President Trump has spent the first weeks of his administration enacting firm executive orders and appointing allies to key government positions. His swift actions have not gone unnoticed, given that many Americans—and international spectators alike—witnessed apparent attempts to override the U.S. election system in 2020. The president is known to delegitimize not only his opponent but anyone who disagrees with his policies, politics, or personal success. Most recently, the White House banned AP News from reporting on events for two days.
The Trump Administration is returning to the world of media censorship, using its executive power and jurisdiction to limit and punish certain news outlets or reporters and reward or uplift others. Infringing freedom of the press, a cornerstone of American democracy, is just another item on the president’s to-do list.
President Trump recently signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the ‘Gulf of America.’ While many are shocked at the change, some companies, such as Google, have quickly altered their programs to reflect the new policy. Unfortunately for Mr. Trump, no global authority oversees the standardization of geographic features. Names, borders, and landmarks are traditionally named and acknowledged by conventional standards, but disputes over names and boundaries are not unusual. Countries accept and utilize whatever they wish, and people can, too.
When AP News confirmed that they would continue utilizing the ‘Gulf of Mexico,’ they were met with unexpected consequences. The administration acted out of retaliation towards AP News for not conforming to federal regulations. Some have noted that this is an overstep from the executive branch, given that they lack the authority to mandate terminology from any organization other than federal offices. When asked about the matter, the White House Press Secretary confirmed that “it is a privilege to cover the White House” and claimed that it was a fact that the Gulf of Mexico has been renamed to the Gulf of America.
Attempts to censor other critical publications have come from the Federal Communications Commission in the form of investigations. NPR, PBS, CBS, ABC, and NBC are affected organizations. The common denominator? They are not afraid to paint the president in an unfavorable shade. Through past lawsuits with ABC and CBS, Trump has proven that he will unleash excessive resources to get his way. Many independent journalists and individual reporters are unwilling to compete with the president’s office, leading to the rise of self-censorship. During the 2024 election, multiple media outlets withheld endorsements due to information manipulation by the Trump team, further highlighting the president’s grip on the media.
The administration’s use of power to limit the public’s access to a well-rounded media landscape could be catastrophic. Censorship is taught as one of the first warning signs of democratic erosion beginning at a young age, and somehow, still, not enough people are paying attention. In Stealth Authoritarianism, Varol expresses the common themes accompanying slow shifts in power into the hands of an authoritarian leader. Libel threats and lawsuits, use of non-political ‘crimes’ or wrongdoings, surveillance laws and institutions (or probes and investigations) against opponents, and enactment of the ‘rule of law’ to protect the public are all tactics employed by the president.
Of course, these tactics are not limited to the press. However, they highlight how much access to information threatens authoritarian leaders. Trump has framed media that reports negatively on him as ‘fake news,’ untrustworthy, and dangerous. In reality, his swift policies to curtail freedom of the press convey the danger that accurate reporting and analysis of his policies could bring to further attempts to consolidate power.
Trump’s attacks on the media highlight one other key point on his agenda: he is working hard for the American people who deserve better, and those who oppose him are all unqualified, incorrect, and should be removed from power (whatever it may look like). He has taken the form of a classic, anti-establishment, populist leader. Pitting himself and his ‘laws’ against the media through the lens of being attacked, slandered, or overly criticized further divides him and his supporters from the established political landscape.
As he alienates himself and his base, we can see that the profoundly entrenched polarization that has permeated American politics—highlighted by Levitsky and Ziblatt—has once again been unveiled. Divisions along class and race, now combined with immigration status, gender, and political ideology, have decreased opportunities for a middle ground. The president can use this to his advantage and fuel anti-establishment rhetoric, only increasing support among his followers.
Trump’s definitive actions against media outlets and a free press should not be surprising. Since entering the political arena, he has been vehemently opposed to criticism and appears to be decreasing his tolerance. As he continues with his second term, the press, the Judiciary, and Congress should remain vigilant and active in curtailing attempts at censorship. Free speech separates America from non-democracies and other developed democracies. Perhaps Mr. Trump should reconsider his ideas of American exceptionalism.
Briefing of president of US United States in White House. Podium speaker tribune with USA flags and sign of White House. Politics, president election concept. 3d illustration
His attacks on the media are truly chilling. Without an independent, impartial media we can’t have a democracy. As a journalism student his attacks on the media feel personal to me. His claims of “fake news” and him calling the media “enemy of the people” are so subversive to the ideals of our democracy, and our 1st amendment.