The Dangerous Normalization of Trump
Somehow, in the murky world of American political media norms, it became acceptable that as long as there was no precise rule stopping it, one could still run for president. Convicted of a felony? Okay. Adjudicated for sexual assault? Fine. Fined for hundreds of millions from business fraud? No problem. Instigate an insurrection upon the transfer of power? It’s all good.
Ignoring Cognitive Breakdown
At the same time, completely ignore the cognitive breakdown and basic speaking skills of said candidate who can do anything and still run because there wasn’t a precise rule stopping it? He was nominated in the primaries, that has to mean legitimacy. Right?
Double Standards in Media
In amazing blindness concurrently, ruthlessly hound the President of the United States for mental acuity and fitness for office, completely ignoring the nuclear glare and screaming alarm klaxons of fascistic moves of the other candidate.
Journalism’s Credibility Crisis
Earth to US journalism corps, this has happened, your credibility and ability to present the truth is in utter tatters. You’re a dangerous joke, and every single day that Trump exists as a viable candidate crushes the legitimacy of the Republican Party just as much as it does yours.
Normalizing a Felon
That’s right, by this incredible move of normalizing a candidate who could not apply for animal control in Santa Clara county–seriously, they’d laugh him out of the office, we don’t employ felons here–you have in fact become an extension of him, an element of enabling and facilitation. Donald Trump, he owns you.
Trump’s Influence on Media
Oh yes he does, Trump defended violence against journalists at a rally in real time as it happened, you didn’t care.
The Harm of Mainstream News
A seriously good argument can be made that watching ABC News is actually an act of civic harm. They’ll clean up Trump’s speech today, ignore his economic policy, and package him as a normal candidate. Then a citizen goes on YouTube and actually sees the truth with Trump as he is unedited. The screaming contradiction rips apart the ABC News normalizing fantasy but amazingly they don’t care. Week after week they carry on. The word propaganda floats about you, ABC News.
Americans Don’t Like Being Lied To
All of this is totally obvious and has been for a long time. Americans don’t like being lied to and here in the Valley we are masters of the workaround. It may be sloppy and inefficient but code the damn workaround anyway, anything but being speared by this problem!
The Migration Away from Mainstream News
Thus the migration away from mainstream news into anything that can present the truth. I don’t watch CBS News or CNN, it truly can be classified as dangerous soft propaganda, so gentle in its normalizing of that fascistic felon.
Journalism’s Failure
Do you finally get it, US journalism corps? You normalized Trump while ruthlessly hounding Biden. There is no going back and the perception of you is forever irrevocably changed to enablers, enablers to all that is worst in us and could bring our democracy down.
No Going Back
Every day you continue to do it of course just pounds home the fact even more. You are incapable of change and have done this to yourselves. It can seem utterly futile but the attempt will be made here nonetheless: you normalized Trump and completely, utterly failed in your mission to deliver truth.
Loss of Trust
You are not trusted, and our busted journalism corps is just another serious worry for citizens hoping the country can be made to work as a real democracy for all of us.
