Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, pushed back on accusations that the media intentionally protected former President Joe Biden by downplaying concerns about his mental fitness. He argued that journalists can't report on a leader’s decline without firsthand confirmation or credible sources willing to speak on the record, even after years of observing signs of Biden’s deterioration.
During an interview with CNN host Jake Tapper and Axios National Political Correspondent Alex Thompson on PBS’s “Washington Week,” Goldberg argued that claims the media covered for Biden stem from a misunderstanding of journalism. He said reporters need credible sources to confirm Biden’s decline, and without insiders speaking up, they couldn’t report it as fact.
Goldberg pushed back against claims that the media covered for Biden’s very obvious health decline, pointing out that concerns about Biden’s abilities were raised as early as 2022 by major outlets, including The Atlantic. Goldberg argued the idea of a media cover-up misunderstands how journalism works—reporters need credible, on-the-record sources to confirm such claims, not just speculation or impressions. Without insiders verifying Biden’s condition, journalists couldn’t report it as fact, according to him.
However, his comments reveal a double standard in reporting that appears to favor his political side while holding those on the right to a different standard.
In a piece published by The Atlantic in 2020, it claimed that President Donald Trump called American soldiers who died in war “losers” and “suckers.” The story relied entirely on unnamed sources and was denied on the record by several Trump officials who were present at the time. However, the original claims were never definitively proven or disproven.
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Another example, in 2020, several outlets reported that Trump ordered tear gas and force to clear Lafayette Square for a photo op in front of St. John’s Church. Similar to the story above, this piece relied entirely on unnamed sources and was denied on the record by several Trump officials who were present at the time. However, the original claims were never definitively proven or disproven.
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