The point is systematic disinformation, to the point that facts mean nothing. (Photo: Shutterstock)
Not One Network Should Have Aired Trump's Immigration Speech
The president is going to demonize the media no matter what they do. So why not do the right thing?
Way back in 2014 -- a century ago, it feels like -- President Barack Obama requested time on major networks for an Oval Office address on immigration reform.
Fearing the subject was too "political," the broadcast networks declined, plying viewers instead with The Big Bang Theory and Bones. Few Americans saw the speech. Immigration reform withered on the vines, which were then burned to the ground in the next election.
Flash forward to January 8, 2019.
At 8:31 a.m., President Trump tweeted -- again -- that the "Fake News Media" was "truly the Enemy of the People." Hours later, at 1:44 p.m., he announced that he was going to give a speech on the "National Security crisis on our Southern Border."
By 9 p.m. the next night, all major networks, derided only the day before as "the real Opposition Party," were carrying the speech.
How Obama's address was "too political" for Big Bang Theory night but this one -- in the middle of a government shutdown of the president's own creation -- wasn't is beyond me.
Much worse than the inconsistency, however, is that networks aired the obviously political speech knowing perfectly well it would be chock full of lies. As of last October, The Washington Post counted, Trump was telling 30 lies a day, especially about immigrants.
And so it was. The first lie in Trump's Oval Office address on the need for a border wall, The Post noted, "came in the first sentence," and the lies continued "over the course of his nine-minute speech."
The president complained about "a security crisis at the southern border," even though undocumented crossings are at a 20-year low. He warned darkly that immigrants were shedding "American blood," even though immigrants commit crimes at far lower rates than native-born Americans.
He seemed unaware that most drugs come through legal ports of entry, or that most unauthorized arrivals overstay their visas, rather than sneaking across the border. A wall would help... how, exactly?
The only crisis at the border is a humanitarian one of the administration's making.
Fully 57 percent of people apprehended at the border are families and children, most fleeing violence and poverty and trying to (legally!) seek asylum. Trump has greeted them with tear gas, violence, and cages, and blamed desperate parents when their children die in his custody.
But facts are beside the point. The point is systematic disinformation, to the point that facts mean nothing. And besides state violence, The Nation's George Zornick notes, this kind of climate encourages all manner of private violence.
If they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The man who killed 11 Jews in Pittsburgh cited the congregation's work settling refugees as a motive. Around the same time, three men in Kansas were arrested for plotting to murder Somali immigrants before the election.
Hate crimes have increased for three years straight, the FBI notes -- continuously since the Trump campaign.
Mainstream media outlets can fact check false claims all they want -- that's their job. But if they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The president is going to demonize the media no matter what they do. So what do they have to lose by doing the right thing? That means not airing one second of lies calculated to misinform, spread hate, and justify violence against desperate families. For once, airing Big Bang Theory reruns would have been a public service.
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This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Way back in 2014 -- a century ago, it feels like -- President Barack Obama requested time on major networks for an Oval Office address on immigration reform.
Fearing the subject was too "political," the broadcast networks declined, plying viewers instead with The Big Bang Theory and Bones. Few Americans saw the speech. Immigration reform withered on the vines, which were then burned to the ground in the next election.
Flash forward to January 8, 2019.
At 8:31 a.m., President Trump tweeted -- again -- that the "Fake News Media" was "truly the Enemy of the People." Hours later, at 1:44 p.m., he announced that he was going to give a speech on the "National Security crisis on our Southern Border."
By 9 p.m. the next night, all major networks, derided only the day before as "the real Opposition Party," were carrying the speech.
How Obama's address was "too political" for Big Bang Theory night but this one -- in the middle of a government shutdown of the president's own creation -- wasn't is beyond me.
Much worse than the inconsistency, however, is that networks aired the obviously political speech knowing perfectly well it would be chock full of lies. As of last October, The Washington Post counted, Trump was telling 30 lies a day, especially about immigrants.
And so it was. The first lie in Trump's Oval Office address on the need for a border wall, The Post noted, "came in the first sentence," and the lies continued "over the course of his nine-minute speech."
The president complained about "a security crisis at the southern border," even though undocumented crossings are at a 20-year low. He warned darkly that immigrants were shedding "American blood," even though immigrants commit crimes at far lower rates than native-born Americans.
He seemed unaware that most drugs come through legal ports of entry, or that most unauthorized arrivals overstay their visas, rather than sneaking across the border. A wall would help... how, exactly?
The only crisis at the border is a humanitarian one of the administration's making.
Fully 57 percent of people apprehended at the border are families and children, most fleeing violence and poverty and trying to (legally!) seek asylum. Trump has greeted them with tear gas, violence, and cages, and blamed desperate parents when their children die in his custody.
But facts are beside the point. The point is systematic disinformation, to the point that facts mean nothing. And besides state violence, The Nation's George Zornick notes, this kind of climate encourages all manner of private violence.
If they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The man who killed 11 Jews in Pittsburgh cited the congregation's work settling refugees as a motive. Around the same time, three men in Kansas were arrested for plotting to murder Somali immigrants before the election.
Hate crimes have increased for three years straight, the FBI notes -- continuously since the Trump campaign.
Mainstream media outlets can fact check false claims all they want -- that's their job. But if they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The president is going to demonize the media no matter what they do. So what do they have to lose by doing the right thing? That means not airing one second of lies calculated to misinform, spread hate, and justify violence against desperate families. For once, airing Big Bang Theory reruns would have been a public service.
Way back in 2014 -- a century ago, it feels like -- President Barack Obama requested time on major networks for an Oval Office address on immigration reform.
Fearing the subject was too "political," the broadcast networks declined, plying viewers instead with The Big Bang Theory and Bones. Few Americans saw the speech. Immigration reform withered on the vines, which were then burned to the ground in the next election.
Flash forward to January 8, 2019.
At 8:31 a.m., President Trump tweeted -- again -- that the "Fake News Media" was "truly the Enemy of the People." Hours later, at 1:44 p.m., he announced that he was going to give a speech on the "National Security crisis on our Southern Border."
By 9 p.m. the next night, all major networks, derided only the day before as "the real Opposition Party," were carrying the speech.
How Obama's address was "too political" for Big Bang Theory night but this one -- in the middle of a government shutdown of the president's own creation -- wasn't is beyond me.
Much worse than the inconsistency, however, is that networks aired the obviously political speech knowing perfectly well it would be chock full of lies. As of last October, The Washington Post counted, Trump was telling 30 lies a day, especially about immigrants.
And so it was. The first lie in Trump's Oval Office address on the need for a border wall, The Post noted, "came in the first sentence," and the lies continued "over the course of his nine-minute speech."
The president complained about "a security crisis at the southern border," even though undocumented crossings are at a 20-year low. He warned darkly that immigrants were shedding "American blood," even though immigrants commit crimes at far lower rates than native-born Americans.
He seemed unaware that most drugs come through legal ports of entry, or that most unauthorized arrivals overstay their visas, rather than sneaking across the border. A wall would help... how, exactly?
The only crisis at the border is a humanitarian one of the administration's making.
Fully 57 percent of people apprehended at the border are families and children, most fleeing violence and poverty and trying to (legally!) seek asylum. Trump has greeted them with tear gas, violence, and cages, and blamed desperate parents when their children die in his custody.
But facts are beside the point. The point is systematic disinformation, to the point that facts mean nothing. And besides state violence, The Nation's George Zornick notes, this kind of climate encourages all manner of private violence.
If they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The man who killed 11 Jews in Pittsburgh cited the congregation's work settling refugees as a motive. Around the same time, three men in Kansas were arrested for plotting to murder Somali immigrants before the election.
Hate crimes have increased for three years straight, the FBI notes -- continuously since the Trump campaign.
Mainstream media outlets can fact check false claims all they want -- that's their job. But if they're giving a free platform to those lies in the first place -- across every network! -- then Trump may have a point that they're not acting in the best interest of the people.
The president is going to demonize the media no matter what they do. So what do they have to lose by doing the right thing? That means not airing one second of lies calculated to misinform, spread hate, and justify violence against desperate families. For once, airing Big Bang Theory reruns would have been a public service.