Trump's cultural wrecking ball
During President Trump’s first term in office, he didn’t even show up to the Kennedy Center Honors. He felt slighted by the performers, so he shunned the event.
In his second term, he chairs the board of the “Trump Kennedy Center,” and now he wants to turn the place into a construction site.
Trump “was drawn to the institution for its cultural prestige,” Katy Waldman wrote for The New Yorker in December, but “he and his allies made it radioactive.”
That’s why I’d categorize Trump’s Sunday night announcement about closing the building for a two-year renovation as shocking but not surprising.
It did come as a shock: staff found out “via the president’s social media post,” CNN’s Piper Hudspeth Blackburn reported. But “there had been talk within the organization of a temporary closure at the end of the fiscal year — nominally for ‘renovations’ but also to stem the financial bleed affecting the institution amid the backlash from artists.”
Indeed, the numbers tell the story. “In the past year, sales of subscription packages and tickets have fallen dramatically,” The Washington Post’s team wrote overnight. “Empty seats became a common sight at the center.”
Equally telling: The sheer length of the NPR article titled “Here’s who’s canceled their Kennedy Center performances since Trump took over.”
So now we’re left wondering, as this Vulture headline asks, “Is Trump going to tear down the Kennedy Center?” Will members of the Kennedy family try to stop him?
>> On “CNN This Morning,” Audie Cornish said the rebuilding plan reprises a question related to Trump’s East Wing demolition: “Is this a person who’s renovating because he’s not leaving, or is this a person renovating because everywhere he sees a potential real estate project?”
Despite the flood of recent cancellations, there are still a significant # of events slated to take place at the performing arts center. The building is home to the National Symphony Orchestra! ”If any forethought was given to the livelihood of the musicians who perform regularly in the Kennedy Center, no mention of it was made in the president’s statement,” Charles T. Downey of the Washington Classical Review wrote last night. And The Post’s team noted “It was not immediately clear what the closure would mean for annual events held at the center such as the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor or the Kennedy Center Honors.” Trump’s ballroom will not be ready in time… >> Though short on answers about the impacts, Kennedy Center president Richard Grenell tweeted last night that “this will be a brief closure in retrospect – and I am confident this sets the stage for a stronger, revitalized National Cultural and Entertainment Complex.” |
“Just like his casinos and other businesses, the Kennedy Center went out of business after he put his name on it,” MeidasTouch co-founder Brett Meiselas wrote on X. While Trump insists this is about fixing a “dilapidated” building, “it’s not the decor that has driven performers away. It’s the decorator,” David Axelrod remarked. “Instead of allowing the Center to return to its arts mission, he’d rather close it than admit his vanity project was rejected by the American people,” former GOP lawmaker Barbara Comstock wrote. |
Trump threatens to sue Trevor Noah |
At 1:01 a.m. Eastern, the president leveled his objection to Grammys host Trevor Noah and the “virtually unwatchable” awards show. During the show, Noah said every artist wants the Song of the Year award “almost as much as Trump wants Greenland. Which makes sense, I mean, because Epstein’s island is gone, he needs a new one to hang out with Bill Clinton.” Trump, who has previously said he never visited Epstein’s island, called the joke a “defamatory statement,” adding, “It looks like I’ll be sending my lawyers to sue this poor, pathetic, talentless, dope of an M.C., and suing him for plenty$.” Yes, he wrote “plenty$.” Scroll down for more on the Grammys… |
…and threatens to sue Michael Wolff |
On Saturday night, Trump reacted to the DOJ’s release of 3 million Jeffrey Epstein-related documents by threatening to sue both Michael Wolff and the Epstein estate. “This guy, Wolff, who’s a writer, was conspiring with Epstein to do harm to me,” he said. “So we’ll probably sue Wolff on that. Maybe the Epstein estate, I can’t decide, I don’t know, but we’re going to certainly sue Wolff.” Wolff responded: “This is the third or fourth time the Trumps have threatened to sue me,” he told The Daily Beast. “So far this has only resulted in me suing them. So, bring it on. Let’s sue each other. I have nothing to hide, but the Trumps surely do.” |
…and jokes about suing Kevin Warsh |
I hope you’re seeing the pattern here. In front of DC elites at the Alfalfa Club dinner on Saturday night, Trump said, “If he doesn’t lower interest rates, I’m suing his ass off.” He then claimed to be kidding. The dinner is officially off the record, but some of Trump’s remarks leaked to reporters. WaPo’s Matt Viser reported that the president’s punchlines “at times fell flat before a bipartisan audience.” I’m sure it’s just a coincidence that Trump decided to stick it to official DC by announcing a Kennedy Center overhaul the next day. |
Blockbuster or just a bust? |
I heard from many of you yesterday about the “Melania” box office results. “Come on Brian,” one regular reader wrote in. ‘Melania’ was not an opening week success and you know it. You fell for the spin.” My reply: Success or failure all depends on the yardstick used to measure it. Hold up the “documentary that’s not a concert film” yardstick, and the first lady’s opening weekend was a smashing success. Same, too, with the “overall box office chart” stick — “Melania” was #3 overall nationwide, a better result than box office gurus predicted. But the film sure looked like it underperformed relative to its marketing budget and presidential promotion. And it’s not likely to sell many more tickets in the coming days. That’s why I have been emphasizing Amazon’s decision to overpay for the flick, and all the ensuing questions about whether it was, as David Gross wrote in his FranchiseRe newsletter, “a political investment, not a for-profit movie venture.” The NYT’s Brooks Barnes put it this way: “It was a face-saving result for the first lady,” allowing the Trumps and MAGA media to take a victory lap, while enabling critics to hit Amazon for overpaying… |
Think of it as a ‘faith-based film’ |
The smartest take I read all weekend came from a movie industry veteran who said, “The MELANIA film over-performing at the box office and earning an ‘A’ CinemaScore would be surprising if you’re treating it like a documentary. Treat it like a faith-based film, and it makes all the sense in the world.” |
Dowd on the Bezos of it all |
Maureen Dowd pointed out that Amazon’s “Melania” investment “is particularly gross given that Amazon is engaged in mass layoffs and [Jeff] Bezos seems intent on starving his Washington Post of money and talent. The split screen of Bezos and his spendthrift wife, Lauren Sánchez, frolicking everywhere — including Paris fashion week — while the tech mogul defiles the crown jewel nurtured by Ben Bradlee and Kay Graham, is sickening.” WaPo layoff news is expected imminently… |
In yesterday’s Sunday special edition, I broke news about Don Lemon going on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tonight. Lemon posted on Instagram from the Grammys that Kimmel will be his first interview since Friday’s arrest. >> Via Politico: “Don Lemon’s arrest balances freedom of religion vs. freedom of the press, Todd Blanche says.” >> And this is an important angle highlighted by Jem Bartholomew in this morning’s CJR newsletter: “How MAGA media outlets are fueling Trump’s crackdown on the press.” Speaking of that… |
1️⃣ quote to understand the psyche of the MAGA movement |
This is what Rep. Buddy Carter, a Republican from Georgia, said on Maria Bartiromo’s show this morning: “I applaud Don Lemon being arrested. He should be. As I go through the state and I hear people, they are tired of this. They are tired of seeing what’s happening here. They want to see people in handcuffs, they want to see people go to jail.” To borrow Adam Serwer’s famous phrase, “the handcuffs are the point.” |
Disney beats Wall Street expectations |
“Disney delivered a Wall Street beat” this morning, THR’s Alex Weprin writes, calling it “a hard-earned win and perhaps even a sendoff for CEO Bob Iger, who is widely expected to step aside in the coming months.” Last night, Bloomberg’s Thomas Buckley reported that the board is “aligning on promoting theme-park division chairman Josh D’Amaro” to CEO. That’s the closest any story has come to saying that D’Amaro is the definite pick. Disney staffers don’t know when the board is meeting, so they’re waiting for word like the rest of us… |
Thompson reaffirms commitment to CNN |
Former BBC director general Mark Thompson “was sounded out about applying for a second stint leading the corporation,” The Guardian’s Michael Savage reports. But Thompson “made clear that he was committed” to CNN, where he has been the CEO since late 2023. A CNN rep reaffirmed to The Guardian that Thompson “remains committed to his role” at the network. |
>> ProPublica published the names of the two federal agents who shot Alex Pretti, with an editor’s note saying “we believe there are few investigations that deserve more sunlight and public scrutiny than this one.” (ProPublica) >> Alex Thompson and Holly Otterbein say “liberal media’s MAGA-like splintering” is a challenge for 2028 contenders. (Axios) >> After just a week, The California Post “has picked its West Coast villains… and the issues it will slam them for,” Katie Robertson writes. (NYT) >> “Melania” cinematographer Dante Spinotti got the Isaac Chotiner treatment. It went exactly as you might expect. (New Yorker) |
OpenAI ad testing starts this week |
”OpenAI is asking select advertisers to commit at least $200,000 as it rolls out beta ads on ChatGPT,” AdWeek’s Trishla Ostwal reports. “The beta is small and tightly controlled… intended to see what types of ads provide value for users.” For some brands, “ad testing starts as early as February 6,” she adds… |
>> TikTok says its US service is “now fully restored” after that “dayslong outage sparked by cold weather,” the aforementioned Alex Weprin reports. (THR) >> New this morning from WaPo’s Faiz Siddiqui, Nitasha Tiku and Elizabeth Dwoskin: “Inside Musk’s bet to hook users that turned Grok into a porn generator.” (WaPo) >> A new forecast from Ampere Analysis shows that “streaming services will spend $14.2 billion on sports rights in 2026, with Amazon’s Prime Video expected to lead the pack,” Lucas Manfredi reports. (TheWrap) |
’ICE out’ dominates the Grammys |
Andrew Kirell writes: Bad Bunny made history as the first Spanish-language Album of the Year winner. He also received a standing ovation for declaring “ICE out” at the top of his speech for the Best Música Urbana Album prize. (Reminder: He’s performing the Super Bowl halftime show this Sunday.) That protest slogan was everywhere last night, particularly on attendees’ lapels. Justin and Hailey Bieber, Brandi Carlile and Joni Mitchell were all seen donning “ICE out” pins on the red carpet. Shaboozey used his acceptance speech to champion immigrants, and Kehlani shouted “fuck ICE” during hers. But those were both during the pre-telecast ceremony. During the prime time CBS broadcast, Billie Eilish took the stage for her Song of the Year award and said, “No one is illegal on stolen land. We must keep fighting and raising our voices. Our voices matter,” later adding, “Fuck ICE” and exiting the stage. CBS bleeped the expletive. CNN’s Alli Rosenbloom has a full recap here… |
Entertainment odds and ends |
>> On Page One of today’s NYT: “Americans Are Learning Korean Because of ‘KPop Demon Hunters,’” Amy Qin writes. (NYT) >> Following “The Pitt” blueprint, Milo Ventimiglia “has been tapped to star in American Blue,” a cop drama pilot for HBO Max. (Deadline) >> And ICYMI, the “Mom Confession” skit on Saturday’s “SNL” is one of the smartest pieces of political satire I have seen in quite some time. Check it out! (YouTube) |