Weiss is blocking anti-Trump content from being aired; O’Neal is directing an editorial page that now constantly defends the president, including an editorial on Saturday extolling Trump unilaterally overthrowing the Venezuelan government. That rightward shift is exactly what the billionaires (David Ellison and Jeff Bezos) who installed these new execs were aiming for.
It’s worth unpacking what CBS and the Post are fighting against. Is there some vein of anti-American journalism out there? Yes, at least according to people who have embraced Weiss’s approach. The period from 2014 to 2024 saw a lot of journalism, including in mainstream outlets like the Post, CBS, and The New York Times, that deeply questioned the status quo in the United States. That coverage was inspired by what was happening politically, particularly the surprising rise of candidates like Trump and Bernie Sanders that reflected Americans’ dissatisfaction with both political parties and movements like Black Lives Matter and #MeToo.
These coverage directions irritated many in the center-right and right. Weiss’s other news outlet, The Free Press, is deeply critical of journalism that focuses on racism. Bezos, in explaining his new vision of the Post Opinion section last year, all but stated that being pro-America means being pro-Amazon, pro-billionaire, and pro-Bezos.
But patriotism and loving America do not require, as Bezos implies, accepting or condoning hyper-capitalism, income equality, racism, and other ills of the United States. There is an alternative patriotism, where one looks at the ideals that America has expressed since the nation’s founding, such as liberty, justice, and freedom, and keeps pushing the nation to try to reach those as fully as possible.
But while I want to emphasize that journalism that is critical of America can still be patriotic, it’s also fine if journalism or individual journalists are not particularly pro-America. O’Neal and Weiss shouldn’t be imposing a patriotism test on the journalists who work for them. Politicians are supposed to appeal to the masses, and that requires being super patriotic. But the role of journalists is to report, investigate, speak clearly and forcefully, and hold the powerful accountable. The driving values of journalists should be accuracy, rigor, creativity, fearlessness, curiosity—not patriotism.
Imagine you were a Native American or Black journalist at CBS or the Post, already aware of all of the other horrible things that have happened to your ancestors in the United States; and now you are required by your boss to celebrate America in the midst of the Trump presidency. You would be doing what all journalists are trained not to: lying.
If you’re reading The New Republic, you’ve probably already figured out that CBS and the Post Opinion section aren’t great places to get honest takes on Trump these days. Even if you’re no longer consuming their content though, it’s important to understand that those outlets and the billionaire class supporting them believe that being patriotic means celebrating America in 2025 and that pointing out our current realities means you are unpatriotic.
But in truth, whether you are a journalist or a regular citizen, true patriotism and loving America demands that you do whatever you can to stop this president. And if Trump being elected twice has robbed you of a sense of pride in America, that’s OK too. That’s how I feel right now.
Hence then, the article about bari weiss is dead wrong good journalism isn t about being pro america was published today ( ) and is available on The New Republic ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Bari Weiss Is Dead Wrong—Good Journalism Isn’t About Being Pro-America )
Also on site :