Trump’s initial downplaying of the coronavirus was due in part to his belief, that the media was using the pandemic as yet another way to attack him. His cries of “Fake News” have morphed into attacks on individual journalists. Two years after Trump praised a congressional candidate for body-slamming a reporter, his aggressive verbal assaults on reporters have prompted concerned executives to post armed guards outside newsrooms, for fear that he could inspire deranged people to lash out at journalists. Yet attacking the media is now broadly regarded as a smart move by conservatives. The anti-media antagonism can manifest like an organized crusade in some cases but also more like a culture — a vernacular shared by the president and his allies on the right. The irony is that Trump himself makes false statements — more than 16,000 since taking office,
At www.washingtonpost.com
