Should CNN report on the Trump Administration the way it reports on climate change?

I am a regular consumer of CNN and am increasingly concerned about how CNN and other mainstream media outlets report on President Trump. Typically, they present Trump’s actions as standard policy decisions. Yes, these actions may be controversial—but so were the decisions of past presidents, such as George W. Bush’s response to terrorism after 9/11. Still, Trump strikes me as different. His policies are not merely controversial choices that can be neutrally reported as facts; they are part of a broader, systemic effort to undermine democratic norms and the constitutional order. Yet CNN and similar outlets rarely explore this dimension in any meaningful depth.

Some might respond, “Reporters aren’t editorial writers. Their job is to report the news, and news consists of facts.” But I find that view unconvincing. Consider how the media reports on climate change: they don’t limit themselves to reporting raw meteorological data. They regularly highlight the slow, cumulative degradation of the environment and the existential dangers posed by inaction. That coverage goes well beyond the immediate scientific facts.

Likewise, Trump’s policies—though they can be reported as discrete facts—are almost certain to cause the incremental erosion of democratic values and constitutional safeguards. That long-term degradation should not be treated as a mere editorial afterthought; it should be an integral part of how these policies are reported in real time.