STAFF EDITORIAL
Since taking office on Jan. 20, President Donald Trump has continued the attacks he started on the press during his first term, something he promised to do on the campaign trail in 2024. It is critical to the health of a democracy that the electorate actively engages with the news and uses their media literacy.
Media literacy equips individuals with tools to critically assess, analyze and evaluate the content they consume, empowering them to make informed decisions rather than allowing a head of state to dictate what is credible.
The Foghorn previously reported that Trump’s second presidency would likely pose challenges to the freedom of the press, and we have seen this come to fruition. Trump has been vocal about his contempt for journalists since his first campaign in 2015. The Independent reported that over the course of Trump’s first term, he called journalists and news outlets “fake news” over 2,000 times, averaging more than one daily attack against the press.
A study conducted by Reporters without Borders found that in the months leading up to the 2024 election, Trump publicly insulted, attacked or threatened the press 108 times between Sept. 1 and Oct. 24, 2024. This figure includes public speeches and remarks, but does not account for the several attacks he made against journalists across social media, where he often called journalists out by name. When campaigning in 2024, Trump also threatened to prosecute journalists who refused to reveal confidential sources. These ongoing attempts to discredit the press are designed to foster distrust in the media and hinder the public’s ability to make informed decisions.
KQED reported last week that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) opened an investigation into KCBS for reporting the locations and descriptions of undercover Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in San Jose. FCC chair Brendan Carr argued that KCBS was not “acting in the public interest” by identifying undercover law enforcement. David Loy, legal director for the First Amendment Coalition, told KQED that this action by the federal government was “very troubling.”
The FCC also launched an investigation into NPR and PBS stations’ funding and sponsorship practices. Elon Musk, who Trump appointed as head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, has advocated for eliminating funding for public broadcasters, calling NPR a “liberal discrimination machine.”
This is compounded by the prevalence of misinformation on social media, which can take advantage of those with poor media literacy if left unmoderated. According to a 2018 MIT study, misinformation on social media spreads six times faster than the truth and falsehoods are seven times more likely to be retweeted than the truth. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the parent company’s platforms, which include Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp, will get rid of fact checkers this year and replace them with “community notes” similarly to Musk’s platform X.
Social media users can no longer turn to automatic fact checking when assessing the validity of the media they consume. This coupled with Trump’s attacks against journalists make developing media literacy skills all the more crucial. Ultimately, in today’s political climate, critically engaging with the media one consumes is essential. A well informed public is the best defense against threats to press freedom and the spread of misinformation
To build media literacy, individuals can start by using fact-checking websites like Snopes and PolitiFact to verify the information they are presented rather than taking it at face value. Engaging with diverse news sources and seeking out outlets known for rigorous journalism can help consumers broaden their perspectives. By actively seeking reliable information and questioning sources, individuals can help strengthen the media landscape and protect press freedom.
Editor-in-Chief: Jordan Premmer, Chief Copy Editor: Sophia McCrackin, Managing Editor: Jordan DelFiugo, Opinion Editor: Dakota Duran, Scene Editor: Elina Graham
