective, we agreed that it was absolutely necessary to stay open-minded when we were gathering the facts about any situation. We needed to be open to adjusting our analysis as those facts came to light, and it was vital that we remained our own worst devil’s advocate to counter the biases and prejudices we inevitably brought to the story.

But you can’t discover the truth as you wish it to be, you have to accept the truth as you discover it to be. Equally importantly, you can’t bend the facts to fulfill the wishes or desires of your bosses or your audience — the chips must fall where they may.

But once all of that was said, once you’d been as fair as you could possibly be during the process of gathering facts, it became completely appropriate and indeed obligatory for any journalist of conscience to speak out when asked about the meaning of what we had found.

That’s how many of us became what some considered advocates or activists as well as journalists during our careers. We were often called “alternative journalists” or “new journalists” or “gonzo journalists.” Take your pick. And of course the traditionalists denounced us, for good reason. But once our reporting was complete, we made a point of speaking out. 

That practice remains controversial to this day. But as my esteemed former Stanford colleague, Prof. Ted Glasser, once observed (and I paraphrase), “In the end, being a good citizen has to trump being a good journalist.”

Amen.

Today’s Stories (37 from 21 sources):

1. Days after Uvalde massacre, Trump rejects gun reforms at NRA event (Yahoo)

2. Key Republicans pull out of NRA forum as political pressure mounts (CNN)

3. The NRA has weakened. But gun rights drive the GOP more than ever. (WP)

4. Will Anything Change After Uvalde? (New Yorker)

5. Police response to Texas school shooting criticised (Guardian)

6. Mass shooters exploited gun laws, loopholes before carnage (AP)

7. Thousands of students across the country walked out of school in protest of lawmakers’ inaction on gun control, two days after the latest school shooting in Texas. [HuffPost]

8. The gunman in the Texas school massacre barged unchallenged through an unlocked door, then killed 19 children and two teachers while holed up in their classroom for an hour before a tactical team stormed in and killed him, police said. (Reuters)

9. Police Response to Uvalde Shooting Infuriated Parents Clinging to Hope (NYT)

10. As new timeline emerges, police criticized for response (WP)

11. A Uvalde, Texas, mother said she was handcuffed and threatened with arrest while imploring law enforcement to enter Robb Elementary School during Tuesday’s massacre. She persuaded Uvalde cops she knew to free her before jumping the school fence, running inside to grab her two children and sprinting out with them. [HuffPost]

12. Police Made ‘Wrong Decision’ in Waiting to Storm Shooter (WSJ)

13. 'Joe died of a broken heart': Husband of beloved teacher killed in Texas shooting dies two days later (CNN)

14. Senate GOP signals an openness to talking about gun legislation (The Hill)

15. Senators Grasp for a Bipartisan Gun Deal, Facing Long Odds (NYT)

16. Gun deaths dropped in California as they rose in Texas: Gun control seems to work (LAT)

17. VIDEO: Republicans Block Domestic Terrorism Bill (AP)

18. The Boudin recall is entirely based on local media mythology. They should own it. (48 Hills)

19. Mayor: Some 1,500 killed in Sievierodonetsk (AP)

20. Russia's separatist proxies in eastern Ukraine claimed full control of the important battlefield town of Lyman, and Ukraine appeared to concede it, as Moscow presses its biggest advance for weeks. (Reuters)

21. Russia Gains Ground in Bid to Encircle Troops Defending Ukraine’s East (WSJ)

22. U.S. leans toward sending powerful multiple launch rockets as Ukraine seeks "heavy weapons" to stop Russia's Donbas offensive (CBS)

23. As Russia Diverges From the Global Economy, Soviet-Style Scarcity Looms (NYT)

24. Israel deliberately killed Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Aqla, Palestinian report says (BBC)

25. Shireen Abu Aqleh: killing of reporter referred to international criminal court (Guardian)

26. The White House is planning to cancel some student loan debt. The plan, which isn’t final, would wipe out $10,000per borrower for Americans who earned less than $150,000 annually. (AP)

27. As DNA Donors’ Secrets Emerge, What Should the Children Know? (WSJ)

28. The energy industry is still shaping California policy (Politico)

29. Physicists predict Earth will become a chaotic world, with dire consequences (LiveScience)

30. An Entirely New Kind of Highly Reactive Chemical Has Been Found in The Atmosphere (ScienceAlert)

31. Hydrogen may be a climate solution. There's debate over how clean it will truly be (NPR)

32. US to retain focus on China as greatest threat to international order (Financial Times)

33. Coronavirus cases on decline across much of Japan (NHK)

34. Uber and Lyft’s New Road: Fewer Drivers, Thrifty Riders and Jittery Investors (WSJ)

35. What a Book Can Do for a Girl (Atlantic)

36. Documents Shed Light on Secret U.S. Plans for Apocalyptic Scenarios — Dating back to 1950s preparations for nuclear war and revised after the Sept. 11 attacks, the presidential directives are not shown to Congress. (NYT)

37. Never-Before-Heard Buzzword Flying Around Office Can’t Be Good (The Onion)

 

Sacrificial Rights

When archeologists dig up ancient human remains, anthropologists speak of the vanished cultures as “primitive” if they appear to have practiced child sacrifice to appease their gods. 

With this in mind, future archeologists and anthropologists should have a field day when they discover the graves of the 17 fourth-grade school children who are being buried in Uvalde this week.

As the richest and most powerful nation on earth, the U.S. naturally doesn’t wish to consider itself a primitive society. And I’m fairly sure that isn’t what Ted Cruz meant either when he stomped away from European reporters asking him about why this kind of mass shooting almost only happens in America muttering, “I’m sorry you think American exceptionalism is awful.” 

Remind me again about that “American exceptionalism.” Perhaps some sort of primitive religion?

Of course, it’s conveniently simple to blame the weapons profiteers and their enablers in elected office for these gun massacres that occur. Certainly the likes of the NRA and acolytes Cruz, Abbott and practically the entire Republican Party shoulder a major share of the blame for these outrageous acts.

But where does that leave the rest of us?

Lowering a flag to half-mast for a few days, observing a moment of silence before going back to our daily routines, holding onto some thoughts about the grief of others — all of that is respectful but does little to prevent the future slaughter of more innocents that is now certain to come.

In fact, much could be done. As long as guns remain so easily available, aggressively preventative measures need to be taken in our schools. 

Meanwhile, organizing to pass much stricter strict gun laws and throwing the gutless culprits out of office who oppose them, will be the slow, frustrating, unsexy work. That is almost always led by the parents of previous massacre victims. Inevitably, an ineffable sense of grief steels their resolve.

Which raises the question of what the rest of us are to do with our ineffable grief.

Will we bury it for the ages? Along with the children? 

Or will we act?

• Protecting Children From Gun Violence (Sandy Hook Promise)

Today’s News (50 stories from 25 sources):

1. A Culture That Kills Its Children Has No Future — An America vacillating between violent struggle and idle nihilism is shuddering toward its end. (Atlantic)

2. What the Rest of the World Can Tell Us About Guns (New Yorker)

3. Parents Face a Haunting Question: Is Any Schoolchild Safe? (NYT)

4. Another gun massacre, the same grim news story (WP)

5. Ted Cruz angrily quits interview after being confronted about gun control (Guardian)

6. Cruz storms off after being asked why mass shootings happen ‘only in America’ (WP)

7. Beto O'Rourke interrupts Greg Abbott's Uvalde press conference: "You are doing nothing" (CBS)

8. Gov. Abbott facing mounting criticism for weakened gun laws (WP)

9. Justices to rule in gun case with US raw from mass shootings (AP)

10. NRA to host Texas convention days after Uvalde school shooting (Yahoo)

11. Texas shooting: Where does US gun control go from here? (BBC)

12. After Mass Gun Killings, Other Nations Changed Course — to Notable Effect (NYT)

13. Robb Elementary had security. It didn’t stop a massacre. (Politico)

14. The second-deadliest mass shooting at an elementary school wasn’t enough to shock GOP lawmakers into dropping their objections to gun control. “We’ve had guns forever and we’re gonna continue to have guns,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told reporters. Meanwhile, gun-friendly Republicans, including Donald Trump, Gov. Greg Abbott and Sen. Ted Cruz, are sticking with plans to speak at an NRA convention in Houston Friday. [HuffPost]

15. ‘Horrifying’ conspiracy theories swirl around Texas shooting (AP)

16. California has more gun laws and tougher restrictions than almost any other state, but Democratic leaders are looking to clamp down further on access to firearms following the horrific massacre at a Texas elementary school this week. (Cal Today)

17. The Miami Heat urges fans to call their senators about gun law reform (NPR)

18. Blinken says US is ready to strengthen diplomacy with China in 'charged moment for the world' (CNN)

19. Blinken calls China ‘most serious long-term’ threat to world order (Politico)

20. Advancing Russian forces came closer to surrounding Ukrainian troops in the east, briefly seizing positions on the last highway out of a crucial pair of Ukrainian-held cities before being beaten back, a Ukrainian official said. (Reuters)

21. Ukraine video shows massive Russian explosions: 'What the most horrific war of the 21st century looks like' (Fox)

22. Military briefing: Ukraine’s battlefield agility pays off (Financial Times)

23. Russia claims to control 95% of Luhansk (NHK)

24. The Military Roots of Modern Ukraine (WSJ)

25. Russia slams sanctions, seeks to blame West for food crisis (AP)

26. Trump must answer questions under oath in New York AG probe into business practices, appeals court says (CNBC)

27. ‘Trump is in the past’: Mounting losses show limits of power (AP)

28. Trump indicated support for hanging Pence during Jan. 6 insurrection, panel was told (WP)

29. The next U.S. abortion battle is over pills, and it's already begun (Reuters)

30. Oklahoma is now the state with the most restrictive abortion legislation in the country, after Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) signed a total abortion ban, effectively outlawing the procedure at fertilization. [HuffPost]

31. PayPal lays off 83 San Francisco Bay Area employees (SFGate)

32. Inflation could remain uncomfortably high until 2024, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said. (WP)

33. Elon Musk pledged an additional $6.25 billion in equity financing to fund the $44-billion offer for Twitter, reducing the billionaire's margin loan against his Tesla shares to zero. (Reuters)

34. How to Fix Twitter—And All of Social Media (Atlantic)

35. The U.S. budget deficit is projected to fall to $1 trillion in 2022. (NYT)

36. Giant Magnetic Waves Have Been Discovered Oscillating Around Earth's Core (Science Alert)

37. Northwestern engineers invent the world's smallest remote-controlled walking robots (CNN)

38. Rats Learned to Hide and Seek. Scientists Learned Way More. (Atlantic)

39. College Enrollment Drops, Even as the Pandemic’s Effects Ebb (NYT)

40. BTS To Appear With Joe Biden At White House To Discuss Anti-Asian Hate Crimes (Deadline)

41. On 2nd anniversary of George Floyd’s death, fading momentum for police reform (WP)

42. Tennessee is about to become the 1st state to make camping on public land a felony (NPR)

43. Blaming Chesa Boudin for Crime Is Empirically Wrong (Mother Jones)

44. D.A. Chesa Boudin launches new Asian American Pacific Islander victims services unit (SFC)

45. Palestinians: Israel deliberately killed Al Jazeera reporter (AP)

46. The U.S. plans to protect one of the world’s biggest salmon spawning grounds. (WP)

47. An ocean first: Underwater drone tracks CO2 in Alaska gulf (AP)

48. DNA of Pompeii Man Yields Secrets 2,000 Years Later (WSJ)

49. 'How to Murder Your Husband' writer found guilty of murdering her husband (NPR)

50. Scientists Discover 90% Of Earth’s Atmosphere Made From Thoughts, Prayers (The Onion)

Today’s Lyrics:

“Teach Your Children”

Written by Graham Nash

… You, who are on the road
Must have a code that you can live by
And so, become yourself
Because the past is just a goodbye

… Teach your children well
Their father's hell did slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick's the one you'll know by

… Don't you ever ask them, "Why?"
If they told you, you would cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you

… And you (Can you hear?) of tender years (And do you care?)
Can't know the fears (And can you see?)
That your elders grew by (We must be free)
And so, please help (To teach your children)
Them with your youth (What you believe in)
They seek the truth (Make a world)
Before they can die (That we can live in)

… And teach your parents well
Their children's hell will slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick's the one you'll know by

… Don't you ever ask them, "Why?
If they told you, you will cry
So just look at them and sigh

And know they love you 

Leadership

 

"We are being held hostage by 50 senators in Washington who refuse to even put it to a vote, despite what we the American people want." — Steve Kerr, coach, Golden State Warriors

***

Sometimes it takes an unexpected voice to change the debate. Then again, to label Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr’s voice as “unexpected” is inappropriate since he has been speaking out on social issues for years.

The place and time was unexpected but propitious. With the international press corps assembled for his pre-game remarks, Kerr refused to discuss basketball at all in Dallas on Tuesday to focus instead on the unspeakable tragedy unfolding in the little town of Uvalde a few hundred miles to the south.

Nineteen fourth-graders had just been shot dead, along with two adults.

Kerr chose the moment to put his team’s highly-anticipated NBA playoff game in perspective — after all it was only a game.

But the bloodshed at Robb Elementary School was not a game. Nineteen innocents will never play basketball or any kind of game ever again; their lives have been snuffed out thanks to this country’s unacceptably weak gun ownership laws.

Kerr placed the blame directly where it belongs — on the 50 gutless U.S. senators blocking meaningful gun reform legislation. And by seizing the moment to do that he demonstrated what true leadership all about — in sports, in business, in politics, in life.

Just one of those senators needs to have a change of heart and develop a conscience. Kerr knows that — and also that that reality is far more important than whether he wins or loses any basketball game. 

That’s leadership. Maybe if we are lucky when he ends his coaching career, Kerr will run for public office. 

And, just as an aside, now you know what makes Kerr one of the most successful head coaches in the history of professional sports.

***

On the subject of progressive leadership, in San Francisco, there is new evidence that the police department tried to sabotage District Attorney Chesa Boudin’s attempt to break up an organized crime car-theft ring during the controversial run-up to his recall election June 7th.

Two stories detail the scandal: 

• SF DA Boudin says police refused to help in boba shop bust, so he was forced to rent U-Haul (Yahoo)

• SFPD refused to help stop San Francisco Quickly car burglary ring, report alleges (SFGate)

***

Today’s Top News Stories:

1. Donald Trump endorsed 27 candidates across Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia and the Texas runoffs. His win-loss record took a hit Tuesday. (Politico)

2. Kemp, Raffensperger win in blow to Trump and his false election claims (WP)

3. Brian Kemp trounces Trump-backed David Perdue in a Republican primary battle for Georgia governor. (NYT)

4. Takeaways: Trump’s big defeat; election denial backfiring (AP)

5. America’s gun violence crisis. Gun violence surged to a decadeslong high during the pandemic. Gun homicides jumped 35 percent between 2019 and 2020 and were involved in 80 percent of the nation’s homicides, the highest rate since 1994 (Politico)

6. At least 19 children, 2 adults killed after shooter opens fire at Texas elementary school (CBS)

7. Official: Texas gunman bought two assault rifles on 18th birthday (CNN)

8. 'I'm tired of the moments of silence,' says Warriors coach Steve Kerr as he makes powerful plea against gun violence (CNN)

9. School shooting renews U.S. gun control calls (WP)

10. America’s Hands Are Full of Blood (Atlantic)

11. Will Congress act on guns after Sandy Hook, Buffalo, Uvalde? (AP)

12. President Joe Biden said he is “sick and tired” of lawmakers’ inaction on gun control after the mass shooting in Texas. "Why are we willing to live with this carnage?" Biden asked. Former President Barack Obama argued that “our country is paralyzed — not by fear, but by a gun lobby and a political party that have shown no willingness to act in any way that might prevent these tragedies.” [HuffPost]

13. More than 311,000 students have experienced gun violence at school since Columbine (WP)

14. Why Gun Control in America Is So Hard (Atlantic)

15. Russia’s ships are blockading Ukraine. Its navy now effectively controls traffic in the northern part of the Black Sea, making it unsafe for commercial shipping, the U.S. said. (WP)

16. Bodies of dead Russian soldiers abandoned near Kyiv (BBC)

17. UN: Nearly 4,000 civilians killed in Ukraine, over 6.6 million have fled (NHK)

18. Russia wants ‘to destroy everything’ in Donbas region, Zelensky warns (WP)

19. Russian forces launched offensives on towns in eastern Ukraine with constant mortar bombardment destroying several houses and killing civilians, Ukrainian officials said, as Russia focuses its attack on the industrial Donbas region. Russia is ready to provide a humanitarian corridor for vessels carrying food to leave Ukraine, in return for the lifting of some sanctions, the Interfax news agency cited Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko as saying. (Reuters)

20. U.S. Speeds Up Reshaping of Taiwan’s Defenses to Deter China (NYT)

21. Xinjiang Police Files: Inside a Chinese internment camp (BBC)

22. New poll: 54% of Americans disapprove of Supreme Court following Roe draft opinion leak (CNN)

23. Biden's public approval rating fell this week to 36%, the lowest level of his presidency, as Americans suffered from rising inflation, according to a poll. (Reuters)

24. SF DA Boudin says police refused to help in boba shop bust, so he was forced to rent U-Haul (Yahoo)

25. SFPD refused to help stop San Francisco Quickly car burglary ring, report alleges (SFGate)

26. Trailer Released For Documentary On Progressive San Francisco D.A. Chesa Boudin As He Fights Recall Vote (Deadline)

27. Taliban ordered female newscasters to cover up. Men joined in protest. (WP)

28. 1.1 million Afghan children could face severe malnutrition (AP)

29. Remote learning apps are collecting data on millions of kids. Nearly 90% of 164 common educational tools shared that information — including keystroke data, location, contacts and more — with ad companies, a new study found. (WP)

30. Kelp Is Weirdly Great at Sucking Carbon Out of the Sky (Atlantic)

31. Concerned NRA Official Rushes Out To Purchase Congressman Following Mass Shooting (The Onion)

TODAY’s LYRICS:

“Hurt”

Nine Inch Nails, Johnny Cash

Written by Michael Trent Reznor

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real

The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end

And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair

Beneath the stains of time
The feelings disappear
You are someone else
I'm still right here

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end

And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

When the Singing Stops

“The best and perhaps only way to preserve our civilisation is to defeat Putin as soon as possible. That’s the bottom line.” — George Soros

***

Today’s main story is a warning from the philanthropist George Soros that the Ukrainian war may become the start of World War III, without concerted action. Soros, who is a consistent voice against authoritarianism and therefore a target for right-wing extremists, says the solution is for the world to unite and get rid of Putin.

Otherwise, the consequences could be dire for life on earth.

***

Although these may be especially gloomy times, it’s worth remembering there’s almost always something we can do for someone else during our life here while we still have it.

In that context, the 2017 Netflix documentary about music producer Clive Davis’s astonishing career (“The Soundtrack of Our Lives”) is a useful reminder that most of us, “successful” or not, go through lots of ups and downs on a regular basis.

Davis’s own life has been like an extended three-act play. (He’s now 90.) He can look back on being fired very publicly two times, two marriages that ended in divorce, coming out as bisexual, a bunch of lifetime achievement awards, four kids he loves deeply and more hit records than anyone could possibly keep track of.

Notice there is no “but” in that description, just “and.” 

What interests me in particular about Davis is that his career is and was exclusively about recognizing the musical talent inside other people. He had no great talent of his own other than that one peculiar ability. But what an eye for talent he had!

Of all the brilliant artists he helped turn into stars, and there were dozens, maybe hundreds, it was his relationship with Whitney Houston that is the most touching in a universal kind of way. The documentary reflects that. The singer’s battles with addiction — ultimately leading to her premature death at age 48 — represented an awful tragedy, and one that mirrors that of so many others, mostly unknown with stories never told.

The stigma surrounding addiction remain alive and well in American culture while it appears the disease itself is no better understood today than it ever was. Hundreds of thousands if not millions still die annually. The obituaries simply say they died from an overdose, or complications of alcoholism or drug use, or suicide — as if any of that is a satisfactory explanation. 

For me it isn’t; all it leads to is the question “Why?” 

Effective treatments for addicts do exist. They are expensive and difficult and they may not work at first for most people, who then give up and simply suffer with little relief until the end.

So back to Clive Davis and Whitney Houston. Near the end he tried to help her but she lied to him about the extent of her addiction. That is another common element of everyone’s story — the secrecy, the denials, the lies. 

You know, there is a certain kind of art that may seem to stem from addiction or maybe the addiction stems from the art, who knows for sure. What’s certain is that some addicts tell themselves that their habit helps them create their art. And that may even be true for a while — until it isn’t.

Then addiction simply does what it does best — it kills them. And that is the end of yet another sad song.

NOTE: Addiction help: call 1-800-662-4357.

***

Today’s Top Stories (37 headlines from 20 news outlets):

1. Ukraine invasion may be start of ‘third world war’, says George Soros. Veteran philanthropist tells World Economic Forum civilisation ‘may not survive’ what is coming (Guardian)

2. Georgia Gov. Kemp defeats Trump-backed challenger, former Senator Perdue in GOP primary (Yahoo)

3. Brad Raffensperger defeats Trump bid to oust him as Georgia’s top election official (Guardian)

4. Republican former Sen. David Perdue, who is running for governor in Georgia, made several racist attacks on presumptive Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams, who is black, saying she was “demeaning her own race” and should “go back to where she came from.” [HuffPost]

5. Trump is losing his stranglehold on Republicans (Financial Times)

6. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) won the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, warning former President Donald Trump remains one of the greatest threats to American democracy. "We face a threat we have never faced before: a former president attempting to unravel our constitutional republic,” Cheney said. [HuffPost]

7. Texas shooting: Fifteen killed in attack at US primary school (BBC)

8. Active shootings increased significantly last year in the U.S. (WP)

9. San Francisco’s Economic Elite Is Gunning for Chesa Boudin (Jacobin)

10. Male Afghan TV anchors cover faces in solidarity with women after a Taliban order (NPR)

11. 'They were shooting directly at the journalists': New evidence suggests Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in targeted attack by Israeli forces (CNN)

12. New Justice Dept. policy says agents must intervene if they see abuse (WP)

13. President Joe Biden said there was no change to a U.S. policy of "strategic ambiguity" on Taiwan, a day after he angered China by saying he would be willing to use force to defend the democratic island. (Reuters)

14. Police reform efforts stall as second anniversary of George Floyd’s murder approaches (WP)

15. Why Biden Is Right to End Ambiguity on Taiwan (Atlantic)

16. Would the World Be Better Without Philanthropists? (New Yorker)

17. Uyghur abuse files go public as U.N. rights chief visits China's Xinijang region (WP)

18. The Coming Legal Battles Over Abortion Pills (Politico)

19. The crypto winter is into its ninth week and bitcoin can't shake the chills. From technicals to turnover, market indicators are flashing red or amber for the biggest cryptocurrency, which has lost a third of its value in just two months. (Reuters)

20. After 3 months, Russia still bogged down in Ukraine war (AP)

21. Along Ukraine’s northern border with Russia, fears of a new invasion (WP)

22. Ukraine: 200 bodies found in basement in Mariupol’s ruins (AP)

23. They basically got everything wrong’: A Russian diplomat speaks out on the war. (NYT)

24. US to end Russia’s ability to pay international investors (AP)

25. Russian forces were launching an all-out assault to encircle Ukrainian troops in twin cities straddling a river in eastern Ukraine, a battle which could determine the success or failure of Moscow's main campaign in the east. (Reuters)

26. Difficult weeks ahead in Donbas, Zelensky warns; E.U. nears oil embargo deal (WP)

27. Zelenskyy tells NHK Ukraine will not cede any land (NHK)

28. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that President Vladimir Putin was the only Russian official he was willing to meet with to discuss how to end the war. (Reuters)

29. Putin made ‘big strategic mistake’ in Ukraine, NATO chief says in Davos (WP)

30. Stormy repeat: NOAA predicts busy Atlantic hurricane season (AP)

31. How Old Are You Really? Meet Your ‘Biological Age’ (WSJ)

32. The Unique Challenge of Raising Teenagers Right Now (Atlantic)

33. This 830-million-year-old crystal might contain life. And we're about to open it (NPR)

34. Flying reptile: Remains of scary prehistoric creature discovered (BBC)

35. California Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to impose mandatory water restrictions if residents don’t use less on their own as a drought drags on and the hotter summer months approach. [AP]

36. Monarch butterflies bounce back in Mexico wintering grounds (Guardian)

37. South Asia’s intense heat wave a ‘sign of things to come’ (AP)

38. Affection For Restaurant Dialed Back Upon Realization It A Chain (The Onion)

***

TODAY’s LYRICS:

“Just One More”

Written and Sung by (the great) George Jones

Put the bottle on the table
Let it stay there till I'm not able
To see your face in ev'ry place that I go
I've been sitting here so long
Just remembering that you are gone
Well, one more drink of wine
Then if you're still on my mind
One drink, just one more, and then another

I'll keep drinking, it won't matter
I'll just remember that I once had her
I don't know why I sit and cry every day
I've been trying to forget, but I haven't stopped as yet
Well, one more drink of wine
Then if you're still on my mind
One drink, just one more, and then another

Put the bottle on the table
Let it stay there till I'm not able
To see your face in ev'ry place that I go
I've been sitting here so long
Just remembering that you are gone
Well, one more drink of wine
Then if you're still on my mind

One drink, just one more, and then another 

Who's Afraid of Chesa Boudin?

 “George: Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Martha: I am, George. I am.” 
― Edward Albee, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

***

San Francisco voters will go to the polls on June 7th to decide whether to recall their district attorney, Chesa Boudin.

If you believe the pundits and the polls funded by those pushing for his recall, Boudin has already lost. Trailing by margins exceeding two-to-one, he is said to have zero chance to defeat Prop H and remain in office.

Personally, I’m reserving judgement. Stranger things have happened in this city than a last-minute election surprise. Plus I’ve been at three of Boudin’s rallies in recent weeks — two virtually and one in person — and I believe we may be witnessing the emergence of a national politician right here by the bay.

Even if he is recalled, Boudin could emerge as a winner. There’s worse things that can happen than losing a flawed election early in your career. Ask Barack Obama.

Just think of the national name recognition Boudin has rapidly achieved, mainly thanks to the multi-millIon-dollar recall effort mounted against him by right-wing donors opposed to his criminal justice reform policies.

But Boudin faces a steep uphill battle. First, it’s an off-year election, when voter turnout usually is low and voters are fatigued and distracted. He also faces the entrenched local opposition of the conservative police union and an incestuous City Hall political machine headed by a hostile mayor who wants to reinstall her own DA. 

Also, early on Boudin probably underestimated how much the mood of many voters has shifted from supporting police reform post-George Floyd to widespread irritation with the petty street crimes, homelessness and drug use that have long plagued this and other big cities.

These troubling and significant issues predated Boudin’s half-term in office, of course, and also have precious little to do with who the district attorney happens to be, but they do not work in his favor, either. Especially because his opponents are constantly and unfairly blaming him for them.

Many citizens have been influenced by those critics. Thus the poll results.

So the biggest problem Boudin faces is bad publicity funded by the massive war chest deployed against him by PACS created by rich outsiders paying for the hit pieces and attack ads that have done deep and undeniable damage. Propaganda of this sort usually works, especially when it’s of the fear-mongering variety. 

But there’s another side to this story and it’s only developing very late in the game. False negative publicity sometimes can boomerang and have unforeseen consequences. And that may be what’s happening right now in San Francisco. The full-court media press generated by the likes of Fox ‘s Tucker Carlson are helping to transform Boudin from the relative obscurity of a struggling and unproven, first-term DA into a national figure with potential star power like a Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or a Stacey Abrams.

He isn’t there yet but the fact that Boudin is calmly sticking with his idealistic, reformist principles during this uproar and not pandering to voters is likely beginning to enhance his image among liberals and moderates, and that could matter over the longer term. 

Others are definitely noticing. Surprisingly, Boudin has been able to turn around what was initially and universally a barrage of negative local media coverage into endorsements from the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Examiner, a major Chinese-language publication and several other locally influential media outlets.

When I spoke with him after one rally recently, Boudin struck me as a thoughtful, low-key person who connects easily and conveys a deep sense of the conviction of his beliefs. Watching him work his crowds of supporters, it was easy to see that he naturally generates a genuine personal charisma among the young and old alike. 

Recent anecdotal reports from his campaign suggest that Boudin’s effort to keep his job may be finally starting to generate excitement locally from supporters who’ve until now been mainly dormant. 

Volunteers going door-to-door say they are encountering a substantial reservoir of sympathy for Boudin across the city’s neighborhoods. Many San Franciscans do not appreciate the fact that outside influencers who are driving this recall effort. His campaign has also been boosted by politically significant endorsements from a number of groups and officials, including law enforcement experts and several fellow DAs. 

Local celebrities like Danny Glover, Peter Coyote and John Legend are behind him; they are appearing at fundraising events that will energize his supporters in the final days leading up to the election.

In the end, this may all prove to be too little, too late, but if Boudin should beat the odds and pull off a last-minute upset victory, don’t say that someone didn’t warn you it might happen. :)

Anyway, the bottom line is that win or lose the recall, Boudin is emerging as a formidable political figure to be reckoned with for years to come.

So who’s afraid of Chesa Boudin? The political right, that’s who.

And they should be.

Today’s Stories (42):

1. The case for recalling SF DA Chesa Boudin: There isn’t one. But that hardly matters. (Mission Local)

2. SF Mayor Breed wants more cops; the Supes want to see some serious reforms at SFPD (48 Hills)

3. 'We Are All More Than Our Worst Mistake': Five Takeaways From SF District Attorney Chesa Boudin's Appearance at KQED (KQED)

4. Report: SFPD Refused to Participate in Quickly Burglary Ring Bust, Boudin Had to Rent His Own U-Haul (SFist)

5. Prominent Endorsements Fail to Sway SF Voters on DA Chesa Boudin Recall in June (California Globe)

6. “Here in SF, and across the country, we are seeing the rise of a right wing movement. A movement that doesn’t believe in equal justice. A movement that doesn’t believe in ending mass incarceration or investing in victim services or language access. This movement is pitting groups that have long been oppressed and systematically excluded against one other. The fight is real, it is now, and it is right here. We need your help.” (Chesa Boudin/Facebook)

7. Biden says U.S. would respond 'militarily' if China attacked Taiwan (CNN)

8. No change in U.S. policy towards Taiwan, says White House official (Reuters)

9. The U.S. is deliberately unclear about its policy toward Taiwan. (WP)

10. China objects to Biden's remarks over Taiwan defense (NHK)

11. Biden announces Indo-Pacific economic pact to counter China (NBC)

12. Taiwan excluded from Biden's 13-nation Indo-Pacific trade plan (Politico)

13. Ukraine said it had held off the latest assault on an eastern city that has become the main target of Moscow's offensive since Russian forces finally seized Mariupol last week. (Reuters)

14. Russian sentenced to life in Ukraine’s 1st war crimes trial (AP)

15. ‘Such Bad Guys Will Come’: How One Russian Brigade Terrorized Bucha (NYT)

16. Russia-Ukraine war: Azovstal prisoners face tribunal in Donetsk (Guardian)

17. Up to 100 Ukrainian soldiers are killed every day, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Russia’s death toll is estimated to be higher than 13,000 since its invasion began. (WP)

18. Zelenskiy told a meeting of global business leaders at Davos that the world faced a turning point and had to ratchet up sanctions against Russia as a warning to other countries considering using brute force. (Reuters)

19. Zelenskyy urges ‘maximum’ sanctions on Russia in Davos talk (AP)

20. Zelensky calls for global plan to rebuild Ukraine after war (Financial Times)

21. ‘Ashamed’ Top Russian Diplomat Leaves United Nations Over Putin’s ‘Warmongering’ (Daily Beast)

22. Ukrainian official warns Russia is bombarding city with ‘scorched earth’ tactics (WP)

23. Starbucks will exit Russia after 15 years, closing 130 licensed cafes (CNBC)

24. After 3 months of war, life in Russia has profoundly changed (AP)

25. Putin will be in a sanatorium and out of power by 2023, former British intelligence chief predicts (Yahoo)

26. Russian-Speaking Technologists Rebuild Their Lives in a San Francisco Home (NYT)

27. Billionaire wealth increased to staggering levels amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with a new billionaire being created every 30 hours over the past two years, according to a new report from Oxfam. Meanwhile, this year alone Oxfam expects more than 260 million people to be pushed into extreme poverty. [HuffPost]

28. Pfizer says 3 COVID shots protect children under 5 (AP)

29. Beijing authorities extended work-from-home guidance for many of its 22 million residents to stem a persistent COVID-19 outbreak, while Shanghai deployed more testing and curbs to hold on to its hard-won 'zero COVID' status after two months of lockdown. (Reuters)

30. As Biden Zeroes In on Student-Loan Forgiveness Decision, Voter Anxiety Grows (WSJ)

31. Newsom’s presidential window is narrow. He doesn’t seem to mind. (Politico)

32. A military plane carrying enough specialty infant formula for more than half a million baby bottles arrived in Indianapolis, the first of several flights expected from Europe. New York Mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency over the shortage that has sent parents scrambling to find enough to feed their children. [AP]

33. Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R - ARK) insisted victims of rape and incest should be allowed to have abortions despite him signing a so-called trigger law that outlaws nearly all abortions in his state, including those resulting from incest or rape. [HuffPost]

34. Dow Climbs 600 Points as Stocks Bounce Back (WSJ)

35. Millions Displaced and Dozens Dead in Flooding in India and Bangladesh (NYT) 

36. The homes of more than 1,000 Palestinian people are being destroyed this month in the Israeli-occupied West Bank after an Israeli court gave the military permission to turn the land into a firing range. (WP)

37. Mountains of sugar have been found in the ocean under seagrass meadows (Yahoo)

38. Hubble data suggests 'something weird' is going on in the universe (Interesting Engineering)

39. Russia's war in Ukraine is threatening an outpost of cooperation in space (NPR)

40. More than half a dozen wildfires broke out across California in a 48-hour span late last week, an unsettling picture of what’s to come as temperatures warm and drought conditions worsen this summer. Though California saw record rainfall in the final three months of 2021, that was followed by an unusually dry January through March. California went from 88 percent of its land being considered in extreme or exceptional drought down to 1 percent immediately after the heavy rains, but it is now back up to 60 percent, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. (Cal Today)

41. Large swaths of the U.S. set daily temperature records (NPR)

42. Cat Seemed Perfectly Content Right Up Until Point He Bolted Out Of Room (The Onion)

Land Without Love (Afghan Conversation.32)

[NOTE: This is the latest in a series of conversations I have been having with a young Afghan friend about how life there has changed on a deeply personal level since the Taliban took over his country last August. I am keeping his identity secret in order to protect his safety.]

Dear David:

When I went to college in Kabul, a few years before the Taliban takeover, I had a group of close friends, including some girls. On holidays, we would go out together to restaurants, parks, and the hills around Kabul. We freely strolled, joked, and giggled in the streets and alleys and no one monitored what we did. 

During that time I also had a girlfriend. Our favorite pastime was walking. Whenever we could, we walked for two or three hours on the streets, and went to our favorite coffee shop to have meals. We were never bothered by anybody. 

Sometimes I kissed her in public. Before the Taliban, friendship and relationships like ours were ordinary things. But that was then. 

Now, the freedom to even walk in public with a girlfriend is only a remote fantasy.

Two months ago, for example, I went to Kabul. One day I visited a restaurant that I sometimes went to when I was in college. The restaurants in Kabul have “public” and “family” sections. Only men can eat in the public section. Any group that includes a woman or girls is restricted to the family section. 

So during my recent visit, my female friend and I sat in the family section. It was almost empty, there was just one other couple sitting there. In the same restaurant as recently as two years ago, more than 50 people would have been there. 

I could see fear in my friend's eyes while we were eating. A local journal called Etilaat-e-Roz reported a week ago that the Taliban is now routinely going to every coffee shop and arresting girls and boys who have an “illegal” relationship. My friend was afraid that the Taliban would come and demand to know about our relationship, and then arrest us because we are friends, not relatives.

This is what life has become for us under the Taliban -– living in constant fear of discovery. We are not allowed to have lovers or even friends of the opposite sex.

Today’s Headlines:

1. Taliban enforcing face-cover order for female TV anchors (AP)

2. From Sandy Hook to Buffalo: Ten years of failure on gun control (WP)

3. Putin's leadership is unraveling as he takes regular breaks for medical treatment and is constantly surrounded by doctors, says British ex-spy (Business Insider)

4. The Russian Orthodox Leader at the Core of Putin’s Ambitions (NYT)

5. Ukraine Won't End the War Against Russia on the Battlefield: Zelensky (Newsweek)

6. Ukraine rules out giving Russia land in ceasefire deal (BBC)

7. Pounded by Russian offensive in the east, Ukraine rules out ceasefire (Reuters)

8. Russia presses Donbas offensive as Polish leader visits Kyiv (AP)

9. Russia tries to rebound as prospects for victory fade (WP)

10. Russian officer reveals why he risked it all to quit Putin's war (CNN)

11. Fate of 2,500 Ukrainian POWs from steel plant stirs concern (Politico)

12. Ukraine’s first lady details war’s toll on the Zelensky family (WP)

13. UN: Over 6.4 million have fled Ukraine (NHK)

14. Ukraine EU bid could take 20 years, says French minister (Guardian)

15. Shi'ite "shrine defender" assassinated in Tehran, Tasnim reports (Reuters)

16. Biden says ‘everybody’ should be concerned about spread of monkeypox (Guardian)

17. ‘Urgency’: WHO expects more monkeypox cases globally (Al Jazeera)

18. Alzheimer’s Researchers Probe New Treatment Paths (WSJ)

19. Giuliani Meets With Jan. 6 Committee for Over 7 Hours (NYT)

20. The Election Denier Who Could Run Michigan’s Elections (Atlantic)

21. The spread — and limits — of Trump’s election denialism (Politico)

22. Georgia Governor Race Is a Test for Trump. It Isn’t Going Well. (WSJ)

23. Perdue Had Trump. In Georgia, Kemp Had Everything Else. (NYT)

24. A surge in Navy deserters could be a sign of a bigger problem for the military (NPR)

25. ‘Millions’ at risk of death as Ukraine war hits food supplies, Egypt warns (Financial Times)

26. Britain slashes humanitarian aid by 51% despite global food crisis (BBC)

27. The Carrington Event: History's greatest solar storm (Space.com)

28. 15 Ways Consumers Can Deal With—and Even Benefit From—Rising Inflation (WSJ)

29. Kids Are Far, Far Behind in School (Atlantic)

30. Professor Brian Cox: Maybe humans are the Martians (BBC)

31. 'SNL' stars Pete Davidson, Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant exit with alien abductions, sweet memories (USA Today)

32. ‘The end of western civilisation’: Triangle of Sadness director explains modelling world satire (Guardian)

33. Reality Of Fatherhood Never Truly Dawned On Man Until He Held Newborn Son’s Hospital Bill (The Onion)