1st Edition
The Future of the Presidency, Journalism, and Democracy After Trump
This volume examines the effects of Donald Trump’s presidency on journalistic practices, rhetoric, and discourses. Rooted in critical theory and cultural studies, it asks what life may be like without Trump, not only for journalism but also for American society more broadly.
The book places perspectives and tensions around the Trump presidency in one spot, focusing on the underlying ideological forces in tensions around media trust, Trumpism, and the role of journalism in it all. It explores how journalists dealt with racist rhetoric from the White House, relationships between the Office of the President and social media companies, citizens, and journalists themselves, while questioning whether journalism has learned the right lessons for the future. More importantly, chapters on liberal media "bias," the First 100 Days of the Biden Presidency, gender, and race, and how journalists should adopt measures to "reduce harm" hint as to where politics and journalism may go next.
Reshaping the scholarly and public discourse about where we are headed in terms of the presidency and publics, social media, and journalism, this book will be an important resource for scholars and graduate students of journalism, media studies, communication studies, political science, race and ethnic studies and sociology.
Preface
Introduction: How Trump Tested the Press, They Failed, and We Wonder, “Now What?”
Robert E. Gutsche, Jr.
Part I
Trumpism and Its Attack(s) on Journalism: Fear, Phobias, and Fighting “Bullshit”
1. The Politics of Fear After Trump
David L. Altheide
2. Conservative News Audiences: A Lack of Media Trust and How They Think Journalism Can Improve
Jessica R. Collier, Gina M. Masullo, and Marley Duchovnay
3. Media Distrust and Republican Identity in Trump’s Wake
Lindsey Meeks
4. American and Cuban: Cuban-origin Voters’ Interpretations of Trump and the “Socialist” Media Frame in the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election
Hannah Artman and Sallie Hughes
5. Counter-net of Tomorrow? Right-wing Responses to Deplatforming Trump
Prashanth Bhat
Part II
Journalism’s (Failed) Responses to Trump: From Dis-information to Social Distance
6. Shifting the Frame: Trump’s “Big Lies,” Misogyny, and Cultural War Escalation
Pam Creedon
7. Donald Trump and the Rhetoric of Dis-information: COVID-19, China, and Coverage of his Comments
Stephen Heidt
8. The Trump Effect on Rural Communities and their Newspapers: In Retrospect and On Recovery
Al Cross
Part III
Journalism & Politics in Opposition to Trumpism: From Bashing to Biden
9. UnFoxing Market Failure: Complicating Media Matters for America’s #UnFoxMyCableBox Campaign for Digital Activism
Sydney Forde
10. Trump’s News Practices and Discursive Patterns in his New Moment as “Former President”
Leon Barkho
11. From Chaos and Cage Fighting to Quiet and Calm: How Trump and Biden Changed Journalism’s Relationship with the Presidency
Fred Blevens
12. Returning to Neoliberal Normalcy: Analysis of Legacy News Media’s Coverage of the Biden Presidency’s First Hundred Days
Nolan Higdon, Emil Marmol, and Mickey Huff
Part IV
Journalism’s Ideological & Practical Crisis: From Norms to “New, New, New” Journalism?
13. Media and White Supremacy After 45: Is Anti-racist Journalism Possible?
Katherine M. Bell
14. Not Two Sides of the Same Coin: Avoiding False Equivalencies Teaching Political Journalism After Trump
Jesse Benn and Jeff Tischauser
15. It’s Time Journalists Take “Minimize Harm” Seriously: Lessons from the Trump Era
Perry Parks
16. Trump, COVID-19, and Authoritarian Populism: The Future of U.S. Technopolitics
Douglas Kellner
Biography
Robert E. Gutsche, Jr. is Senior Lecturer in Critical Digital Media Practice in the Sociology Department at Lancaster University, U.K. His research focuses on issues of power, geography, political communication, and innovation in digital journalism. He is author, co-author, and editor of several books, including Media Control: News as an Institution of Power and Social Control and The Trump Presidency, Journalism, and Democracy. As Associate Editor and Engagement Editor of Journalism Practice, he produces and hosts “The J Word: A Podcast by Journalism Practice.”
