Donald Trump Tamed the Media. Some Even Paid for the Privilege.

On the morning that Donald Trump was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year, he was honored at the New York Stock Exchange by ringing in the opening bell. But the biggest news of the day, perhaps the week, took place during his brief remarks afterwards:

The media is tamed down a little bit. They like us much better now, I think. If they don’t, then we’ll just have to take them on again, and we don’t want to do that.

Trump is a pathological liar prone to boastful overstatement. But, in this instance, he is not wrong. If anything, he is being uncharacteristically modest.

The legacy media is not just tamed. Some of its most prominent participants act like obedient puppies. They are at heel and have dutifully learned to come when called. Several of the billionaire owners have even paid for the privilege — cutting seven figure checks to fête Trump at his inauguration. All the time wagging their tails.

Trump is also correct that if the media misbehaves in the future — barks too loudly or stands when it should be lying down — he will simply have to reinforce his dominance. He knows that at this point it won’t require much. A sharp pull on the leash or stern word will likely do the trick.

Most importantly, like any good owner, Trump doesn’t want to do that. He prefers they remain tame to having to correct their behavior in the future. Besides, he prefers to teach them new tricks — roll over, play dead and crawl come to mind — rather than reinforce the old ones.

Without an ounce of irony, or mention of Trump’s comments, the New York Times concluded that the most potent guardrail on Trump is his fear of bad press in the legacy media and falling stock prices. I suppose hardwired into every puppy is the need to be the favorite.

This is not to suggest that every journalist or legacy news outlet has capitulated. A few notable ones have not. The Atlantic and the New Yorker, continue to produce first rate coverage of the threat Trump poses to our country and our democracy. So do individual anchors like Nicolle Wallace and columnists like Jen Rubin at the Washington Post. And don’t forget that Harry Litman resigned from the L.A. Times rather than obey.

There are many others — too many to single out. My point is not that all legacy media has given in to Trump. But enough have, including too many owners,  that it affects the overall effectiveness of the industry.

That is why we are seeing the rapid growth of independent media. Outlets like Democracy Docket have certain advantages that protect them from being “tamed” by the likes of Donald Trump.

By not having corporate ownership or other lines of business, independent media outlets are immune from the cross pressures created by a GOP willing to weaponize government. Democracy Docket has no government contracts. Its limited advertising revenue is from organizations that are, themselves, pro-democracy.

In addition, independent media typically does not rely on access to politicians and government officials to do its work. Legacy media depends on White House credentials, access to agency briefing rooms and cultivated government sources. They want high-ranking Republicans on their Sunday talk shows and in their daily papers. But that access comes with a cost. The best journalists tend to bristle when that cost becomes transactional, but the cost exists even absent a quid pro quo.

Trump is a master at leveraging the legacy media’s need for news with his ability to provide access to it. He did this for years as a fixture on the New York scene and he continues it today. A weakened legacy media, with greater pressures on it, is simply no match for an emboldened Trump.

Earlier this week, legendary journalist Leslie Stahl told Peggy Noonan: “I’m extremely worried about the press…I worry greatly. We’re at a point where if the President of the United States is going to say, ‘Legacy media is dead’. I’m very dark about it.” 

While she corrects herself that it was actually Elon Musk who announced its demise, the point is the same. Stahl gave Trump (or, in fact, Elon Musk), not the readers, viewers or listeners, the power to declare the demise of legacy media. This is the greatest difference between legacy and independent media today. Corporate media has become immune — disinterested — in what its customers and consumers want. In many respects it is contemptuous of them.

CNN moved to a both-sides approach to the news at the behest of its new owners and saw its ratings plummet. Rather than admit a mistake, it has doubled down while wondering why a network with Scott Jennings as its face is failing to attract an audience.

The Washington Post’s owner killed an endorsement of Kamala Harris and hundreds of thousands of subscribers canceled. Yet the Post and even many of its reporters, chastised those readers from canceling. They simply don’t get it.

What makes independent media different is that it understands that it is beholden primarily to its subscribers and paid members. Every YouTube creator understands this. So does every Substack writer. It is not a left-right device. Outlets as wide-ranging as the Free Press and Zeteo embody this ethos.

Legacy media does not. That is why they are failing.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my plan for Democracy Docket’s future and acknowledged this directly and forthrightly.

Thanks to its supporters, it has the luxury of being fiercely independent and uncompromisingly pro-democracy.

If, at some point in the future, Democracy Docket goes quiet or goes bankrupt, it will be because its subscribers and members have decided that it is no longer worth supporting. Until then, I can promise you, it will not obey and it will not back down.