Is Trump Abusing Power to Retaliate Against the Media?

If one has studied the rise of Hitler and the Nazi regime in Germany in the late 1920's and early 1930's one knows that among Hitler's first acts were efforts to silence the independent news media which was reporting the truth about the Führer.  A free and independent press is one of the most important safeguards against tyranny - something well know to the Founding Fathers and why they enshired freedom of speech in the First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution.   Now, troubling reports are coming out on how the Trump Department of Justice - perhaps better called the Department of Injustice under Jeff Sessions - is seemingly retaliating against CNN by blocking a merger involving that channel's parent company.  He has likewise been sniping at the parent of the Washington Post, another news outlet that has put publishing the true ahead of loyalty to Der Trumpenführer.   Many, including members of Congress and in the media, find this effort by Trump/Pence/Sessions alarming.  A piece in Politico looks at this apparent attempt to silence the independent press.   Here are excerpts:

Even critics of AT&T’s proposed mega-merger with Time Warner expressed alarm Wednesday at allegations that President Donald Trump's Justice Department is intervening in the deal for political reasons — namely his oft-expressed complaints about CNN.

"Any indication that this administration is using its power to weaken media organizations it doesn’t like would be a profoundly disturbing development," Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said, after POLITICO and other news outlets reported that the DOJ had been pressing the companies to unload the Time Warner-owned news network.

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) told POLITICO that the DOJ's reported actions "merit investigation," and that senators should ask Attorney General Jeff Sessions about it next week.

"Presidential power must be used wisely and fairly. I don’t know the details here but this is worth investigating," Schatz tweeted earlier in the day. He added: "The burden of proof is on the Justice Department to establish that there is no political interference in their Antitrust Division."

Sources familiar with the proposed merger told POLITICO that the DOJ issued an ultimatum to the companies Monday — that they either sell Time Warner's Turner Broadcasting, which includes CNN as well as networks like TBS and TNT, or shed satellite television provider DirecTV. The sources said it's clear the real sticking point for the government is CNN, whose coverage of the administration has become a frequent target of Trump's anger.

The two sides appear to be preparing for a court battle should DOJ reject the merger.

The DOJ officials offered no details about what aspects of the deal concern them. But they said simply selling off CNN would not necessarily solve the harm to the public.

Trump, who has repeatedly derided CNN's coverage of his administration as "fake news," has loomed over the deal since the companies announced it a little over a year ago.

But Trump's contempt for CNN's coverage of his presidency — and his other media-bashing — is casting a shadow over the government's review. Trump has often expressed a desire to punish media outlets whose coverage he deems unfair, promising on the campaign trail to “open up” the libel laws and suggesting in October that NBC News' nonexistent broadcast license should be revoked.
 Late Wednesday, Trump administration officials denied any White House interference in the DOJ's review of the AT&T-Time Warner deal.
 Politics should play no role in these types of decisions, free-speech advocates said Wednesday.

“While there are plenty of good reasons to oppose AT&T’s Time Warner takeover, punishing CNN for trying to hold this administration accountable isn’t one of them," said Craig Aaron, president of liberal group Free Press, which opposes the AT&T-Time Warner deal. "No matter where you come down on this merger, everyone should agree that the government shouldn’t base antitrust decisions or FCC rulings on whether it likes a newsroom’s coverage." 

Be very, very afraid.