A first‑person look at the administration’s wave of bans, lawsuits, and intimidation tactics that aim to silence the media.
by Winston Wendell
I have observed the Trump administration’s efforts to censor the news media carefully throughout the year, and I believe that the current situation may be the most extreme in recent times. Last week, Trump prohibited CNN, MSNBC and Politico from entering the White House, which caused a press boycott, with Fox News announcing the cancellation of all coverage, and other outlets refusing to print photographs of the president. The president’s Monday ribbon-cutting ceremony did not have its audio available to the public.
President Trump has a history of attacking journalists who criticize him, and using the Federal Communications Commission to threaten broadcasters who air unfavorable news. In April, after ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel joked about the president’s wife, the head of the FCC, Brendan Carr, a Trump loyalist, ordered an investigation into all of ABC’s broadcasting licenses. ABC filed a lawsuit against the FCC, claiming that it was retaliating for Kimmel’s comments.
He has also targeted individual female journalists with insults. I am sure many people were surprised when, after Kaitlin Collins of CNN was awarded the White House Correspondents’ Dinner honor, the president tweeted a computer-generated video of himself tossing the young woman into a dumpster.
Phone records of New York Times reporters were sought by Trump through a subpoena, but the president later withdrew the request. The FTC is investigating Media Matters for America, which was previously named in a defamation lawsuit by the president. Most notable are the numerous multi-billion-pound libel lawsuits that Trump has initiated against the Wall Street Journal and the BBC, among others, seeking $10 billion, The New York Times for $15 billion and $10 billion respectively in damages, both of which were dismissed as “megaphone cases.” A judge even stated that he filed the lawsuit to deflect negative news coverage.
Despite the ongoing ban, press freedom is flourishing in the United States. While the recent boycott was a frightening reminder of what could happen to America’s news outlets, it was also a brilliant publicity stunt for the companies that participated. As I watch the drama unfold, I am trying to determine whether it will affect news outlets’ ability to report objectively on the president, or if the president’s disinformation efforts will ultimately harm him.
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