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Reposted by Jim Rutenberg

On the Media @onthemedia.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

Tune into this week’s show, featuring: @jimrutenberg.bsky.social and Daniel Suhr lnk.to/onthemedia/b...

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Reposted by Jim Rutenberg

Andrew Couts @couts.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

WARNING, fellow journalists: As @nicoschmidt.io explains, attackers are trying to hijack reporters' Signal accounts by tricking people into handing over their 2FA codes. www.linkedin.com/posts/nicosc...

In the last days, there has been an unprecedented attack targeting investigative journalists trying to seize their Signal accounts. This has gone largely unreported.

I have been repeatedly targeted by phishing, and I learned that also colleagues from other outlets were targeted, with the attackers unfortunately managing to compromise at least one colleague’s account. What’s worrying: this doesn’t seem like an isolated case. A broader wave is apparently hitting journalists (and some civil society actors) via Signal.

How it works: Attackers message you on Signal pretending to be “Signal Support,” warning about “suspicious activity,” and urging you to “re-verify” your account. Once you accept the chat, you receive a real Signal SMS verification code, because the attacker is actively trying to register your number on a new device. If you share that code, you’re handing them the keys.

Signal’s extra protection is the Signal PIN. If an attacker also tricks you into giving up your PIN (or you don’t have strong protections enabled), they can see your contacts and networks, potentially join chats going forward, and lock you out by changing settings.

Quick protections worth doing today:
- Signal will never contact you via a two-way in-app support chat. Treat those messages as hostile.
- Never share SMS codes, Signal PIN, or anything called “registration lock.”
- Turn on Registration Lock (Settings → Account → Registration Lock).
- If you see a “safety number changed” alert: verify the person via a different channel (call/video), not just Signal text.
- Report + block suspicious requests, and review linked devices.

If you work with sensitive sources: this isn’t just about losing an account, it’s about exposing networks. Please share this with colleagues who rely on Signal day-to-day.

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

NEW: Round Two —-> Federal Regulators Take New Aim at Late-Night TV www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/b...

nytimes.com

Federal Regulators Take New Aim at Late-Night TV

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

and if you haven't seen check out this by Michael Grynbaum and Benjamin Mullin www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/b...

nytimes.com

‘We Need to Be the News’: Inside Bari Weiss’s Bumpy Revamp at CBS

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

The CBS News makeover -- which has included the declaration "We Love America. And we make no apologies for saying so" and a last-minute hold on an administration-critical '60 Minutes' segment - has provided a mission accomplished moment for Suhr and Carr and Trump. The effort continues...(7/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

His use of his arm of the administrative state against the networks has drawn some pushback from conservatives, notably Senator Ted Cruz, who is now exploring ways to stop so-called "jawboning" aimed at silencing critics, as he effectively defined Carr's treatment of ABC. (6/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

In an interview with me the FCC chair Brendan Carr credited Suhr with "providing sort of the legal and regulatory framework" for his campaign against CBS, NBC and ABC, which included his "easy way or the hard way" line about ABC that was followed by its suspension of Kimmel in September (5/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Suhr told me it was his hope that his project - which has employed an old regulatory doctrine known as the "public interest standard" against all the major networks sans Fox - will help lead to more "family-friendly, faith-inspired patriotic content" on broadcast. (4/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Suhr originated the FCC complaint against 60 Minutes over its 2024 Harris interview that the FCC chair Brendan Carr used as leverage for his demands — which dovetailed with Suhr’s — that Skydance pledge to reorient CBS to meet the government's definition of unbiased news + assign a bias monitor(3/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

The conditions on CBS were set with input from a conservative group called Center For American Rights. Its co-leader leader Daniel Suhr told me he sees himself as aligned with the longtime Federalist Society chief Leonard Leo’s new project to “smash liberal dominance” in news and entertainment (2/7)

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Jim Rutenberg @jimrutenberg.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Often overlooked in the story about Bari Weiss and CBS is how the network’s new look stems from Trump’s move to control TV. It's the direct result of conditions the FCC placed on Skydance in return for approving its deal to buy CBS. My new NYTMag piece delves in (1/7) www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/m...

nytimes.com

The MAGA Plan to Take Over TV Is Just Beginning

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