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One solution , many journalists believe , is a recommitment to balanced , on-the-scene reporting beyond the Washington Beltway by talented reporters from diverse backgrounds capable of listening well to voters rather than professional politicians and their staffs and consultants .
Indeed , Gerard Baker , editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal , maintained after the election in a television commercial that Journal readers “ were ready ” for this year ’ s results because the paper covered the election “ objectively and across the nation ,” was “ tough on both candidates ,” didn ’ t “ endorse either of them ” and provided “ social , economic and political context ” of the election in a series of deeply reported articles .
COVERING PRESIDENT TRUMP
Going forward the press clearly faces new challenges covering Trump , who during the campaign often heaped ugly verbal abuse on journalists and news organizations and threatened press freedoms . An iconoclastic businessman and major media figure for decades , he enters the White House without government or military experience and seems determined to operate in ways foreign to the Washington establishment .
One of the first issues that arose was physical access . The week after the election , the American Society of News Editors and 14 other journalism associations wrote the president-elect . “ We call on you to commit to a protective press pool from now until the final day of your presidency …. We also call for access to you via regular press conferences .”
There is no indication that Trump cares much for either press pools or press conferences . During the campaign and the transition , Trump ’ s preferred way of communicating with the public was posting messages on Twitter on all manner of subjects at all times of the day and night . This generated considerable debate among journalists about how they should respond to the outpouring of 140-character messages from his Twitter account , some of which were neither grammatical nor factually correct .
There is a growing consensus that journalists should deal with Trump tweets as if they were White House press releases or announcements , making judgments based on their newsworthiness . But that ignores the fact Trump has some 20 million followers on Twitter . Former Vice President Dick Cheney , responding to a question from a reporter about Trump ’ s tweeting , said : “ I think one of the reasons people get so concerned about the tweets is it ’ s sort of a way around the press …. He ’ s at the point where we don ’ t need you guys anymore .” After the laughter , he added , “ I apologize .”
Trump ’ s ascendency has also spurred a debate among journalists whether it is appropriate to characterize a statement by Trump as a “ lie .” On “ Meet the Press ” on New Year ’ s Day , Wall Street Journal editor Baker said : “ I ’ d be careful about using the world ‘ lie .’ ‘ Lie ’ implies much more than just saying something that ’ s false . It implies a deliberate intent to mislead .”
In an op-ed piece in the Journal a few days later , he elaborated : “ If we are to use the term ‘ lie ’ in our reporting , then we have to be confident about the subject ’ s state of knowledge and his moral intent . I can see circumstances where we might . I ’ m reluctant to use the term , not implacably opposed to it .”
Other related issues that have received much attention since November include the flood of fake news stories and Russian cyberattacks on the email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and John Podesta , chairman of Hillary Clinton ’ s campaign , during the election . It is unclear what , if any , effect these developments had on the outcome of the election , but it is obvious they erode further the strength and credibility of the press .
Nor , of course , does it help that these problems are occurring against the backdrop of the news business ’ increasingly worrisome financial situation , with many publishers reducing spending on newsgathering as their bottom lines erode .
This , indeed , is a tough moment for the American press .