Thursday, March 2, 2017

Media Reaction To Town Hall Questions Quite Different Under Trump

                The mainstream media is so childishly, petulantly, pathetically biased it is alternately funny and tragic. No one with an open mind and a smattering of reason could fail to recognize this fact. It is all the more deplorable because they continually claim to be unbiased, equal opportunity watchdogs, and champions of the American people.
                Consider their reaction to the (mostly staged) Town Hall grilling of Republican congressman by plants, stooges and a few actual garden variety citizens. ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, MSNBC, et. al., gleefully fill up their newscasts with video of people pleading for Obamacare to remain intact, castigating President Trump, his policies and supporters, trembling with rage and fear, shouting at their elected officials, and sometimes angrily storming out of the meeting altogether. After these clips the anchors would reappear and, beaming beatifically, extol the virtues of these plucky, ignored and abused pillars of virtue- engaged, involved and informed- exercising their God-given rights in a participatory democratic republic. Then, lower lip beginning to tremble now, eyes glistening, they talk of the current president and his government attempting to shut out the people, shut down the media, and exterminate women, people of color, and the LGBT community.
                Contrast this with the media’s reaction to pointed but civil questions directed at Obama, his policies and supporters, or any of his Democratic representatives in general during Town Hall meetings over the previous eight years or so. This self-same media would show brief clips of actual citizens standing up and brazenly asking a direct question of Obama or his lackeys, occasionally in a louder than conversational voice. After these clips, the anchors would reappear and, exhibiting sorrowful, condescending expressions on their faces, slowly shake their heads as they’d bemoan the obvious ignorance and racism inherent in these radical right-wing extremists attacking the very government that is so gallantly trying to help them.
                This is insulting and insane to anyone who truly believes in a free press and its proper role in a democratic republic, much as it is to those who actually believe in justice for all. In actuality, it is the press who have the bully-pulpit. And who are doing the bullying. Trump is one man, even if he is the President of the United States. And he has to sleep. Throw in everyone in his administration, and it isn’t a measurable fraction of the number of people in the mainstream media, who- incidentally- control what we see and hear as “the news,” and who are presently marching in lockstep/goosestep in an all-out attempt to destroy him.
            Recently, on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” co-host Mika Brzezinski responded to fellow co-host Joe Scarborough’s comments on President Trump by saying, “Well, and I think the dangerous edges here are that he is trying to undermine the media, trying to make up his own facts. And it could be that while unemployment and the economy worsens, he could have undermined the messaging so much that he could actually control exactly what people thinkand that is our job.” (Emphasis mine).
                The media think it’s their “job” to “actually control exactly what people think?” Nothing scary about that. Actually, there is. And, even more terrifying, they are quite successful in doing just that.


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