Telling the Fourth Estate that it has a “special responsibility” in an election cycle like this one, Hillary Clinton on Friday urged journalists to keep up tough coverage of Donald Trump, and said that any news organization targeted by the Republican presidential nominee should be proud.
Mrs. Clinton, who has come under fire for rarely answering reporters’ questions and almost never holding legitimate press conferences, tried to put herself squarely on the side of the media. Speaking to a joint meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Mrs. Clinton recited many of Mr. Trump’s ugly clashes with the press and said journalists have a civic duty to keep after the billionaire businessman.
“He talks about curtailing press freedom as well. We need to stand up as a country and say, ’Donald Trump doesn’t represent who are are and what we believe,’” she said.
Mrs. Clinton went on to cite an incident last year when Univision anchor Jorge Ramos was kicked out of a Trump press conference, and she also gave a passing nod to news organizations such as The Washington Post that have been banned from Trump rallies.
“Journalists have a special responsibility to our democracy in a time like this,” she said. “Many of you are showing the way. It’s a badge of honor when Jorge Ramos gets thrown out of a press conference for challenging Donald Trump, or when another news organization gets banned for reporting what he says. As Jorge [Ramos] says, the best journalism happens when you take a stand … I hope you’ll keep calling it like you see it.”
Mrs. Clinton also told journalists she expects them to continue holding her accountable, too, and invited them to take a deep, hard look at the specifics of her various domestic policy proposals.
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• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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