If there is one thing that anyone could say about Trump, the president is certainly determined to address any and all media stories circulating about him.
Indeed, a veritable smorgasbord has floated around in the media about Trump for well over ten years at this point, at least within a presidential context.
In general, Trump has been a media fixture for the vast majority of his life, which is probably why he seems especially well-attuned to how the news networks operate.
And, more often than not, some media outlets can seize upon the most scandalous-sounding stories possible, without necessarily ensuring that the stories are completely airtight in terms of fact checking.
Once several dozen skeptical stories begin to spread, it is probably time to step in and issue some clarifications.
Which is precisely what the White House just did in a recent publication – “100 Days of Hoaxes: Cutting through the Fake News.”
Throughout the publication, the White House provides insight into 57 different “hoaxes” presently circulating in the media, addressing each hoax with a “fact.”
The majority of facts listed were accompanied by at least one hyperlink that would enable readers to undertake further research on their own.
Unsurprisingly, one of the hoaxes pertained to the highly controversial case of Mahmoud Khalil, who made international headlines for spearheading blatantly antisemitic protests on campus.
After originally arriving to the United States on a green card.
Nonetheless, the media went wild over Khalil, as outlined in the “Hoax” listed the article: “The Fake News portrayed Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Hamas radical who led violent protests at Columbia, as an innocent graduate student with an absolute right to remain in the U.S.”
As for the “fact” in response?
The White House is fairly clear: “An immigration judge ruled Khalil – who is not a U.S. citizen – can be deported.”
Despite the judge’s ruling, the media will likely continue to tout the case of Khalil as an example of apparent “lawlessness,” though the White House is attempting to set the record straight.
Another even more dangerous hoax includes the outright disinformation regarding the removal of Canada from the “Five Eyes” alliance.
The “Five Eyes” alliance – which consists of the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, and Canada – is an intelligence sharing network that performs critically important national security functions.
Per some media networks, the Trump administration was apparently contemplating the removal of Canada, as detailed in the following “hoax”: “The Financial Times reported that Senior White House Counselor Peter Navarro wanted to remove Canada from the ‘Five Eyes’ intelligence sharing network.”
Not so, the White House declared, noting that Navarro “immediately shut down” the baseless speculation.
“They report stories and never name their sources … We would never, ever jeopardize our national security,” Navarro declared.
Perhaps a media obsessed with fact checking should be even more scrupulous with its own reporting.
Needless to say, that would be an improved form of leading by example.
Author: Jane Jones
