President Biden, despite the inherent dangers of being exposed at a packed event, chose to appear at the White House’s dinner on Saturday. Yes, some have reasonably wondered why he would be sick that. But Americans should be happy he showed up. And they should hope that the journalists in the room took the president’s words seriously. Of course, there was apt humor. Speaking to Fox News and some of its hosts, comedian Trevor Noah said that “vaccine departments have moved viewers… to the ICU”. (The mainstream media was not unmoved. NBC’s Chuck Todd was at the finish line. “What are you doing? I’re going to ask a sequel, but I know you do not know what they are.”) Florida Among the targets was Governor Ron DeSantis (R ). Condemning both the governor’s efforts to control class speech and the Republicans’ efforts to overthrow voters in general, Noah remarked: “First you ban math textbooks, then no one knows how to count the votes.” (Disclaimer: I’m an MSNBC Partner.) Follow the views of Jennifer Rubin Follow Add President Biden took the opportunity to bake the Republicans: “Everyone had to prove that they were fully vaccinated and empowered. So if you’re at home watching this video and wondering how to do it, just contact your favorite Fox News reporter. They are all here, vaccinated and strengthened. All of them. “(The camera was cut to a melancholy Fox correspondent, Peter Doocy.) And Biden stabbed the House minority leader.” I can not say anything about the GOP that Kevin McCarthy has not already put in the film. ». But after the humor of his statements, Biden had an important message: Climb up, journalists. You can be better than you are very often. Sure, he said it much more gently. “The free press is not the enemy of the people – far from it,” Biden said. “The truth matters. American democracy is not reality. It is not reality. That is the reality. “ On the one hand, you could hear it as a critique of Biden’s predecessor, who, as the authoritarians are accustomed to doing, demonized the media and attacked objective reality. One could, however, hear it as an appeal to journalists to take the threats to democracy seriously – and to give this story the coverage it deserves. Biden stressed that “at home, a poison is running in our democracy; with misinformation growing massively, where truth is buried by lies and lies live as truth.” He added, “What is clear – and I mean it from the bottom of my heart – [is] that you, a free press, are more important than ever in the last century. “ It is strange that Biden seems to think more about the role of the media in combating the forces of right-wing authoritarianism than many members of the press. The very common attitude of “neutrality” when a political party injects this “poison” that runs through our democracy is tantamount to capitulating to lies and conspiracy theories. The refusal to call the usual Republican lies more than just “politics” and the media obsession with horse racing polls, trial histories, personal shots and covert half-heartedness contribute to the destruction of our politics. Relentless hysteria and negativity undermine our collective perspective (and logic) and reduce the sense of personal action among voters. Biden reminded the media that the First Amendment was accompanied by “a very heavy obligation: to seek the truth as best you can – not to ignite or have fun, but to enlighten and educate.” He acknowledged that there was “incredible pressure” on journalists to “offer warmth instead of light”. Biden shows a genuine affection for the media as an institution, perhaps because he understands – better than click-editors, conflict-obsessed producers, and stubborn questioners looking for healthy bites (not substantive answers) – that when it comes to defense of democracy, is on the same side. Both need to do a better job by invoking Republicans’ attack on the rule of law and the truth. And this is not funny.
