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Europe
The Guardian

Is Donald Trump winning his war against the media?

Donald Trump speaks to the media on the South Lawn of the White House in April. Photograph: Andrew Harnik/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenDonald Trump speaks to the media on the South Lawn of the White House in April. Photograph: Andrew Harnik/Getty ImagesMediaIs Donald Trump winning his war against the media?President and allies have sued, cut access and issued subpoenas, but experts say media still producing strong work Donald Trump has ramped up his attacks on the media to a level without precedent in American history in the first 17 months of his second presidency. But have Trump and his allies won their war against the media – or at least put the industry on a weaker footing than in the past? The answer isn’t so straightforward. Trump and his associates have launched numerous lawsuits against disfavored media companies; networks that have produced critical coverage of Trump’s actions, including ABC, have been the target of regulatory pressure from the once-independent Federal Communications Commission; press access has been either cut off or significantly curtailed at both the White House and Pentagon; the administration has utilized labor law to put pressure on the New York Times via an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit that was decried by the newspaper as “politically motivated”; and perhaps most alarmingly for first amendment advocates, the federal government has both raided a Washington Post journalist’s home and reportedly issued subpoenas – later withdrawn – to Post and Wall Street Journal reporters over their coverage of “national security matters”. In perhaps the most significant escalation yet of Trump’s battle against the press, on Friday the Times reported that five of its reporters received subpoenas forcing them to testify this week in front of a grand jury in New York. “This brazen act should be seen as nothing more than an attempt to prevent the public from knowing what is happening in their country by intimidating journalists from doing their jobs,” Times lawyer David McCraw said in response. Chuck Todd, the former anchor of Meet the Press on NBC, said the Trump administration had “successfully infiltrated the press corps” by increasing the ranks – and prominence – of conservative influencers who are reflexively favorable to the president. “They’ve diluted the press corps so that there are essentially fan journalists there, pro-Trump influencers, or whatever you want to call them, who are participating in the pool,” he told the Guardian. “In that sense, I feel like they’ve done a good job of diluting the impact of accountability journalists.” While networks like CBS News continue to do high-quality reporting on the Trump administration, that coverage is still looked at with skepticism by some because of the close ties between the company’s top brass and the Trump administration – and because of concessions that its then-ownership made to win approval from the FCC to complete a merger in the summer of 2025. Those Trump-aligned owners – David Ellison and his father, the Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison – have already received permission from the Department of Justice to take over the president’s most-hated cable network, CNN, leading to concerns that its coverage of the administration could be defanged to appease him. View image in fullscreenTrump speaks to the media onboard Air Force One after returning from the Nato summit in Ankara. Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty ImagesWhile it’s undeniable that media companies are operating with a level of instability and uncertainty that would ordinarily be expected to dampen the reporting they produce, some media industry leaders say the work is strong despite the circumstances. “I think the greatest evidence that the media continues to do its job in holding the government accountable is the fact that this administration is completely obsessed by leaks,” Marty Baron, the former executive editor of the Washington Post, said in an interview. “There’s been a tremendous amount of really good work even by media institutions that have been portrayed as having yielded to Trump. Every day, there’s another story coming out about what’s happening in this administration and something that seems to outrage the administration, and they crank up their efforts to stop leaks [in response], going to an extreme that we haven’t seen before.” The FBI, after all, raided Post reporter Hannah Natanson’s home in January after the newspaper published critical reporting about US involvement in Venezuela, before and after the then Venezuelan leader, Nicolás Maduro, was captured. (Natanson’s work computer remains in the possession of the federal government while a magistrate judge searches her files for classified information allegedly leaked by a federal contractor facing trial in Maryland.) Trump also threatened to sue the Times and CNN – though he did not follow through – for reporting on a leaked preliminary intelligence report that raised questions about the effectiveness of a June 2025 bombing mission in Iran. In early April, he threatened to jail an unnamed reporter for not revealing the source of information that a second US airman was still missing after being shot down by Iran. When assessing the media’s performance, Baron noted that it was impossible to determine “the chilling effect” of Trump’s actions and words.

Is Donald Trump winning his war against the media?
North America
CNBC Economy

Wholesale prices unexpectedly declined 0.3% in June on big drop in gasoline

Wholesale prices unexpectedly fell in June as sliding energy costs helped brighten the inflation picture, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. The produce price index posted a seasonally adjusted 0.3% decline for the month, compared with the Dow Jones consensus estimate for the final demand cost measure to be unchanged. On an annual basis, the index indicated a 5.5% inflation rate. The May reading was revised sharply lower, from an initially reported increase of 1.1% to 0.6%. Excluding food and energy, the core PPI rose 0.2%, against the outlook for a 0.3% increase. The core PPI less trade services rose 0.1% and was up 5.1% from a year ago. As with consumer prices, the index benefited from easing energy costs, particularly as oil fell due to the brief pause in tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Goods prices posted a 1.4% monthly decline, the biggest drop since July 2022 as energy slumped 6.4% and final demand food prices were off 0.6%. Within the goods category, gasoline tumbled 12%, accounting for about two-thirds of the monthly decrease. At the same time, services prices rose 0.2%, boosted by a 0.4% increase in trade services. The release comes the day after the BLS reported that the consumer price index, a broad measure of inflation at the cash register, posted an unexpectedly sharp decline of 0.4% in June, bringing the annual inflation rate down to 3.5%. That was the biggest monthly drop since April 2020, just after the Covid pandemic declaration. Core consumer inflation slipped to 2.6% after prices were unchanged for the month. While the inflation measures are still well above the Federal Reserve's 2% goal, they do represent progress in the central bank's five-year battle to get back to target. "The Fed's war with inflation isn't over by any means," said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds, "... but there is good news from the front and the odds of Fed rate hikes should continue to recede as inflation at the factory level is trending lower, and producers will not be passing on their higher costs to the consumer level as much as we previously thought." Stocks were higher Wednesday morning, though traders scaled back expectations for interest rate hikes, with September now a 50-50 bet, according to the CME Group's FedWatch gauge of futures pricing. The consumer and producer price indexes both feed heavily into the calculation of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge. Policymakers most closely follow the personal consumption expenditures price index, due to be released later this month from the Commerce Department. For May, the PCE index indicated headline inflation of 4.1% and core at 3.4%, both likely to come down following this week's releases.

Wholesale prices unexpectedly declined 0.3% in June on big drop in gasoline
Europe
BBC Business

Celebrity influencers paid up to £1m to advertise deodorant on Instagram

The #ad posts on your feed may look relaxed, personal and spontaneous but behind many of them is a carefully planned campaign, a detailed contract and, in some cases, a seven-figure fee. For Charlie Bowes-Lyon, the co-founder of Wild, a refillable natural deodorant, influencer marketing has been a huge part of the company's success and he calls it his "secret sauce". Wild, which was bought by Unilever last year, uses high-profile names including Stacey Solomon, Emma Raducanu and Molly-Mae Hague to promote its products on Instagram. Bowes-Lyon says the brand has spent millions on its partnership with Raducanu and hundreds of thousands on campaigns with Solomon and Hague. Hannah Campbell, founder of influencer marketing agency One Twelve Agency, says brands are using influencers over traditional adverts because "they do actually influence". "They have built audiences and communities that trust them, and the old adage 'people buy from people' is true. "Consumers, especially younger audiences, aren't engaging with traditional media but they do follow and engage with their favourite influencers daily." Influencer marketing is now such a big part of Wild's business that it employs a team of more than 20 solely dedicated to working on this. The company's yearly influencer marketing budget is just under £10m, "but next year that may double as we look for larger brand ambassadors", says Bowes-Lyon. How much the company spends on influencer marketing "can vary from £100,000 through to millions if you want a top-tier celebrity", says Bowes-Lyon. He says a lot of it also depends on the depth of the campaign as "if you want them to do a one-off post you wouldn't pay too much but typically what they and you want is to develop is a bit more of a relationship". British tennis player Emma Raducanu is Wild's current brand ambassador and has been working with the brand for the past year.

Celebrity influencers paid up to £1m to advertise deodorant on Instagram
North America
CNBC Finance

‘Arsenal of democracy’: Jamie Dimon announces $24 million effort to boost American shipbuilding

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on Wednesday announced a $24 million effort to help revive American shipbuilding, his latest move under the bank's $1.5 trillion security project aimed at bolstering industries critical to U.S. economic and national security. The figure includes $18 million in loans and $6 million in grants to finance a new submarine manufacturing facility at the Philadelphia Navy Yard being built by Rhoads Industries, expand lending to maritime-related small businesses and strengthen regional suppliers, JPMorgan said. "The arsenal of democracy has been reignited," Dimon told CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin. "People said it couldn't happen, but here you have Hanwha shipbuilding at the Philadelphia Navy Yard," Dimon said, naming a South Korean conglomerate with a U.S. vessel-making subsidiary. The announcement comes as rising geopolitical tensions, including wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, spur governments to rearm and reinvest in domestic industrial capacity. Last year, JPMorgan launched a $1.5 trillion initiative to finance sectors it considers critical to U.S. economic and national security, including shipbuilding. The firm announced an expansion of the program into Europe this year. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

‘Arsenal of democracy’: Jamie Dimon announces $24 million effort to boost American shipbuilding
North America
CNBC Finance

Morgan Stanley posts record quarterly revenue and profit as equities trading surges 69%

Morgan Stanley on Wednesday posted record revenue and profit for the second quarter, driven by a 69% surge in equities trading revenue. The company said profit jumped 58% from a year earlier to $5.58 billion. Revenue climbed 27% to $21.35 billion. Like at peers Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, a massive beat in equities trading drove the quarter's outsized results. Heightened activity fueled by the global artificial intelligence boom propelled JPMorgan and Goldman to beat estimates for equities trading by a combined $4.4 billion, while investment banking at the two firms topped estimates by a combined $1 billion. Equities trading revenue at Morgan Stanley hit a record $6.3 billion, roughly $1.9 billion more than analysts surveyed by StreetAccount had expected. The firm cited strength across the equities franchise and "notable strength in Asia," another recurring Wall Street theme as the AI trade spreads globally. Meanwhile, fixed income trading rose 13% to $2.46 billion, essentially matching the consensus estimate, on good results in credit trading. "Active markets and consistent execution across all three regions drove exceptional results for our integrated firm," CEO Ted Pick said in the release. Investment banking revenue surged 58% to $2.44 billion, about $270 million more than analysts had expected, on additional completed mergers, initial public offerings and related equities deals, and rising debt issuance. Revenue in the firm's giant wealth management division climbed 14% to $8.86 billion, about $146 million more than expected, as asset levels were buoyed by the rising stock market and growth in deposits and lending. Revenue in investment management, the firm's smallest division, rose about 6% to $1.65 billion thanks to rising asset values, essentially matching the estimate. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Morgan Stanley posts record quarterly revenue and profit as equities trading surges 69%
Europe
The Guardian

New York Times files motion to quash justice department’s subpoenas

New York Times newspaper office building seen in Manhattan, New York, on 26 October 2022. Photograph: NurPhoto/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenNew York Times newspaper office building seen in Manhattan, New York, on 26 October 2022. Photograph: NurPhoto/Getty ImagesUS justice systemNew York Times files motion to quash justice department’s subpoenasJournalists who had reported on security concerns around the new Air Force One, a gift from Qatar, received summons The New York Times on Wednesday filed a motion to quash subpoenas the justice department served journalists who reported on security concerns involving the new Air Force One, a gift from Qatar, teeing up a significant court fight over press freedom and the government’s ability to force reporters to identify sources. “As we set out in our motion, these subpoenas are brought in bad faith to punish the Times for its coverage. They violate the constitutional rights of the Times and its journalists. We are going to court to defend our journalists’ rights to report freely on the administration and to provide the public with stories that matter,” David McCraw, the newspaper’s senior vice-president and deputy general counsel, said in a statement. The filing was made under seal in the southern district of New York, where the journalists were summoned in subpoenas delivered last Friday to testify before a federal grand jury. The subpoenas, some of which were delivered to reporters at their homes, marked a dramatic escalation of the Trump administration’s crackdown on media leaks that free press advocates swiftly condemned as a government effort to intimidate news organizations. It followed an FBI search earlier this year of a Washington Post reporter’s home and the seizure of her electronic devices. The subpoenas sought to force the reporters to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan this week after they reported on security concerns involving the new Air Force One. The new jet in question, a present from Qatar that Trump’s administration spent $400m to retrofit and upgrade, recently entered service. But the Republican president used an older model Air Force One jet to leave a Nato summit in Turkey last week. The Times, citing anonymous sources, reported that the switch had come at the urging of the Secret Service and that the newer plane lacked some of the advanced security features of the older aircraft, including antimissile capabilities. On social media, Trump denied security concerns. The justice department has justified the subpoenas by saying that “to be clear, reporters are not the targets, those leaking classified information are”. “We value and appreciate the important role that the press plays in this country,” the department said after the Times reported it had received the subpoenas. “But [the] DoJ also plays an important role to make sure that the people entrusted with our nation’s secrets do what they’re supposed to do with that information, which means not sharing classified information.” The justice department over the years has developed, and revised, internal policies governing how it will respond to news media leaks. Though the department across presidential administrations has periodically seized the phone records of individual journalists in hopes of identifying sources for national security stories, it is extremely rare for the government to attempt to compel a reporter to reveal their sources before a grand jury.

New York Times files motion to quash justice department’s subpoenas
Asia-Pacific
Channel NewsAsia

India ask its seafarers not to take Hormuz voyages

A man looks at a container ship in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Mumbai, India, on May 6, 2026. (Photo: REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas) NEW DELHI: India has ordered shipowners, ship managers and recruitment companies not to deploy the country's seafarers on vessels undertaking trips through the Strait of Hormuz amid renewed fighting in the region. India is the world's third-largest supplier of seafarers, with more than 300,000 sailors working across global shipping fleets, according to government data. "No deployment of Indian seafarers on vessels undertaking voyages involving passage through the Strait of Hormuz until further orders," the Directorate General of Shipping said in an order issued late Wednesday. Two Indian seafarers have been killed in attacks on vessels in the region over the last three days, as tensions escalate in the Middle East, and multiple people died previously, according to government data. CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less Recent attacks on vessels have increased the risks faced by seafarers and commercial ships operating in the conflict-affected area "significantly", the shipping regulator said. "In view of the heightened security situation in the Persian Gulf region ... the Directorate considers it necessary to adopt enhanced precautionary measures to safeguard the interests of Indian seafarers serving on board ships operating in the region," the order said. It also directed masters of the vessels to ensure that they are sufficiently vigilant about the security situation in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and adjoining waters, and called for continuous monitoring of navigational warnings. New Delhi also lodged a strong protest with Iran, summoning its deputy ambassador over one of the deaths on Tuesday. More than 15,000 Indian seafarers are still stranded on the west of the Strait of Hormuz, said Manoj Yadav, general secretary of the Forward Seamen's Union of India. "We can stop the new sets of crews from joining in those areas. But what about those thousands of seafarers who are still trapped in those deadly seas and under the threat to their lives? What is the government doing to take them out?", Yadav told Reuters.

India ask its seafarers not to take Hormuz voyages
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

India’s social security network expands to 100 cr citizens: Mansukh Mandaviya

India’s social protection coverage has expanded to over 100 crore citizens in 2026, up from 25 crore in 2015, said Union Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. The steep rise in the social protection coverage in a decade is largely due to the government bringing into the fold informal and unorganised sector workers, who comprise nearly 90 per cent of the total 50-crore workforce. Previously the government’s focus was mainly targeted at formal workers. Mandaviya, in a post on X on Wednesday, flagged the landmark validation of the country’s social security coverage by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). “India breaches 1 billion mark in Social Protection Coverage!” Mandaviya wrote on X, thanking ILO Director-General Gilbert F Houngbo “for acknowledging India’s efforts towards expanding social protection coverage”. In a video message at the BRICS Labour & Employment Minister’s Meeting in Hyderabad on Wednesday, DG Houngbo said, “According to ILO running estimates, India’s social protection system now reaches 1 billion people. This milestone offers lessons that can be shared through South-South cooperation.” Mandaviya, in another post on the social media platform, attributed to the leadership of PM Narendra Modi for steep rise in the social protection coverage, from 19 per cent in 2015 to 68.4 per cent in 2026. This brought more than 100 crore citizens under the umbrella of social protection framework, he wrote. As per the data shared by the Minister in that tweet, the social protection coverage doubled in between 2019 to 2022 if compared with percentage increase recorded in other years from 2015 to 2026. This was a culmination of government’s rapid policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic -- like Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana and PM-JAY (Ayushman Bharat) Healthcare scale-up -- followed by a thrust toward digitising the informal workforce, with the launch of the e-Shram portal. On the contrary, the two year period between 2025 to 2026 witnessed social security coverage hike of just 6.38 per cent which is considered as stablisation of the intiative after the exponential growth. The social security coverage between 2015 to 2019 was at 28.42 per cent while it was 31.76 per cent in 2022 to 2025, as per the calculations on the basis of the Ministry’s statistics. The two-day 12th BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers Meeting ended on Wednesday, with member countries adopting a set of declaration, including to advance social security and formalisation of labour markets. Member States have agreed to commend the collective efforts in expanding social protection coverage, the Ministry of Labour and Employment stated. Members shall endeavour to progressively expand social protection coverage from existing levels as per nationally determined levels, based on respective circumstances, priorities, and capacities, the Ministry added. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

India’s social security network expands to 100 cr citizens: Mansukh Mandaviya
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Tamil Nadu to conduct first phase of Census 2027 in August; self enumeration to begin Friday

The Directorate of Census Operations, Tamil Nadu announced that it will conduct the first phase of the India’s 16th National Census in the State over the course of a month starting from August 1, 2026. Speaking at a press conference here on Thursday, Sundaresh Babu, Chief Principal Census Officer, Tamil Nadu said that the first phase will involve Houselisting and Housing Census. For the first phase, citizens can also opt for the self enumeration using the government portal from July 17 to July 31, 2026. “This is a foundational stage where we collect essential information regarding the household details. It will include 33 questions on household amenities, drinking water, sanitation, electricity internet connectivity, cooking fuel and other factors. The phase will serve as a framework for the deeper population census in the second phase scheduled for February of 2027,” he said. Meanwhile, Babu added that for the first time, the entire enumeration process will be 100 per cent digital with all the data collection to be done digitally, including by physical enumerators who will record the data on a mobile app instead of the paper based records of the past. “We have assigned 200-250 households for each enumerator. They have been selected from different government departments and have been given three full days of training for this process. Every six enumerators will have one supervisor, ” he said. Tamil Nadu has about 1,026 charges- the operational units used to organize and conduct the population count. Each charge will be led by a Charge Officer or Sub-Division Officer. Babu added that about 20 States have already completed phase one of the census and are preparing for phase 2. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Tamil Nadu to conduct first phase of Census 2027 in August; self enumeration to begin Friday