The resounding election of Donald Trump was also a resounding rejection of the traditional news media, which spent the last eight years bashing Trump with negative coverage. The post-election numbers seem to bear out what some are calling the "demise of the mainstream media," with viewership to CNN and MSNBC plummeting by about 50% and Comcast preparing to sell off MSNBC. Over on broadcast TV, primetime network newscasts have lost half of their audience in recent decades. And, a recent poll finds three-fourths of Americans believe the news media is biased.
All of this should be an overdue wake-up call to the industry. "The strategy of the mainstream media is going to have to be adjusted, they need to reinvent themselves," says Jeff McCall, media studies professor at DePauw University. "I think the question is whether or not they can actually do that...can they really look in the mirror and say we've missed (what we're supposed to be doing) with the American people?"
There is still a large audience out there for news and information content, as evidenced by soaring ratings for Fox News and podcasts like the Joe Rogan Experience. But whether or not traditional media can tap into that audience remains to be seen. "My fear is the mainstream media will not do the soul searching they need to do, and instead their strategy in covering the next Trump administration will be rage and resistance again," says McCall. "Because I don't think they know where else to go."
"Here's a novel idea for the establishment media," he continues. "Report about Trump with accuracy, balance, and professionalism...if they do that, they can maybe reestablish some of the trust they used to have."