The ‘fake news’ charge asserts press bias rather than literal fabrication of stories

Evidence

Those who invoke “fake news” may not believe that every news story has in fact been fabricated in the way that Stephen Glass fabricated stories for the New Republic from scratch. It means that the “mainstream” press at outlets like the New York Times, the Washington Post, and CNN are hostile to Trump’s presidency and perhaps also to conservatives and Republicans and to ordinary citizens who support the president. Reporters could be in league to damage the administration, say, or in their support for globalism. The charge of “fake news” is true enough. Nearly half of Americans now say that the media fabricate stories about the president; the incessant charge “fake news” has taken hold. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 131

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies what the phrase ‘fake news’ actually communicates: hostility and bias, not fabricated stories.
• XREF: connects to: Conspiracy promoters deny fake news while accusing mainstream media of it — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 105; Fake news functions as a rallying cry delegitimizing the press, not as a theory. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 259; Fake news is deliberately false and evolved from clickbait to political manipulation — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 213 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Fake news functions as a rallying cry delegitimizing the press, not as a theory. #corroborates (0.90) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 259
• Fake news is deliberately false and evolved from clickbait to political manipulation #contradicts (0.85) — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 213
• Weaponizing the term fake news lets leaders dismiss verified reporting #expands (0.85) — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 220