{"id":251,"date":"2026-07-06T19:41:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T19:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanhousingtransition.com\/?p=251"},"modified":"2026-07-06T19:41:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T19:41:09","slug":"the-medias-not-so-happy-fourth-of-july","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanhousingtransition.com\/?p=251","title":{"rendered":"The Media\u2019s Not-So-Happy Fourth of July"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to Forgotten Fact Checks. This week, we look at the media\u2019s attempts to suck all the joy out of the America 250 celebrations, and we cover more media misses.<\/p>\n

Read more Homeschool Parents See Promise \u2014 and Peril \u2014 in Artificial Intelligence<\/a><\/p>\n

The Media\u2019s Not-So-Happy Fourth of July<\/p>\n

Donald Trump ruined the Fourth of July.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the narrative proliferating throughout much of the media, both implicitly and explicitly.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s Trump\u2019s \u201cfascism\u201d or environmentally damaging fireworks, or even offensive language in the Declaration of Independence, reporters found all sorts of reasons not to be merry about America\u2019s 250th anniversary over the weekend.<\/p>\n

New York Times <\/em>opinion writer Robin Givhan was perhaps the clearest in her disdain: \u201cTrump Ruined the Fourth of July for Me,\u201d she wrote in an op-ed, saying that she can \u201cbarely tolerate the sight of red, white and blue\u201d this year. \u201cWhen combined into a maximalist display of nationalist cheerleading, the colors make my heart ache. The flags on federal buildings are grand, but they hang alongside banners featuring President Trump\u2019s scowling face.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Givhan wasn\u2019t alone. The Atlantic<\/em>\u2019s Anne Applebaum penned a column lamenting that Trump \u201cinevitably\u201d had \u201cdestroyed the nation\u2019s 250th-anniversary celebrations\u201d:<\/p>\n

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This year is different, because the White House is inhabited by people who don\u2019t believe in the \u201cabstractions\u201d that we usually celebrate on the Fourth of July. And this affects the rest of us, whether we want it to or not. Congress\u2019s celebration, planned for a decade, has been usurped by the president\u2019s celebration, funded by private donors and featuring a political speech by himself. Other institutions in and around Washington postponed or reduced their 250th celebrations, so as not to get in the way of the president. Many people who might have participated will not attend, pay attention, or care.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Former NBC host Chuck Todd made Trump sound like the Grinch of the Fourth of July, accusing him of \u201cselfishly trying to steal this anniversary from us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Todd\u2019s former employer offered similarly dour coverage of the major anniversary: \u201cAs nation turns 250, many Americans say the Stars and Stripes is now a red flag.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe American flag: To some, it\u2019s Old Glory. To others, it\u2019s a MAGA hat on a stick,\u201d the outlet captioned a social media post.<\/p>\n

The NBC article explains, \u201cRather than not fly the flag, several readers said they plan to show their patriotism \u2014 and protest Trump \u2014 by flying it upside down to signal that the country is in distress.\u201d<\/p>\n

And over on MS NOW, analysts urged jubilant Americans to slow their roll, warning that while America had made it to 250, the country might last only another five or ten years. Morning Joe<\/em> guest Richard Haass told viewers, \u201cThe honest news is, our democracy is not in great shape,\u201d adding:<\/p>\n

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Checks and balances are not working in any way like James Madison set out in the Federalist Papers. You have the abuse of the pardon power. We\u2019ve been talking about the, the corruption and the lack of accountability of people in office. We have a president going to war without the involvement of the American people or the Congress, talking about rigged elections. You know, it\u2019s a long list. So I think, and the lesson we all ought to take from this is not to be sanguine. So yeah, we can celebrate the 250th, but it\u2019s got to be a really sober celebration.<\/p>\n

Read more American Flag to Arrive in D.C. on July 4 After Runners Carried It Nonstop from California<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

And Princeton University professor and MS NOW contributor Eddie Glaude, asked by Mike Barnicle whether he \u201csees optimism at the end of this July Fourth rainbow\u201d said, \u201cNo, no Mike, I don\u2019t. And it comes about, I think that, that orientation follows from, from my own formation. I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever teared up around patriotism. I don\u2019t ever think I found joy in singing the \u2018Star Spangled Banner.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Historian Jon Meacham argued that there\u2019s no real anniversary to celebrate at all, saying there\u2019s a \u201cvery good case to be made\u201d that the country was actually founded in 1965. \u201cThat\u2019s when a multiracial, multiethnic democracy came more fully into being with the Immigration and Nationality Act, with the Voting Rights Act. And so we\u2019re really about 60 years old,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Washington Post<\/em>, like CNN\u2019s Victor Blackwell, chose America\u2019s 250th anniversary to call attention to three words in the Declaration of Independence that writer Dana Hedgpeth says \u201cpaint a cruel picture of Natives.\u201d She says the phrase \u201cmerciless Indian savages\u201d is evidence that the Declaration\u2019s \u201cideals were not extended to everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

To no one\u2019s surprise, media outlets suffering from well-established Trump Derangement Syndrome had their symptoms triggered by the president\u2019s patriotic plans.<\/p>\n

Both the Post <\/em>and Politico <\/em>warned of the environmental impacts of Trump\u2019s Fourth of July fireworks celebration on the National Mall \u2014 articles that probably would not have been written had any other president been in office during the displays.<\/p>\n

George Thurston, a professor of medicine and population health at New York University, told the Post<\/em> that people attending or living near the display should \u201cminimize exposures\u201d to the smoke and consider wearing an N95 mask.<\/p>\n

\u201cScientists have well documented the soot and heavy metal pollution that can spike severely in the wake of pyrotechnic displays, and the world-record-setting number of fireworks lined up for July 4 will mean an equally large jump in pollution, according to experts and internal NPS documents,\u201d Politico<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, WaPo<\/em>, like other outlets, also took shots at Trump\u2019s Great American State Fair: \u201cEvery food stall is a mystery at the Great American State Fair,\u201d read a headline from Washington\u2019s paper.<\/p>\n

Headline Fail of the Week<\/p>\n

An editor\u2019s note from NPR last week is the stuff of nightmares for many journalists. NPR published and then quickly retracted a piece by veteran Supreme Court reporter Nina Totenberg: \u201cJustice Samuel Alito, who wrote the opinion overturning Roe v. Wade<\/em>, retires.\u201d<\/p>\n

NPR\u2019s editor\u2019s note insisted that the article was \u201cerroneously published.\u201d<\/p>\n

Totenberg has since claimed she \u201cmisheard\u201d an announcement that someone \u2014 she doesn\u2019t say who \u2014 made about \u201cretirement\u201d as she was leaving the Court.<\/p>\n

As Fox News recapped, \u201cThe veteran journalist is no stranger to gaffes and controversies.\u201d The outlet rounded up a number of her past controversies here.<\/p>\n

Read more Daughters of the American Revolution Leaders Undermine Push to Ban Trans-Identifying Men<\/a><\/p>\n

Media Misses<\/p>\n