THE DAILY NEWSLETTER  - MONDAY, AUGUST 17, 2020

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNER:
NBC News

Plan Your Vote. That's the message, and tool, from NBC News, announced today just 77 days before the election and on the first day of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

The PSA campaign features network and MSNBC stars from Lester Holt to Joy Reid, and encourages citizens to exercise their right to vote, and offers the tool to help do it.

It's a very handy tool, done by state, with details on mail-in and absentee voting, rules about what ID is necessary, if any, and all the pertinent deadlines.

NBC News chief marketing officer Aaron Taylor told Adweek that the company has been interested in an NBC branded take on MTV's Rock the Vote model for some time.

“We wanted to, in a non-partisan way, inform and educate viewers and let them know that they need a game plan if they’re going to be able to vote safely, and if they’re going to be able to vote in time so that their votes are counted,” he said. “Instead of just trying to figure out what our ‘Rock the Vote’ was, we had the opportunity to provide a service.”

It's good timing squared. It's not just the looming deadlines or even the convention, but the national worries about the USPS and mail-in voting that have dominated headlines over the last few days.

It's worth checking out, and definitely a media winner.

MEDIA LOSER:
The Lincoln Project

The anti-Trump PAC The Lincoln Project came under fire this past week after a number of examples of the organization stealing social media content came to light.

The Lincoln Project was founded in 2019 by a group of former Republican operatives including attorney George Conway, political strategist Rick Wilson, and Steve Schmidt , as an active political action committee aimed at ensuring Donald Trump loses in 2020.

There have been some minor setbacks in the public footing for the group, but the ads they have put out have been wildly successful online and in making an impact on the public consciousness.

Still, several examples of apparent social media content theft were identified in the past few days, an effort that began after the group tweeted a clearly copied USPS parody video with the same caption and footage as the original without offering any credit.

The creator of the video questioned on Twitter whether she could DMCA the Lincoln Project, before adding, “DOUBLE **** these guys because they support the privatization of the mail industry. Go buy some stamps and call your representatives.”

The PAC's main purpose is in public relations and affecting public opinion. The incident, which was viral on social media, not only undermines their own public image, it raised doubts about their existing messaging already out there

JUST IN

Portland Protesters Caught on Video Beating Man Unconscious Following Truck Crash

The A-Block

The DNC Begins Tonight

The first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention kicks off on Monday night. Wondering how to watch, when to watch, and who will be speaking?

Here’s what you need to know.

The USPS Saga Continues

Fox News anchor Chris Wallace believes President Donald Trump’s concerns about mail-in voting are not without merit. 

“Hear me out for a minute,” Wallace said on Sunday. “Isn’t it possible that the president really has a point here?

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough had a decidedly different take, and blasted Postmaster General Louis DeJoy on Monday.

CNN's Jake Tapper clashed with Mark Meadows over it on Sunday.

Sen. Bernie Sanders is angry about it, and so is Carl Bernstein, who said it's "an unprecedented crisis."

And former NBA player Rex Chapman? He is NOT helping.

SHOCK POLL

After months of major national polls showing former Vice President Joe Biden with a sizable margin over President Trump — a new CNN result shows the incumbent closing the gap in a big way.

Yay unrest!

Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) called on Americans to crank up “unrest in the streets” in a weekend interview on MSNBC.

“I’m looking to the public,” Pressley told guest host Tiffany Cross during a Saturday edition of Morning Joy. “You know, there needs to be unrest in the streets for as long as there’s unrest in our lives.”

Cardi B Good

Grammy-winning rapper Cardi B interviewed former Vice President Joe Biden for Elle magazine’s September cover story — and was able to get the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee to say there's “no reason” the United States couldn’t have universal health coverage.

You can't spin this

Sen. Mitt Romney blasted President Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, arguing there’s no way to spin the number of deaths that took place under the president’s watch. "The numbers speak for themselves," he said.

You can't spin this, either.

Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean filleted New York Governor Andrew Cuomo as she gave virtual testimony against his nursing home policies, which she holds responsible for the deaths of her parents-in-law.

Dean participated in a forum hosted by New York State Senate Republicans on Monday, which comes a week after she was disinvited from a public hearing on New York’s nursing home deaths from the coronavirus pandemic.

"Our grief and confusion turned to anger as we learned more about how elder care homes were turned into death traps," she said in the emotional and devastating testimony.

Must See Clips

"This should be worrying"

After a brief hiatus, John Oliver returned to late-night to tackle a busy week of news - and conspiracy theories.

Between a Q supporter winning a GOP primary and the president pushing Birtherism II, Oliver had his hands full in this awesome takedown. It's not every day you hear the words "a global conspiracy involving a ring of Satan-worshipping, child-molesting criminals led by prominent Democrats," after all.

It's pretty epic.

Links We Like

On the Post Office 'sabotage'
- via The Monday Notice
Joe Biden's long and rocky road to the Democratic nomination
- via NPR

USPS's REAL problem with handling mail-in voting
- via The Atlantic
Social distancing saves lives. Here’s the proof.
- via Popular Science

No, Kamala Harris is not generating a surge of support for Biden
- via Morning Jolt
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