On his first day in office, the president signed an order that purported to end federal censorship. A government blacklist now punishes journalists for telling the truth.
Donald Trump keeps a media blacklist, and he has now expanded it to include private individuals.
Since last November, the official White House website has hosted a page called “Media Offenders” which calls out stories the president does not like. Each week features a new outlet and reporter as Media Offender of the Week. Offense categories include “lie” and “left-wing lunacy.”
The named outlets span American journalism: the Associated Press, Reuters, CNN, CBS, the New York Times, the Washington Post — and include Fox News and the conservative Daily Signal.
As of June the page also includes a section called “Leftist Influencers” which includes people with social media followings who anger the administration. The government now names private citizens like Brian Tyler Cohen and David Pakman as offenders on its official website.
Consider Cohen’s so-called offense: he reported on the administration’s restructuring of the US Forest Service, which is closing all nine regional offices, shuttering more than 50 research facilities, and moving its headquarters from Washington to Salt Lake City. The White House in response says: “Leftists posing as unbiased news sources lied about the reorganization.”
On his first day in office, the president signed an order that purported to end federal censorship. A government blacklist now punishes journalists for telling the truth.
Notes To My Future Self 