Everything changed on June 15, 2015 when businessman Donald Trump announced his presidential bid. Donald Trump changed the political scene with unapologetically racist and sexist statements disguised as a crusade against political correctness. Having had little previous exposure to Trump, it shocked me to see a grown man get away with and be celebrated for such vulgar language. Trump’s campaign has affected me on many levels, being a Muslim woman of color, but one of the most troubling aspects has been the media’s coverage of the issue. I fear that Trump is not being considered for presidency based on policies, but instead on empty promises amplified by the media.
Donald Trump stormed the media from the minute he stepped onto the Trump Towers escalator; in fact, after the announcement, he was mentioned more times than fifteen of the sixteen Republican candidates according to Internet and TV News Archives. As coverage of his campaign rose so did his poll numbers. The news media realized that Trump was the key to higher ratings, only after Trump realized the news media was the key to his higher poll numbers. Every controversial statement he made was labeled breaking news and tossed around by the arguing heads on CNN. In a time of hate and uncertainty, the media covers “What will become of the GOP” when the main, more dire issue is “What will become of the United States.” Sensationalizing Trump’s statements makes them seem acceptable to a public that neglects to put in the effort required to understand politics. Hateful people are given permission to broadcast previously silenced prejudices while those who are innocent feel the world is against them. Even worse, children acquire hateful vocabulary through the news. Recently, my eight-year-old sister was asked if she was a member of ISIS because she is Muslim by a classmate. It is tragic that such an event can take place in the United States, a country that defines freedom and progress.
The Trump phenomenon is attributed to the apparent decline of American journalism; however, the public is mostly to blame. The news media simply shows the public what it wants to see, and no one advocates for what we need to see. The whole Trump affair distracts from real news, and a public turns a blind eye to it because entertainment is valued over working toward change. Trump shifts the national focus from fighting against terrorism to pointing fingers and boiling down groups of people into stock characters. To be fair, it is far easier to listen to Trump ramble about the dangers of immigration than to think about the Syrian refugee crisis. However, it takes thought to be empathetic. Empathy is a quality that can spark change and yet we are living in a world where xenophobia in the guise of politics is being sold to the masses on television.
-Kadi
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