In an interview with Fox News Digital on Monday, president-elect Donald Trump dubiously claimed that he supports a free and open press and indicated that he would be cooperative with media inquiries during his second term in office — despite his long history of targeting journalists and treating the press as a political enemy.
“In order to Make America Great Again, it is very important, if not vital, to have a free, fair and open media or press,” Trump said during the interview.
The former president also said he has “an obligation to the American public, and to our country itself, to be open and available to the press” during his upcoming presidential term.
But within that commentary, Trump issued a warning to the media: “If not treated fairly, however, that will end,” he said.
Trump’s disdain for the press — particularly toward organizations that produce accurate reporting on his foibles, mishaps, and autocratic actions — is well documented. Indeed, Trump has repeatedly derided the press as the “enemy of the people” for reporting on him fairly, and has frequently engaged in verbal attacks against members of the media, even expressing a desire for them to face violence for their reporting.
During a campaign rally in September, for instance, when a man appeared to be physically attacking members of the press, Trump defended the man, telling rally attendees that he found his actions to be “beautiful.”
“That’s alright. That’s OK. He’s on our side,” Trump told the audience.
During a rally earlier this month, Trump, who stood behind bulletproof glass, mused that anyone attempting an attack on his life would have to kill members of the media, too. A would-be assassin “would have to shoot through the fake news” in order to reach him, Trump said. “I don’t mind that so much,” he added.
Following a debate with Democratic nominee for president Kamala Harris, Trump, who was fact-checked during the event for spreading racist lies about immigrants living in Springfield, Ohio, demanded that the entirety of the ABC News network be fired. “They ought to take away their license for the way they did that,” Trump added, errantly suggesting that news networks have government-issued licenses.
During his first term in office, meanwhile, Trump frequently clashed with the media, perhaps most infamously when he rescinded the press credentials of CNN journalist Jim Acosta after he challenged Trump’s characterization of migrants seeking asylum in the United States.
The Trump White House, responding to a lawsuit from CNN seeking to restore Acosta’s credentials, argued that “no journalist has a First Amendment right to enter the White House,” and attacked Acosta’s character by falsely alleging that he had acted violently toward a Trump aide. Acosta’s credentials were eventually restored.
Trump’s assertions that he’s for a free press are laughable for another reason: He’s currently suing several news organizations for tens of billions of dollars, dubiously alleging that their coverage of his 2024 presidential campaign was somehow unfair to him, and an attempt to make him lose the race.
Several media voices dismissed Trump’s vow to support a free press.
“Despite his yearslong history of attacking, threatening, and suing the media, he’s suddenly a big fan of the press. We’ll see how long that lasts,” Daily Kos staff writer Walter Einenkel wrote.
“These claims are confounding — in fact, rendered useless — when you consider the lengths the president-elect has gone to to attack journalists who produce coverage that is critical of him,” wrote Julianne McShane, news and engagement writer for Mother Jones, adding that “you probably can’t trust” Trump’s more recent pro-media pledges.
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