In a recent press conference, President-elect Donald Trump has come out vociferously, criticising the media — more specifically BuzzFeed and CNN — for their allegations that Russia may have incriminating evidence against him.
In response to these allegations, Mr Trump has labelled some of the media as ‘sick people’ and likened the accusations to Nazi Germany, citing that this is something they would have done.
Whilst I do not side with the President-elect’s stance on most matters, and believe that his way of addressing the reporters was somewhat childish, I do however think that on this occasion he may have a point.
Anything relating to his alleged conduct is arguably irrelevant, given that there is no concrete evidence to suggest any wrongdoing. As they say, ‘innocent until proven guilty’. This applies to even the most misogynistic and racist of people — which some believe Trump to be. Though whether he in fact is, is another matter.
Trump may be controversial, but his comments on the media got me thinking.
Undoubtedly, the media does exaggerate stories. We have seen this on many other occasions; such as the defamation of Wayne Rooney, chastised for attending a wedding late at night whilst on international duty with England.
However, whilst some of these reports are quite atrocious, one cannot blame the media entirely.
It is their job to sell stories, and naturally a more exaggerated story is going to drum up more attention and talk. It is in the nature of a reporter to ask difficult questions, the nature of a journalist to sniff out any wrongdoing by those in the spotlight.
And that sometimes involves vilifying celebrities. Being in the public eye, like magnets, they naturally attract the most attention.
This is what Mr Trump has alluded to. The unfairness experienced by people like himself who are publically exposed. It seems that they cannot win no matter what they do, and no one can claim to be a saint, after all.
Here I have to agree with him. The media exploits this weakness quite effectively. But it is unavoidable. This is the simple way in which society works; anything that is odd or shocking to the regular person, arouses great curiosity.
Trump is correct in saying that the media are overblowing things, but the analogy to Nazi Germany is much too far-fetched. The journalists are simply doing what we’re all trying to do; earn money to provide for themselves and their families — does that seem immoral?
DISCLAIMER: The articles on our website are not endorsed by, or the opinions of Shout Out UK (SOUK), but exclusively the views of the author.
