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** OPINION
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Media coverage of the devastating Texas floods
A Camp Mystic sign is seen near the entrance to the establishment along the banks of the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area in Hunt, Texas, on Saturday. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

The heartbreak continues to grow after a horrific holiday weekend as bodies continue to be recovered following catastrophic floods in central Texas.

As of Sunday evening, the death toll was more than 80. Authorities continued a frantic search for survivors, including 10 missing girls and a counselor from Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp that is nearly 100 years old and was hosting approximately 750 children when the flooding started.

The New York Times’ Talya Minsberg wrote ([link removed]) , “They used helicopters and drones, arrived on horseback and in trucks, and searched from boats and golf carts. Sometimes, they muscled through brush and devastation on foot. Emergency responders, family members, bystanders and others have saved hundreds of people from the devastation of the flooding in Central Texas, holding onto hope as national crews extend their search-and-rescue operations into a third day.”

According to Minsberg’s story, officials said more than 850 people have been rescued and more than 1,700 people have been involved in the operations.

The Washington Post reported ([link removed]) , “Extraordinary atmospheric conditions released 1.8 trillion gallons of rain in and around Texas Hill Country on Friday. In one area, the Guadalupe River rose from 7 feet to 29 feet in just a few hours.” One estimate was that four months worth of rain fell in just a few hours.

There were fears of more flooding Sunday night as rains picked back up.

Pope Leo XIV expressed his thoughts from the Vatican, telling the crowd in English ([link removed]) , “I would like to express sincere condolences to all the families who have lost loved ones, in particular their daughters who were at summer camp, in the disaster caused by flooding of the Guadalupe River in Texas in the United States. We pray for them.”

President Donald Trump told reporters that he would “probably” visit Texas on Friday, adding, “We wanted to leave a little time. I would have done it today, but we’d just be in their way.”

Meanwhile, there have been questions about warnings and precautions for the floods.

The New York Times’ Christopher Flavelle, who has written about the National Weather Service since 2019, reported ([link removed]) , “Crucial positions at the local offices of the National Weather Service were unfilled as severe rainfall inundated parts of Central Texas on Friday morning, prompting some experts to question whether staffing shortages made it harder for the forecasting agency to coordinate with local emergency managers as floodwaters rose. Texas officials appeared to blame the Weather Service for issuing forecasts on Wednesday that underestimated how much rain was coming. But former Weather Service officials said the forecasts were as good as could be expected, given the enormous levels of rainfall and the storm’s unusually abrupt escalation.”

Flavelle added, ‘The staffing shortages suggested a separate problem, those former officials said — the loss of experienced people who would typically have helped communicate with local authorities in the hours after flash flood warnings were issued overnight. The shortages are among the factors likely to be scrutinized as the death toll climbs from the floods.”

CNN’s Andrew Freedman, Emma Tucker and Mary Gilbert wrote ([link removed]) , “The National Weather Service warned of ‘life-threatening flooding’ along the river in a series of alerts in the early morning hours. But questions remain about how many people they reached, whether critical vacancies at the forecast offices could have affected warning dissemination, and if so-called warning fatigue had been growing among residents in a region described as one of the most dangerous in the country for flash flooding.”

They added, “The National Weather Service has been hard hit by personnel cuts under the Trump administration, but that may not have significantly affected the forecasts and warnings for this historic and deadly flooding. The two Texas NWS offices most closely involved in forecasting and warning about the flooding on the Guadalupe River — Austin-San Antonio and San Angelo — are missing some key staff members, but still issued a slew of watches and warnings about the flood danger.”

Wired’s Molly Taft wrote ([link removed]) , “Some local and state officials have said that insufficient forecasts from the National Weather Service caught the region off guard. That claim has been amplified by pundits across social media, who say that cuts to the NWS and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, its parent organization, inevitably led to the failure in Texas. But meteorologists who spoke to WIRED say that the NWS accurately predicted the risk of flooding in Texas and could not have foreseen the extreme severity of the storm. What’s more, they say that what the NWS did forecast this week underscores the need to sustain funding to the crucial agency.”

Here is more of notable coverage from the Texas floods:
* The Texas Tribune’s Colleen DeGuzman with “Camp Mystic, a haven for generations of Texas girls, becomes a center of tragedy.” ([link removed])
* The Dallas Morning News’ Jamie Landers with “What was lost when parts of Camp Mystic, a beloved summer destination, washed away.” ([link removed])
* The Washington Post’s Arelis R. Hernández with “Between broken tree limbs and muddied cabins, a father looks for his missing child.” ([link removed]) And here’s Hernadez’s heartbreaking update ([link removed]) on social media.
* The Houston Chronicle’s Shakari Briggs with “Sisters Blair, Brooke Harber found dead with their 'hands locked together' after Kerr County flooding.” ([link removed])
* The Houston Chronicle's Rebecca Hennes with “Texas flooding photos show complete devastation at Camp Mystic, across the Hill Country.” ([link removed])
* In this video clip, CNN's Ed Lavandera with “‘Simply staggering’: CNN correspondent describes floodwater impacts in Texas.” ([link removed])
* And here’s Lavandera with “Father describes desperate search for missing daughter and friends in Texas.” ([link removed])
* NBC News’ correspondent Morgan Chesky reported from his hometown of Kerrville, Texas in “Survivors speak out after catastrophic Texas flash flooding.” ([link removed]) Morgan, a fifth generation Texan, spoke with survivors and reflected on what it means to cover a tragedy in his own hometown: “There really aren’t the words. You cover disasters, to some degree, for a living, and then it hits your own hometown and you’re at an absolute loss.”
* Anthony Franze, newsroom meteorologist at the San Antonio Express-News, with “Here’s why the Texas Hill Country flood was much worse than anyone ever expected.” ([link removed])
* NBC News’ Suzanne Gamboa with “Texas man tries to 'hold it together' with 5 family members missing after floods.” ([link removed])


A MESSAGE FROM POYNTER


** First-rate training for public media executives
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Read more and apply now ([link removed]) .


** Musk keeps up third-party threats
------------------------------------------------------------

If you can’t join ’em, you try to beat ’em. Or something like that.

As his on-again, off-again relationship with President Donald Trump seems to be off permanently, Elon Musk is now apparently following through on his idea of starting a third political party in the United States.

Musk went on a social media rant in the aftermath of Trump signing his sweeping agenda bill on the Fourth of July. Critical of Trump’s bill, Musk started making noise about starting a third party — and then posted this ([link removed]) on Saturday: “When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”

But for now, it’s just talk on social media. And he wouldn’t be the first person to try to muster up support for a third major party. Then again, he does have one thing that you need for such a venture: money.

For now.

The Associated Press’ Michelle L. Price noted ([link removed]) , “His reignited feud with the president could also be costly for Musk, whose businesses rely on billions of dollars in government contracts and publicly traded company Tesla has taken a hit in the market. It wasn’t clear whether Musk had taken steps to formally create the new political party. Spokespeople for Musk and his political action committee, America PAC, didn’t immediately comment Sunday.”

One poll showed ([link removed]) that nearly 40% of Americans would support a third party. But that likely says more about the other two parties than what an actual third party would look like. And, for now, we have no idea what Musk’s third party would look like because he might not even know.

The New York Times’ Theodore Schleifer wrote ([link removed]) , “Mr. Musk has spoken with friends in recent days about his plan for a political party and what it would take to accomplish it, according to a person briefed on those conversations. The discussions have been more conceptual than pragmatic, the person said.”

Schleifer added, “Even as Mr. Musk has proved that he is willing to use his resources to move quickly and dramatically, he also has a long history of not following through on promises.”

Talk-radio/podcast host and former Republican congressman Joe Walsh tweeted ([link removed]) on Sunday, “Yes, the two party duopoly is broken. I’ve been saying for years we need a 3rd & even a 4th political party. But @elonmusk is an utterly dishonest broker/divider/spreader of dangerous disinformation. Anyone joining him & his new ‘political party’ should have their head examined.”


** Posting his Paramount opinion
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President Donald Trump on Sunday. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Catching up on this piece from a few days ago. The Washington Post’s Erik Wemple reacts to Paramount settling the lawsuit filed against it by President Donald Trump in “Paramount betrays ‘60 Minutes,’ and the rest of us.” ([link removed])

As you surely know by now, Paramount, owners of CBS, settled its suit with Trump, who claimed the network edited a “60 Minutes” interview last October with Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in such a way to help Harris in the election. Legal experts seemed in agreement that Trump had no case, but Paramount settled because it is being sold to another company (Skydance) and needs approval from Trump’s Federal Communications Commission.

Wemple wrote, “Honest journalism requires noting that Paramount’s leaders will never, ever hear the end of this abject decision. Nor should they.”

Wemple goes into Trump and his administration’s constant attacks against the press and the First Amendment, and then Wemple talks about the Paramount case, writing, “In published reports, legal eagle after legal eagle has called the suit frivolous, though they’ve often been too polite. The Washington Post’s decency standards bar me from properly characterizing its worthlessness.”

And the reason legal experts say Trump has no case?

Wemple puts it well: “CBS News did not screw up. … The settlement doesn’t include an apology, and that’s because there is nothing to apologize for.”

In the end, Wemple writes and media folks agree, Paramount betrayed CBS News and “60 Minutes.” Wemple concludes with, “It doesn’t deserve the likes of ‘60 Minutes.’”


** Meanwhile …
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The Wall Street Journal editorial board also weighed in on Trump’s attacks on the press in “Trump’s Lawfare Against the Free Press.” ([link removed])

The board wrote, “President Trump has taunted the media for years, and some of his jibes are deserved given the groupthink in most newsrooms. What’s happening now, though, is different: The President is using government to intimidate news outlets that publish stories he doesn’t like. It’s a low move in a free country with a free press.”

This is about more than Trump’s suit against Paramount. There have been other lawsuits, including the one against ABC News. He has banned the Associated Press from pools because they won’t call the Gulf of Mexico what he wants it to be called: the Gulf of America. His administration has worked to dismantle Voice of America and cut funding to public broadcasters such as PBS and NPR. And now he’s threatening to go after CNN for legitimate reporting about the U.S.’s recent attacks on Iran and ICE. He has suggested that he would want reporters to give up sources on their news stories.

The board wrote, “Democrats are raring to investigate. ‘Paramount just paid Trump a bribe for merger approval,’ Sen. Ron Wyden wrote on social media. ‘When Democrats retake power, I’ll be first in line calling for federal charges. In the meantime, state prosecutors should make the corporate execs who sold out our democracy answer in court.’ If the result is two grim years of partisan trench warfare on whether this technically counts as bribery, thank Mr. Trump. And for what? Another chance for Mr. Trump to bluster about ‘fake news’? The price for the country is another worrying precedent, as the political culture spirals further downward into lawfare.”


** Media tidbits
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* Poynter’s Sophie Endrud with “Chris Wallace, other veteran journalists talk fairness, trust and today’s media challenges at Poynter event in D.C.” ([link removed])
* For Nieman Lab, Neel Dhanesha with “Why The Washington Post is inviting sources to annotate stories.” ([link removed])
* The Atlantic’s Stephanie Bai has a fun Q&A with Ashley Parker, The Atlantic and former Washington Post reporter, in “A Writer Who Slows Down the Speed-Reader.” ([link removed])
* Not so much of a media feud as a media dustup, but it’s kind of juicy: Awful Announcing’s Sam Neumann with “Michael Kay says he’s not a ‘fawning fanboy’ after Blue Jays broom Yankees.” ([link removed])


** Hot type
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This summer is the 50th anniversary of Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster classic “Jaws.” Here’s “CBS News Sunday Morning” and Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz with “Inside ‘Jaws’: Making the film classic.” ([link removed])

And here’s an extended interview ([link removed]) with one of the stars of the movies, Richard Dreyfuss.

Actor Michael Madsen has died. He was 67. He appeared in more than 300 films and TV shows, and is probably best known for his roles as tough guys in Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill” movies, as well as “Reservoir Dogs,” where his Mr. Blonde character used his knife in a quite gruesome way. Madsen, who reportedly died of cardiac arrest, was the brother of actress Virginia Madsen. For more, here’s The Washington Post’s Harrison Smith with a remembrance ([link removed]) , and Vulture’s Matt Zoller Seitz with “Michael Madsen Was More Than a Tough Guy.” ([link removed])


** More resources for journalists
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* Learn how to “lead your leaders” in this virtual intensive for journalism managers handling big responsibilities without direct reports. Apply today ([link removed]) .
* Early-career editors: Line-edit under pressure, coach inexperienced reporters remotely and guide reporters to develop stories that elevate their beat coverage. Register now ([link removed]) .
* New TV producers: Get the tools to create standout content, handle journalism's challenges, and lead your newsroom effectively. Apply today ([link removed]) .
* Join a five-day, in-person workshop that gives new managers the skills they need to help forge successful paths to leadership in journalism, media and technology. Apply today ([link removed]) .

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .
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