At the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday, former President Donald Trump gave a rambling speech late into the night in which he demanded Democrats drop criminal investigations against him, pushed 2020 election conspiracy theories and said Democrats are “cheating on elections,” erroneously claimed that immigrants are “coming from mental institutions and insane asylums,” and cracked incoherent jokes about Hannibal Lecter.  On Friday morning, many front-page headlines bought the campaign’s preemptive spin that Trump’s speech would be one of “unity” and healing.  The speech hit many of the usual notes heard from the former president over the last nine years, but media outlets spent the week previewing the Trump campaign’s spin that his speech would aim to unify and “bring the country together,” suggesting that the attempt on Trump’s life last weekend had turned him into a more “serene” person. Despite the reality of the former president’s remarks Thursday night, many newspaper front pages on Friday morning ran stories highlighting Trump’s recounting of the recent assassination attempt and claiming that his convention speech was “somber,” “unifying,” and “healing.”

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/17793575

On the closing night of the Republican National Convention, Trump lambasted Democrats, pushed voter fraud conspiracy theories, fearmongered about immigration, and likened migrants to Hannibal Lecter

  • psvrh
    681·
    4 months ago

    The media is desperate for balance. They’re not able to say “this man is a deranged fascist who’s harmful to the country and the world”. They’re fighting decades of professional inertia.

    They just can’t do it; their training doesn’t let them. It’s kind of like asking a scientist if they’re certain that burning fossil fuels causes global warming: their training practically insists that they say “there’s strong evidence that it does” instead of “yes, of course it does”.

    If they came out and said it, they wouldn’t be “balanced”. When you realize that the media cares more about balance than truth, it helps explain a lot of why we are where we are.

  • Ciderpunk@lemmy.world
    35·
    4 months ago

    It’s not really a coincidence that mainstream media (even the alleged liberal media) constantly covers for and actively rehabs the image of Trump and also happens to be entirely owned by billionaires who would stand to gain a lot from Trump cutting their taxes and eliminating the regulatory apparatus of the country.

    • Raiderkev@lemmy.world
      14·
      4 months ago

      They know that they got way more revenue from all the rage inducing news Trump would incite during his presidency. They know it’ll be a disaster, but they also know they’ll make way more money.

      • Huschke@lemmy.world
        4·
        4 months ago

        They know it’ll be a disaster

        … for us. They have their private islands and hundreds of servants and couldn’t care less.

  • Phegan@lemmy.world
    12·
    4 months ago

    A trump presidency means better ratings for main stream media. Main stream media are owned by corporations. Corporations primary goal is to raise the value for shareholders.

    Do the math. They may not say it on the air, but they all want a trump presidency. It’s good for the shareholders

  • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    4 months ago

    Hearing a stream of mumbling (un)consciousness from the convicted felon and racist rapist is a truly unifying and healing to the worst of this nation, I guess.

    • TokenBoomer@lemmy.worldOP
      3·
      4 months ago

      I’m visiting family and I’m around one right now that thinks Trump is misunderstood. I almost asked what I misunderstand about an insurrection, but didn’t. It’s difficult 😥