How Trump’s War on Journalism Can End America

Donald Trump has been called many things: authoritarian, racist, liar, scam artist. Stacey Abrams is adding one more…aspiring autocrat. Inspired by Princeton professor Kim Scheppele, Stacey  has remixed the “The Ten Steps to Autocracy” to reflect today’s political reality. And embedded in that framework is a chilling move the administration and Republicans have played repeatedly since inauguration: attack the media until no one knows what’s true. 

Just this year alone, Trump has launched frivolous lawsuits against  CBS, ABC, and the Wall Street Journal. He banned the Associated Press from the White House press pool for months. And his administration has weaponized the Federal Communications Commission against major broadcasters and public media alike. For Republicans, “fake news” often just means news that tells the truth about their attacks on America. Their response? Undermine, sue, intimidate, block access. And many media corporations are bowing to the pressure.  This week, Stacey sits down with journalist and founder of STATUS, a new media venture shining a light on the power dynamics inside the press, Oliver Darcy, to unpack the state of media independence as the Trump administration’s attacks escalate. 

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [e-mail] and include the name of the podcast.

 

Learn & Do More:

BE CURIOUS: Subscribe to Oliver’s newsletter, Status, at status.news, and check out his new podcast Power Lines to learn more about how media shapes society. 

SOLVE PROBLEMS: Consider donating to your local public radio station and to PBS to help keep important programming and vital emergency alerts alive. 

DO GOOD: You can also support trusted news outlets by purchasing a subscription. These organizations rely on reader support—especially during times of financial uncertainty.