Journalists are under attack and it is because of the fighting words against them from our very own president.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly labeled them as the enemy of the people; this has only encouraged a surge of violence against a true journalists sole pursuit to seek and report the truth to the public.
The First Amendment allows freedom of the press; the media serves as an institution that has a transformative ability to bring President Trump’s power abuses to the forefront, which is why he attacks the media relentlessly.
On Wednesday, President Trump verbally attacked CNN reporter Jim Acosta after he persistently pressured President Trump to answer his question, according to the Associated Press.
“CNN should be ashamed of itself having you work for them,” the president said to Acosta. “You are a rude, terrible person. You shouldn’t be working for CNN.”
Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist who wrote columns often critical of Saudi Arabia policies for the Washington Post, was last seen entering a Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, Oct. 2, according to the Associated Press. Turkish officials have noted substantial evidence of Khashoggi being killed and dismembered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Although the killing of Khashoggi did not occur on our soil, the president is still held accountable for his demeaning rhetoric and persistence to strip the value journalists serve.
The root of the problem is President Trump sees no harm in his words aimed toward journalists and people who are unsupportive of him.
His words are committing more harm than he wants to acknowledge; this is why we as a country will continue witnessing violent attacks on groups of people at the expense of our own leader’s immaturity and reckless behavior.
We should protect our journalists to ensure we are informed, not endanger them.
Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of the Campus Times Editorial Board.
