Does the US Now Have State-controlled Media?

A Surviving Facts blog

If you listen to mainstream news, you should have noticed by now its watered-down approach to Trump and his fascist policies. There’s a simple reason for this: we are moving toward state-controlled media. Trump has bought them by suing for defamation, fraud and other claims. This has resulted in settlements in the exchange for support of business goals. The outcome is pro-Trump perspectives and censorship of facts and counter positions.

State media refers to media outlets that are owned, operated or influenced by government. Typically, we associate state media with Russia, which long has been known for depicting one-sided government-condoned perspectives to shape public opinion and underscore government positions. Likewise, China controls the positions and narratives shared in its media. In these situations, citizens are exposed only to the government’s approved policies.

Now let’s take a look at the US. Trump notoriously has attacked the US media for years. Since becoming president, he has accelerated his attacks against free speech.

Paramount, the parent company of CBS, settled with Trump for $16M to go to Trump’s future presidential library and to cover plaintiff’s fees and costs. This is the publicly shared part of the deal. Other agreements seem to have been reached, however. CBS canceled the long-running, highly regarded “60 Minutes” and the “Late Show,” both of which have criticized Trump and his policies. Paramount also agreed to release transcripts of presidential candidates in the future “subject to redactions as required for legal or national security concerns.” This certainly risks any media outlets ability to whistle blow or expose government wrongdoing.

Trump had sued over the airing of his own interview and the interview with Kamala Harris, which he claims NBC soft-pedaled. First Amendment scholars have criticized the lawsuit as frivolous and its settlement as woefully misapplying the law. After this settlement, the FCC approved a merger between Paramount and Skydance Media, a process into which Trump inserted himself, something US presidents don’t do. The settlement and resulting tit for tat demonstrate how some US mainstream media outlets will kowtow to Trump to achieve business goals.

ABC also settled a lawsuit with Trump for $16M- this seems to be the magic number- for comments anchor George Stephanopolous made in a conversation with Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace regarding sexual abuse liability against Trump. Trump sued for defamation for Stephanopolous using “rape” instead of “sexual abuse.” This is a case ABC could have easily won, according to legal experts. Defamation is notoriously hard to prove, especially for public officials, because it requires the plaintiff to prove “actual malice” in making the comment, a high legal bar. Instead of fighting, however, ABC quickly folded. By doing so, ABC emboldened Trump to consider suing other media outlets. Trump has said he needs to do this to “straighten out the press,” which is “very corrupt.”

This isn’t the first time Trump has attacked the media.

Trump has sued Bob Woodward, the investigative reporter with whom he had done numerous interviews. Trump says Woodward agreed to restrict comments he had made in multiple interviews only to the book called “Rage.” Trump also claimed some kind of co-authorship of the book. Just last month, a judge dismissed the case in a 59-page decision diving into details of copyright law. Trump has until August 18, 2025 to amend his complaint.

Trump also is suing a pollster from the Des Moines Register for fraud. The pollster said Kamala Harris was leading in Iowa. Trump filed the case in Federal court but then tried to have the Federal case dismissed and filed in state court instead. A Federal judge, however, dismissed his request, requiring the case to remain in Federal court. This case is still pending.

Trump also is suing the Wall Street Journal for $10 billion for publishing a 2023 birthday greeting to Epstein alleged to be signed by Trump. The letter includes a drawing of a nude woman and references shared secrets. Now, the WSJ has been banned from the president’s press briefings, joining the Associated Press in exile. The WSJ has chosen to fight the charges.

Trump, additionally, has had a focused vendetta against the National Public Broadcasting Service, which he claims is “very corrupt” and producing “fake news.” He asked Congress to drastically cut funding for public media, which they did. Congress voted to defund public radio, gutting $1.1 billion in funding for the next two years.

Now, Trump is threatening to prosecute CNN for its coverage of the US air strikes in Iran. The FCC is investigating the DEI policies of Comcast/NBCU and Disney/ABC. Trump has said, “You have scum. CNN is scum. MSDNC [his insult for MSNBC] is scum. The New York Times is scum. They’re bad people. They’re sick.”

One doesn’t have to be a first amendment scholar to see the free-speech risk in his attacks. In Trump’s world, any statement countering his personal perspective- even if his is factually incorrect- is open to attack. He believes his own lies so defiantly that he will take the press to court to silence them. The media, which has become big business, owned by many of his campaign contributors or by contributors to Republican policies, have become so beholden to him and the far right that they soften the positions of the media they own. This is how Bezos can ask the Washington Post to gain his approval for editorials criticizing Trump. Likewise, Patrick Soon-Shiong, owner of The Los Angeles Times, had moved his paper closer to MAGA opinions. Both of these papers once criticized Trump. Not anymore.

How is this not state-controlled media? Media outlets that have settled with him have done irrevocable damage to first amendment, free speech rights. No longer can we trust ABC, CBS, The Washington Post, and the LA Times to make statements risking Trump’s ire- even if the statements are accurate. Instead, by settling these cases and bending to attack, the outlets have shown Trump they can be bought. They have shown they are willing tools of the state.

I had written in previous columns that the far left media Trump talks about is a myth. The vast majority of media is now owned by right wing, MAGA, Christian Nationalist or right leaning billionaires. They donated to Trump’s campaign or inaugural and continue to maintain close relationships, male cronyism at its worst. Only recently, with Trump’s personal attacks against him, Robert Murdoch, owner of the now-banned Wall Street Journal, has refused to back down on the Epstein birthday card. Trump’s case filing compels Murdoch to an accelerated deposition while referencing Murdoch’s advanced age and health ailments multiple times. Murdoch and his sons have not backed down. Instead, they released further evidence of Trump’s engagements with Epstein.

Murdoch’s longstanding legal advisor for his news empire has called Trump’s approach “lawfare,” a perfect term for the wage Trump uses the courts and personal attacks to wage war against his “enemies.” Typically, this approach has worked. The attacked person retracts and silences. Murdoch and his allies are promising not to bend, however. Long-time Trump supporter and right-wing ally Rupert Murdoch may be our last bastion against state-controlled media. At 94, long may he live.

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