I find it outrageous that Donald
Trump’s outmoded ideas, limited-and-exaggerated use of language, and
non-policy-specific plans that, a month in, have done nothing but spew out at
top speed so that people hardly know what to address and object to first. But
his attack on the media is particularly atrocious, untrue, and a slippery slope
to actual dictatorship. The news – major
newspapers, cable news networks (except Fox News and right-wing talk radio, of
course), broadcast network news divisions, and A-List Internet news sites – are
all fake, they’re all lying? And they are “the enemy of the people?” Really? And Trump’s “going to
do something about it.” Really! Besides having the obnoxious Sean Spicer ban
half of the major media from news briefings, and shame on him for following his
master’s directives, what, exactly, is the chief executive going to do to stop
the free American press? Maybe his pal Vladimir can show him how to kill
publishers, editors, and reporters, as well as knock sites off the Internet.
It’s always so helpful to have friends who can help you rule without dissent, especially by “paid, professional protesters.”
Without question, the
media has its problems and its faults. Few people read printed newspapers anymore;
hundreds of excellent papers have been forced out of business thanks to a
combination of low readership and even lower advertising. The online versions
of remaining major papers have their own problems – including the fact that
readers want them for free instead of paying minor amounts for subscriptions. From
coast to coast, news staffs have been decimated, in print and online, because
publishers [say they can’t] afford them. The combined pressure of the 24-hour
news cycle and diminished news staffs have seriously compromised the optimum
functioning of all forms of news outlets. But they fight like hell and work
very hard despite these limitations to tell full, truthful stories. About
everything. Including Trump.
All news outlets sometimes
make mistakes or bad coverage choices (like CNN’s endless coverage of a missing
airplane a while back; they spent months
waiting to hear pings). But American
journalism is honest and truthful and fact-based. I personally know that for a
fact because as a p.r. professional I had a lot of media contact for decades. The
media not only deserves the freedom and protection provided by the First
Amendment, we the people urgently need
the information it provides. We would be screwed without it. The press
could do a better job in some ways (hiring back proofreaders would be a good
start, since even the best reportage is undermined by typos). But if the
American people allow themselves to be convinced that journalism is inherently
dishonest, that is going to create even more chaos than the president is
already deliberately creating.
Donald Trump is worse than
inexperienced, uninformed, and a liar by commission and omission. He’s a bad
man. He’s self-serving and will say or do anything to try to deflect any kind
of criticism and all reportage about him and his staff/advisors' inappropriate
and illegal behavior. He doesn’t want examination/investigation of all his
Russia-related dealings. He doesn’t want to explain concrete solutions for the
problems he cites, because he doesn’t have any. And since he doesn’t have
President Obama to kick around anymore, he had to find a new “enemy” that his
base can focus on. He doesn’t care what the rest of us think or feel or believe,
because he’s already dismissed us as over-rated (in our numbers) and phony –
because protesters are basically mercenaries. So the media was a perfect choice
for his political vitriol. It reminds me of Richard Pryor’s great comedic line
about talking to his wife about his marital indiscretions: “Who you gonna
believe: me or your lyin’ eyes?”
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