According to New York Times reporter Ben Smith, journalists at major newspapers were directed to update President Trump’s obituary after being stricken with coronavirus.
In a piece titled “How to Cover a Sick Old Man,” Smith notes that reporters have been tasked with “doing something obviously uncomfortable.”
“It’s hard not to feel some human revulsion for the sight of healthy, TV-ready young journalists braying for the vital signs of a sick old man,” he writes.
Smith notes that it is a vital part of providing information to the American people, however.
In his column, Smith reveals that three reporters – Peter Baker at The New York Times, Marc Fisher at The Washington Post and Mark Z. Barabak at The Los Angeles Times – were assigned this week “to update Mr. Trump’s obituary.”
Outlets assigned top reporters to update Mr. Trump’s obituary — Peter Baker at The New York Times, Marc Fisher at The Washington Post and Mark Z. Barabak at The Los Angeles Times, people at each paper told me…. https://t.co/lmMFZlMx9b
— Ben Smith (@benyt) October 5, 2020
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No Obituary Necessary – Trump’s Heading Home
The updated obituaries have been a premature miscalculation, as President Trump’s doctors announced today that he can now return to the White House.
“He’s back,” said Dr. Sean Conley, noting that the President had met all the criteria for discharge.
White House physician Dr. Sean Conley on Pres. Trump’s condition: “He’s back.” pic.twitter.com/ptUoa08vBA
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 5, 2020
Conley was sure to point out that “the president may not entirely be out of the woods yet,” but that his “clinical status supports the president’s safe return home.”
Trump celebrated the news on social media, announcing his departure from Walter Reed Medical Center at 6:30.
“Feeling really good!” he wrote. “Don’t be afraid of COVID. Don’t let it dominate your life.”
“We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs [and] knowledge,” he boasted. “I feel better than I did 20 years ago!”
I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M. Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 5, 2020
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The Media’s Questionable Behavior
The twitter feed for Trump’s campaign shared a video allegedly showing a reporter caught on a “hot mic” saying coverage of today’s improving health news was “not as fun as yesterday.”
After Walter Reed doctors said President Trump is improving, a reporter was caught on a hot mic laughing and saying “That wasn’t as fun as yesterday!” pic.twitter.com/HGo2GixHyS
— Trump War Room – Text TRUMP to 88022 (@TrumpWarRoom) October 5, 2020
The video, it should be noted, provides no context as to what the reporter was referring to, despite the campaign’s description.
Trump’s return home comes just one day after a CNN panel of commentators compared his health issues to – as NewsBusters reports – “misinformation put out during the ‘death watch’ of Soviet monster Joseph Stalin.”
The New York Times in 2018 published an article that fantasized about the Secret Service assassinating President Trump.
