MASS SHOOTINGS/MEDIA/RACISM/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “In linking this weekend’s mass shootings to ‘gruesome and grisly video games’ and inadequate treatment of mental illness, President Trump echoed talking points that emerged from conservative media strongholds even before his Monday address from the White House. In his remarks, Mr. Trump condemned ‘racism, bigotry and white supremacy,’ though he did not propose any new gun control measures, in keeping with several right-wing personalities who declined to endorse weapons bans in the hours after the massacres in El Paso and Dayton, Ohio, left 31 dead and scores wounded. Mr. Trump’s public statements often mirror comments made by pundits on Fox News, and there were striking connections between his remarks on video games and mental illness and what the cable network’s commentators said on Monday [8-5-19].”
–Michael M. Grynbaum, Marc Tracy and Tiffany Hsu, “Trump Echoes ‘Fox & Friends’ on Shootings. The New York Post Dissents.,” The New York Times online, August 5, 2019