President Trump and trickle-down press persecution

[Commentary] It's become clear in recent months that President Donald Trump’s growling at the national press has, in many ways, backfired. I’m excited about the press’s reinvigoration, too, but I’m also worried about President Trump’s anti-press words and deeds—and their trickle-down consequences for state and local journalists.

I contacted 16 editors or publishers of state and local newspapers in California, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas to ask if their papers had seen post-election bumps in subscriptions or readership. Their circulations range from 8,000 to 200,000 daily. Seven responded, and only one reported growth. The others didn’t know why they hadn’t seen growth or said their local focus might be to blame. I don’t want to lean too heavily on these results, which are anecdotal. But they only add to my concern that Trump’s anti-press antics will inspire unprecedented attempts to delegitimize the state and local press.

[Jonathan Peters is an attorney and an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Kansas]