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Marina Oshana's avatar

"I have no explanation for why the NYT feels a need to stick Trump's name into headlines when it’s not warranted."

This is exactly right. Covering Trump when it's warranted is legitimate. Treating whatever comes out of his mouth as newsworthy and factual is not. Thank you, Mark Jacobs, for continuing to shine a light on the media's unnecessary and, frankly, problematic elevation of Trump.

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Jonathan Rand's avatar

One of the many exasperating issues with Trump is that after a decade of his deceptions, so many voters and media outlets won't wise up to his act. Remember "This is infrastructure week," or "We have a concept of a (health) plan." Early in his first term, he announced a deal that would require China to buy $2 billion worth of U.S. goods. The final amount was zero. So here we go again, media that should know better heralding his so-called deals with the disclaimers buried in the stories. Would these reporters and editors stay at a street hustler's stand and keep throwing away their money all day without realizing they're being had?

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Cicada's avatar

Thank you, Mark.

Regarding “weekend media manipulation” I’ve noticed that some very controversial stories were revealed over the weekend. Over time this became a pattern suggesting there wouldn’t be the same kind of coverage as during the week. Makes sense, less people to report. As you alluded to.

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Pat Kinney's avatar

To understand our president's way with the media, watch pro wrestling. He is the first commander in chief to be a World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer. He and good buddy and former WWE mogul Vince McMahon ran a "Battle of the Billionaires" storyline prior to a WrestleMania in 2007 and our president was inducted into the "celebrity" wing of the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013; past honorees included luminaries like Pete Rose and Mr. T.

The prez is like a bad-guy "heel" wrestler or manager saying or doing outrageous stuff at every turn, drawing all attention to himself, sucking all the air out of the room, driving the story line and "generating heat," as it's known in the " 'rasslin' " business. He is the Bobby "The Brain" Heenan of American politics.

He's been doing it ever since the first Republican presidential debate in the 2016 election cycle when he was positioned right in the middle of the thundering herd of pretenders flanking him. And when Megyn Kelly lit into him at the outset we saw what he was capable of.

But the prez's connections to "Mr. McMahon" go deeper than just a schtick to hype a WWE pay per view extravaganza. In the early 1990s when Vince was under federal investigation for peddling steroids to his wrestlers and facing a substantial challenge from Ted Turner's World Championship Wrestling, it was our president who hosted two WrestleManias at his Atlantic City casino for Vince. McMahon got off on the steroid probe thanks to Hulk Hogan, who did not sing like a canary as anticipated.

Vince's now-estranged wife and WWE co-founder Linda McMahon was our president's SBA administrator in his first term and is now Secretary of Education. Multiple media outlets have reported she contributed as much as $10 million to his most recent campaign.

And as to Vince's federal investigation for alleged sex trafficking? Well, guess who controls the Department of Justice now? That investigation went the way of the Biden administration. Rupert Murdoch's New York Post reported in February the probe was dropped.

It would be the icing on the cake if our commander in chief would adopt Hulk Hogan's "Real American" ring entrance music for his theme song at rallies.

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Bill Huddleston's avatar

An interesting study might be whether the approach of copy editors (or whoever is left to write headlines today) differs based on their technological backgrounds. Are editors who came of age during a print-only era more focused on newsworthiness, while editors who began their careers during the digital age more conscious of and driven by clicks?

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Gail Coffey's avatar

The new one is stock market manipulation!

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Bronxville39!'s avatar

Pres. Donald J. Bullshit Artist! He's been manipulating the media his entire life! He's a litigious snake who has outfoxed the SCOTUS, the U.S. Congress, the banks and and a plethora of creditors throughout his entire life. And he's a 34 count convicted felon, a rapist and a twice impeached former president. How 77 million Americans' were dumb enough to elect him for a second term is beyond comprehension; and frankly it doesn't pass the smell test! So here we are friends of American democracy and the rule of law, we'd better figure out how we're going to get rid of the fascist cult before this dictator destroys our great nation!

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Nancy's avatar

They don't seem to fact-check reliably. They need to watch Barbara Walters interview trump.

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Michael Brady's avatar

Everyone knows that Trump talks through his Ass because when he sits down the sound is mutted 😂😂😂😂

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I-Can't-Even's avatar

No, they’re willing participants

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Richard Donnelly's avatar

Unfortunately they gotta cover what he says. Then they can rip him to shreds in the editorials, and do.

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Susanna J. Sturgis's avatar

Of course they have to cover it, but they don't have to write headlines that make Trump look like the prime mover. The head could have read, e.g., "India and Pakistan Agree to Truce," with more info in the subhead. Presumably the NYT confirmed the story and learned what other countries had been involved in the negotiations. Keep in mind that page-one headlines get much more attention than editorials.

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Richard Donnelly's avatar

The headline is accurate. You just can't get away from accuracy. Further, if the NYT doesn't state who the announcement comes from, and that announcement is a lie, then it's their lie, not Trump's. Is that what you want?

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Susanna J. Sturgis's avatar

Richard, it seems you are new not only to politics but to the English language. Here's a quickie: Multiple sentences can be technically accurate while giving readers very different impressions. NYT editors know this, but perhaps you weren't aware of it. What's commonly called "slant" recognizes this. It's extremely important in journalism, politics, and every other form of public (and probably non-public) discourse.

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Richard Donnelly's avatar

In a headline it's standard to cite the source. There's nothing slanted.

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