Abstract
On 8 November 2016, Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. During his campaign, Trump put on display long held sexist, racist, and bigoted views on women; people of color; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning/queer, intersex peoples, and Others. Media coverage in the U.S. and around the world was not limited to news cycles intended for adult audiences only. Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, a free online publication for and ‘by kids’ ages 10 to 14, joined the conversation in 2015. This article shares analysis of Scholastic News Kids Press Corps’ coverage of Trump’s campaign, theorized through a critical, women of color feminist lens. Major themes that emerged include teaching children how to be unbiased reporters; the importance of being part of the political process and voting; social and policy issues; and Trump’s disposition/sexism. While news content broached issues from varying perspectives, it often stopped short of providing critical reflections and historical context of the issues being reported. Possibilities are discussed for expanding how news media for and by children can be conceptualized, in addition to how educators can engage in critical media literacy with children across multiple age groups, including the early years.
Introduction
They’re [Mexico is] sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us [sic]. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people (Trump at a Campaign Launch Rally, June 15, 2015 (Mark, 2018: 1)). If Hillary Clinton can’t satisfy her husband what makes her think she can satisfy America? (Trump on Twitter, April 16, 2015 (Thompson, 2015: 1)).
In 2015, during Donald Trump’s bid to become the Republican presidential nominee in the United States, the world watched as he put on display his long-held sexist, racist, and bigoted views on women; people of color; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning/queer, intersex (LGBTQI) peoples, and Others. In 2016, once Trump became the Republican presidential candidate running against Democrat Hillary Clinton, he continued his oppressive tirades at campaign rallies and on social media. It was shocking to many that Trump ultimately won the presidential election, paving the way for an even broader and more powerful platform from which to propagate hatred and incite violence both in the U.S. and around the world. In light of Trump’s support of white nationalists and disparaging comments he has made about women and marginalized peoples, it is important for educators and children to have a space to question how the media has portrayed him.
News coverage of the primaries and general election in the United States touched on a range of topics from the vantage point of Trump supporters and those who were critical of him. Scholastic News Kids Press Corps joined the conversation in August of 2015. As a publication that features free online articles and short videos by ‘kid reporters’ ages 10 to 14, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps is described as “news for kids, by kids,” with coverage of breaking news, entertainment, and sports events from their hometowns and on the national stage. Their stories appear online and in issues of Scholastic Classroom Magazines, which reach more than 25 million students in classrooms nationwide. (2019: 1)
At the start of its coverage of Trump, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps positioned him as “a successful real estate executive who is best known as the host of The Apprentice, a popular reality TV show” (O’Connor, 2015: 1). Henceforth, Trump’s name was often proceeded by descriptors such as billionaire businessman and real estate mogul. This foregrounded his economic ‘success’ as an asset in a country that valorizes neoliberalism and hyper-capitalism.
With its prominence in the U.S. as a form of children’s news media and open-access availability, this article seeks to examine how Scholastic News Kids Press Corps covered Trump’s primary campaign to become the Republican nominee and his bid for President. Coverage of the first year and a half of Trump’s presidency is also briefly discussed.
Article Selection and Methodology
To trace coverage of Trump by Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, a document was generated from the text of articles published online between November 2014 and May 2018. Videos of children’s interviews were also transcribed. The time period was determined based on the first date content was available online (November 2014) and when analysis began (May 2018). There were approximately 760 articles and videos that fell within this date range, 86 of which used the term Trump prior to the general election on November 8, 2016, and 22 after.
The 108 articles and videos referencing Trump were examined with a critical, women of color feminist lens (Collins, 2008; Moraga and Anzaldúa, 1983). This lens was taken up because women of color feminisms are born from the flesh, and therefore, assist in examining power relations based on the lived experiences of Others. As a Latinx, woman of color, I am particularly drawn to these perspectives to problematize oppression and theorize reconceptualizing approaches to news media and children’s engagement with it. As such, analysis of content referencing Trump paid particular attention to what was covered/excluded and how the content was framed and presented, noting whether critical questions were posed. The text of the 108 articles was printed and first read to gain an overall understanding of the content. The text was then read again while making written memos alongside the text. These memos included notes of references to issues discussed, such as immigration, the border wall, and voting, and other themes, and also whose perspectives were shared (e.g. educators, adults, children). The content of the memos was then theorized to help make sense of the text being analyzed. The themes that emerged informed the forthcoming discussion, providing insight into how a prominent news outlet by and for children represented Trump during his rise to political power.
Scholastic News Kids Press Corps coverage of Trump
From the 108 articles and videos analyzed between November 2014 and May 2018, coverage of Trump began on August 10, 2015, just days after the first Republican primary debate. Broadly, the content over this time period focused on the experiences children had as reporters engaging in field work for the first time (describing what it was like to be a reporter) and explaining what occurred at the events they attended. News content also explained the political system in the U.S. and how elections are carried out. At times, articles and videos shared interviews given by child reporters, which were mainly with adults who were prominent journalists from national television networks, elected officials, educators, and Republican, Democrat, and undecided voters. When children interviewed other children, perspectives were shared on the presidential candidates and social issues impacting children’s lives which intersected with the candidates’ campaign positions.
Scholastic News Kids Press Corps’ coverage of Trump is first discussed within the time frame leading up to the presidential election on November 8, 2016. Due to the small number of articles about Trump after the election, analysis of news coverage for post-election content is limited.
Pre-election coverage: August 10, 2015 to November 8, 2016
From the start of the primary debates in 2015, until Trump was elected President on November 8, 2016, news by children reporters included the major themes: (a) how to be an unbiased reporter; (b) the importance of voting and being part of the political process; (c) discussions about social and policy issues related to education, the economy, immigration, gun violence, and terrorism; and (d) Trump’s disposition/sexism from the perspective of his supporters and critics.
How to be an unbiased reporter
Because introducing children to the field of journalism is one of the main purposes of Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, much of the content was about how to be a reporter. One news anchor advised, “my goal is to always deliver unbiased, factual coverage of the candidates running for the Presidency or any political office” (Senna, 2016:1). Defining good journalism as reporting unbiased news and remaining neutral was a common thread throughout the content. There was no content within the text analyzed that challenged this notion.
If media is understood as “a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2019), one can argue that media can come in a variety of shapes and forms. In the U.S., historically, news media has been shaped by racialized discourses, which have constructed Brown, Black, and Othered bodies as violent, dangerous, and even invisible when the situation being reported fails to fit a dominant whitestream narrative (Collins, 2008; Diangelo, 2018; Yancy, 2016). Like the opening quote of this article where Trump described Mexicans as rapists and criminals, racism permeates through the media, resulting in material realities of injustice and violence against people of color and Other marginalized groups (Gammage, 2016).
Alternative news outlets have pushed back on whitestream news, covering stories with a critical and social justice lens. In the wake of digital media, online publications such as Colorlines have advanced news about racial justice, and The Feminist Wire (2016: 1), has been “deeply committed to anti-racist and anti-imperialist approaches” to news media. Black feminist scholars Collins and Bilge (2016: 112) posit that “social media, particularly Twitter and the feminist blogsphere, play an important role by providing platforms for feminists of color who hitherto rarely had access to larger audiences.” News coverage, then, can indeed be more progressive in its positioning, bringing about public awareness of the lived experiences of minoritized peoples from their perspectives, and importantly, without the influence of racist and neoliberal ‘standards’ of news as unbiased or neutral.
The notion of unbiased news was prevalent, however, in articles and videos published by the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps. While important perspectives were shared that were critical of racist and sexist comments made by Trump during his campaign, there were many missed opportunities to create news ‘by and for kids’ that mirrors online news media with a social justice purpose. This is not to say that articles about civil rights figures, women breaking barriers, and the importance of community service where not part of the stories covered; however, how these discussions were framed often provided only a partial view of an issue. This can be problematic when partial views reify dangerous discourses that when left unpacked, can sustain and further perpetuate ‘isms.’
The political process and importance of voting: Invisibilizing voter suppression
Another major theme in the news content was explaining the U.S. election system, the importance of voting, and in particular, youth involvement in both. During an interview in Iowa with Lester Holt, a prominent U.S. journalist, Holt shared: this state, you know, is the first in the nation to vote; it’s a cool thing. It doesn’t mean that if you win here that then you go on to become President . . . but it does have the effect sometimes to limit the field. There are maybe, you know, candidates after what happens here that decide they’re not gonna go on so . . . it is a lot of influence and you know we all will have our say when our turn comes in our various states but it reminds me of how important it is to vote. (Jochmann, 2016: 1:47–2:12)
Other adults interviewed by children reporters shared sentiments such as “voting is a privilege” (Phillips, 2016: 1); “If you don’t get out and vote, you don’t have anything to complain about;” (Surprenant, 2016: 1) and “Millions of people over the history of humanity have died for the right to have their voice heard by their government. You have this right—use it” (Hsiao, 2016).
While campaigns for youth to be involved in the political process have been vital, the very reason for their existence is because of structural barriers that people from marginalized communities, including youth, have experienced when attempting to vote. Forms of voter suppression have materialized in documented tactics that have made it more difficult for those with less societal privilege to vote. An example can be found in Georgia, where a recent 2018 gubernatorial election made national headlines. The Democratic nominee was Stacey Abrams, the first Black woman candidate representing a major party to run for governor in the U.S. Abrams lost the election by a slim margin, which she and others believe was due to voter suppression (Marchese, 2019). Markedly, Georgia is a state with a history of overt and veiled white nationalism and racism performed through a discourse of southern pride.
According to Demand the Vote (n.d.: 1) “Voter suppression” is any effort, either legal or illegal, by way of laws, administrative rules, and/or tactics that prevents eligible voters from registering to vote or voting. And ever since the Supreme Court ruling in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013, Republican legislators have been introducing and passing as many voter suppression laws as they’re able to . . . People of color are disproportionately affected by voter suppression in comparison to white voters. Regardless of ethnicity, voter suppression also impacts the elderly, students, trans women, married women, and low-income or homeless voters. And the one thing that most of these voters have in common is that they statistically vote for Democrats.
Once someone has registered to vote, which must occur in advance of an election, a state or government issued picture identification (ID) is required to vote. A driver’s license is the most commonly used form of ID, and more easily obtained with class, race, and other social privileges (Semuels, 2016). Structural barriers via voter suppression have prevented minoritized peoples from providing acceptable forms of ID at voting centers, making it difficult or even impossible for some to vote. In Wisconsin, it was found that during the 2016 presidential election, many voters, particularly women of color, did not have their votes counted for Hillary Clinton due to ID verification issues (Berman, 2017). Interestingly, in states like Texas, voter ID laws allow a handgun license to be used as a valid form of ID but not a student ID (Leber, 2014). This is a clear strategy to suppress the youth vote, who often lean left and are more liberal, while making it easier for those who have a gun license to vote, who are typically white men who lean right/are conservative (Fernández, 2016).
While campaigns to rally disenfranchised voters, such as youth and women of color, are important, the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps failed to mention or explain the well-known and largely discussed issue of voter suppression in the U.S. This mirrors Collins’ (2008) theorization of hegemonic power, or a system of “commonsense ideas” used to control narratives about Black bodies. She posits the significance of the hegemonic domain of power lies in its ability to shape consciousness via the manipulation of ideas, images, symbols, and ideologies [such as those found in the media] . . . thus the hegemonic domain becomes critical for not just fending off hegemonic ideas from dominant culture, but in crafting counter-hegemonic knowledge that fosters changed consciousness. (Collins, 2008: 304)
To expand news coverage beyond one’s civic duty to vote, a counter-hegemonic discussion in Scholastic News Kids Press Corps about voter suppression could help children unpack why minoritized people cannot always exercise their ‘right’ to vote.
Social and policy issues un/problematized
Scholastic News Kids Press Corps’ coverage of Trump included a focus on social and policy issues related to education, the economy, immigration, gun violence, and terrorism. The content discussed interviews with children and adults who had varying perspectives, but often without problematizing or complicating them, which would allow for deeper, critical reflection.
Education
An issue important to children during Trump’s presidential campaign was something that they live every day, education. While not mentioned as frequently as other topics, when Scholastic News Kids Press Corps interviewed children, parents, and teachers, they found that they were concerned about a range of issues from college affordability to teacher compensation. Children and parents interviewed were also concerned about national educational policies that were felt at the local level, such as the Common Core Standards. An eleven-year-old child, Nick, and his sister, Emma, were interviewed saying that they liked Trump because “he is better than [President Barack] Obama and is not like any other presidential candidate” (Schiller, 2016a: 1). The article continued Nick and Emma agreed that the best part about Trump’s candidacy was his promise to do away with the Common Core State Standards, academic standards that are in place in several states around the country. Their mother, Cathy, now homeschools the pair. She said that they are happy being homeschooled: “They read more and are much more independent.” (Schiller, 2016a: 1)
The Common Core was an initiative during Obama’s administration that sought to raise ‘academic achievement’ in K-12 education by creating national standards. Interestingly, the Common Core has been critiqued by those on the right/Republicans for encroaching on states’ rights, an argument used to disavow federal policies when they do not fit conservative agendas such as pro-life campaigns, anti-LGBTQI policy efforts, and defunding social or ‘entitlement’ programs. More progressive constituents, who identify as left or far left, have been critical of the Common Core for disempowering educators who wish to move away from cookie cutter curriculums and instead engage in praxis as organic and emergent. The excerpt from the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps does not explain these and other tensions around the Common Core, which could help the family interviewed understand that even though Trump and other Republicans want to eliminate the Common Core, their purpose lies outside of efforts to create a more equitable and culturally sustaining educational system.
Collins (2008: 218) theorizes that resistance against ways in which power operates “must show comparable complexity.”. Whether discussing educational policies or teacher pay and college affordability, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps did not explain the complexities of each issue. By doing so, children could gain a critical understanding of such issues and policies impacting their lives and make better-informed decisions about supporting or critiquing candidates’ positions.
The economy
Another topic of concern for children was the economy. During an interview with a Trump supporter, “Tyler Stevens, 8, said that he . . . hopes that Trump will grow the economy if he’s elected president so that more people can get jobs. ‘He’s willing to stand up for what he believes in and tells the truth’” (O’Connor, 2016: 1). Another child, Ryan who was eleven years old, said “Trump was a good businessman who is smart with his money” (Shea, 2016: 1). This was echoed by an adult who believed that Trump’s tax evasion was within the scope of the law, and that instead, it was the tax system that was flawed (Weibel, 2016). This type of rhetoric reinforces the ‘right’ of billionaires in the U.S. to evade taxes, while people with fewer economic resources are not afforded similar options to reduce their level of taxation.
Through their concerns about the economy, child and adult Trump supporters advanced narratives about his value as a businessman, valorizing what hooks (n.d.: 1) terms “imperialist white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy” or how interlocking systems of oppression uphold power for rich, white, men like Trump and his agendas. When the public rearticulates Trump’s un/truths, often against their own self-interest, it sustains his power. News media plays a role in what circulates—and while it is important to inform children of dominant narratives, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps can also assist children in critically reflecting upon how Trump embodies and propagates imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy through his actions and his policies.
Immigration
Leading up to the election on November 8, 2016, there was little coverage questioning the injustice of Trump’s proposed immigration reform. However, one article explained how Carlos, who was sixteen, “disagreed with Trump’s plan to deport undocumented workers” (Shea, 2016: 1). Carlos explained, “I’m here to defend my family . . . not just my actual family, but every Latino and Hispanic that is here, every shade and color, white, black, brown. It doesn’t matter where you’re from, we’re all the same” (Shea, 2016:1).
Statements like these, critical of Trump’s anti-immigrant stance, were not published frequently. Much of the content about immigration rearticulated Trump’s hate speech. Julianna, who was fourteen, said she “really liked his [Trump’s] ideas about immigration and building a security wall along the U.S.-Mexican border. I think he would be a really good president” (Wood, 2015: 1). Another person who was interviewed, Dawn, hoped that someone “for law and order will be elected president” (Ferris, 2016: 1); and Pearse, positioned as “a young Trump fan from Connecticut,” said “I like how he is trying to support the country . . . and how he is trying to protect us” (Shen, 2016: 1). Kortney, who was eighteen, said “‘You have to offend people to keep people safe.’ But she admits that ‘the wall won’t completely do the job’ that Trump says it will” (O’Connor, 2016).
Immigration also came up as a topic of concern during a farmer’s roundtable in Florida. One farmer shared, “if you are building the wall, you also have to keep out the bugs that cause diseases that harm farmers’ crops” (Schiller, 2016b: 1). The article continued “They also bring in human diseases,” Trump said of Mexican immigrants. Trump added that the wall would help stem the flow of drugs from Mexico to the U.S., saying with concern, “Kids in the U.S. are buying drugs because they’re cheaper than candy bars.” (Schiller, 2016b: 1)
In a final example, a fifteen-year-old Trump supporter from Pennsylvania, Isabel, was asked “what do you think about some of the biggest problems our country is facing?” (Weibel, 2016: 0:38–0:42). Isabel responded, “definitely illegal immigrants coming to America and like taking our free health care and stuff (0:43–0:49). The interview continued: Erik (child reporter): and how do you think Trump will be able to fix that problem? Isabel: probably by building a wall and keeping them out Erik: I heard that this is one of the arguments, won’t the wall be rather expensive? Isabel: I think it will be very expensive, and that is definitely an issue but I also think that once it is in place it can definitely be beneficial to America (Weibel, 2016: 0:50–1:18).
As a person with Latinx heritage who grew up and lives near the U.S./Mexico border, what is most disheartening about these excerpts is that children are repeating racist and colonialist ideologies, and across the collection of Scholastic News Kids Press Corps articles analyzed, this discourse was reported without providing critique or historical context. Having knowledge that much of the U.S. Southwest was colonized (Pérez, 1999), paving the way for de facto and de jure racism for Mexican/Americans, Latinx peoples in the U.S., and Latinx nationals immigrating north (Latina Feminist Group, 2001), children could better understand why advocating for a border wall is racist. Scholastic News Kids Press Corps can serve as an important resource for such discussions that interrogate and counter these harmful narratives. As Anzaldúa (2009: 241) urges, we must “look at the underbelly of American Studies, to recognize its shadow beast, confront its fictions, and examine its practices of desconocimientos [lack of awareness/hegemony]—of ignoring what it, as a collective body does not want to know.”
Gun control and terrorism
A final topic addressed about social and policy issues was gun control and terrorism. At a Trump rally, in which the crowd erupted in a chant of “Lock ‘em up,” referring to the media and “Crooked Hillary,” it was reported that Trump “told the crowd that the Second Amendment, which protects the rights of gun owners, is ‘under siege. It’s a real problem’” (Schiller, 2016c: 1)
In his campaign, Trump often positioned gun ‘rights’ in relation to protecting the U.S. from terrorism and immigrants. In one article, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps reported Trump spoke about the recent mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 people dead and 53 wounded. Trump said that such acts of terror must not happen again. The murderer, a citizen of the United States, pledged allegiance to ISIS, a terrorist group based in the Middle East. Trump later repeated his desire to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico . . . He also accused President Barack Obama of not fighting hard enough against terrorism. “We can’t let this happen anymore,” Trump said about the Orlando tragedy. “We have to be so vigilant. We can’t be led by weak, ineffective people. They’re weak, and they’re ineffective. And believe me: Hillary Clinton is weak and ineffective.” (Shea, 2016: 1)
Trump convoluting mass shootings, ISIS terrorism, and expanding the wall along the U.S./Mexico border is one example of how he has rallied his base through a rhetoric of fear, racism, sexism, homophobia, and hatred of Others, all under the guise of protection. Collins and Bilge (2016) reference Amar’s (2011) work on securitization, or how political speech and the media produce subjects to justify military occupation and policing. They posit “groups within a population who become designated as a problem for, rather than as subjects of, justice are increasingly targeted, monitored, policed, and incarcerated” (Collins and Bilge, 2016: 155). In this case, immigrants coming to the U.S. are equated to terrorists in order to label them as a ‘problem’ and in turn, advocate for national security in the name of ‘protection’ (Collins and Bilge, 2016).
Moreover, the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, was fueled by homophobia and racism as the shooter targeted an LGBTQI nightclub hosting Latin Pride Night (Ramirez et al., 2018). There was no mention of this in the article. Considering our long history in the U.S. “sanctioning” heterosexism and homophobia through laws, for instance, that leave hate crimes against LGBTQI peoples unpunished (Collins, 2005: 95), invisibilizing the LGBTQI and Latinx identities of those who lost their lives in Orlando ignores and perpetuates violence against Others.
Trump’s disposition/sexism
A final major theme within news content about Trump was discussion of his disposition and sexism from the perspectives of his supporters and critics. Children and adults joined the conversation about their views on Trump. Asking about who won a debate, one article reported “‘Hillary!’ said Emily Gibbs, 18, emphatically. ‘Trump got very loud and attacked, kind of like a child does when they feel attacked’” (Perkovich, 2016: 1). Another article said that children “are critical of candidates who make fun of their opponents’ looks, mannerisms, and names. ‘Although I’m a kid, I think trash talking your competitors is rather childish’” (Phillips, 2016: 1).
Criticisms made by children and young adults about Trump’s ableist and sexist remarks, while powerful, have interestingly been framed through a discourse of childlike behavior. Reconceptualist scholars have written extensively about the social construction of children as less than adults (Burman, 2008; Cannella, 1997). To problematize children as “intellectually immature” (Burman, 2008: 15), in an interview by George Yancy with bell hooks (2015), she explains how theory can facilitate social healing, starting with children. hooks explains “children are amazing critical thinkers before we silence them” (1). The notion of children as critical thinkers prior to adults silencing them points to a need to view children as potential agents of social justice and change. If framed more critically, news media for and by children could support such transformative possibilities.
Trump’s sexism was also covered by Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, however, in a guarded way. Referring to the release of a video a month prior to the presidential election, in which Trump was heard bragging about grabbing women by the pussy, the children’s news publication skirted the issue. One article said, Since a controversial video of Trump had been released recently, most voters were certain that Clinton would win the debate. “I’m looking forward to seeing how Trump will respond to the videotape that came out on Friday, and whether or not he’ll stick to the issues or slip like he did in the first debate” . . . Despite a huge backlash against Trump for his vulgar comments, his supporters stood firm. “I don’t agree with the things that Donald Trump has said about women, but I want people to get past that,” said Tim Hooper, a union construction worker. “Kids have a future, but I believe that if Hillary is elected, there won’t be a future for anybody.” (Appelstein, 2016: 1)
In an article published two days later, a New Jersey man shared that he believed a major problem facing the U.S. was “the tyranny of political correctness” (Weibel, 2016: 1). The Scholastic News Kids Press Corps asked if the man thought Trump was a good role model, to which he responded “Donald Trump is not a saint . . . Trump is a good man. They are picking on him for distant things in his past.” Young was referring to a videotape from 2005 that recently surfaced in the news. It showed Trump making vulgar and demeaning comments about women. (Weibel, 2016: 1)
The article continues with the headline “passionate supporters,” stating that “In recent weeks, Trump has been accused of inappropriate treatment of women. He has denied those claims, which he says are being used to discredit him. Despite the controversy, thousands of enthusiastic supporters turned out on Saturday” (Clark, 2016: 1).
Instead of printing the actual sexist words used by Trump throughout his campaign, Scholastic News Kids Press Corps chose to water down his comments, describing them as controversial, demeaning, vulgar, and as ‘things’ he has said about women. His violence against women is not discussed in a transparent manner; rather it is positioned as a “distant thing in his past” and as “inappropriate treatment of women.” Collins (2005: 228) theorizes how sexual violence is often relegated to “the private, devalued, domestic sphere reserved for women. The ability to silence . . . [victims/survivors] . . . erases evidence of the crime.” By not naming the sexist language spoken by Trump and the violence he has committed against women, news media can become a platform that ignores the lived experiences of sexism and violence against women (Collins, 2005).
Post-election news coverage
Scholastic News Kids Press Corps published only 22 articles and videos referencing Trump after he was elected President (between November 9, 2016 and May 16, 2018). This is much less content compared to the 86 articles and videos published between August 10, 2015 and November 8, 2016. The decline in coverage of Trump after he became President illustrates an interesting shift in the publication’s focus post-election. Post-election Trump coverage included content about protests and women’s marches that ensued after the election; Trump’s “thank you” tours; inauguration; the executive order Trump signed soon after he took office banning people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S. (which was later deemed unconstitutional); the border wall; the first 100 days of Trump’s presidency; interviews with his cabinet and executive staffers; and gun control.
News articles post-election shared pro-Trump perspectives from children and adults critical of the protests happening against Trump. Some also expressed their confidence in Trump as a “successful real-estate entrepreneur” (Peterson, 2016: 1). Most of the articles post-election, however, centered on views critical of Trump. In one article highlighting the women’s marches taking place across the nation, it was reported that “the goal was to protect the rights of women, but also people of all religions, genders, races, sexual orientations, and nationalities” (Fay, 2017: 1). There were several other quotes from people interviewed at various events, in which advocacy for women’s rights was especially pronounced. News content also focused on lived experiences of immigrants and refugees, and encouraging the U.S. to be more welcoming and respectful of people entering the country amidst Trump’s travel ban and anti-immigrant hate speech.
Concluding thoughts
The Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, by and for children, has potential to lead important efforts that provide a platform for children to learn about and educate others on social and policy issues in the U.S. and around the world. Although Scholastic News Kids Press Corps targets children ages 10 to 14, with the unprecedented access young children have to handheld electronic devices, computers, the internet and social media (Kabali, et al., 2015), it is not uncommon for younger children to consume media intended for older ages (Holloway et al., 2013). Even without access to news media, young children are surrounded by and take on discourses that are re/produced by the media and within social circles. In my own community, which is situated within close proximity of the U.S./Mexico border, I have witnessed young children reenacting deportation—which is both experienced by many undocumented children and families in this region, and also regularly discussed in local news media. Considering these circumstances, it is important to encourage critical media skills not only for older children, but also for those in the early years, in addition to urging children’s news publications to address social and policy issues in more holistic and critical ways.
While Scholastic News Kids Press Corps was effective at illustrating multiple viewpoints of a topic, it fell short of providing enough context and historical background for a reader to be fully informed. When writing about proposed initiatives entrenched in racism and colonialism, such as expanding the U.S./Mexico border wall, reporting oppressive discourses without complicating or problematizing them can be dangerous. After reading and watching videos from Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, children could take on a particular stance, like supporting the expansion of the border wall, without fully understanding what it means—not because children are not capable of understanding, but because they were only given partial information. Expanding news coverage to provide critical analyses of the issues reported can better inform readers/viewers and create potential for social justice advocacy. Critical media literacy can also include exposing young children to books and other materials that challenge harmful media discourses about immigrants, such as Frontera: El viaje con papá/My Journey with Papa (Mills et al., 2018).
It has been acknowledged that it is important for young children to have opportunities to learn about democracy and engage in civic education (Hauver, 2019). This includes learning about voting, a topic covered by Scholastic News Kids Press Corps. To expand viewing voting as only an individual responsibility through critical pedagogical approaches and dialogue about such topics with children in the early years (Vasquez, 2016), they can be exposed to understanding inequities in access to participating in elections (e.g., voter suppression). This provides a social justice view of issues around voting.
In the instances where Scholastic News Kids Press Corps published content expressing social justice viewpoints, more expansive explanations could be given. During an interview with a former leader of a non-partisan political youth organization, the Junior State of America (JSA), Gabriel shared the biggest concern I have for this country is hate, and fear of what is different. This hate and fear manifest themselves in many different ways and through many different forms of oppression: racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia, and mass xenophobia. We must find unity and respect for our differences if we are to have any hope. (Hsiao, 2016: 1)
It is commendable that Scholastic News Kids Press Corps published this perspective. However, to provide more depth, the article could explain what each of these important terms mean and what respect for our differences looks like. Moreover, follow-up articles could have a distinct focus on each form of oppression, highlighting interviews with people who have lived them.
Colorlines and The Feminist Wire could serve as important models for Scholastic News Kids Press Corps. Possibilities could emerge for children of all ages to delve more deeply into Other people’s her/histories. If Scholastic News Kids Press Corps better represents counter-hegemonic knowledges (such as people of color’s experiences with voter suppression), it can provide a more holistic view of an issue. Additionally, being intentional about reporting sexist, racist, and heterosexist language, and then providing critical reflection on why it is problematic, could elevate rather than invisibilize minoritized people’s lived experiences. Readers/viewers who have the opportunity to engage in this kind of critical thought and reflection may be inspired to take action. Scholastic News Kids Press Corps could then move away from asserting that it publishes unbiased news into a new phase, where it embraces the potential to act as a conduit for social transformation and justice.
Footnotes
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.