51吃瓜

Study finds that US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has been virtually ignored by media outlets.

Last week brought near-universal condemnation of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump for calling for a 鈥渢otal and complete鈥� ban on Muslims entering the United States. From British Prime Minister David Cameron to actor George Takei, and from President Barack Obama to House Speaker Paul Ryan, leaders condemned vitriolic Trump speech.

Yet hidden in the near-universal criticism of the right-wing demagogue is both the role the media have played in his rise, and its cost to American values. The media have enjoyed the ratings buzz of covering Trump鈥檚 misogynistic, racist trumpeting of hate.聽The 聽was, until recently, best known politically for questioning Obama鈥檚 US citizenship as a leader of the harebrained 鈥渂irther鈥� movement (no disrespect intended to those fuzzy animals).

As a candidate, the media have breathlessly covered the following: Trump implying that supporters who targeted a for a beating were 鈥減assionate鈥�;聽his brutal imagery of a bloodied Fox News anchor after her probing debate questions; his calling Vietnam War veteran Senator John McCain a 鈥渓oser鈥�; and his statement that a #BlackLivesMatter protester at his rally who was punched and kicked 鈥渟hould [maybe] have been roughed up.鈥�

Donald Trump鈥檚 hate-filled pronouncements have attracted media frenzy, with The Huffington Post even putting him on their 鈥淓ntertainment鈥� page, despite聽

More recently, Trump has incited hatred against American Muslims by describing聽of thousands in New Jersey. Trump has also said he wasn鈥檛 sure if he would have supported or opposed the聽聽during World War II, and he has called for a database of Muslims.

Media Time

狈辞飞,听, media outlets are 鈥渟hocked 鈥� shocked 鈥� to find that Trump has been outspokenly xenophobic!鈥� (Corporation: 鈥淵our advertising dollars.鈥� Media: 鈥淥h, thank you very much.鈥�)

A recent study of ABC, CBS, and NBC news programs found聽 versus just ten for Bernie Sanders, with a comparable 81 minutes to 20 seconds on ABC鈥檚 鈥淲orld News Tonight.鈥� This despite both candidates鈥� often similar polling results and the fact that Sanders聽聽including Trump.

For Bernie Sanders, it has seemed like a case study of Mahatma Gandhi鈥檚 famous quote: 鈥淔irst they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.鈥� The news media have mostly focused on ignoring him, albeit rarely mocking him for聽or living relatively cheaply.

And that has shaped our national descent into hate- and violence-filled debate. Last week, when Trump spoke of the amoral, unlawful abrogation of Muslims鈥� rights, former Japanese-American internment camp resident聽. He recited the results of a congressional study which found that the internment happened in the context of three things: racial prejudice, war hysteria and lack of political leadership.

Bernie鈥檚 alternate and compelling 鈥減olitical leadership鈥� has drawn overflow crowds, record donors and heavy millennia support. Yet a message that could trump the Trump is virtually muted by for-profit media.

In Sanders鈥� quest to 鈥渕ake America great again鈥� (although he鈥檇 never adopt as trite a motto), he implicitly targets the actions of a specific demographic, like Trump. The decisions of powerful white males in legislative and corporate positions have led to a massive deterioration of financial security and dignity for many Americans. Sanders also advocates returning, in some ways, to an earlier era.

At the center of the Vermont senator鈥檚 campaign is reversing income and wealth inequality. The聽top one-tenth of the as the bottom 90% of America, as he frequently says. (Those richest have about聽聽than they did in the late 1970s.)

Sanders supports reinstating the Glass-Steagall Act, whose repeal played a key role in the financial implosion that is costing America $6 to $36 trillion. He supports a living wage of $15 per hour to boost stagnating salaries, and the public funding of higher education that has skyrocketed in price. He advocates an end to austerity and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). He has a.聽He supports divestment of fossil fuels, promotes what he calls 鈥渞eal family values鈥� and endorses affordable health care.

These are policies consistent with decades of his congressional leadership prioritizing the American people over the corporations whose money he doesn鈥檛 accept.

Listening to his blisteringly accurate analysis is revelatory. At his September Prince William County rally, a friend turned to me and said, 鈥淭his is why they don鈥檛 let him on TV.鈥�

Over the last few months, he has expanded the scope of his bold proposals addressing key challenges.

Sanders introduced bills in Congress to聽 by 80%聽by 2050 through a carbon fee (a聽mechanism backed by climate leader聽), and a聽similarly aggressive .听贬别听惫颈蝉颈迟别诲 聽and compared it to an impoverished part of a Third World country, and he has added an environmental violence to his platform to end racial justice. Sanders has called for聽 who delayed the release聽of a video showing Chicago teenager Laquan McDonald鈥檚 brutal death. He has called for an聽end to .

The narratives of other Republican presidential candidates, who cumulatively have totaled about half of Trump鈥檚 coverage, have been weak and. The exception is on foreign policy, in which their violent statements feed Islamic State propaganda and likely聽.

And Clinton?

Hillary Clinton, who racked up about half of Trump鈥檚 coverage (outside her secretary of state controversies), grudgingly and half-heartedly has accepted some progressive positions.

She announced her opposition to the Keystone XL and the TPP just a month before the first Democratic debate, with her narrow opposition to the trade agreement seeming to allow a change in position. Her plans for the banks and #BlackLivesMatter issues have gaping holes. She has whitewashed the narrative of the financial crisis to聽downplay the significant role of husband Bill Clinton聽while president. She is trying to carve a middle path to victory that won鈥檛 stop corporate and wealthy donors allied with her family from giving, including financial and military companies.

But this leaves many Americans confused as to her true priorities. Even while she has called for a 鈥渕ovement鈥� to prevent gun violence, she has adopted moderate positions, many of which are backed by Sanders. She has drifted from topic to topic, presenting policies not anchored in basic truths and injustices of our country. Hillary Clinton, despite what she鈥檇 like to believe, is not the anti-Trump.

This plays out in the context of the heavily biased Democratic National Committee (DNC) leadership, with a history of making decisions to favor Clinton over Sanders. DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz鈥攁 Clinton supporter鈥攈as severely limited debates, which also occur at inconvenient times.

The decision hurt Sanders hard given his virtual media blackout. On December 18, just weeks before the first primaries, the DNC imposed a ban of indeterminate duration on the Sanders鈥� campaign accessing the voter database, based on Sanders鈥� staffers accessing Clinton鈥檚 information during a security failure. It was quickly reversed after a , who assert that they stood to lose $600,000 per day in donations. The Sanders campaign calls for an independent audit of the DNC.

As for now, let鈥檚 work to keep America off the path of discrimination and violence. Say it, mainstream media: 鈥淭he top one-tenth of the 1% has as much as the bottom 90%.鈥� Cover that and other basic policy truths of the Sanders鈥� campaign, and inform us of his inspiring, realistic solutions to create justice and opportunity for all.

The views expressed in this article are the author鈥檚 own and do not necessarily reflect 51吃瓜鈥檚 editorial policy.

Photo Credit: 听/听

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