Breakfast Briefing, 5.26.2017: White House considers rapid-response team to counter leaks

Sick of taking it on the chin repeatedly as news leaks out about the #RussiaGate investigation, top White House officials are weighing a shake-up of the Trump administration’s communications team by forming a "war room" to quickly respond to breaking news, according to CNN and CBS News. The administration has also identified three leakers of classified information and is putting them through the dismissal process, according to CBS News, which reported changes could come shortly after President Donald Trump returns from his first foreign trip.

Speaking of, Trump is in the final leg of his first overseas excursion as president. On Friday, he’ll meet with leaders from the G7 nations on the Italian coast, where security officials are prepared for the threat of terrorism—and Europe’s most active volcano. Russia will be the elephant in the room when Trump sits down with the world’s other most powerful leaders—hopefully with less tussling this time—according to CNN.

Allegedly choke-slamming a reporter didn’t hurt Greg Gianforte at the polls on Thursday. The Republican candidate won a special election for Montana’s open House seat, comfortably beating Democrat Rob Quist despite being booked for misdemeanor assault a day earlier for allegedly slamming Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs to the ground. Gianforte apologized to Jacobs while addressing backers after polls closed.

A top women’s technical group in Silicon Valley is ending its partnership with Uber. The Anita Borg Institute is cutting ties with the ride-hailing company due to "continuing allegations" about the treatment of women at Uber and other issues, according to Recode. The organization works to get women into technical positions at top companies.

Whether it's a precursor to a future run for office or not, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is making good on his promise to visit all 50 states this year and talk with people outside of the Silicon Valley bubble about their lives and how they use the social network. The highly choreographed trip has included stops at a dairy and cattle farm in Wisconsin and a center for recovering addicts in Ohio, according to The New York Times. "He has all of the mechanics needed for a massive, well-staged media operation," Angelo Carusone, president of Media Matters for America, told the Times. "Photographers, handlers, its size, scope, and scale — all the ingredients are there."

Editor’s note: PRWeek is off Monday for Memorial Day. The Breakfast Briefing will return on Tuesday. Please try to limit your email and Twitter use for the next three days and have a happy long weekend.