During Hitler’s reign, Jews, homosexuals, Black people, gypsies, and other “undesirables” were named “enemies of the state.” In 21st-century America, Trump recently gave the same label to the media. As part of one of his egomaniacal, unhinged Twitter rants, #45 came for the press — again — calling out specific outlets, but this time he took it one dictatorial step further, branding them as an “enemy of the American people” simply because they report the truth about his administration.
One of the many delusions #45 has is that “fair” reporting equals “favorable” reporting. And TBH, such thoughts should concern you and should not be dismissed as just talk. Left unchecked, #45’s tweet could be one role in the script that plays out the dismantling of American democracy.
He’s even gone as far as to publish the “Mainstream Media Accountability Survey,” which looks exactly like a not-so-veiled attempt to get people to provide answers that line up with his own twisted beliefs. (Resistance Action of the Day: Complete the survey, and get your friends and family to do the same, to show your support for the press.) And what will he do with the answers he receives? More than likely, regardless of the actual results, he and his cronies will roll with that whole #AlternativeFacts thing, claiming that the people want the media to be more controlled.
The First Amendment to our Constitution, however, specifically states, “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press …” But #45? He’d probably refer to enacting more control as “accountability,” and use that to systematically destroy true journalism; instead, pushing outlets that kowtow to him, making it easy for him to disseminate his propaganda, you know, the actual fake news. These are similar tactics used by Russian president, Vladimir Putin, who also began his attack on the press in the early days of his administration.
So what can you do to fight back against #45’s attacks on the fourth estate? Support the mess out of the press — subscribe to magazines and newspapers about that #realnews life. Contribute to your favorite publications — Sesi accepts short stories and poetry submissions from our readers. Also, never click on any headlines about #45 that are obvious clickbait — they will more than likely lead you to a fake news source. If you do happen to click on a link and aren’t sure whether it’s a truthful publication or not, check out its about page and do a little searching to see if any other reputable outlets are reporting the same stories.
Stay informed. Stay magic. Stay woke. In these streets.
