3 June 2024 - Is this America’s turning point on Trump?

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G’day fellow US politics tragic… If that’s not you, don’t recoil in horror because we’re going to do what we do best - make consuming the big stories as easy as possible. And as we head into the second half of the year, there will be as few events to rival the US presidential election. 

But before we get into that, let’s regroup on last week’s poll question following Kate Watson’s chat with Annabelle Hickson, the founder/editor of Galah Magazine - it documents regional Australia and the people who live there. We asked you: “When did you last buy a print magazine?” Perhaps unsurprisingly, 45% of you said you could not recall. The next biggest group would lift Annabelle’s spirits - 21% said they’d bought a mag in the last week, and a further 19% said in the last month. So perhaps print isn’t dead after all… 

Amongst the comments from Squizers who left us a note (which we really appreciate…), it’s clear that many of you have well and truly made the transition to digital platforms for your content needs. Others said environmental concerns were behind the decision to drop mags. “All that effort, paper and transport only to read it once and then chuck it out or have it hanging around as clutter,” one Squizer said.

Still, there were plenty who do what I do, and that’s buy one at the airport as a pre-flight ritual. I also feel you if you miss the pre-COVID selection that used to be at the dentist/doctor/hairdresser… 

Now, on with the Donald Trump show… On Friday, we witnessed history when the former president/Republican frontrunner was found guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records. That might sound a bit OTT, and you can be forgiven for developing a thick skin about all things Trump because he is an in-your-face businessman-turned-politician behind some challenging right-of-centre policies. 

My modus operandi for these big/difficult people and events is to stare them dead in the face. I can’t get enough reading, listening and watching - not because I’m a masochist, but because I find looking away doesn’t help… 

So in the wake of last week’s verdict, let me introduce our Club Picks this week:

1. This podcast episode on the trial and the decision from The Rest is Politics US. If you’ve listened to the original UK-based pod, this is the American spin-off hosted for former Trump fan Anthony Scaramucci and journalist Katty Kay. 

2. This article from Politico canvassing the view of 22 experts on what the verdict means for Trump and the election on 5 November. They are some of the nation’s top politicos (funny that…) and historians, and their views are as diverse as they are insightful.

3. If you’ve followed the news on Trump or the past couple of presidential elections, chances are you’ve read something from the New York Times journo Maggie Haberman. She’s paid to be inside Trump’s head, and she’s written the book on the man*… She appeared on CNN on Saturday to talk about how he would be seeing things. 

As far as News Club is concerned, we will be producing a US-focused series as we head towards the election. It won’t be explainers on how things work - that’s what Squiz Shortcuts is for. What we’ll highlight are the different perspectives of Americans who will vote in this election. Can’t wait for that… 

Your friend in news
Claire Kimball

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Wrapping up the news…

Each Saturday on our News Club podcast feed, Kate and I release the Weekly Wrap. As the name suggests, it’s a look at the week in news and what’s coming up. Those who listened last week will know we actually promised a News Club on AI. Trump’s guilty verdict trumped it (snap), but don’t worry — it’s on the list for weeks to come. And thanks to this Squizer for your review below…

Listen here or on your fave podcast app (Apple and Spotify).

Got questions?

Hit reply with everything you’re dying to know. You can also DM us on Insta @thesquiznewsclub - we’re all ears.

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