Bob Garfield and Brooke Gladstone of WNYC’s On the Media
It’s not just journalists and it’s not just Clinton supporters. There is strong evidence that even Donald Trump himself never fully believed things would end up like this.
But in the journalism community – as is often the case – there is a great deal of inward thinking about how the news media could have been so wrong about the outcome of the presidential race.
This weekend will be filled with analysis about what’s next, but on your local public radio station, On the Media will be searching for signs of the implicit press bias against Trump that led to a non-self fulfilling prophecy. (It can be heard on WNPR: Saturday morning at 6 and Sunday at 3,” as Chion Wolf might say).
Thursday, Joe Scarborough, the gentleman from New Canaan, shared his thoughts on the subject.
Here’s another view informed by the approach of Edward R. Murrow against Senator Joseph McCarthy. When Murrow and others came to the conclusion that McCarthy had gone too far, Murrow used the senator’s own words against him. Murrow made him out for the dangerous fool he was.
About a month before this year’s election it appears many news organizations hoped to use that same tactic against Trump. It almost worked, but probably didn’t because for at least half the country, Hillary Clinton was the Joseph McCarthy of this election and Trump the only alternative.
