The media does its job

As Donald Trump rages on against the media, he was given a perfect riposte by CNN. It reminded the US President that it wasn’t the media’s job to represent the country to the world, but to report the news. Having been the beneficiary of so much fake news floating on social media platforms in the run-up to last year’s presidential election, Mr Trump has never seen the media in proper perspective, besides those elements favourable to him, and his “America First” and Alt-Right friends. The mainstream media, liberal or otherwise, may express opinions against the trends seen in Trump’s America, which is why they’re all lumped together as “fake news” as they appear to represent the US poorly to the world.

The war between Mr Trump and the media is being fought on Twitter. This may not be so in India and Turkey, which have similar problems with ruling forces as the mainstream media tend to report events as they see them. This perceived ideal of narrow nationalism, where the supposed will of the majority must be upheld, has led to distressing events, with pressure put on the media as it reports events truthfully. There’s also the suspicion that those who don’t toe the line are being “sorted out”. It’s a tribute to India’s mainstream media that it has stuck to its principal task of reporting the news, and reflecting a cross-section of opinions. To stand up to injustice is the media’s job, and there’s no lack of such courage in India’s media. But it’s not Mr Trump alone who tends to blame everything on the media.