Trump now calls war reporting treason'. His attacks on the press are escalating fast | Margaret Sullivan

"He even suggested this week that news organizations could be charged with treason for, as he baselessly sees it, spreading false information and thus helping America's enemies. He's getting plenty of help from his top loyalists. The chair of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, threatened that media companies could lose their licenses if they didn't get in line."

"Politicians have an obvious motive for claiming that journalism that raises questions about their decisions is false. But CNN's mission, he insisted in a statement, is to inform its audience, and no amount of political threats or insults is going to change that."

"In US media, oligarchs are increasingly in charge, and their chief motivations tend to be protective of commercial interests, not of traditional press rights. That works just fine for Trump, who can manipulate the levers of governmental regulation to help achieve his ends."

Trump intensifies his assault on press freedom by attacking reporters and suggesting news organizations could face treason charges for reporting he deems false. His administration officials, including FCC Chair Brendan Carr and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, threaten media licenses and demand patriotic coverage aligned with administration positions. CNN's reporting on administration failures regarding the Strait of Hormuz prompted these attacks. CNN's leadership reaffirmed its commitment to factual journalism despite political pressure. The broader concern involves oligarchic media ownership prioritizing commercial interests over traditional press rights, enabling Trump to manipulate regulatory levers to suppress critical coverage.

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