The Trump administration has launched a new initiative in its war against less-than-glowing press coverage. A “Media Offender of the Week” list is now live on the official White House website, claiming that several outlets shared malicious stories about the president.
The inaugural run of the list focused on coverage of President Donald Trump’s threats against several Democratic lawmakers who reminded military servicemembers of their ability to refuse illegal orders. Trump called the stunt “seditious” and floated the death penalty for Sen. Mark Kelly and others. The page claims CBS News, The Independent and The Boston Globe “misrepresented” Trump’s reaction and names the reporters involved with the story.
“The Democrats and Fake News Media subversively implied that President Trump had issued illegal orders to service members,” the White House claims. “Every order President Trump has issued has been lawful. It is dangerous for sitting Members of Congress to incite insubordination in the United States’ military, and President Trump called for them to be held accountable.”
A video at the top of the page slaps a stamp that reads “seditious” over the congresspeople involved in the video.
“The president has never given an illegal order,” a voiceover claims. “These people know what they are doing.”
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During his first term, Trump undermined the press by questioning the very nature of reality, floating the concepts of “fake news” and “alternative facts” to turn his base against outlets that run negative stories about the president. His second-term assault on press freedoms has been much more direct.
The president filed massive lawsuits against television networks that have spoken out against him, using the implicit threat of his FCC to push for less critical coverage. His administration has booted legacy outlets from the White House press pool, upended coverage of the Department of Defense, and opened up space for friendlier, conservative media outlets. On Halloween, the administration announced new restrictions on which parts of the White House reporters can access.
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