It's time for another Transparency Corner, and my turn to tell a story.
My name is Joe Byrnes, and I'm a reporter and editor at Central Florida Public Media. I live in Ocala. So when it came time to cover President Donald Trump's speech in The Villages on May 1, it made sense, I suppose, to give me the assignment.
I've been around awhile and have covered a number of speeches by politicians, including a president, vice president and first lady. Over the past year I've also covered three No Kings protests in The Villages and Ocala.
But a Trump speech is unlike anything else. It's long and rambling and bounces from one topic to another and rolls into stories with dialogue and pantomime. It typically contains unfounded and highly personal public insults. And there are often statements that, as a matter of journalistic practice, need to be fact-checked before being shared.
A Trump speech is also a cultural phenomenon. That's partly because of the enthusiasm of some of the president's supporters. At the event in The Villages, a woman at the front of the incredibly long line waited 25 hours to hear him speak.
For all that, it was a political speech by the president in The Villages, and my editor and I determined that I should cover it as such. We had a particular focus in mind, something for which I was listening even though we remained open to whatever might come.
That focus was the rising cost of living and a related topic, the war with Iran.
Before the speech, I asked several of the people in line about those issues. They acknowledged the economic pain but said they still wholeheartedly trusted in President Trump.
The speech itself was an hour-and-a-half long. In my article, I described it in general terms as filled with stories, asides and insults and focused in part on economic issues, especially those affecting seniors.
Halfway through, Trump made remarks that seemed to me particularly newsworthy.
He acknowledged that higher gas prices and an initial downturn in the markets were the direct consequence of his decision to go to war.
Trump said he told his financial advisers he would have to "upset the apple cart." He didn't know if it was "foolish" or "brave" but he thought it was "smart" -- and Trump said he thought oil prices would have gone even higher.
So I highlighted those remarks.
That is how I covered the Trump speech. I did not try to retell or fact-check the whole thing but focused on a newsworthy element that seemed significant in the political landscape and in the lives of all of us in Central Florida.
Feedback from readers
At the bottom of our local articles on cfpublic.org, we have a survey that you can fill out after reading the story. So I know some readers had concerns about the coverage.
I'd like to share my thoughts about a few of those concerns, not to diminish them or explain them away, but to acknowledge them.
I think the most important critique was the lack of a Democratic or anti-Trump voice in the article.
Were there any protesters or people who disagreed with the president?
I want to know about more than presidential sycophants.
Democrats interviewed(?) Honestly, the bizarre devotion to Trump.
Republican focused reporting.
My primary assignment was covering the speech itself. There were anti-Trump protesters elsewhere in The Villages who were not part of the article, mainly because, being stuck at the school where the president spoke, I couldn't get to where they were. Still, since we included comments from Trump's supporters, I wish we had found a way to reach those protesters. My editors and I agree it's important to get competing points of view into a story when possible.
At Central Florida Public Media, we strive to make sure our coverage is accurate and fair and takes different points of view into account. I believe you'll see that in our collective coverage.
In previous stories, we have given a platform to many people with concerns about Trump and his administration.
Another set of comments related to some of the “goofy” and counter-factual things the president said.
... Cover the goofy things Trump says, he’s nuts.
Journalistic critiques are absent from this story. What a shame. Very one sided. Blatantly biased and not trustworthy. Were claims accurate? Alternate point of view? Basic journalism?
That stings a little because our tagline at Central Florida Public Media is “Trustworthy. Independent. Journalism.” And we take that mission seriously.
In reporting this story, I avoided repeating apparent falsehoods that I was not in the position to fact-check at the time. We’ve had plenty of coverage on Trump’s often controversial comments, and I’ve seen articles fact-checking many of the statements repeated in this speech.
Central Florida Public Media has published articles like that, typically from NPR or Politifact.
There was also a comment related to a caption and a woman using a cane.
Why did you have to identify the woman in the photo as having a cane? Was it to emphasize the image that she is old?
I appreciate this comment for raising an issue of sensitivity. My caption was intended to describe what was happening in the photo itself, not to cast any shade on the woman involved. As I recall, at the time I was preoccupied with whether I could say she was “dancing” or simply “walking” through the crowd.
Finally, I’d like to say how much I value -- as my editors do, as well -- the survey responses that readers take the time to add. You prompt us to re-examine our work and help us to see it through fresh eyes. Please keep it up and look for more Transparency Corners down the road.
