Donald Trump continues to use Twitter to reshape the meaning of "presidential."
The most recent comes in what he is billing as awards for the "fake news" media brand he has put on any outlets, from the New York Times to CNN to the Washington Post, that write negative stories about him or his Administration. Trump tweeted the following late Tuesday:
I will be announcing THE MOST DISHONEST & CORRUPT MEDIA AWARDS OF THE YEAR on Monday at 5:00 o’clock. Subjects will cover Dishonesty & Bad Reporting in various categories from the Fake News Media. Stay tuned!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018
The President and the Republican National Committee have regularly disparaged news outlets in fund-raising e-mails to supporters, one of which reportedly signaled the mock awards were on the way.
Usually the attacks are tied to requests for donations or to fill out surveys on what the President should do next, how he has been doing so far, and how he has been treated, or more to his point mistreated, by the aforementioned media. The president has been routinely attempting to undercut the institutions he has associated with the swamp he argues he was sent to drain, which includes the intelligence community, the courts, Congress, and the press.
Various journalist groups have called the President's attacks on the press one of the biggest-ever threats to journalistic freedom both here and abroad, the latter by providing cover to despots and dictators for their own media manipulation and marginalization.
Radio-Television Digital News Association Executive Director Dan Shelley retweeted the President's tweet with this addition: "Those who practice #responsiblejournalism enter the prestigious Edward R. #Murrow Awards! @RTDNA #PressFreedom #FirstAmendment," a reference to RTDNA's awards for journalistic excellence.
As to the President's awards, Shelley told B&C RTDNA was "waiting to see what his 'awards' actually are."
