'Perilous moment': NY Times publisher warns Trump waging 'frontal attack' on free press

13 May

Donald Trump gestures at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., December 22, 2024. REUTERS/Cheney Orr/File Photo

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger has said that the United States is currently experiencing an "anti-press campaign," describing it as "the most frontal attack on the American press in a century."

In an op-ed in the Times published Tuesday, Sulzberger wrote: "Since 2016, the number of countries deemed to have a 'good' record of protecting press freedom by Reporters Without Borders dropped by more than half. Effectively, in his first term President Trump exported his anti-press rhetoric to illiberal leaders abroad."

"Now, in President Trump’s second term, this vicious cycle has been completed as the anti-press playbook he helped inspire has been imported back to the United States. That makes this a perilous moment — the shift from words to action," he added.

Sulzberger said the playbook can be divided into" five self-reinforcing parts."

The first part of the playbook, the journalist wrote, "is sowing distrust in and encouraging the harassment of independent journalists and news organizations."

"This is largely a campaign of words that aims to demoralize and exhaust. Today reporters who write about powerful people or controversial subjects often find themselves deluged with thousands of angry, bigoted and threatening messages."

Sulzberger warned that such online attacks can quickly spill into the real world.

"In the last few years, my colleagues have been doxxed, stalked and SWATted. They’ve had their identities stolen and been falsely accused of crimes. They’ve faced death threats," he said.

Sulzberger said these threats even targeted his colleagues' kids at school, their spouses at work and their parents at home.

"President Trump, as I described, has been unusually aggressive in his use of anti-press rhetoric, and his supporters have been equally aggressive in going after his targets. Their goal is not just to spook journalists. It’s to train people to dislike and distrust the media," he said.

The second part of the playbook, according to Sulzberger, is weaponizing the civil courts against independent reporters and news outlets.

"Even the most frivolous lawsuit can be expensive, invasive and time-consuming to defend against. These cases redirect time and money away from journalism," he explained.

Trump has been criticized by press freedom advocates for attacking journalists and media outlets he deems "fake news." These attacks by the president on the press have escalated since he won the election in November.

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