5 Things Trump’s Surprise Victory Should Teach The Media

Hmmm… “5 Things Trump’s Surprise Victory Should Teach The Media”? How about the twenty or more things that conservatives should learn about how to fight and win the information war? Trump took the political right to school. We still don’t know if they’ve learned.

Here is Gracy Olmstead writing at The Federalist:

This election showed us how insulated our echo chamber has become. Journalists must begin making an effort to listen to opinions besides their own.

Before Donald Trump shocked the world this morning with his upset victory, becoming the 45th president of the United States, The New Republic wrote a piece in expectation of Clinton’s win.

Senior Editor Jeet Heer bemused that Election Day “would not be a day of victory”—but not because he expected Hillary Clinton to lose. Rather, he cautioned exultant Democrats because Trump’s voters (prone to “nationalism and prejudice,” “willing to condone racism and sexism,” “hurting women and people of color”) would still exist.

“As welcome as Trump’s loss will be, such celebration and consolation would be premature,” he warned. “The majority of voters will have done their duty to protect our democracy—and perhaps the world—from a grave threat, but we cannot move on so easily. Not until America grapples with the hatred that made Trump so successful.”

One can only imagine Heer’s consternation, then, when that “hatred” fueling the American populace proved more powerful and potent than the Clinton victory he was so eagerly expecting.

This Election Shows Just How Out of Touch the Media Has Become

There was another story in The Atlantic last week, lauding the “intelligence,” “industriousness,” and “grit” (among other virtues) of Hillary Clinton. The author, Chimamanda Adichie, said that the “conservative media” and “conservative writers” loathed Clinton—but unfairly, and in isolation.

Read more: The Federalist

Image credit: Michael Ramirez.