President Trump ripped what he called "haters in the dying newspaper
industry" Sunday after the publisher of The New York Times criticized
Trump's rhetoric as "not just divisive but increasingly dangerous."
In a rant that took up four separate tweets, the
president complained that the media had been "driven insane by their
Trump Derangement Syndrome."
"[Ninety percent] of media coverage of my
Administration is negative, despite the tremendously positive results we
are achieving, it's no surprise that confidence in the media is at an
all time low!" wrote Trump, later adding: "The failing New York Times
and the Amazon Washington Post do nothing but write bad stories even on
very positive achievements - and they will never change!"
Trump posted the tweets a few hours after New York
Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger detailed a July 20 meeting between
himself and Trump. Sulzberger said Trump's aides had initially requested
the meeting not be made public, but added he decided to comment after
Trump discussed it in another Tweet earlier Sunday.
"Had a very good and interesting meeting at the White
House with A.G. Sulzberger, Publisher of the New York Times. Spent much
time talking about the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the
media & how that Fake News has morphed into phrase, "Enemy of the
People." Sad!" Trump wrote.
Sulzberger, who succeeded his father as publisher on
Jan. 1, said his main purpose for accepting the meeting was to "raise
concerns about the president's deeply troubling anti-press rhetoric."
"I told the president directly that I thought that his language was not just divisive but increasingly dangerous," he said.
Sulzberger said he told Trump that while the phrase
"fake news" is untrue and harmful, "I am far more concerned about his
labeling journalists 'the enemy of the people.' I warned that this
inflammatory language is contributing to a rise in threats against
journalists and will lead to violence."
Sulzberger, who attended the meeting with James Bennet,
the Times' editorial page editor, said he stressed that leaders outside
the U.S. are already using Trump's rhetoric to justify cracking down on
journalists.
"I warned that it was putting lives at risk, that it
was undermining the democratic ideals of our nation, and that it was
eroding one of our country's greatest exports: a commitment to free
speech and a free press," the publisher said.
Sulzberger added that he made clear that he was not
asking Trump to soften his attacks against the Times if he thinks the
newspaper's coverage is unfair. "Instead, I implored him to reconsider
his broader attacks on journalism, which I believe are dangerous and
harmful to our country," he said.
Despite Trump's characterization of the paper as
"failing," the Times' ownership company in May reported a 3.8 percent
increase in first-quarter revenue compared to the same period in 2017.
The president, who lashes out over media coverage of
him and the administration that he deems unfair, has broadly labeled the
news media the "enemy of the people" and regularly accuses reporters of
spreading "fake news" — the term he often uses for stories he dislikes.
Last week, Trump told hundreds of people attending the
annual Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Kansas City. "Don't
believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news," as he
gestured toward journalists at the back of the room and the crowd
erupted.
He also told them to remember "what you're seeing and what you're reading is not what's happening."
Sulzberger said he accepted the meeting because Times
publishers have a history of meeting with presidential administrations
and other public figures who have concerns with the publication's
coverage of them.
After Sulzberger took charge, Trump tweeted that his
ascension gave the paper a "last chance" to fulfill its founder's vision
of impartiality.
In the tweet, Trump urged the new publisher to "Get
impartial journalists of a much higher standard, lose all of your phony
and non-existent 'sources,' and treat the President of the United States
FAIRLY, so that the next time I (and the people) win, you won't have to
write an apology to your readers for a job poorly done!"