A Follow-Up Question
During a speech at the presentation of the Toner Prize for Excellence in Political Reporting (insert oxymoron joke here), President Obama complained about the media’s role in creating the Trump phenomenon: “A job well done is about more than just handing someone a microphone. It’s to probe and to question and to dig deeper and to demand more. The electorate would be better served if that happened. It would be better served if billions of dollars in free media came with serious accountability, especially when politicians issue unworkable plans or make promises they cannot keep.” I hear a lot of people blaming the media for its endless coverage of Trump and there could be some merit to that argument. But consider this. For the past few months, every media outlet from Fox to MSNBC has been hammering on Donald Trump. And none of it has made a dent. One imagines the same will be true of today’s headlines about the charges just brought against Trump’s campaign manager. Maybe the bigger story here is that mainstream media no longer has the power to anoint or destroy a candidate.
+ If you want to see the extent to which Trump is demolishing others in the “earned media” game, check out this screenshot I recently grabbed from the Washington Post.
+ From McSweeney’s: Don’t let the mainstream media fool you into thinking I just punched you in the face.