This shouldn’t be hard.
Former President Donald Trump was invited to speak at the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists this week in Chicago. That invitation sparked outrage within the NABJ.
Credit: Jeremy Freeman / Dagger
Credit: Jeremy Freeman / Dagger
It shouldn’t have.
Journalists seize such opportunities to push candidates beyond their talking points.
It is what we do.
When that interview is fewer than 100 days before an election, it makes for a potentially rare and important moment.
Seldom do candidates for high office subject themselves to questioning nowadays.
Journalists understand this. So, we should question.
It is what we owe.
Now that the dynamics of the presidential race have shifted in shocking and historic fashion, it’s time to focus on the distinction between the former president and the vice president who is now at the top of the opposing ticket.
Voters have a new choice. There is no better way to scrutinize those choices than to have candidates stand for questioning.
It is how we work.
As always, there are important issues to discuss.
There is war in the world. This nation is less than a month removed from an assassination attempt. Our planet is getting dangerously warmer, inflation continues to frustrate Americans, and politics and Washington gridlock have slowed meaningful answers to address our nation’s southern border.
Now is the time, during an interview, when we should seek clarity on how a candidate seeking to return to the nation’s highest office plans to deal with its toughest problems.
Journalists have a great track record of pressing for such specifics.
It is what we do.
And it shouldn’t be hard.
But — Trump.
The NABJ has been roiled by an invitation extended to and accepted by Trump.
Some in the organization think that Trump won’t actually submit to questioning but will instead use his time on stage to spread misinformation about the 2020 election, lie about his accomplishments and use the backdrop of Black journalists as a prop to obscure a history of targeting Black journalists.
I understand the concern.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has covered the rise of Trump, as Georgia has been critical to his ascension to the White House and his failure to secure a second term.
If any state understands how Trump, his campaign and some of his most vocal followers trade in misinformation and the dangers therein, it is Georgia.
Georgia has been central to the continued campaign to taint the 2020 presidential election.
Georgia is where supporters of Trump’s lies about the 2020 result targeted poll workers who were threatened and harassed over baseless claims.
Georgia is where Trump was indicted for leading an attempt to turn this state’s election in his favor.
Let’s be clear about NABJ, its history and its critical role today.
Each election year, the nation’s largest minority journalist association has invited the major party candidates for president to appear at its convention. A condition each time is that they must stand for questioning.
Over the past 20 years, I’ve been in the room when candidates for president participate in this forum. News is made. Typically, the candidates answer questions they might not get in other settings. This is what our democracy is about: a free press operating on behalf of citizens who entrust journalists to comprehensively vet seekers of high office.
Yes, the Republican nominee for president arrives in Chicago having spent years vilifying the media, making an already dangerous job tougher.
Yes, his strategy of upsetting norms and sowing chaos should weigh on a decision to invite Trump.
But this is also about history.
Our journalism is ultimately judged by history. The privilege of being able to bear witness and produce the first draft of history has defined my professional life as a reporter, columnist, politics editor and newsroom leader.
I was at the National Association of Black Journalists’ 2004 convention when President George W. Bush sat for an interview and was challenged on his plans to reform public education and on his view on banning racial preferences in college admissions.
I was there in 2008 when Democratic nominee Barack Obama was challenged on his plans to stabilize an economy suffering a historic housing crisis and on our nation’s ability to oversee two wars.
Trump should simply be next in line.
It shouldn’t be this hard to follow a tradition cemented in good faith and a shared understanding of our roles in our democracy.
But we are here.
This is another moment to meet for the three journalists who will question the former president.
It is what we do.
It is what we owe.
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