Trumpled (Alternative Leading)

[Mav]

misrepresenting what I am saying, and attacking what is known as "the straw man" will simply achieve nought.

Maybe you should accept the blame for not making your meaning plain.  Even after your 2nd attempt, you've failed to clarify it (other than repeating the general complaint that the Meeja is creating fake news - you know, that monolithic entity which everyone knows is playing evil games).

Maybe some examples could clarify what you mean.  But I've already asked for them and got nada.  But why let a good conspiracy theory get bogged down in facts. 

I suppose you could have put forward FoxNews coverage of Trump's claim that Obama was born overseas and the insinuation that he's actually a Muslim who spent his time trying to help the Muslim terrorists win.  Or maybe the Bowling Green Massacre.  Or the fact that serious crime is the worst for 50 years (even though it isn't by a long shot).  Etc. etc.  Sorry to tar Trump with that - hope you forgive me. 

Sen. John McCain spoke out Saturday in defense of the free press after President Trump lashed out against the news media several times over the past week, at one point declaring it “the enemy of the American People!”

Such talk, McCain (R-Ariz.) said on NBC News in an interview set to air Sunday, was “how dictators get started.”

“In other words, a consolidation of power,” McCain told “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd from Munich. “When you look at history, the first thing that dictators do is shut down the press. And I'm not saying that President Trump is trying to be a dictator. I'm just saying we need to learn the lessons of history.”

The 80-year-old Republican senator was responding to several tweets by Trump over the past week, in which he repeatedly attacked the media as “fake news.” In one widely shared tweet Friday, Trump said the press was “not my enemy” but that of the American people.

In it, Trump tagged the New York Times, CNN and broadcast news networks NBC, ABC and CBS.

In the backlash to the tweet, #NotTheEnemy began trending, with people sharing stories about journalists who had dedicated their lives to — and, in some instances, paid the ultimate price for — reporting the news.

In the “Meet the Press” interview, McCain told Todd that a free press was central to a functional democracy, even if news organizations' stories challenged those being held accountable.

“I hate the press. I hate you, especially,” he said to Todd, who laughed. “But the fact is, we need you. We need a free press. We must have it. It's vital.”

“If you want to preserve democracy as we know it, you have to have a free and, many times, adversarial press,” McCain added. “And without it, I am afraid that we would lose so much of our individual liberties over time. That's how dictators get started.”

Which is not to say that all media coverage is good.  As I've noted, Brietbart, FoxNews and Alex Jones are real exponents of fake news.  But to use them to beat quality journalists over the head is like saying that Carlton players are drug cheats because Essendon players were.