It's no secret that lefty mainstream media outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post absolutely hate President Donald Trump. It is probably because Trump is the only president who has had enough gusto to call them out for their political bias and unfair reporting.
The New York Times decided to round out the year by writing a bogus piece about how President Trump's "threats of ‘retribution,’ more accusations of ‘fake news’ and the end of the White House briefing made 2019 the darkest yet for journalists in the Trump era."
Specifically, the long-standing publication took issue with the president's use of the term "fake news."
"Mr. Trump’s vilification of the news media is a hallmark of his tenure and a jagged break from the norms of his predecessors: Once a global champion of the free press, the presidency has become an inspiration to autocrats and dictators who ape Mr. Trump’s cry of 'fake news,” the article said.
Trump typically utilizes the term "fake news" to describe so-called "news reports" that rely heavily on anonymous sources, rumors or third-hand information (like the Ukrainian whistleblower report).
In a lot of ways, the term "fake news" has been a battle cry for the right. The mainstream media attempts to hide their bias by claiming to be fair, balanced and non-partisan. These news outlets are not mad at their lack of journalistic integrity. They are mad that someone finally has the guts to call them out for their horrible practices. And that someone happens to be President of the United States.
But the publication's other issue with the Trump administration? The lack of White House press briefings.
"The daily White House press briefing was once a ritual of Washington life and, viewed abroad, a potent symbol of accountability in government. In 2017, the Trump administration held about 100 formal briefings; in 2018, that number dropped by roughly half," The Times wrote. "Two briefings took place in 2019."
Here's the thing: the White House does not have to hold any kind of press briefings. And why would they when reporters, like Jim Acosta from CNN and Brian Karem of Playboy magazine, fail to behave like adults? Instead, they continually scream over people, act like their questions or statements are more important than others and lack any kind of professionalism.
The author did give the president credit for being "more directly accessible to journalists than several of his recent predecessors" when he takes questions from reporters on the White House's South Lawn as the presidential helicopter hovers in the background.
Of course, that compliment was sandwiched with a complaint.
"But the arrangement is stacked in Mr. Trump’s favor," the newspaper said. "The noise lets him ignore questions he dislikes. And the events are entirely at Mr. Trump’s discretion, as opposed to a regular briefing where officials must answer for the news of the day."
2019 was a terrible year for "journalists" because they were called out for their shenanigans and political bias. They just hate that it was the President of the United States who did it.