White House counselor Kellyanne Conway is defending President Trump’s persistent attacks on the news media, claiming that some journalists emphasize “emotion over information.” Her comments on Sunday’s “Face the Nation” come after Mr. Trump leveled new attacks on the press on Twitter and during a rally in Ohio on Saturday, referring to some news networks as “corrupt” and “disgusting” for their coverage of the administration.
Conway said the president’s message pertains to “some reporters, not all” and his rhetoric is not meant to paint with “a broad brush.” She said some reporters are more concerned about their “own egos than doing every-man interviews.”
“The president wants people to give information, news they can use,” Conway said, suggesting that some reporters “say things on Twitter that they would not get away with in print.”
“I think the temperature needs to be dialed down overall,” she added.
“Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan suggested that the president’s assertion that the press is the “enemy of the people” and that journalists have caused “wars” may put journalists at risk. Conway said she doesn’t think that journalists are the enemy of the people, but instead are “enemy of the relevant and the news you can use.”
“I think that most of the sins are sins of omission, not commission,” Conway said, criticizing the lack of news coverage of such events like Vice President Mike Pence’s receiving of war remains from North Korea. Brennan reminded Conway that CBS News did in fact cover the event with Pence in its entirety.
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