this post was submitted on 04 Feb 2025
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politics

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Summary

Sen. Bernie Sanders warned that media self-censorship and legal intimidation from Trump pose a major threat to press freedom.

He criticized CBS for reportedly considering a settlement in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit over a "60 Minutes" interview and ABC for paying $15 million to settle Trump-related defamation claims.

Sanders also condemned Trump’s lawsuit against a pollster for unfavorable election polling.

Media owners have faced scrutiny for restricting anti-Trump coverage, fueling concerns that press freedoms are eroding even before any government crackdown.

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[–] [email protected] 47 points 17 hours ago (3 children)

Freedom of the Press has been irreparably tainted already. Trump has already got the 3 major networks (CBS, ABC, and NBC) to all bend the knee, along with major publications like the Washington Post. Companies have already altered their coverage of Trump to avoid retaliation either in the form of lawsuits, government action, or both. Independent media and reporters have toned down their coverage considerably out of fear of lawsuits they cannot afford to defend themselves against or executive retaliation.

This is damage that cannot be undone, as every media outlet going forward will have the fear of "What if this president decides to retaliate?" in the back of their heads, which has a chilling effect on reporting.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

As someone who worked at an NBC, an ABC, and a FOX affiliate during the Bush years...

Those ones were irreparably tainted 20 years ago.

I remember when the New York Times sat on the NSA illegal wiretapping story for over a year for the Bush admin, and then when the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper claimed they weren't spying on Americans "not wittingly," that prompted Snowden to make his leaks because he knew DNI Clapper was lying to congress.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

But that's willing cooperation to quash a story and curry favor with the administration. I'm not defending it. I'm just saying the two are not the same. This is bending the knee to Trump out of fear of retaliation, which has already borne fruit. The former is willingly holding back the story because you want to. This is holding back the story because you have to.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 16 hours ago

And I'm saying the first begets the second.

You don't become a media organization that bends the knee overnight, it's a death by a thousand cuts. Those cuts are things like sitting on a story for the government when you don't have to.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago) (1 children)

The corporate news outlets may be cooked, but there are independent news outlets doing serious journalism that need funding. Donate to them.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 13 hours ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 9 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Mother Jones. The Atlantic, 404 media, they're there if you're willing to look a little bit.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 hours ago
[–] [email protected] 1 points 15 hours ago

Are they cowtowing or is Trump's agenda already pay closely aligned to theirs? I.e. get filthy rich and weaken the American working class so.