US3 min(s) read
Americans make the same harrowing observation as The White House launches Trump TV
.jpg_xKEaT0?tr=cr-0.328.2730.3058,f-webp,q-70,w-100)
Donald Trump has continued to draw criticism from members of the US public after he barred certain major news outlets from the White House.
The fallout from the decision has been largely negative, including from other publications, as they chose to stand in solidarity with the banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico.
Now, ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC, the most popular networks in the US, are refusing to send cameramen or reporters to cover upcoming events such as Trump's visit and address at the United Nations General Assembly today (September 22).
It means that the President's appearance in New York will remain untelevised on the country's main networks.
But Trump has hit back at the movement by starting a new 24-hour streaming service from the White House.
It's been branded 'Trump TV', with the administration announcing: “TRUMP TV IS STREAMING NOW. 24/7, updated in real time, with top past moments, announcements, and the latest and greatest from the administration all in one place. Not every big moment has made it on your tv, now it can.”
US public react to launch of Trump TV
Since Trump TV started broadcasting on Monday evening, people have taken to social media to share what they really think about Trump's unprecedented decision.
The banned outlets issued a joint statement, reading: "The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government,
"No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting."
Users took to X following the decision to ban news outlets, with one sarcastically saying of Trump TV: "State-run TV like Russia. Fascism is awesome!"
Another claimed: "State-run media coming straight out of the authoritarian's propaganda playbook."
“Trump is literally getting ready to launch a state run media called Trump TV. Didn't another dictator have a state run media or was I imagining that?” Breck Worsham, a former right-wing online presence added.
Some went a step further, comparing Trump to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un, as others compared it to state-run media seen in China, North Korea, and Russia.
A former US Capitol Police sergeant who defended the Capitol during the infamous January 6 attacks, Aquilino Gonell, said Trump TV is "official state-run media."
He went on: "But look over there… the communist," when speaking about the administration's decision to brand Democrat Socialists as "communists," before claiming that they are "literally shredding the Constitution.”
For reference, state-controlled media refers to outlets whose ownership, funding, or editorial operations are under government control.
Trump defends the move
Taking to Truth Social, the President claimed that 'fake news' was a 'threat to democracy'.
He said: "Fake News people and publications that only write negatively, and who violate our National Security by writing false and defamatory stories with unknown 'sources,' shouldn’t be allowed access to the most important Office anywhere in the World."
Responding to criticism, Trump defended himself, adding: "The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish,
"It is instituting an assault on the fake news, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America."
"It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, now!"