Earlier this year, the Associated Press announced a guideline change encouraging news reporters to call out racism. This might sound reasonable enough, but several media outlets just proved it’s the start of a troubling trend in journalism.
“Do not use racially charged or similar terms as euphemisms for racist or racism when the latter terms are truly applicable,” the Associated Press announced in a series of tweets. “If racist is not the appropriate term, give careful thought to how best to describe the situation. Alternatives include racially divisive, racially sensitive, or in some cases, simply racial.”
Do not use racially charged or similar terms as euphemisms for racist or racism when the latter terms are truly applicable. #ACES2019 #ACESAPstyle
— AP Stylebook (@APStylebook) March 29, 2019
A report from NBC News in March summarized the AP guideline change well: “If it’s racist, call it racist.” But in reality, not everything is so clear cut.
CNN seems to think otherwise, and is following the AP’s advice, denouncing President Trump’s recent string of tweets targeting four freshman congresswomen as “racist” — in their news reporting, not their commentary. One CNN article, written by a breaking news reporter, says that “President Donald Trump used racist language on Sunday to attack progressive Democratic congresswomen.”
So interesting to see “Progressive” Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
While Trump’s tweets certainly allude to race and could undoubtedly be described as “racially divisive,” whether or not they’re racist should be up to readers and commentators to decide, not ostensibly objective reporters. In fact, much of the political universe has been debating whether the tweets were racist or not for days, so it’s clearly not an objective fact for a reporter to state as a given.
Of course, the AP’s change in guidelines isn’t surprising. It seems ludicrous to keep applying terms like “racially charged” to describe such blatant acts of bigotry. And let’s be abundantly clear: white supremacy, white nationalism, and hate crimes are undeniably racist. There should be no question about that. Trump’s tweets certainly appear xenophobic as well.
But if reporters now have the ability to use the term “racist” at their discretion, what’s to stop them from applying it to whomever or whatever they see fit? Who exactly determines when these terms might be “truly applicable,” as the new AP guidelines suggests?
This change doesn’t promote more objective reporting, it just increases opportunities for bias.
Even Axios, a new media platform that purports to deliver “the cleanest, smartest, most efficient and trust-worthy experience” with “no bias…no nonsense,” reported that Trump’s “racist” tweets have created a new opportunity for impeachment. The reporter asks, “Does racism fit the definition of high crimes?”
This question assumes, of course, that the tweets fit the definition of racism — a conclusion best reached by readers, not reporters.
When a politician like Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, explicitly defends white supremacy, it’s easy to call the act racist without much objection — in fact, Congress overwhelmingly passed a resolution denouncing it as such. But what if a politician sponsors a piece of legislation that, for example, seeks to curb affirmative action? Biased reporters or editors might lump the two into the same category of “racist,” and under the AP’s new guidelines, they’d be within their right to do so.
Of course, commentators are already using terms like “racist” and “racism” to describe their own, partisan opinions on political issues. This should stop at commentary: When it comes to news reporting, the Associated Press shouldn’t start encouraging one opinion over the other.
If the Associated Press is going to let reporters decide for their readers what is or isn’t racist, then it’s starting down a dangerous road. And it’s one that could lead to the erosion of democracy’s finest cornerstone.
Brian Ericson is a political writer from Nashville, Tennessee and a contributor to Red Alert Politics. Follow him on Twitter at @brianscott67.
