vol. 10, issue 2 - November 2016 Media and Politics in the Age of Trump by Victor Pickard Color bars in a television test pattern. Editor's Note: More than in any recent presidential race, the news media have become a central issue in the 2016 campaign. Some have complained about the way candidate Donald Trump has been given free access to media outlets while others have critiqued journalists for the job they have done as moderators of candidate debates. But, as Victor Packard points out this month, the news media’s primary goal is not to distribute information to the public but to garner ratings and revenues. Here, he traces the history of how profit undermined public service in the news media. Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign will likely preoccupy future historians for years to come. While a number of factors contributed to his rise—including the growing power of social media, a latent racism and nativism within sections of the American public, and economic malaise resulting from Republican and Democratic administrations’ trade policies—the media deserve special scrutiny for their role in accelerating Trump’s candidacy, most obviously because they set agendas and frame political debates each election cycle. News media’s constant coverage has boosted Trump’s visibility and helped popularize him, even in aggressive confrontations with the candidate. The benefit, however, is mutual. https://origins.osu.edu/print/4289 1 of 18 10/17/2016 8:15 AM