His suggested first step? Admit their biases.
We all know that the media has been firmly tilted to the liberal side of the political. However misguided, they have continued to insist to the public that they are neutral, a position that most citizens have a hard time believing.
No matter how often the public calls them out, they have firmly entrenched themselves in opposition to Trump. Frankly, the election of Trump has blinded them to the responsibility of reporting the news to inform the public, not influence.
It is truly frightening to see another industry embrace leftism. Van Gordon Sauter, a former president of CBS News noted at the Wall Street Journal, noted that the media is quickly joining higher education, the entertainment world, and other print media on the left side of the political spectrum.
To many journalists, objectivity, balance and fairness—once the gold standard of reporting—are not mandatory in a divided political era and in a country they believe to be severely flawed. That assumption folds neatly into their assessment of the president. To the journalists, including more than a few Republicans, he is a blatant vulgarian, an incessant prevaricator, and a dangerous leader who should be ousted next January, if not sooner. Much of journalism has become the clarion voice of the “resistance,” dedicated to ousting the president, even though he was legally elected and, according to the polls, enjoys the support of about 44% of likely 2020 voters.
This poses significant problems not only for Mr. Trump but for the media’s own standing. If Mr. Trump prevails in November, what’s the next act, if any, for journalists and the resistance? They will likely find Mr. Trump more dangerous and offensive in a second term than in the first.
Mr. Sauter has it nailed. If Trump is reelected in November, where does the media go? Where do the Don Lemons, the Brian Stelters, and Rachel Maddows go if their resistance doesn’t work?
The media has damaged their own reputation and it seems extremely unlikely that Americans will ever be able to trust them again. And the problem is only further exacerbated when they continue to lie and gaslight.
The only way that Mr. Sauter sees a way back for the media is for them to actually admit their biases. I think that is a good start, but I don’t see any of the “Resistance” members actually taking any steps to appear more credible.
The post Can the media redeem themselves? A former CBS News president has a suggestion appeared first on The Resurgent.
