Donald Trump’s return to power is a hinge point for the American media – in ways big, small, and to be determined. His defeat of Kamala Harris is raising questions about the media’s credibility, influence, and audience. Some of the questions might not be answerable for years.
But, reports CNN, journalists are asking each other: What does this “red wave” election say about the information environment in the United States?
In the hours after Trump won reelection Tuesday, some of his loyalists asserted that his victory is a complete repudiation of the news media. For a time on Wednesday morning, The Federalist’s lead headline was not about Trump, it was about the “corporate media industrial complex” being “2024’s biggest loser.”
Woah. CNN panel silenced as @ScottJenningsKY explains Trump's victory is the “revenge of the working-class American” pic.twitter.com/AxtBkczWQv
— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) November 6, 2024
Legacy media “is officially dead,” The Daily Wire podcaster Matt Walsh wrote on X overnight. “Their ability to set the narrative has been destroyed. Trump declared war on the media in 2016. Tonight he vanquished them completely. They will never be relevant again.”
That’s wishful thinking on Walsh’s part — Tuesday’s marathon election coverage was a testament to the media’s relevance — but the point is that many Trump voters share his wish. They believe the national news media is a big part of what ails America. Not only do they distrust what they read, they often don’t read it in the first place. Can anything be done to change that?
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