Is Hollywood Self-Censoring to Please Trump?

Tara Palmeri sits down with producer Chris Fenton — dubbed "Hollywood's MAGA whisperer" — to unpack how an entire industry is learning to speak Donald Trump's language. With LA hemorrhaging jobs (50,000 lost in recent years) and production fleeing to the UK, Canada, and 80-plus countries offering national tax incentives, Hollywood is pushing for a federal film incentive to bring shoots back to America. The catch: getting it passed runs through a president who rewards allies and punishes critics. Fenton lays out the economics — state-by-state rebates, why Marvel left Georgia for Britain, and why the real beneficiaries are middle-class "below the line" crews in red states, not the Hollywood elite the public loves to hate. But Tara presses on the harder question lurking underneath the talking points: where does lobbying end and self-censorship begin? She and Fenton spar over whether studios are quietly shelving politically risky projects to avoid angering Trump, the payouts ABC and CBS have made, the firing of late-night hosts, and the broadcast networks afraid of losing their licenses. Fenton concedes the biggest tell of all: a film about Jeffrey Epstein that actually examined Donald Trump's role would "never get a full release" from a major studio. Tara argues it's the biggest corruption story of our time and 80% of the country would watch it — yet Hollywood won't touch it. Along the way: the China problem (why James Bond never has a Chinese villain), Steve Bannon's surprising openness to the idea, Fenton's own story of being shut out of left-leaning platforms, and his new faith-tinged comedy "Bad Counselors."

#politics #trump #hollywood

Tara Palmeri is one of the most feared and fearless reporters covering power and politics. She has 15 years of experience covering national politics and foreign affairs. She was formerly a White House Correspondent for ABC News where she covered the first Trump administration. She was the chief National Correspondent for POLITICO during the Biden administration. She has been a political analyst for CNBC, CBS and CNN. She started her career as a columnist for the Washington Examiner and then went on to report for the New York Post. She was a foreign correspondent for POLITICO Europe, where she covered international affairs, including Brexit. She hosted the Ringer's political podcast "Somebody's Gotta Win" and wrote a column for Puck. Tara also hosted two acclaimed podcasts on Jeffrey Epstein, "Broken: Jeffrey Epstein" and "Power: The Maxwells." Tara currently hosts the Tara Palmeri Show.

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