Yesterday's No Kings protests were one of the largest single-day demonstrations in modern American history. Up to 7 million participated. The actual number feels like ~5 million, but that is just a personal estimate based on scanning various sources reporting about it. Not surprisingly, news reporting and analysis split along MSM-MAGA lines.
Authoritarian sites including Fox News called the protests "hate America rallies". As usual, MAGA reporting is shameless, morally rotted lies and slanders. Fox News rejected and ridiculed the authoritarian framing. Host Mark Levin said he was "sick and tired of 'constant drumbeat' that Trump's an authoritarian". Other MAGA coverage called the protests "hate America rallies" organized by "Marxists" and "communists".
The MSM reporting was more neutral, but still poorly framed. Some sources referred to the protests as a constitutionally protected right and/or a civic duty, which comes fairly close but still misses hitting on Trump-MAGA authoritarianism.
What about anti-authoritarianism reporting?
The point of the "No Kings" protests was pro-democracy anti-authoritarianism. Progressive and international outlets most directly centered authoritarian framing. Euronews headlined that "Thousands protest Trump's 'authoritarian' rule across major US cities". At least the Europeans see it and call it for what it is. The No Kings website hit the mark: "The president thinks his rule is absolute". It described the movement as opposing "Trump's authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of our cities". Like most of the MSM, the ACLU missed the mark and used softening euphemisms to describe the protests as opposing "President Trump's escalating abuses of power".
Escalating abuses of power?? Hey ACLU, get a grip. Wake up.
But, the ACLU wasn't alone in missing the mark. Major outlets like the NYT, WaPo, Reuters, and CBS News used indirect and softened language. They described protesters as opposing what they "see as authoritarian" or "perceive as" overreach rather than independently characterizing Trump's actions for what they in fact are.
To its credit, MSNBC directly reported the authoritarian threat. The network had experts like Jason Stanley explicitly stating "I think we are facing the moment in which a coup is happening". He described Trump's actions as authoritarian.
Q: As a whole, what grade does the MSM get for reporting about Trump and MAGA elites' authoritarian and kleptocratic threats?
I give 'em an F-
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