Emmy nominations don’t usually trigger lawsuits. But when Black truth gets airtime, the rules suddenly change.
Kamala Harris’s Emmy-nominated interview on 60 Minutes should have been a milestone moment for mainstream media. Instead, it became a target. Donald Trump is suing CBS for $20 billion over that interview. Not because it was inaccurate. Not because it was inflammatory. But because it showed a Black woman in power speaking clearly, confidently, and without asking permission.
Let’s be honest: this lawsuit isn’t about journalism. It’s about vengeance. It’s about reminding newsrooms that if they center a Black voice that doesn’t play by the rules, there will be hell to pay.
And the hell doesn’t stop with lawsuits.
While the lawsuit was heating up, reports emerged that Shari Redstone—billionaire media heir and chairwoman of Paramount Global—allegedly instructed CBS execs to hold off on releasing damaging Trump stories. Why? Because she was busy finalizing a multi-billion dollar merger and didn’t want bad press to get in the way of a payday.
In other words, when it comes to truth or profits, profits win. Every time.
This is the reality of mainstream media today. News is no longer about informing the people. It’s about managing narratives, protecting assets, and serving power.
PBS, NPR, and the Public Broadcast Purge
And just in case the corporate sabotage wasn’t enough, Trump signed a middle-of-the-night executive order to defund NPR and PBS. Two of the only major media platforms not owned by corporations—and two of the few still offering in-depth coverage of marginalized communities.
This is a pattern. Trump can’t control them, so he cuts them off.
And who suffers the most? Black America.
It’s the grandma in Mississippi who relies on PBS for daily news. It’s the classroom in Detroit using NPR lesson plans. It’s everyday people who don’t have cable, who aren’t scrolling TikTok all day, who depend on public news to stay informed.
Silencing public media is an act of war on truth. And Black truth is always the first casualty.
The Disappearing Black Anchor
Meanwhile, corporate networks are quietly phasing out the few Black voices that remain.
Lester Holt, one of the last trusted Black men on network evening news, is stepping down. No scandal. No controversy. Just "new direction."
Translation: They want someone safer. More neutral. Less Black.
At the same time, Joy-Ann Reid—the only Black woman left holding down a primetime slot on MSNBC—is reportedly being pushed out too. Another voice gone. Another truth silenced.
Yet while Black voices get erased, white progressives are pivoting to the right. Ana Kasparian of The Young Turks just launched a new show on a right-wing network. The same person who built her career on blasting conservative propaganda is now cozying up to it.
This isn’t coincidence. This is consolidation. The Overton window is shifting. And the goal is clear: keep Black media quiet, or replace it with something safer and whiter.
We Must Own the Mic
We’re in a media war. Not just for ratings or retweets—but for truth itself.
And if Black America doesn’t build and back our own platforms, we will continue to be edited out of history.
That’s why Kin+ exists. That’s why The NightBeat Breakdown speaks loud when they want us quiet.
Because when they silence Joy, sue Kamala, defund PBS, and promote right-wing rebrands—they’re not just reshaping the narrative.
They’re rewriting the future.
We can’t let them.
Not now. Not ever.
Own it all. Build it all. Tell it all.
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