Former President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departure from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

This article was originally posted on Edwin’s Substack newsletter on Sept. 15.

Kristen Welker begins her time in anchor chair on Meet the Press this week. Her first show? She has a one-on-one with Donald Trump. It’s already been recorded, and NBC is teasing it everywhere. That might be good for NBC’s ratings, but it is bad for the democracy. What news is she looking for? Flash: Trump told another lie. Flash: Trump seemed to provide more evidence for prosecutors. Give us a break. He is not news; he is an addiction.

Americans can be excused for not knowing about the accomplishments of the Biden administration, for thinking the economy is in terrible shape when it is not, for thinking Biden is feeble even as he successfully negotiates complex deals at home and abroad. How would Americans know any better?

After all, no presidency in American history has been so overshadowed by the guy who used to be in the office. It’s not like every day W. was president, the news was all about Bill Clinton. Or about Obama when Trump held the office. Pushing stories about Trump isn’t a question of news judgement; it is the ratings equivalent of pushing opioids on America. And the folks doing it are every bit as selfish and dangerous as the Sackler family.

GOP failures

It might be news that Trump’s party, the MAGA GOP that controls the U.S. House, continues to fail even the most basic test of governance. They appear unable to keep the government open. And when it is open, they appear unable to get anything done. Infrastructure? Not on their watch. Filling military leadership vacancies? Nope, they are standing in the way. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) did negotiate a deal with Biden on the debt ceiling, but when Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) yanked his chain, the Speaker reneged. All this is news of a type. But it belongs in the entertainment section because it is not governing.

Biden’s accomplishments deserve more news coverage

Real news? The stuff people like Welker, people in positions of real importance in the news ecosystem, should be talking about? It might be interesting to talk about what the government is doing rather than what it fails to do. But for that, you have to talk about the Biden administration. Or you might follow up to correct the impression left by earlier reporting of challenges that have since been fixed.

Here’s an example: Do you remember, towards the end of the pandemic, we saw images of bottlenecks at our ports? Ships waiting at sea. Goods not moving. Back in 2021, Jim Jordan, the weaponization of government guy, said Democrats were going to make it impossible to have turkey on Thanksgiving and then they would cancel Christmas. Where are the stories of the heroic work done by the government, the dock workers and the logistics and transportation companies who worked tirelessly together to fix the problem?

For years, many Americans have been surprised by their countrymen. The rise of Christian nationalism, and all that it means to the country?  That wasn’t a story until the movement was so big and so powerful that it threatened to undermine the democracy. Where was Meet the Press while that movement was growing? That’s news.

Truthful not Neutral

Some journalists get it. Margaret Sullivan has begged her profession to remember that it has a “public service mission to inform the electorate and hold powerful people to account.” Christiane Amanpour argues that the press should be “truthful not neutral.” That’s powerful, because it makes clear that neutral is not truthful. And the only condition where that is the case is when one side is constantly lying.

Even if Welker takes advantage of the interview not being live to provide full and careful context around every dishonest, misleading, self-serving assertion she hears, it is still a fool’s errand.

We are past the point where we need to learn who Donald Trump and his followers in Congress are. Giving them more airtime, print time, radio time and social media shares does not tell us anything new. What it does is keep people from hearing about the actual damage they are doing, and about hard work of those who are holding the country together and moving forward.

Edwin Eisendrath hosts “The Big Picture” on WCPT 820 AM every Saturday at 1 p.m. CST. You can follow him on Twitter @eisendrath.