David Folkenflik
David Folkenflik was described by Geraldo Rivera of Fox News as "a really weak-kneed, backstabbing, sweaty-palmed reporter." Others have been kinder. The Columbia Journalism Review, for example, once gave him a "laurel" for reporting that immediately led the U.S. military to institute safety measures for journalists in Baghdad.
Based in New York City, Folkenflik serves as NPR's media correspondent.
His stories and analyses are broadcast on the network's newsmagazines, such as All Things Considered, Morning Edition, and Here & Now, and are featured on NPR's website and mobile platforms. Folkenflik's reports cast light on the stories of our age, the figures who shape journalism, and the tectonic shifts affecting the news industry. Folkenflik has reported intently on the relationship between the press, politicians, and the general public, as well as the fight over the flow of information in the age of Trump. Folkenflik brought listeners the profile of a Las Vegas columnist who went bankrupt fending off a libel lawsuit from his newspaper's new owner; conducted the first interview with New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet after his appointment; and repeatedly broke news involving the troubled Tronc company, which owns some of the most important regional newspapers in the country. In early 2018, Folkenflik's exposé about the past workplace behavior of the CEO of the Los Angeles Times forced the executive's immediate ouster from that job and helped inspire the sale of the newspaper.
Folkenflik is the author of Murdoch's World: The Last of the Old Media Empires. The Los Angeles Times called Murdoch's World "meaty reading... laced with delicious anecdotes" and the Huffington Post described it as "the gift that keeps on giving." Folkenflik is also editor of Page One: Inside the New York Times and the Future of Journalism. His work has appeared in such publications as the Washington Post, Politico Magazine, Newsweek International, the National Post of Canada, and the Australian Financial Review. Business Insider has called Folkenflik one of the 50 most influential people in American media.
Folkenflik joined NPR in 2004 after more than a decade at the Baltimore Sun, where he covered higher education, national politics, and the media. He started his professional career at the Durham Herald-Sun in North Carolina. Folkenflik served as editor-in-chief at the Cornell Daily Sun and graduated from Cornell with a bachelor's degree in history.
A five-time winner of the Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism from the National Press Club, Folkenflik has received numerous other recognitions, including the inaugural 2002 Mongerson Award for Investigative Reporting on the News and top honors from the National Headliners. In 2018, the Society of Professional Journalists recognized Folkenflik with its 2018 Ethics in Journalism Award. In 2017, Penn State University named Folkenflik as the nation's leading media critic with the Bart Richards Award. He also served as the inaugural Irik Sevin Fellow at Cornell. Folkenflik frequently lectures at college campuses and civic organizations across the country and often appears as a media analyst for television and radio programs in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia, and Ireland.
-
Saturday night's White House Correspondents Dinner featured a controversial performance by comedian Michelle Wolf, prompting renewed criticism of the annual event.
-
Former NBC News Anchor Tom Brokaw is the latest to be accused of sexual harassment allegations at the network, as reports raise new questions about the workplace culture at NBC.
-
Rupert Murdoch had decided to take over the British media giant and flip it with other 21st Century Fox properties in a sale to Disney. But Sky directors have pulled support from his bid. -
Tribunejournalists give corporate owner Tronc a day to recognize the union voluntarily. Otherwise, they say they will force a federal vote that "will result overwhelmingly in our favor." -
Journalists at the Chicago Tribune say they want to unionize to secure better pay and resources to fulfill their mission. Parent company Tronc sold the LA Times soon after its newsroom unionized. -
Trump's tweets delight supporters who say they find him honest, funny and refreshing. But his tweets distract and dismay his detractors, alienate many of his allies and misdirect much of the media. -
In some ways, the best way to understand the Trump White House is to follow the President's Twitter feed. It is a world of aggression, self-praise and display of ALL CAPS anxieties — and where he often announces firings of key officials.
-
The largest broadcaster in the country is forcing its anchors to read a promotional script that warns viewers about "fake news" on other stations and media. Its among the Sinclair Broadcast Group's now infamous "must-run" segments that include conservative commentary and reports about terrorism.
-
Dallas investor Ed Butowsky is sued a third time over conspiracy theories linking a DNC staffer's death to the leak of party emails. The suit also names an online activist and The Washington Times.
-
Attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice and AT&T square off in opening arguments this week over whether AT&T's proposed takeover of media conglomerate Time Warner hurts consumers.
