The Media Have ‘Dropped Any Pretense of Objectivity’ in Covering Donald Trump

The mainstream media, led by The New York Times, have dropped any pretense of objectivity in covering the Donald Trump phenomena. The man is constantly depicted as nothing but pure evil in thought and deed, while the considerable ethical complications of his leading Democratic opponent are rationalized—when they are not simply ignored.

But demonization is a poor substitute for reporting, and what is lost is that Trump’s extraordinary success in sweeping aside the entire Republican establishment is a consequence, rather than the root cause, of what ails us. It is the reactionary counterpoint to the rejection of the Democratic Party establishment by the surprisingly large vote across the nation for Bernie Sanders’ progressive alternative. Both campaigns, so profoundly opposite in their regard for basic human values, nonetheless bear common witness that the establishment consensus that the leading media attempt to resuscitate may be beyond recovery.

Want to hear more? Tune in to Truthdig’s live discussion on this topic, featuring Editor in Chief Robert Scheer, at noon PST on Friday.