海角大神

Dear reader:

For some time now, we鈥檝e been hearing about attacks on the mainstream media from the right 鈥� most prominently, charges of 鈥渇ake news鈥� leveled by President Donald Trump against stories he feels are biased and the media鈥檚 tendency to frame whatever he does in a negative light.

This week, it was the left鈥檚 turn. After Mr. Trump addressed the nation on Monday in the wake of two horrific mass shootings, The New York Times posted a story with the following headline: 鈥淭rump Urges Unity Vs. Racism.鈥�

An outcry ensued.

鈥淟et this front page serve as a reminder of how white supremacy is aided by 鈥� and often relies upon 鈥� the cowardice of mainstream institutions,鈥澛犅燫ep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. 鈥淯nbelievable,鈥澛犅爄n former Texas Rep. Beto O鈥橰ourke, who hails from El Paso, the site of Saturday鈥檚 massacre.

Joan Walsh, a correspondent for The Nation,聽聽that she was canceling her subscription (鈥淚 can鈥檛 keep rewarding such awful news judgment鈥�). Indeed, CancelNYT actually became a trending hashtag.

Eventually, the headline was changed and Dean Baquet, the Times鈥檚 executive editor聽,聽explaining that the narrow layout on the page didn鈥檛 allow room for 鈥渟ubtlety.鈥�

Of course, the headline wasn鈥檛 factually inaccurate 鈥� Mr. Trump did urge unity against racism in his speech. But to critics on the left, that framing was entirely misleading, since it ignored the many times Mr. Trump鈥檚 own words have seemed to stoke racial animus in this country.

鈥淎 vast swath of Democratic voters are pretty angry at the media,鈥� former Obama adviser Dan Pfeiffer聽. 鈥淭hey see a racist liar in the White House and a media too afraid to call him a racist or a liar.鈥�

Mr. O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 struggling presidential campaign had a viral moment earlier this week that seemed to encapsulate the growing liberal frustration with the press. Asked by a reporter whether there was anything the president could do to 鈥渕ake this any better,鈥� he responded: 鈥淲hat do you think?鈥� adding: 鈥淢embers of the press, what the [expletive]?鈥� He went on: 鈥淚t鈥檚 these questions that you know the answers to. I mean, connect the dots about what he鈥檚 been doing.鈥�

To the right, much of mainstream media is saddled with inherent bias. To the left, it鈥檚 too often constrained by absurdly artificial conventions that prioritize 鈥渂alance鈥� over truth.

Let us know what you鈥檙e thinking at聽csmpolitics@csmonitor.com.