100 Days of Hell

Donald Trump’s return to the White House hasn’t just reshaped the political landscape—it’s placed the media industry under siege. In just his first 100 days back in office, the administration has waged a multi-front campaign to discredit, defund, and disempower the press.

They’ve seized control of the press pool from the White House Correspondents’ Association, publicly smeared journalists, and attempted to kneecap public media funding. They've barred The Associated Press from official White House events, sidelined legacy outlets at the Pentagon in favor of pro-MAGA mouthpieces, and made clear that basic access is now partisan and conditional. At the Federal Communications Commission, Trump-appointed chair Brendan Carr has taken up the fight directly—openly targeting D.E.I. programs and attacking newsrooms for their reporting, all while letting Rupert Murdoch skate. Meanwhile, Carr has held up approval for Paramount Global’s merger with Skydance Media as Trump pressures Shari Redstone to settle his frivolous lawsuit against "60 Minutes." Oh, and the tariffs have given way to tremendous economic uncertainty, which will very likely decrease advertising revenue and slow subscription growth.

Throughout it all, industry leaders—from Disney’s Bob Iger to Warner Bros. Discovery's David Zaslav to Paramount’s Redstone—have largely stayed silent or conciliatory. Several companies have capitulated to pressure, prompting concern that the business side of media may no longer be willing to defend its editorial backbone.

To take the temperature of the industry amid these early moves, I asked nine top media executives and veterans of the business to weigh in. I granted them anonymity so that they could speak candidly. Their unfiltered reactions follow.