According to Politico, a study done by Media Research Center found that 91% of the news about President Trump on the three major networks was negative to him. The Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center found that during the presidential campaign, the major media outlets were negative towards Trump 77% of the time. The IBD/TIPP poll reported that 55% of Americans said they had less trust in the media as a result of the 2016 campaign coverage. Finally, the Media Research Center/You Gov Poll conducted on November 9th found that 70% of the responders did not feel the news media was honest and truthful.
Much has been said about the ‘Three Horsemen,’ united against Trump: the Media, Hollywood, and the Democratic Party. So I ask you this question, “If the Three Horsemen are against Trump, then who is defending him against this massive attack? Republicans? No, the only person that is defending Trump is Donald J. Trump himself.
Tweeting gives him a platform in which to respond and defend his actions and positions to the American people. Think back to Bush 43 and the attacks he went through just getting elected and even more so after the September 11 attack. The media pummeled him and he never responded. I think the best person to defend what you believe is you. Both Bush 41 and 43 rarely responded to media attacks and other onslaughts while they were president and they have been very restrained since they left office, unlike Bill Clinton and former President Obama.
I believe it is very difficult for the mainstream media to have an, “In your face” president. I truly believe that if the media were more fair and honest in their treatment of Trump, he would Tweet less. Just this week a felony was committed by Rachel Maddow of MSNBC when she illegally released on her show President Trump’s tax return for 2005. The government has the responsibility under the law to keep tax returns confidential. Do you think that she was releasing it to prove that Trump was a good guy? Did she want to prove that Trump did pay $38 million dollars in federal income taxes? I don’t think so.
Much has been said about how Tweeting makes Trump look less presidential. Why? What is the standard as to how the president can communicate his policy to the American people? If the media is openly at war with the President, then in today’s world what are his alternatives? Press conferences are like letting the wolf in the hen-house. Many of the reporters have a bias when they walk into the White House pressroom. Is it possible for the President to get a fair shake from the media? I don’t think so. In days gone by, the press was referred to as the Fourth Estate; they were to be independent of any party or branch of the government. In fact, the press was meant to be the watchdog of the three branches of the government. The free press was supposed to present the people the truth and report on what was happening in government, both good and bad.
I’m afraid that the objectivity of the Fourth Estate is long gone. Is it possible for the Fourth Estate to regain the trust of the American people? The Federalist website (Federalist.com) recently ran an excellent article entitled “Five Ways the Media Can Regain the Public Trust.” Mollie Hemingway wrote it and I suggest all members of the media read this article. I want to add a sixth way: the journalism schools need to look at what they are teaching to their students as to the role of the reporter. As reported above, on the Rachel Maddow program, the story was more about her than the story of the President’s tax returns. When the reporter is the center of the story, then the Fourth Estate has failed the American people. As long as it continues to fail, I want President Trump to run his fingers across that keyboard.
Dan Perkins is an author, radio and TV talk show host, current events commentator, and philanthropist. His books are available on Amazon.com. More information about him, his writings, and other works are on his website: http://danperkins.guru.
