The Truth (Is) Offensive

Apparently, the Trump Administration has a Media Offenders list. And I have a new life goal…

Over the years, I’ve been a member of more than a few organizations and have been placed on a list or two.

I’m the current president of the Society of Professional Journalists Keystone Pro chapter. I used to be the president of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists and I’m still a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.

I used to be an active member of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women’s Philadelphia chapter. I’m a member of PhillyCam. And I’ve even spent time on the committee to plan Pemberton Township High School’s Class Reunions.

But a Facebook message from a friend of mine in Washington, D.C. told me of a new group that anyone who practices journalism should want to belong to if for no other reason but it shows just how endangered the Constitution is during Trump 2.0 (This Time It’s PERSONAL!!!).

Apparently, the president has put together a list of news outlets and reporters that he calls the Media Offenders list. This group of rogues and rapscallions (I love that word!) is guilty of, well, factual reporting. 

With the heading “Misleading. Biased. Exposed…”— the italics are theirs — the site has at least four pages of things it has branded as false claims, lies, malpractice, or, and this is my personal favorite, left-wing lunacy. It’s got a leaderboard listing how many times a news organization has been cited, and you can even get all this information delivered to your inbox every day.

(I’m thinking of creating a separate email address to subscribe. I can only imagine what that newsletter looks like.)

For example, the site charges an Associated Press story regarding the Trump Administraton’s claims that Tylenol causes autism of misleading the public with its claims that the president was using studies that were debunked. Because this is a White House that has no problem using debunked information as gospel — Donald Trump’s still mad at Philadelphia for helping to “steal” the 2020 Presidential Election from him — it’s no surprise that they doubled down.

But let’s be honest. That this website exists shouldn’t surprise anyone. When FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez came to the Rutgers Law School as part of an event sponsored by Free Press, she told everyone that the administration was on a campaign to silence dissenting voices. 

To the Trump Administration, anyone who is practicing fact-based, independent journalism is a dissenting voice. Heck, if you’re a woman and you ask President Trump why he’s hosting a guy at the White House that had a reporter for an American newspaper killed like it’s nothing, you’ll probably have to endure name calling. 

I mean, look at some of the moves this White House has made even before this. Clawing back money from public television and radio. Making reporters sign a loyalty oath to be allowed to cover what goes on at the Pentagon. That the White House now has an enemies list was the most logical, or illogical, step.

But that said, it’s also given me, and I hope my Hall Monitor colleagues, something to shoot for.

I want to be a “Media Offender”.

In fact, I want to be on the leaderboard as a repeat offender.

I want to tell stories about how Trump 2.0 (This Time It’s PERSONAL) and its policies have impacted Philadelphians, especially those who are still trying to make sure that their kids have enough to eat thanks to SNAP cutbacks. 

I want to show ICE protestors protecting their friends and neighbors by fighting back. 

I want to show people from marginalized communities holding voter registration drives, and, most importantly, getting those people out for the midterm elections and advocating for themselves. 

But in order to do that, we here at the Hall Monitor need a little help from you.

We’ve been blessed with support from grant makers like the Lenfest Foundation and Press Forward, and from the people who subscribe to our newsletter, but in order to make sure that we can keep an eye on Philadelphia City Hall, SEPTA, and all of the ways that what happens in Washington impacts Philadelphia, we’d really appreciate any help you could give us.

Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday. Now, we know there are non-profits like Philabundance, the Share Food Program, and Women Against Abuse who need your money. Give it to them. Really. I’m serious. They do good work and really deserve your help.

But if you have something extra, and you value what we do, we’d really appreciate it.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to send a copy of this column to the White House Press Office. And I have to set up that email to receive the “Media Offenders” newsletter. I won’t know if I’ve made it otherwise.

Also, by the time you read this, you’ll have noticed that the Trump Administration has decided not to recognize World AIDS Day. Next week, I’ll talk about why that’s not as bad as it looks on its face.