Hayne Kang

Donald Trump won the 2024 election over Kamala Harris on November 5th, 2024. There were many who cheered and there were many who cried. Those who were content with Trump’s win don’t know what is at stake for the country with the rights of women, people of color, and other minority groups possibly getting revoked. But, the problem also rises for journalism.

Journalism is how the world gets a steady source of information and is up to date with current events, even if they are biased or not. Additionally, journalism has set a large precedent in our world. With support of the first amendment, journalists are given the freedom to report and voice. People need journalism. 

Trump has had numerous problems with journalism and media, especially when the articles and the news being published goes against his policies and beliefs. He has called the media an “enemy to the people.”  and has threatened to take away the licenses of news outlets. During the election, both of the candidates were establishing their policies and what actions they will take to better support the people. Trump threatened to keep tabs on journalists and other media creators, such as reading their emails and making sure that articles that are posted are in support of him or the Republican Party. Journalists are not an “enemy.” They are vessels of important information.

Under his last presidency, there had already been countless attacks on journalists including when nine journalists were arrested in 2017 for covering riots in Washington DC. During his last presidency, he had already taken surveillance on journalists with the Department of Justice. There is a possibility that this will continue as journalists attempt to get coverage on certain events that take place during his presidency.

Journalists already face threats from their audiences everyday. When a journalist publishes an article or a story that people don’t agree with, in many cases, they face violence or have been threatened with violence. According to NPR, this is a common occurrence, with one in three journalists facing this issue. This coincided when Trump’s activities were being reported, such as his rallies and protests. The fact that violence against journalists rose while Trump was active, as a president and a candidate, is an example of the danger of his new presidency. 

While most of what Trump says isn’t set in stone and is most likely more of a threat than an actual statement, this still raises fear in others. The attitude that he has towards journalists could set them back heavily. His statements could lead to his more intense supporters having changed attitudes about journalism and the media as a whole and biased reporting could take over. But, this also foreshadows the potential type of presidency that Trump aims to try and set in place, one where the voice of the people is endangered.

However, this plan to mess with people’s perception of Trump has already happened this year with the temporary ban of TikTok. TikTok was supposed to be banned on January 19, 2025, but was instead banned a day early, but then came back less than a day later. Many speculations have been going around saying that this entire ban was part of Trump’s plan to have the people of America on his side. This makes sense as Trump was the one who initially brought up the TikTok ban and then suddenly when the TikTok ban happened, he was the one to swoop in and save the day, shifting some people’s mostly negative ideas about him, into positive ones, proving his intended manipulation of the media. 

Trump’s inauguration was on January 20th, 2025. As an aspiring journalist, even if these statements ring false, I still fear for the passion that I have fostered all these years, especially with Trump becoming our new president.