With press freedom under attack worldwide, US is setting wrong example

[Commentary] [P]revious US presidents have been able to exert their influence around the world on behalf of press freedom, however inconsistently. The issue is not partisan, either. The Obama administration raised concerns about press freedom abuses in Egypt, Ethiopia, Turkey, China, and Vietnam; former President George W. Bush told the Today Show that he raised the issue with Russia President Vladimir Putin. Sadly, President Donald Trump has expressed no such interest in protecting this framework or setting a positive example.

In fact, while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania for his 100th day in office, Trump said the media was a "disgrace" and that members of the press were "incompetent, dishonest people." These comments are even more alarming for being part of a broader trend. Among former regional leaders such as Hong Kong, Japan, South Africa, and Kenya, press freedom has deteriorated. Still, because he is the president of the United States, Trump's comments are different. As the award-winning Salvadoran reporter Óscar Martínez put it, "Trump inhabits the global showcase. In attacking the US press, he attacks all of the press and puts it at risk."