Some US media are cheerleading Trump’s Venezuela raid. That’s not their job.
If you believe the early public opinion polls, Americans are uncertain about last weekend’s raid on Venezuela and the seizure of the country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro.
But many in the media seem to be trying to move that wavering needle to approval.
That’s especially true on the right, of course, where Fox News is leading a full-on cheering squad. Even the right-leaning podcaster Megyn Kelly, a former Fox host herself, said the cable network’s early coverage was like watching Russian propaganda.
A great deal of the mainstream media seems reluctant to question Donald Trump’s stunning move. CBS News, under new editorial leadership, is leading that pack. Its Tuesday-night broadcast was practically Fox Lite, including a too-cute montage of AI-created images of the US secretary of state and former Florida senator, Marco Rubio, and these words from anchor Tony Dokoupil: “It is a sign of how Florida, once an American punchline, has become a leader on the world stage … Marco Rubio, we salute you.” The segment was meant to be lighthearted, but it struck many as tone-deaf, or just plain irresponsible, under the circumstances.
Related Knowledge Center: Democracy and politics
News organizations are scrambling to find a coverage approach that adequately informs the American public about the country’s slide from democracy to authoritarian rule.
Related Knowledge Center: Information integrity
In an increasingly fractured media landscape, truth has been a casualty in the public discussion. Coverage has been warped by the business needs of struggling news organizations, and a significant segment of the public relies on bad-faith outlets that are little more than propagandists. While fact-checking has become routine, some organizations are exploring other ways to combat the trends. And misinformation spewed by AI-driven chatbots has become more of a feature than simply a bug.
Fact-checking and its detractors