MAGA's not-so-secret weapon: "Major media are a key tool for Trump’s destruction of the government"

David Altheide : Donald Trump's shock and awe campaign against U.S. democracy continues unabated.

He says he is an expert propagandist and entertainer who knows how to manipulate and maximize his relationship to the news media and attention economy.

The mainstream media and political class have few effective defenses against such a leader in an era of global populist discontent, he says.

Donald Trump is an expert at being “ Donald Trump ,” the persona and character, and manipulating the media and the public in the age of spectacle.

Trump is effective because he promotes fear and frames everything in terms of victims and saviors, writes Julian Zelizer .

Zelizer: Establishment voices across American society, politics, and civil society have no answer for Trump ’s power and appeal as a strongman leader.

News routines are not amenable to such chaos and disruption: There is only one significant story to be told! The Trump regime continues to set the agenda and narratives.

Journalists and news outlets must change this behavior. The high ground must be retaken every day with headlines about illegal and unconstitutional attacks on democracy and society.