Session Four: Journalism and the Fight for Democracy

Session Four: Journalism and the Fight for Democracy

Essential Questions:

• How has Donald Trump’s relationship with the news media shaped public trust in journalism and democratic institutions in the United States? 

• To what extent has Donald Trump’s rhetoric about “fake news” influenced public trust in the press and the role of the media in a democracy? 

• How does conflict between political leaders and the press impact democratic accountability? 

• How should journalists respond when political leaders repeatedly attack their credibility? 

• What ethical responsibilities do news organizations have when covering misinformation from political leaders? 

• How has Donald Trump used the media—both mainstream and social media—as a tool to mobilize supporters and frame political narratives? 

• What strategies has Donald Trump used to both rely on and challenge the mainstream press? 

• How does Donald Trump’s relationship with the press compare to that of past U.S. presidents? 

• Is the tension between Trump and the media part of a larger global trend in political attacks on journalism?

(all questions from CHATGPT)

Music: "Democracy," Leonard Cohen Live in London, Link to Site

Welcome and Introductions

Homework for Session 5: Responding to Authoritarianism with Nonviolent Action 

Gathering: "A question that I have for the speakers is... " (enter in chat)

Speaker: Ralph Begleiter bio link to site and  Sam Feist bio Link to site 

Readings:

• Jennifer Dresden, et al, "The Authoritarian Playbook: How Reporters can contextualize and cover authoritarian threats as distinct from politics as usual," Protect Democracy, June 2022 Link to site

• Maria Ressa, "Fighting Back Against Trump's Authoritarian Algorithm with Truth," Daily Show, 9/18/25 Link to Site

• "Jimmy Kimmel and Free Speech in the United States," The Daily/NY Times, 9/19/25Link to Site

• Lisa Armstrong, "When Neutrality is a Constant," Columbia Journalism Review, 8/6/25 Link to Site

• Jon Allsop,  How Foreign Journalists See trump's First Hundred day with the Press," Columbia Journalism Review, 4/2925 Link to Class

• Jennifer Schultz, "A Country in Peril Needs Journalists It Can Count On," Lincoln Square/Substack, Link to Site

• Heather Cox Richardson, "Trump's Lashing Out at Murdoch & WSJ, " Politics Chat, April 5, 2025

• Interview with Carr, "FCC Chairman says network oversight needs a course correction," PBS Newshour, July 31, 2025 Interview, Link to Site

• Interview with Anna Gomez, "Trump threatens press freedom, FCC commissioner says," PBS Newshour, July 29, 2025 Link to Site

• "United States," country fact file , 2025 Index, Reporters without Borders, accessed 8/5/25 Link to Site

•  Ted Anthony and Kevin Freking, "CPB to shut down after being defunded by Congress, targeted by trump,"  8/1/25 Link to Site

• Major Themes in Trump vs. the Media, CHATCPT, 8/1/25  Link to Site

• Robert Reich, "We are witnessing the silencing of American Media,: Guardian, 7/30/25 Link to Site

• James B. Greenberg, "Totalitarian Narratives: The War Against Memory, Knowledge and Meaning," Substack, 8/9/25Link to Site

• James B. Greenberg, "How to Break the Grip: Resisting Authoritarianism from Below," Substack, 7/12/25 "Link to Site

Closing: reflective sentence starter (Use chat)

Quotes:

"The fake news media is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American people."

                                Donald Trump (Feb. 2017): 

            "To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle."

                                Timothy Snyder (On Tyranny, 2017)

"Delegitimizing the media is a classic move for leaders who want to weaken democratic institutions."

                                Anne Applebaum (2020 interview)