Media Trust Below Zero

The media:

• The Atlantic: Trump offered to pay for the funeral of Rosemary Gullén, Latina soldier among those killed at Fort Hood shooting. But when presented with the bill, he yelled, “It doesn’t take $60,000 to bury a f***ing Mexican.” Trump and aides deny the allegation.

• The Atlantic: Trump declared that he needed “The kind of generals Hitler had.” Again, Trump and aides deny the allegation.

The Facts:

• Trump has a Jewish son-in-law, a Jewish daughter, and Jewish grandchildren. Some Hitler!

• Trump worshiped at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Some Nazi!

• Trump spent decades getting along well with multi-ethnic construction workers, but less well with White industrialists. Some racist!

• Trump sponsored the Abraham Accords, which brought the Middle East as close to peace as it has been in decades. Some warmonger!

• Trump moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, Israel’s capital, which other presidents had promised to do but never did. They feared the reaction. Trump did not fear the reaction. In reality, there was virtually no reaction. In reality, weakness, not strength, causes trouble.

In physics, absolute zero is the lowest possible temperature. Nothing can go lower. But there is no absolute zero in trust or confidence. Just when we thought that trust in the media could not fall any lower, it is falling lower. If the mainstream media declared that the sun rises in the east, I would look for sunrise in the west.

That is a serious problem. The credulous believe everything they hear, even if it is false. But the skeptical believe nothing they hear, even if it is true. Time to rebuild trust. It will be a while. The media trust meter is pegged at zero. But if it were not for the peg, the needle would be even lower.