U.S. President Joe Biden is displaying increasing anger towards journalists, recently intensifying his sharp remarks towards the media. Biden is facing former President Donald Trump, who is seeking a second term in the upcoming November elections. Recently, while leaving church, he responded to a reporter who simply asked him how his day was by saying, "I prayed for all of you. You need help."
On Thursday, during a press conference with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto, the 81-year-old Democratic president complained, saying, "You (referring to the journalists) never stick to your word." A journalist had asked him a question regarding the situation in Haiti and the war in Gaza. The U.S. president had previously stated that he would only answer "one question." He ended up making a brief comment on the situation in the Middle East. Biden's campaign team criticizes the media for downplaying "Donald Trump’s threat to democracy" and for focusing more on Biden’s age rather than his relatively good economic record.
Beyond merely attacking conservative media, the Biden camp has developed a specific hostility towards the "New York Times," a daily considered center-left. A spokesperson for Biden's campaign criticized the newspaper after it debunked some of Biden’s claims about the economy in February, saying, "Who turns a blind eye to Donald Trump's lies? The New York Times!"
Despite all these statements, Biden has never attacked the press as harshly as his predecessor Trump. While Trump (77 years old) approaches any platform to speak, Biden tends to shy away from them. The U.S. president holds very few major press conferences, rarely conducts interviews, and does not engage in any informal discussions during long flights. Until recently, he would occasionally answer two or three questions before boarding his helicopter leaving the White House. That has recently stopped completely. Now, the president heads to the helicopter surrounded by a group of advisers.
This anger and grievance come amid discouraging election poll results. Many polls indicate he is struggling to face Donald Trump, not necessarily in general voting intentions, but in the "swing states," those six or seven states that will actually decide the election. The president questions the polls, stating, "It’s hard to conduct a rational poll these days... You have to make many phone calls" before reaching one person.
On the other hand, he analyzes these same polls for positive signals. He repeats to his supporters, "The press isn’t talking about this, but it’s clear that the dynamics are in our favor." In an interview published by The New Yorker titled "Is Biden's Campaign on False Hope?", Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg stated he remains very optimistic.
According to the analyst, who appeared in a video published Thursday, there is no poll to date, no matter how positive, that guarantees Donald Trump will receive 270 electoral votes, the number needed for ultimate victory. Simon Rosenberg said about the Republicans, "We are not where we want to be, and there’s still a lot of work to do… but I would undoubtedly rather be in our position than theirs."
Biden’s anger towards traditional media comes at a time of its declining influence on voters. A poll conducted by the University of Maryland last December and published by The Washington Post showed that 14% of Americans get their information primarily from sources other than television, radio, or newspapers. Fox News, the channel favored by the American right, was the preferred channel for 13% of those surveyed, followed by local television channels (12%), CNN (8%), and Facebook (7%). Print media is lagging behind, with only 5% of respondents choosing the New York Times.
