Donald Trump won the election and as I have said continuously, I have moved on and I relish in the fact that the election was decisive and there’s no controversy. However, it has been the job of the media, since its inception, to hold politicians and government accountable.
We celebrate when WWL-TV’s investigative reporters Michael Perlstein, David Hammer, and Katie Moore uncover wrongdoing at City Hall. We celebrate when Fox 8 investigative reporter Lee Zurik busts Mayor Cantrell abusing the city-owned apartment in the Pontalba Building at Jackson Square as a hook-up den with her “bootyguard” NOPD Officer Jeffrey Vappie. Those are examples of the media doing its job. It is NEVER the job of the media to look the other way after an election. In fact, after an election the media takes on the role of watching whoever is elected. Are they living up to their campaign promises? Are they abusing their power? It has always been the responsibility of the media to answer those questions.
During this hyper-sensitive time in American politics when Americans are so reactive to any negative reports about their candidate, it is important to remind America that questions about some of Trump’s appointments or concerns about Project 2025 being implemented or any actions that could infringe on our precious right to freedom of speech are the responsibility of the media. And for Trump supporters - if Kamala Harris had won - they would be begging the media to do exactly what the media will do with Donald Trump. No one wins an election and is free to do whatever they want. Every politician is held to a standard and it can be no different with President Donald Trump.
Trump’s appointment of Rep. Matt Gaetz as Attorney General was shocking even to well-respected Republicans who supported and voted for Trump. The media’s questioning of the Gaetz appointment is fair and not mean-spirited.
Robert F Kennedy, Jr. has been appointed by Trump to be Secretary of Health and Human Services. This is a controversial pick for a number of reasons, not the least of which are his anti-vax position and his pro-choice stance. There are jokes that Kennedy will “make measles great again” and Trump’s former VP Mike Pence is wild over the idea that a pro-choicer will head that department.
John Thune, the incoming Senate Majority Leader, blatantly said on Fox News that some of Trump’s controversial (his word) appointments are going to be difficult to be approved by the full Senate.
The prospect of Project 2025 being implemented deserves media scrutiny because of the project’s plan to rework the government of the United States, and plan to infringe on personal freedoms in America. We all know that if Kamala Harris had won and her administration had those plans, Republicans would demand investigation by the media. And for those who insist that Project 2025 is nothing and will not be part of the Trump administration, I remind you that Project 2025 was created for the moment Trump was re-election - that moment is here. It’s naive to think that so many people worked on the project and there are no plans to enforce it.
So for the next four years, our show on WWL will fairly follow the words and actions of the President of the United States, which is what the media is designed to do in this country where the media is free from government control.
We will question the questionable things Trump wants to do, and we will follow the tradition of the media, which is to hold politicians accountable to their campaign promises and to their oath of office.
Remember - if you celebrate when local media holds the mayor and the city council accountable - you should celebrate that the media will do the same with the President and the Congress.
