Over ten years ago, billionaire Donald Trump kicked off his campaign for the presidency. Fast forward through three elections and two wins, and one thing stands out: Trump has definitely outmaneuvered the media. They aimed to take him down, but ultimately, they fell short. In fact, he seems to have come out on top. Throughout American history, traditional media’s influence hasn’t really waned.
Trump has successfully taken on two major news networks in court, and he observed as other media outlets shied away from backing his rivals. Also, he’s applauded the reduction of taxpayer funding for public media. It’s reminiscent of the classic underdog story—David versus Goliath. And unsurprisingly, Goliath didn’t fare well.
Really, who could have anticipated this? Established left-leaning news organizations have held sway over various aspects of American life, from politics to culture and sports. They’ve played a role in selecting presidential candidates from both parties, derailing political careers, keeping scandals under wraps (hello, Hunter Biden?), and generally shifting the discourse leftward on issues from taxes to other contentious topics.
They’ve weathered numerous challenges to their authority: the rise of the internet, blogging, social media, and dwindling ad revenue. Even during Trump’s first term, they reveled in his impeachment and electoral setbacks, seeming to try everything at their disposal.
This time, however, things feel different. As Trump gears up for his State of the Union address on February 24th, the media landscape for his challengers looks rather unstable.
Consider his victories over NPR and PBS. For many years, Republicans have battled public media. Both outlets have predominantly leftist leanings, funded by taxpayers. Efforts to reduce their funding often felt like facing off against Big Bird. Every attempt left the GOP embarrassed, discouraging them from persevering. But Trump boldly encouraged Congress to cut funding—and succeeded. Former CNN correspondent Jim Acosta has since argued for increased funding for public media, deeming it “too big to fail.” Ironically, it has failed.
Claims that federal funding doesn’t significantly impact public media budgets have been debunked. Both NPR and PBS are struggling financially. PBS recently canceled “PBS News Weekend,” citing the loss of federal funds attributed to Trump’s actions. Feel free to express sorrow about that.
Trump’s legal battles with the media have also borne fruit. ABC and CBS settled lawsuits with him, wary of worse consequences. ABC reportedly agreed to provide a $15 million “charitable gift” towards the construction of the Trump Presidential Library and cover $1 million in legal expenses, along with expressing regret.
CBS’s settlement was even more significant—$16 million towards the library. Furthermore, they’ve appointed Bari Weiss, the founder of Free Press, as their new editor-in-chief. This move sparked outrage among many in the media, despite her not being overtly conservative. Some media outlets labeled it a “hostile takeover.” Weiss is attempting to level the playing field, frustrating those who have frequently complained about the network’s previous leanings.
One producer even stepped down, voicing concerns that stories are now evaluated not just for their journalistic worth but also based on shifting ideological standards. Journalists who were once thrilled about the network’s leftiche focus now seem disgruntled, feeling threatened by even slight moves toward the center. In a related twist, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper’s contract was not renewed.
The editorial landscape is shifting as well. Last February, Jeff Bezos announced major changes to the Washington Post’s editorial page, stating he would advocate for “individual freedom and free markets,” two concepts that typically don’t sit well with many journalists. An exodus of writers followed, including columnists like Jonathan Capehart and Philip Bump.
The Post, along with a group of 43 leading newspapers, declined to back any 2024 presidential candidate, stirring anger within the journalism community. Among them were several major outlets. The Post reportedly lost over 200,000 subscribers and recently laid off nearly half of its workforce, leading one op-ed to describe the moment as “Darkness descends from mass layoffs at the Washington Post.”
And the Post isn’t alone in its struggles. It’s projected that there will be 2,254 job cuts across news organizations by 2025, including at CNN, CBS, and NBC.
Even on social media, the atmosphere has changed—Trump has shifted from being sidelined to founding his own media enterprise, the Trump Media & Technology Group, which encompasses Truth Social and boasts a valuation around $3 billion.
It’s impressive for someone who has spent years combating the media since his presidency began in 2017, often labeling them “the enemy of the American people.” Now, journalists look ahead to three more years of challenges posed by Trump and a growing number of conservatives who seem to have absorbed the lesson on how to challenge media behemoths.
