It’s an axiom of child-rearing that conflict is to be expected most often between parent and child when the two individuals possess extremely similar personality traits.  We’ve all either experienced or witnessed such conflict and said, “The problem is that they are SO much alike.” 

Though the parent/child relationship is not necessarily a good analogy to use in the Trump/Mainstream Media dynamic, this principle of “similar traits yields intense conflict” is.

Any fair observer of his personality knows that Trump is arrogant, condescending, petulant, and harbors an intense hostility towards anyone who dislikes or disagrees with him.  Any fair observer of our mainstream press knows that those attributes are also perfect descriptions of their institution as well.  Take some of the worst accusations lobbed against Donald Trump’s conduct and compare them to the recent behavior of our mainstream media:

“Trump jumps to conclusions, assuming the worst of his political opposition.” 

The mainstream media bought and promoted – without offering due diligence, serious inquiry, skeptical research, or reasoned objectivity – the hoax hate crime concocted by anti-Trump actor Jussie Smollett.  Because the mainstream press hates Trump, they are willing to jump to all conclusions that affirm their biased assumptions against him and anyone who supports him.

And no, this isn’t just a handful of celebrities being mistaken for the mainstream media.  These are senior reporters at the Daily Beast, Editors at the Washington Post, reporters at Reuters, and anchors at ABC News.  Even without facts or evidence, these media agencies were willing to run with a story because it fit a narrative that was damaging to Trump and his supporters.

“Trump seems willing to destroy anyone if it gets him what he wants.”

Two words: Covington kids.  The mainstream media’s desperate desire to demonize “Trump’s America” led to one of the most egregious errors in adult journalistic judgment imaginable – slandering and libeling a group of young Catholic high school students attending the annual March for Life.  Showing only carefully edited video that helped them tell a story of harassment they had made out of whole cloth, mainstream news in America disgraced itself by not only dutifully propping up left-wing activist and (as it turned out) rabble-rouser Nathan Phillips as some sort of hero, but also by refusing to even make an effort to get the full story before rushing before cameras and behind microphones. 

Their crime was so abominable that many of these news agencies – The Washington Post, New York Times, CNN, Guardian, NPR, Atlantic Media, The Hill – as well as individual reporters for those and other outlets are facing defamation lawsuits from the teenagers that have a very good chance of winning.

“Trump is a hateful bigot towards minority groups.” 

The mainstream press is not only notorious for their hatred towards the minority of Bible-believing Christians in America but also for helping amplify unjust accusations and smear generalizations against them.  Go back to the Jussie Smollett hoax and consider that CBS’s alleged comedy program “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” allowed LGBT activist a platform to blame the fake attack on Vice President Mike Pence.

The video clip was promoted by CBS on social media platforms, garnering over 15 million views.  Even if the attack had been real and not a hoax, suggesting that someone like Mike Pence would advocate for such conduct just because he happens to believe in the Biblical Christian sexual ethic is born of nothing other than pure bigotry. 

Some might suggest that these immoral attributes are far more dangerous in Trump given his ability to affect public policy as president.  But don’t ignore the mainstream media’s ability to control the public narrative and the flow of information to the masses.

Trump and the media that hates him are two peas in a pod.  I’d be tempted to say they deserve each other except for the fact that it’s you and I that get caught in the crosshairs of their petulance.