Politics February 9, 2017
Donald Trump appears to be winning his war with the media.
According to a new poll, more Americans trust the Trump administration than the news organizations.
The Emerson College survey found that 49 percent of voters find Trump’s team “truthful,” while only 39 percent consider the media to be so.
Furthermore, 53 percent find the press to be “untruthful.”
The results will make pleasant reading in the White House where the new administration has described the media as the “opposition party.”
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Chief strategist Steve Bannon used that phrase in a New York Times interview, saying, “The media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for a while… The media here is the opposition party.” President Trump also referred to the media as “the opposition party” in a tweet.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer took a more positive tone, saying at George Washington University earlier this week, “The press plays a very healthy role in democracy, no question about it.”
Meanwhile the administration’s war with the media is having a big impact on plans for the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, which honors the political press.
Already Vanity Fair and The New Yorker have pulled out of the April 29 event and other outlets are considering their attendance at the Washington banquet.
Celebrities were at every table during all the times the dinner was held in the Obama years but this time the Hollywood guest list will be low or non existent.
No host has yet been found for the festivities – usually fronted by a famous comedian – with James Corden reportedly having turned down the gig.
Another talk show host, Samantha Bee, has announced she will host an alternative event “Not The White House Correspoents Dinner” across town on the same night which will serve as a fundraiser for the Committee to Protect Journalists. That already seems likely to get a bigger celebrity turnout.
None of this should concern Trump unduly – he can point these latest survey numbers and say he has the trust of the public.
