Once again the media is trying to label and slander another conservative government official, the latest victim, Attorney General William Barr. In the latest Washington Post article, while speaking at a conservative college was speaking on how he believed the coronavirus response was a gross misstep in the abuse of power by government. His exact words on it were, “a national lockdown, stay-at-home orders, is like house arrest. Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, this is the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history.” I’d argue that this is a blatant over-exaggeration and he surely could’ve selected better word use.
However, the media wants you to perceive Attorney General Barr in this manner of having no credibility. When he can be pointed to as a very credible source on federal government issues especially those pertaining to legal issues; since he is indeed the highest legal prosecutor and official within the government. This is a classic form of agenda-setting where they want you to believe that this particular individual can’t have a solid opinion about something else because his one particular opinion about this one topic is not in agreeance with the masses. I say this because the article continues to speak on voter fraud and completely disregards the remarks from prior. However, Attorney General Barr’s remarks are once again quickly dismissed by this Washington Post reporter. The lead prosecutor in America believes that there can potentially be widespread injustice in our electoral system and the media gives him no time of day, instantly burying him. As the article continues it just continues to bury Trump and those in his coalition who support him. This article was nothing more than a takedown piece of the ent government. Articles like these have become the norm since the last presidential election.
There is a growing feeling in America that the “fourth branch of government” or the “fourth estate” the media, has failed us. The one’s responsible for reporting on news and holding politicians accountable is no longer the safeguards of our democracy. The mainstream news sources seem to be designated to either side of the aisle. There is no longer a sense of trust with these news outlets, more skepticism now than anything. Which in turn is deadly for our democracy, who do you turn to for the truth? The fear with all these top-down agenda setting leaves little trust and faith in our political system. The real problems are not being exposed, most people regard things as political gaslights. Agenda setting the election had us talking about immigration and ‘draining the swamp’ a lot problems that do not help Americans. We are just left asking, who do we trust?