Just because Republicans choose unreality doesnât mean the media should ignore the facts of January 6.
On January 6, 2021, I watched CNN as thousands of Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol. As someone well-versed in watching tragedy on television, I was struck by just how indisputable the facts were at the time: violent, red-hat-clad MAGA rioters, followed by Republicans in Congress, tried to stop democracy in its tracks. Trump had told his followers that the protest in Washington, DC, âwill be wild,â and in the assault that followed his speech, some rioters smeared feces on the walls of the Capitol. Hundreds of them have since been convicted on charges ranging from assault on federal officers to seditious conspiracy. These are stubborn facts, the kind that do not care about your feelings. These facts include the inalienable truth that Trump is the first president in American history to reject the peaceful transfer of power.
It never occurred to me that these facts could somehow be perverted by partisanship. But three years later, we are seeing just that, as Republicans cling to the lie that the 2020 election was âstolenâ by Joe Biden and are poised to make Trump their 2024 nominee. And perhaps even more dangerous than the GOP ditching reality is the news mediaâs inability to cover Trumpism as the threat to democracy that it very much is.
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But the problem is, when all you have is conventional political framing, everything looks like politics as usual. One candidate makes a claim; the other disputes it. Two sides are divided, etc. This framing only works if both parties operate within the frameworks of a shared reality. But Trumpism doesnât allow for the reality the rest of us inhabit. Trumpâs supporters believe their leaderâs reality and not, say, the reality the rest of us see with our eyes. As Trump once told a crowd: âDonât believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news. What youâre seeing and what youâre reading is not whatâs happening.â
Journalists may be well-intentioned in trying to be âobjective,â or theyâre simply afraid of being labeled partisan. Either way, coverage of January 6 that gives equal weight to both sidesâone based in reality, one notâis helping pave the road for authoritarianism.
Criticizing Bidenâs handling of the war is not just allowed, but encouraged. His handling of it is dog shit.
Whatâs naive and stupid to do is refuse to vote for him because of it, when the threat is a person who bragged about becoming a dictator and retaliating against anyone he dislikes.