THE DAILY NEWSLETTER - THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2022
Taylor Lorenz on Why She's Moving to the Washington Post, What Happened
at the Times, and How to Deal With Smear Campaigns

Media Winners & Losers

MEDIA WINNERS:
George Stephanopoulos

ABC’s George Stephanopoulos interrogated Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov over his country’s war with Ukraine on Thursday.

During a press roundtable for Russian television, parts of which were aired on Good Morning America, Stephanopoulos said to Lavrov: “The world is seeing civilians being killed in Ukraine by Russian bombs. The world is hearing the lies Russia is telling about those attacks, the world is uniting to condemn those attacks and those lies.”

“How can you defend them?” Stephanopoulos asked.

“I cannot comment [on] conjectures and there is a great deal of these now,” Lavrov replied.

Accurate estimates of death tolls are hard to come by in active war zones, but horrific attacks on civilians have been documented in reports and footage since Russia began its ground invasion and bombing campaign. 

Lavrov accused the United States of seeking to “close down” Russian media outlets, which he said have shown “how the Ukrainian army and the neo-Nazi battalions behave towards the peaceful civilians.”

The reference to neo-Nazis is a reiteration of the Kremlin’s laughable claim that their invasion of Ukraine is an effort to “de-Nazify” the country, which is currently led by a Jewish president, Volodymyr Zelensky.

Stephanopoulos pressed Lavrov on that claim that Ukraine is run by neo-Nazis.

The questions exposed the absurdity of Russia's propaganda. That's the right way to interview a hostile actor.

MEDIA LOSER:
Kanye West

Kanye West has sent a pretty alarming message to Pete Davidson.

Hours after Kim Kardashian was granted legal emancipation from West, now legally known as Ye, the rapper posted a music video for his song “Eazy,” which shows him kidnapping and burying a claymation version of his ex’s new beau.

In the video, West’s avatar sneaks up on Davidson’s character while he smokes a cigarette. West then puts a potato sack over Davidson’s head and straps him onto the back of a motorcycle — which is likely a reference to the rapper’s iconic music video for “Bound 2.”

The clip goes on to show West burying Davidson from the neck down, later planting rose flower seeds and pouring liquid on the comedian, which causes flowers to sprout from his head.

West then trims the roses from Davidson’s head and puts them in the back of a truck before driving off.

The moment is a clear reference the truck full of roses that West delivered to Kardashian’s house on Valentine’s Day, despite the fact that she was already dating Davidson at the time.

West ended his video with a message that read, “Everyone lived happily ever after,” adding,”except Skete,” which is the derogatory nickname the rapper uses for Davidson.

“JK he’s fine,” he concluded.

West also took aim at Davidson in the lyrics to his song “Eazy.”

But the beyond creepy video is much worse than lyrical trash talk. In fact, the whole thing is downright uncomfortable. Alarming, even.

The A-Block

Russia Cracks Down on Journalists

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to dominate the news and Vladimir Putin’s deadly onslaught struggles to achieve its brutal goals, Russia’s last independent news outlets are being forced to shutter under pressure.

On Tuesday, Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office ordered both TV Rain, also known as Dozhd, and a radio station, Radio Echo, also known as Echo of Moscow, to have their access within the country restricted.

As CNN’s Brian Stelter reported on Thursday morning, “TV Rain’s Editor-in-Chief Tikhon Dzyadko announced on Telegram that he and his family, along with the editorial staff, have left Russia.”

“After the blocking of Dozhd’s website, Dozhd’s social media accounts, and the threat against some employees, it is obvious that the personal safety of some of us is at risk,” Dzyadko said Wednesday.

Dzyadko is not the only Russian journalist fleeing the country fearing for his safety. As Reuters notes, “Russian journalists have faced an increasingly difficult environment in recent years, with many being designated by the authorities as ‘foreign agents,’ a status that snares them in official paperwork and exposes them to public contempt.”

State Department spokesman Ned Price released a statement condemning Russia's crackdown on the free press and on social media outlets, calling it a "full assault" on the truth.

The shutdowns are “a big blow to independent media in Russia after years of intensifying pressure," as Reuters put it. It's an assault not just on truth and a free press, but another weapon of oppression Putin is using against the Ukrainian people.

This man, who spoke to CNN's Anderson Cooper, sums it up rather nicely.

GET ALL OUR UKRAINE COVERAGE HERE


In Other News...

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'Rest in Peace, Dear Comrade': Investor HILARIOUSLY Toasts Death of Russia's Stock Market

‘Cut Them Some Slack’: Pat Sajak Defends Contestants From Mockery of ‘Feather in Your Map’ Puzzle

CHRISTOPHER: ‘Stop Bullying Kids!’ High School Freshman Who Defied DeSantis and Kept Mask On Speaks Out — And So Does His Dad

Must See Clip

Comfort and Shelter for Urkainian Refugees

Reuters posted a video on Wednesday night of Germans gathering at a train station to embrace Ukrainian refugees fleeing their country amid the Russian military invasion.

Inside the station, another woman who appears to be a humanitarian worker says, “On the right side there’s like thousands of people from Berlin offering place to stay. This is absolutely incredible. You just like enter the building and there are like thousands of people” there to offer support and a place to stay, holding up signs “in Ukrainian, in English, in Russian.”

The video then shows a crowd of people holding signs offering the refugees a place to stay. Others can be seen picking up food and basic necessities from donated supplies.

“I was very scared and I had to get out from this hell,” said a female refugee. “And now I’m here. I hope I’m in a safe place.”

Links We Like

Russia Deploys Thermobaric Weapons in Ukraine
- Jim Geraghty, National Review
Marcus Foster: A Black Hero You’ve Never Heard Of
- Robert Maranto & Craig Frisby, RealClearPolitics
Stay Calm and Don’t Advocate for a War Against Russia
- Tom Nichols, The Atlantic
Trapped in Silicon Valley’s Hidden Caste System
- Sonia Paul, Wired
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