Media is playing right into Trump's hands with jury selection as jurors become targets
A number of media outlets covering Donald Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial are playing right into the former president’s manipulative little hands, effectively assisting him with juror intimidation.
In real-time, specific details about prospective jurors are being blasted out on social media and on news networks – neighborhood names, marital status, job titles, things they like to do in their free time.
The result, as of Thursday morning, is one seated juror saying she couldn’t proceed out of fear her identity had been compromised.
Journalists have no business reporting the personal details of Trump jurors
On Wednesday, Fox News lunkhead Jesse Watters was spitting out details on jurors who had been seated. Speaking of juror No. 2, he said she gets her news from CNN and the New York Times and added: “This nurse scares me if I’m Trump. Goodbye.”
That same juror told the court Thursday morning: “Aspects of my identity have already been out there in public. Yesterday alone, I had friends and family push things to me. I don't think at this point that I can be fair and unbiased.”
Do people care about the Trump trial? I went to Day 1 of Trump's criminal trial and realized something: Not enough people care
She was excused. The judge scolded the press in attendance, and he was right to do so, as it’s not just Fox News working overtime to identify members of what is supposed to be an anonymous jury.
What's the news value in small details about prospective Trump jurors?
Politico published specific information about a prospective juror, including her neighborhood, job, hobby and the role she plays in a community organization.
On its website, ABC News had a story titled: “Who are the first 7 jurors of Trump's historic criminal trial.”
NBC News had an online story under the headline: “A lawyer, a teacher and a software engineer: Meet the first jury members of Trump’s hush money trial.”
The public doesn't pick the jurors, so there's no public need to know
This level of reporting on what we journalists like to call “civilians” is outrageous given the circumstances surrounding this trial. There’s no inherent news value in knowing the hobbies or marital status of someone who might serve on the jury.
Trump's trial is upon us. What will it take to convince Republicans he's unfit for office?
Each juror is vetted and decided on by defense attorneys and prosecutors – the public has no voice here. It’s up to Trump’s lawyers and the Manhattan district attorney’s prosecutors to make sure the best people are chosen to consider the case and render a verdict.
Sharing minute personal details of people who are being asked nothing more than to perform their civic duty is low-brow, at best. And attempting to ferret out the true identity of these people in hopes of spotting something to write or talk about is both dangerous and counterproductive to the administration of justice.
Threats and Donald Trump go hand-in-hand
Anyone paying attention knows threats and intimidation go hand-in-hand with Trump and his MAGA movement, and few know that better than journalists, who were long ago labeled “the enemy of the people” by Trump himself.
So I’ll ask my fellow journalists out there: What the hell do you think is going to happen to these people if you make it easy for others to identify them?
They will be targeted. They will be threatened. And what's the news value in any of that?
Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store.
The news here is that a former president and the all-but-certain GOP presidential nominee is on trial and he and his followers are so prone to dirty tricks and violent rhetoric that the jury requires anonymity.
Media outlets can't become Trump's unwitting accomplices
This feels like a trial for a mob boss, not a politician.
And the last thing the trial needs is thirsty-for-clicks media outlets tripping over each other to see who can be first to report on a potential juror’s favorite diner.
The people called for jury duty in this case are under enormous pressure, given the nature of the defendant. They should be treated with respect and given the anonymity they need to honestly and effectively do their jobs.
Trump and his assorted minions will do all they can to jam up the mechanics of these proceedings. We know this. So we certainly don’t need minor-scoop-hungry journalists abandoning basic news judgement and putting good people in danger while acting as the defendant’s unwitting accomplices.
Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on X, formerly Twitter, @RexHuppke and Facebook facebook.com/RexIsAJerk
You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump trial's jury deserves safety, anonymity. Media needs to back off