White House sets up a hall of shame for news outlets

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s White House is taking on the role of media critic and asking for help from “everyday Americans.”

The White House launched a web portal it says will spotlight bias on the part of news outlets, targeting the Boston Globe, CBS News, The Independent and The Washington Post in its first two “media offenders of the week.”

It’s the latest wrinkle in the fight against what Trump, back in his first term, labeled “fake news.” The Republican president has taken outlets like CBS News and The Wall Street Journal to court over their coverage, is fighting The Associated Press in court over media access and has moved to dismantle government-run outlets like Voice of America.

Trump has also engaged in personal attacks, last month alone saying “quiet, piggy,” to a female reporter who was questioning him on Air Force One, calling a reporter from The New York Times “ugly, both inside and out” and publicly telling an ABC News journalist she was “a terrible reporter.”

“It’s honestly overwhelming to keep up with it all and to constantly have to defend against this fake news and these attacks,” said press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who called the new web portal an attempt to hold journalists accountable.

After its debut, the White House asked for volunteers to submit their own examples of media bias. “So-called ‘journalists’ have made it impossible to identify every false or misleading story, which is why help from the American people is essential,” Trump’s press office said.

Devouring the media like hot french fries

Despite the attacks, Axios wrote this week that the mainstream media is ending the year as “dominant as ever” in capturing the president’s attention and setting Washington’s agenda, citing as one example The Washington Post’s reporting on military strikes against boats with alleged drug smugglers.

The irony is that Trump engages with reporters at a level he hasn’t seen with any other president in his lifetime, said Axios CEO Jim VandeHei, co-author of the report with Mike Allen.

“He’s always bitched about the media and the press,” VandeHei told The Associated Press. “He gobbles this stuff up like hot McDonald’s french fries. He’s a mass consumer of this. He watches it, he calls reporters, he takes calls from reporters. … That’s always been the contradiction with him.”

CBS, the Globe and The Independent were criticized for stories about Trump’s reaction to Democratic lawmakers who recorded a video reminding military members they were not required to follow unlawful orders. Trump accused the lawmakers of sedition “punishable by death.”

The White House said it was a misrepresentation to say Trump had called for their executions. The portal also said news outlets “subversively implied” that the president had issued illegal orders. The news articles they cited did not specifically say whether Trump had or had not ordered illegal activities.

Leavitt has been sharply critical of the Post’s story on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s role in attacks on boats used by alleged drug smugglers in central America. The portal this week accused the newspaper of trying to undermine anti-terrorist operations.

“Let’s be clear what’s happening here: the wrongful and intentional targeting of journalists by government officials for exercising a constitutionally protected right,” said the Post’s executive editor, Matt Murray. “The Washington Post will not be dissuaded and will continue to report rigorously and accurately in service to all of America.”

The new portal also contains an “Offender Hall of Shame” of articles it deems unfair and a leaderboard ranking outlets with the most pieces it objects to. Twenty-three outlets are represented, led by the Post’s six stories. CBS News, The New York Times and MS NOW, the network formerly known as MSNBC, had five apiece. No news outlets that appeal to conservatives were cited for bias.

Media watchdog welcomes the company

The conservative media watchdog Media Research Center, which has accused news outlets of having a liberal bias since 1987, welcomes the company.

“We’re pleased,” said Tim Graham, MRC’s director of media analysis. “It’s a stronger effort than Republican presidents have done before. I think all Republicans realize today that the media is on the other side and need to be identified as on the other side.”

VandeHei said about the portal, “I can’t think of anything I care less about. If they want to set up a site and point out bias, great. It’s called free speech. Do it. I don’t think it makes a damned bit of difference.”

What is damaging is a constant drumbeat of claims that what people read in the media is false. “It makes people suspicious of the truth and the country suffers when we’re not operating from some semblance of a common truth,” VandeHei said.

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David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.

David Bauder, The Associated Press