As Trump prepares to run again in 2024, it’s worth reminding ourselves of the lessons we’ve learned - and committing to the principle that, when covering politicians who are essentially running against democracy, old-style journalism will no longer suffice. It’s been an education for all of us - a gradual realization that the instincts and conventions of traditional journalism weren’t good enough for this moment in our country’s history. It took too long to stop believing that, whenever he calmed down for a moment, he was becoming “presidential.” And it took too long to moderate our instinct to give equal weight to both sides, even when one side was using misinformation for political gain. Too often, we failed to refer to his many falsehoods as lies. Too many times, we acted as his stenographers or megaphones. ![]() We’ve come a long way, but certainly made plenty of mistakes. Now, six years later, we journalists know a lot more about covering Trump and his supporters. ![]() I tried to let all this nastiness roll off my back and even found it amusing when a Post reader sent me an email calling me a “venomous serpent.” John Schwartz, then a reporter for the New York Times who had become a friend, suggested I treat it as a badge of honor and write a book titled “Memories of a Venomous Serpent.” One reader suggested I have my breasts cut off. ![]() Perspective | What happens to society - and our democracy - when community and regional journalism dries up
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