All media hurt by ‘fake news’ claims
DURING a speech last month to military veterans, President Trump touted the strength of the U.S. economy and dismissed stories to the contrary. “Just remember, what you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening,” Trump said.
In the same speech, he pointed to the assembled media covering the event and added, “Don’t believe the (garbage) you see from these people, the fake news.”
This has been Trump’s go-to line throughout his presidency — stories critical of him or his administration are “fake news.” The media are “enemies of the people.” He has taken what has long been an adversarial relationship — recall Sam Donaldson’s regular screaming of questions at former President Ronald Reagan as just one example — and taken it to new heights.
There have been instances when reporters have gotten stories wrong and Trump was right to criticize. It’s also true that the coverage of Trump’s administration has been overwhelmingly negative — 91 percent of stories broadcast by ABC, CBS and NBC fell into this category according to a study earlier this year by the conservative Media Research Center.
On the other hand, stories the president has rejected as “fake” have proven to be absolutely legitimate. Among the examples: That he did know about payoffs to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, and he had a role in his son Donald Jr.’s statement explaining his meeting with Russians during the campaign.
His “fake news” mantra is aimed primarily at the major broadcast networks and newspapers such as The New York Times. But his assaults have the potential to inflict damage on media outlets of all sizes, all across the country, including The Oklahoman. And that’s unfair to the men and women here who set out each day to cover public officials and write stories that are accurate, thorough and fair.
Chris Casteel is an example. Casteel spent 25-plus years as our reporter in Washington, D.C., covering Oklahoma’s congressional delegation. Today he puts his expertise to work traveling the state to cover every move of the 2018 race for governor.
Meg Wingerter provides another example, with her coverage of the financial problems at the state Department of Health and, more recently, problems stemming from implementation of medical marijuana rules in Oklahoma.
When a gunman fired shots at a restaurant on Lake Hefner in May, and eventually was shot and killed by two other men, reporter Robert Medley — whose shift was ending when the news broke — worked well into the next morning to sort out the details and write the story.
Bill Crum keeps readers up to date on the daily workings at City Hall including regular progress reports about all the MAPS 3 projects, from the streetcar to the convention center.
The list goes on and on. The president’s words, intended or not, serve as an affront to them — writers, photographers and editors who strive daily to provide readers with facts, pure and simple, about things that are indeed happening.
Our constitutional right of a free and independent press is critically important to our democracy. The future of journalism is tenuous enough on its own without the constant drumbeat from our commander in chief.