President trump’s outburst on CNN correspondent Natasha Bertrand’s reporting about operation midnight hammer is against all norms of democracy and civility. It is totally unbecoming of the POTUS.Calling her unfit for on camera reporting, he also alleged that she spread fake news, citing her reports on Hunter Biden’s laptop contents as an example. He asked her to be thrown out like a dog. The statement is problematic not only for its crudity but also for attacking the freedom of press. The president should not be commenting on individual reporters when it is the publication that decides to run a particular story. Secondly if he found any part of the report to be factually incorrect, he should have let the regulatory bodies decide. In this case, the reporter had cited early intelligence reports and also clarified that it could change with more detailed intelligence. But here is a president who refutes his own intelligence agency when against his narrative. This raises doubts that it was indeed Israel and thereby USA which was wary of a prolonged war and wanted an exit. Using Israel’s pretext of nuclear weapons, bombing the nuclear facilities served a fig leaf for ceasefire and exit. This also explains his jitters over any report to the contrary. The conflict and ensuing ceasefire have eroded the military reputation of both Israel and the US. This is not what a right wing hawkish president would like his legacy to be. The silver lining though has been the response of American media. CNN backing its reporter and calling out the president is an example of how a professional media deals with a political bully in a democracy. That even the political establishment and even his party and supporters have kept aloof of the controversy highlights the institutional maturity within the US republic. Indian media needs to introspect. It would be too much to ask from the political establishment in India.
