The Leader of the Free World Punches CNN in the Face. So, Now His Supporters Hate CNN.
On This Day In 2017
Trump and his team constantly waged war on the media. He threatened to cancel broadcast licenses, insulted reporters at press briefings, and kicked out those who criticized him. He disparaged respected news sources such as the “Failing New York Times.” He rebranded MSNBC as “MSDNC” and NBC’s parent company as “Concast.” As for CNN? It was “Fake News.”
Causing citizens to doubt the free press is, of course, a “first step” in the strategy of most authoritarians once they come to power. Trump’s role model Putin has done it so well that there’s no longer any independent press in Russia; and Putin was just following the playbook of those who came before him, such as Adolf Hitler.
Trump took his own anti-press authoritarian efforts to new levels. OTDI 2017 he posted a poor-quality video on Twitter, showing himself at a wrestling ring punching CNN in the face. (And re-christening them “Fraud News Network”)
As you know, we here at OTDI have a sense of humor, but this is banana-republic level inappropriate.
It’s no wonder so many Trump supporters don’t trust CNN. A 2023 survey found that 9% of adults who voted for Biden deem CNN to be “Untrustworthy” or “Very Untrustworthy.” What % of Trump voters feel that way about CNN? 73%!
Say what you will about Trump, but he’s remarkably effective at getting millions of MAGA fans to believe his made-up theories.
And btw, thanks to SCOTUS (and the GOP presidents who appointed those six justices), President Trump is now legally empowered to punch -- or kill -- whomever "the hell he wants to," IRL, if he argues it's part of his official duties.
Dive Deeper
The video Trump posted on Twitter
Time’s report on it
YouGov’s 2023 survey on media trustworthiness