#66 Francesca Fiorentini (Comedian, Journalist)
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Hello, and welcome to another edition of Inside The Newsroom! I\\u2019m vacationing in Greece this week, but that ain\\u2019t no damn reason for no podcast. Bad English aside, today\\u2019s guest is\\u2026 Francesca Fiorentini, journalist, author, comedian and officially the funniest person to grace Inside The Newsroom\\u2019s airwaves. Francesca is the host and head writer of Newsbroke on AJ+, contributor to The Young Turks, and host of Red, White and Who? on MSNBC. Below\\u2019s a post-game of everything we talked about and more. But first, my top articles of the week\\u2026 Enjoy \\U0001f913
* $70,000 minimum salary \\u2014 The boss of a card payments company in Seattle introduced a $70,000 minimum salary for his staff, and the gamble has paid off
* Climate crisis \\u2014 Where does each Democratic candidate stand on the climate crisis?
* Super Tuesday \\u2014 The 14 states\\u2019 economies can be split into four types
Francesca \\U0001f447
The \\u2018Trump Effect\\u2019 on Comedy
Francesca began as a journalist and editor for multiple outlets before taking up stand up comedy in 2011, thus beginning her hilarious intertwined brand of comedy and journalism. She\\u2019s the latest up-and-comer of a trend made most famous by the legendary Jon Stewart, whose The Daily Show blurred the line between comedy and journalism so much that, at some points over the past decade, was the source of honest news in America. Stewart\\u2019s meteoric rise to fame shadowed the changing media landscape that allowed his epic rants and satirical takedowns of Fox News to go viral across the interwebs.
Nowadays we have the likes of Michelle Wolf, Jon Oliver and Trevor Noah carrying the torch and blurring the line even further. And that\\u2019s where Francesca comes in, who managed to convince Al Jazeera to give her a shot with Newsbroke, and boy did it work out. MSNBC soon came calling with Red, White and Who?, which landed her across the table in a diner with Bernie Sanders.
State of Cable News
For all our complaints about cable news, and don\\u2019t worry, there\\u2019s plenty in the next section, the Big Three cable news outlets are doing just fine. In fact, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News are doing more than fine: In 2018, they recorded a combined $5.3 billion in revenue, by far the most they\\u2019ve ever generated and a 36 percent increase since 2015. Much of that spike was due to the \\u2018Donald Trump Effect\\u2019, which has sparked a renewed ratings war between the networks. But while millions of people are still glued to their TV screens, the rise of alternative media on both sides of the political spectrum has fragmented the market even further. The term \\u201c24/7 news cycle\\u201d feels weirdly archaic.
It\\u2019s because of the billions of dollars in the coffers that the cable networks must do better. Yes, they\\u2019ve 24 hours of programming to fill per day, and yes there\\u2019s nothing more in this world better than watching Wolf Blitzer stare dead-eyed into a camera on election night surrounded by 200 lobbyists and political operatives, but they have the resources to actually give us quality programs and not just excess garbage squeezed out from the sausage factory. Anthony Bourdain\\u2019s Parts Unknown was an incredible look at the world through food and people. And Lisa Ling\\u2019s This Is Life brilliantly shines a light on life and culture around the globe. But the rest of cable news has turned into an opinion-fuelled orgy (yes I coined that all by myself \\U0001f60a) which only fractures the political spectrum even more. Give us more Lisa Ling. Give us more Anthony Bourdain (RIP).
Chris Matthews and Chuck Todd Show Their True Colors. It\\u2019s Brown.
Cable news is doing great financially, there\\u2019s no denying that. But the thing about elections and controversial presidents like Trump is that they come in cycles, literally. As we discussed above, ratings and revenues have soared because of Trump\\u2019s provocative rhetoric and general idiocy, but the ratings and profits will inevitably recede to the flat numbers from before Trump when he leaves the White House, whether that\\u2019s in 2021 or 2025. But what\\u2019s less prone to election cycles is people\\u2019s memory and anger toward corruption and conspiring against a frontrunner, which is where former journalists Chris Matthews and Chuck Todd enter the fray.
Mr. Todd will need to face reality at some point to figure out his confusion of how Bernie is the frontrunner in the Democratic primary race. But what will be even more damaging to MSNBC\\u2019s long-term reputation is the constant smears of progressive candidates and their supporters. If anyone from the progressive camp even thought about comparing a politician to the Nazis, the establishment would pile on with endless criticism. But when not one but TWO MSNBC anchors compared Bernie\\u2019s rise \\u2014 who himself is Jewish and whose family were murdered by the Nazis \\u2014 to the Nazis invading France, the shocking reality of how low some centrists will stoop to stop Bernie is disgusting. After Matthews\\u2019 hollow apology and an accusation of sexual harassment by GQ columnist Laura Bassett, MSNBC pulled Matthews from its coverage of the South Carolina primary on Saturday. But the damage has been done. Thank the lord for Anand Giridharadas, because until MSNBC overhauls its roster of lobbyists, its reputation will remain stained.
Can We Stop Climate Change and Keep Capitalism?
Francesca has traveled to all parts of America over the past few years for various reporting and joke making. I asked her what issue has been underreported in the media, and her response was climate change, still. Lots of reasons can explain why, despite institutions including the UN declaring a climate emergency, the climate crisis is still not taken seriously enough. Perhaps the most telling reason is that most people don\\u2019t feel they\\u2019re affected by climate change (they are) and hence the likes of healthcare and the economy (still important) continue to dominate headlines. But that\\u2019s what many outlets are missing: Climate change is making healthcare more expensive and costing the economy billions of dollars each year.
Which brings us onto our next topic: Is capitalism responsible for the climate emergency? The answer is yes, or no, depending on who you ask, but neither answer is as simple as a single syllable. It\\u2019s certainly no coincidence that the rise in the world\\u2019s emissions coincides with the explosion of globalisation that\\u2019s sent our obsession with economic growth through the roof. We\\u2019ve all played a part in fuelling capitalism, with or without knowing the implications on the environment. That\\u2019s undeniable. But where the argument becomes more nuanced, is how to escape the mess\\u2026 I don\\u2019t have the answer to that, sorry.
Thanks for reading this week. To sign us off, enjoy a funny 10 minutes from today\\u2019s amazing guest\\u2026
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