The New York Times posted a hilarious meltdown Tuesday night complaining the Trump administration has “tak[en] steps to more closely control” the Brady Briefing Room. Their alleged crime against journalism? Instituting a “new media seat” to lead off the briefing and “[o]n average, a quarter of the people” called on “for questions are standing along the perimeter.” In other words, those pesky conservative reporters — whom anonymous “longtime White House reporters” whined like bitter Mean Girls to The Times — are “erod[ing]” their power and “independence” and because they “rarely challenge the administration’s talking points,” they’ve “undercut the briefings as a space to relay accurate information to the American public and hold the president to account.” “Inside the Changing White House Briefing Room” took four bylines — Ashley Wu, Rebecca Lieberman, Michael M. Grynbaum, and Doug Mills — and two contributors at the bottom to crank out what was no more than a petulant meltdown about having lost a sliver of control. But along with noting on a factual level that Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has held shorter and fewer briefings, they complained she’s disregarded tradition by ensuring the “49 permanent seats...determined by the independent White House Correspondents’ Association” and specifically the 14 that make up the first two rows receive the most questions and “are usually called on more often.” “In the briefing room, officials have made room for a new cohort of more partisan attendees, like right-wing podcasters, who often ask less-adversarial questions than traditional journalists. The White House has said it is adjusting the makeup of the press that covers it — both in and out of the briefing room — to better reflect the outlets where people consume news and information today,” The Times huffed. By their estimates, the four then kvetched she’s used a quarter of the time to call on reporters whose outlets lack permanent seats, citing The Daily Signal, The Daily Wire, Frontlines USA, Gateway Pundit, Lindell TV, One America News Network, and Real America’s Voice. The Times implied giving these reporters the light of day to ask questions relevant to their audiences has made the Briefing Room less free and more partisan, as though The Times or whatever outlet April Ryan works for has their partisan stripes. They even admitted the legacy media still receive the lion’s share of questions (click “expand”): Longtime White House reporters say the result has been an erosion of their independence. They say the increased attention toward pro-Trump media personalities, who rarely challenge the administration’s talking points, has undercut the briefings as a space to relay accurate information to the American public and hold the president to account. The room’s seating chart reflects a news outlet’s perceived importance. Journalists who sit in the front rows typically have more of their questions addressed by the press secretary. If it reorganizes the seating chart, the White House could continue to lessen the influence of legacy news organizations and boost newer and often more partisan media outlets that have shown support for the administration’s policies. (....) Media outlets with preferred seating have been called on the most often across all of Ms. Leavitt’s 15 briefings so far: CNN, Fox News, ABC News, The New York Post, CBS News and NBC News have been called on at least 11 times each. Even though their analysis showed liberal networks like ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN have been called on in every single Leavitt briefing, The Times was bothered by the fact that she’s also called on our friend Mary Margaret Olohan of the Daily Wire seven times and OANN’s Daniel Baldwin five times. Why is this so awful? The Times explained it’s because they deliver “questions more favorable to the administration or have echoed right-wing talking points.” Two words for The Times and these anonymous “longtime White House reporters”: Grow up. They kicked dirt on the “new media seat,” complaining it’s become “catchall category for both professional journalists and others, including podcasters, influencers and other creators of ‘news-related content.’” This, along with taking control the press pool rotations and possibly the Briefing Room seating chart, will supposedly destroy what had always been a “mix” of “hard-hitting questions and the occasional softball.” The posted a chart and more whiny analysis of their questions being, in essence, the wrong questions (click “expand”): In January, Ms. Leavitt announced in her debut briefing the addition of a permanent “new media” seat. This seat, stage right of the lectern, is reserved for someone the White House selects from a nontraditional media outlet. The outlets represented by the occupants of this seat have ranged from digital upstarts like Axios and Semafor, which strive for independent reporting, to partisan influencers and YouTube stars. Guidelines for selection to this seat remain vague. (Ms. Leavitt said in a February briefing that her office was sifting through more than 12,000 applications.) Mike Allen (Axios), Matt Boyle (Breitbart), John Ashbrook (Ruthless), Sage Steele, Chris Pavlovski (Rumble), John Stoll (X), Shelby Talcott (Semafor), Mary Margaret Olohan (The Daily Wire), Saagar Enjeti (Breaking Points), Kellie Meyer (NewsNation), Katie Pavlich (Townhall), Lyndsay Keith (Merit Street), Mark Halperin (2Way), Jasmine Wright (NOTUS), Jordan Berman, and Matthew Foldi (Washington Reporter) These lead-off questions have ranged from topics like artificial intelligence to foreign policy to the economy. Many of the inquiries were relatively impartial. But a few seat occupants have framed their questions with an angle that is critical of independent media or Democratic lawmakers in Congress. The videos below show the mix of questions from the “new media” seat. [VIDEOS OF ASHBROOK, STEELE, TALCOTT, AND ENJETI] The rest of the piece consisted of a time lapse explaining reporters with an assigned seat only “ arrive in the briefing room just a few minutes before the event begins” whereas “those without seats often arrive more than an hour beforehand, to claim space on the crowded perimeter of the room.” As an example of what they deem the wrong questions, The Times later ended by whining Lindell TV’s Cara Castronuova used her question to ask about the SAVE Act, which would bolster voter integrity.

An Australian woman who advocates for women's sports to remain female-only is facing two legal criminal accusations of "misgendering."Kirralie Smith, an activist, has had two Apprehended Violence Orders filed against her by two male athletes posing as females and was accused in court of "deliberately misgendering." Dennis was then listed as a 6'2" athlete who broke the leg of a girl who is 5'6."While an AVO in Australia is typically reserved for domestic violence, it can be filed by any person who feels they are a victim of "physical assault, threats of physical harm, stalking, intimidation or harassment" and believes the threats will continue, according to New South Wales Police.One of the claims came from a soccer player named Riley Dennis; Blaze News reported in 2024 that this individual was accused of injuring a female soccer player and sending her to the hospital. Dennis plays for the Flying Bats, a football club for "self-identified women and non-binary people."Dennis was then listed as a 6'2" athlete who broke the leg of a girl who is 5'6" and spawned two dozen other females to quit because they did not want to play against the transgender-filled team. Yahoo Sports reported that the injured girl's leg was broken in two different places.Activist Sall Grover was reportedly present during Smith's court proceeding on Monday and claimed a barrister asked Smith if she would call Dennis "she/her," to which the defendant said "no."Smith was also allegedly asked if not using the pronouns is "mean," to which she replied that it would be mean to expect her to lie."Is it because she doesn't like trans people?" Grover wrote about the court proceeding. "No. It's a fact based statement," Smith reportedly answered.Kirralie is on the stand for cross-examination.Barrister asked she would call Dennis she/her. She said No.She is asked if that’s mean. Says it’s mean to expect her to lie.Is it because she doesn’t like trans people? Say, no. It’s a fact based statement.You think they are…— Sall Grover (@salltweets) April 14, 2025 Sky News Australia described the court proceeding as having "dramatic scenes" and said the "entire case" centers around "a couple of tweets Kirralie Smith posted back in 2023."This was the second time Smith appeared in court for an AVO, however. Reduxx reported that Smith was accused by another male player, who goes by Stephanie Blanch, of holding unacceptable views. Blanch reportedly told a court he felt "threatened" by the idea that Smith did not think men should be in women's sports.Blanch's supporting documentation included an X post by Smith about "a bloke on the women’s team in Wingham," the team on which Blanch plays.In December, an Australian court acknowledged that Smith "repeatedly referred to" Blanch as a "male, a man, a bloke" and "he." A local judge declared that Smith indeed was "deliberately misgendering" Blanch, which was "stirring up controversy."Blanch was awarded what essentially amounted to a restraining order against Smith, which required Smith to refrain from contacting Blanch as well as not "nam[ing] or identify[ing] the Appellant by her name Stephanie Blanch or by [name redacted]."The order ends in December 2026.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

While the Biden administration normalized and encouraged declaring your pronouns to everyone you meet, the Trump administration is doing what it can to reverse the previous obsession with gender. Starting with the “pronouns in bio,” which was made clear when White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the White House will no longer respond to journalists who advertise their gender on their profiles. “Any reporter who chooses to put their preferred pronouns in their bio clearly does not care about biological reality or truth and therefore cannot be trusted to write an honest story,” Leavitt said. “I freakin’ love this so much,” Sara Gonzales of “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered” exclaims happily. “It’s such a welcome change. What a departure from Sam Brinton having the nuclear codes and he was out stealing other women’s clothes, because he wasn’t one, but he dressed like one, but he didn’t look like one because he was doing the bare minimum effort.” “If you live out there in fantasy land, and you don’t realize that if you have a penis you’re a man and if you have a vagina you’re a woman, there’s just really no point in this engagement,” Gonzales continues, adding, “I’m really not tired of the winning.” And it’s clearly run its course, as even CNN hosts are getting called out for misgendering their fans. In a town hall interview with Bernie Sanders on CNN, the mic was handed to a young woman whom Anderson Cooper introduced with “she/her” pronouns. The woman made sure that her first sentence to the pair was “they/them pronouns, actually, thank you.” “A gay man just got corrected,” Gonzales comments, adding, “They’re not part of the protected class any more.” Want more from Sara Gonzales?To enjoy more of Sara's no-holds-barred take to news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

The mother of Rachel Morin expressed her disdain for Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) for going to extreme lengths to advocate for the return of an illegal alien who was deported back to El Salvador.Patty Morin told Sean Hannity on Tuesday that Van Hollen and other Maryland Democrats did not reach out to her when her daughter was murdered by an illegal immigrant who gained access to the United States during the Biden-Harris border crisis. The man accused of the horrific crime was found guilty by a jury this week."I'm actually angry. I'm actually outraged, but I'm too sad at the moment to show anger at the same time. He did not call our family; he did not give condolences. There was no action [from] the Democratic Party in any way. ... In Maryland, none of the senators did anything to help search for the murderer of my daughter," Morin said.The only Democrat who reached out to her was Maryland Governor Wes Moore, but he did so only after she had talked with President Donald Trump.'El Salvador has made it clear they will not be releasing Kilmar Abrego Garcia back to the United States.'Morin said many people do not fully understand how gruesome her daughter's murder was."Three-fourths of her brain was hemorrhaged. ... Three-fourths of her skull was bashed in. She had a six-inch square in the back of her head where the skull was shattered, the way that you would crush an eggshell. Her face was bashed in," Morin explained."The murderer drag her 150 yards as blood gushed out of her head," she continued.Democrats, Morin said, are more concerned about letting illegal aliens like her daughter's killer into the United States and defending their ability to stay in the country instead of defending American citizens.Van Hollen posted a video on X Wednesday morning showing he was getting ready to fly to El Salvador's capital."I also hope to see Kilmar and check on his condition — and remind him that we won’t stop fighting until he’s home," he said. — (@) El Salvador has made clear it will not be releasing Kilmar Abrego Garcia back to the United States because he is an El Salvadoran citizen. The federal government said even if El Salvador releases him back to the U.S., Abrego Garcia would be put back into federal custody and be subject to removal once again.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) and Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) announced Wednesday morning that the state filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump to end the administration's "unlawful" tariffs.The complaint aims to prevent Trump from imposing increased tariffs against Mexico, China, and Canada and establishing a baseline 10% tariff on all countries.'His plan levels the playing field for businesses and workers to address our country's national emergency of chronic trade deficits.'Newsom claimed that Trump lacked the authority to enact the fees.According to the lawsuit, while the administration is relying on the International Economic Emergency Powers Act to implement the changes, that law has never previously been used to justify tariffs. The complaint contended that only Congress can approve such action.Newsom's office said, "The IEEPA gives the President authority to take certain actions if he declares a national emergency in response to a foreign national security, foreign policy, or economic threat. The law, which was enacted by Congress in 1977, specifies many different actions the President can take, but tariffs aren't one of them. In fact, this is the first time a president has attempted to rely on this law to impose tariffs."The administration has stated that increasing tariffs aligns with Trump's "America First" agenda by boosting the economy and ensuring fair treatment for the U.S. in global trade.Newsom, who has set aside $50 million to challenge the Trump administration, claims that the tariffs are hurting Americans. Meanwhile, California has asked the federal government for $40 billion in wildfire recovery aid, while it is borrowing billions of dollars to fund Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program, after it was expanded to provide coverage to illegal aliens."President Trump's unlawful tariffs are wreaking chaos on California families, businesses, and our economy — driving up prices and threatening jobs. We're standing up for American families who can't afford to let the chaos continue," he stated.The governor insisted that the tariffs amounted to a tax increase on the American people. Under Newsom, California has the highest taxes in the nation.Bonta claimed that Trump's tariffs would have "very real consequences for Californians across our state.""I am proud to go to bat alongside Governor Newsom to fight for California's vibrant economy, businesses, and residents," he said.White House spokesman Harrison Fields responded to Newsom's lawsuit announcement."Never Trumpers will always oppose him, but President Trump is standing up for Main Street by putting an end to our trading partners — especially China — exploiting the U.S. His plan levels the playing field for businesses and workers to address our country's national emergency of chronic trade deficits," Fields said.On Tuesday, Trump posted on social media, "The United States is taking in RECORD NUMBERS in Tariffs, with the cost of almost all products going down, including gasoline, groceries, and just about everything else. Likewise, INFLATION is down. Promises Made, Promises Kept!"Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Will we ever get Minecraft 2? While the Minecraft movie is exploding at the box office, the idea of a full, official sequel from Microsoft and Mojang seems unlikely. But Dundee-based developer 4J Studios, best known for porting the sandbox game smash hit to consoles and handhelds, is delivering a game that might well be considered a successor. Reforj is 4J’s own original take on the format, built in collaboration with Minecraft YouTuber Joseph ‘Stampy’ Garrett, and starting from today you can sign up to get involved with its brand new playtest. Continue reading New sandbox game Reforj is basically Minecraft 2, and playtest signups are open MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best sandbox games, Best building games, Best survival games

CD Projekt Red warns fans that any invites to a so-called Witcher 4 'beta test' are a scam. The developer says if it ever does similar tests in the future you’ll first hear about them through official channels, and asks that you report any such invites you receive to ensure they can be swiftly dealt with.  I know we're all excited to learn more about the game, but please be careful out there. Continue reading New Witcher 4 ‘beta test’ is a scam, CD Projekt Red warns MORE FROM PCGAMESN: The Witcher 4 release date, The Witcher 4 Unreal 5, The Witcher 4 School of the Lynx

How big is the Runescape Dragonwilds map? Carving a life for yourself in Runescape Dragonwilds can be tough. You’ve got roaming bands of goblins, vicious wildlife, not to mention the gigantic acid-spitting dragon that is intent on melting your bones. The lush green hills of the starting area can lull you into a false sense of security, and you may be wondering where to go next. Honing your Runescape Dragonwilds skills will only take you so far, and crafting a Runescape Dragonwilds bow is initially a great choice, but soon falls off. You need better crafting ingredients to make better gear, and for that, you’ll have to venture further into the Runescape Dragonwilds map. Here is the complete map for the multiplayer game, and what we know about each area. Continue reading Runescape Dragonwilds map - all regions MORE FROM PCGAMESN: All Runescape Dragonwilds skills, How to craft a bow in Runescape Dragonwilds, How to fast travel in Runescape Dragonwilds

Two weeks after its reveal, Runescape Dragonwilds, the MMORPG's spinoff survival game, is out in the world. If you've jumped into the high fantasy world of Gielinor, chances are you've encountered a somewhat perplexing login screen that talks about linking your Steam account to Epic Games. To dissuade concerns and temper confusion, creative director Rick 'Mod Rook' Turek confirms to PCGamesN that linking your accounts isn't mandatory, and that the "empty accounts" mentioned in the terms of service are Dragonwilds specific, and can be removed at any time. Continue reading You don’t need an Epic Games account for Runescape Dragonwilds, Jagex confirms MORE FROM PCGAMESN: All Runescape Dragonwilds skills, How to craft a bow in Runescape Dragonwilds, How to fast travel in Runescape Dragonwilds

With an exciting new DLC just around the corner, it's time to check back in on the Days Gone system requirements to see if your gaming PC or laptop can handle the hordes of freakers coming your way. You won't need the best graphics card to play Days Gone on PC, in fact, the game runs great on older or budget gaming rigs. Even the Steam Deck has more than enough power to run the game at 30fps with medium settings and minimal upscaling. Continue reading Familiarize yourself with the Days Gone system requirements ahead of Broken Road MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best graphics card, Best gaming PC, Best SSD for gaming