It’s interesting how the main-stream media covers Trump at the press briefings. Every favorable major accomplishment is either downplayed or ignored, while every minor screwup is blown all out of proportion.
If Trump does not wear a mask, the media jumps all over him. If he does, reporters will report it as a sign of resignation or failure in the war against the coronavirus pandemic. Questions from reporters are not designed to solicit information. They are “gotcha” questions aimed at making them look good and Trump look bad.
White House reporters are not as interested in policy as they are in making themselves part of the story so they can look important on television. That means provoking Trump or his press spokesperson to respond to loaded and frequently dumb questions.
It can be refreshing when it backfires, as it did last week when Trump Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, 32, stunned White House reporters in response to a “gotcha’ question over Trump’s demand that governors reopen churches.
“The president will strongly encourage every governor to allow their churches to respond, and boy, it’s interesting to be in a room that desperately wants to seem to see these churches and houses of worship stay closed.” Then she ripped into the reporters for not showing “journalistic curiosity” for other politicians and celebrities.
This week, reporters covering the Trump rally in Tulsa said that the rally failed to draw the anticipated crowd, and in the same headline reported how reckless it was to have a “sold out crowd” in a large auditorium, risking a coronavirus spike. You talk about sloppy journalism, try making sense of this story….
It reminds me of how the press covered the concerts we handled with Linda Ronstadt years ago when she was supporting some of Michal Moore’s views. Her liberal views were blown way out of proportion by the press, ignoring her incredible performance night after night. She covered all of her hits and not only backed the songs with a great band, but we also had a sixty-piece orchestra that was part of our entourage.
Now I have never been a fan of Linda’s political views, but she was an incredible talent and personality, which made the tour one of the best I have worked with. The fact we had opposing political views, never overshadowed our respect for each other. In her own words, “this is America, opinions are still free.”
This country could sure use another Walter Cronkite to cover our news again when facts were front and center of the story.