The U-S of A Today

I was over at the USA Today yesterday looking at Editorial Cartoons. After looking at a few, I noticed a lot were against Trump. Then I started to keep tract of the cartoons selected, using only a few words to describe each.

1. Internet

2. Anti-GOP

3. Anti Trump

4. Indianapolis Colts

5. Pollution

6. Anti-Trump Policy

7. Anti-Trump

8. Anti-Trump

9. Anti-Trump

10. Anti-Trump

11. Anti-Trump

12. Anti-Trump

13. Anti-Trump

14. Anti-Trump

15. Car Fire

16. Anti-Trump

17. Anti-Trump Policy

18. Pro-Merkel?

19. Florida

20. Bourdain

21. Anti-Trump

22. Neutral to Trump

23. Pro-Trump

24. Veteran Affairs

25. Bourdain

26. Bourdain

27. Veteran Affairs

28. Anti-Trump

29. Anti-Trump

30. Anti-Trump

31. Anti-Trump

32. Kate Spade

33. Anti-Clinton (Bill)

34. Anti-Clinton (Bill)

35. Anti-Trump

36. Schultz 2020

37. Anti-DeVos

38. WLBT-TV

39. Anti-Trump

40. Anti-Trump

41. Anti-Trump

42. Anti-Trump

43. Primaries

44. Primaries

45. Wedding Cakes

46. Anti-Trump Policy

47. Volcker Rule

48. Anti-Trump Policy

49. Anti-Trump

50. Unemployment

51. Unemployment

52. Gambling

53. Obesity

54. Anti-Trump

55. Tax Cuts

56. Cockroach Milk

57. Kool-Aid

58. Anti-Trump

59. Rosanne

60. Rosanne

61. Rosanne

62. Rosanne

63. Puerto Rico

64. Puerto Rico

65. School Shooting

66. Police Brutality

67. School Shooting

68. Rosanne

69. Rosanne

70. Rosanne

71. Tax Cuts

72. Neutral to Trump

73. Uber

74. Uber

75. Anti-Trump

76. Anti-Trump

77. Anti-Trump

78. Pro-Trump

79. Anti-Trump

80. Anti-Trump

81. Anti-Trump

82. Iran

83. Anti-Trump

84. Neutral to Trump

85. Neutral to Trump

86. Jerusalem

87. Royal Wedding

88. Royal Wedding

89. Anti-Trump

90. Anti-Trump

91. Anti-Trump

92. Anti-Trump

93. Anti-Trump Policy

94. Anti-Trump

95. Anti-Trump

96. Anti-Trump

97. Debatable about Trump

98. Anti-Trump

99. Anti-Trump

100. Anti-Trump

101. Anti-Trump

102. Anti-Trump

103. Pro-"Dreamers"

104. Anti-Haspel

105. Anti-Pruitt

106. National Park System

107. Anti-DeVos

108. Anti-Ryan

109. Anti-Trump

110. Anti-Trump

111. Anti-Trump

112. Anti-Trump

113. McCain

114. Anti-Trump

115. Anti-Trump

116. Pro-Trump

117. Free Speech

118. Free Speech

119. Michigan State Scandal

120. Anti-Trump

121. Trump Neutral

122. Volcanos

123. School Shooting

124. School Shooting

125. School Shooting

126. School Shooting

127. Police Brutality

128. Education

129. College Costs

130. Gambling

131. Gambling

132. Baseball Coach Record

133. Drugs

134. Storms

135. Tourists

136. Storms

Notice any patterns in the choices of the 135 or so editorials?

Again, Trump is decrying the scourge of Fake News as America's biggest enemy.

And outlets like the USA Today defend their journalistic integrity and call Trump a Liar.

The Editorial Cartoon example is a perfect description of what's going on in the media today. The USA Today picks cartoons from hundreds of artists across the United States and Canada. They specifically choose a certain cross section of artistry that represent their views and pass on others. Do they chose the cheapest? Or the best? Or the funniest? Or ones created by certain syndicates? What are their processes? I'm confident that their selection process is officially "noneofyourbeezwax."

Donald Trump is wrong, the USA Today's news is not Fake.

And the USA Today is wrong, they are definitely not even close to neutral. Their news clearly slants to the left. Neither side admits their own faults.

In a partisan America, I understand how Trump was elected. What I don't understand is how people don't see the way it has become a cesspool of half-truths on all sides.

There's a local editorial cartoonist here in Cleveland named Jeff Darcy. I've followed his career since he worked at the local Sun Times. I remember a young Jeff Darcy stood out amongst the amateurs at the Sun Times with his humor and range of ideas. Once at the Plain Dealer, he was as likely to draw a cartoon about the local sports teams as anything political in nature.

But even Jeff Darcy has caught Trump Fever.

Subjects of Darcy's latest cartoons:

1. Trump / H. Clinton

2. Trump

3. Trump

4. Trump

5. Trump

6. B. Clinton

7. Trump

8. Trump

9. Trump

10. Trump

11. Trump

12. Trump

13. Trump

14. Trump

15. Trump

16. Trump

17. Trump

18. Local Councilman Joe Cimperman

Now most of the cartoons are negative in nature, but I noticed something in the comments sections this week. Other than controversial breaking Cavs or Browns news, Jeff Darcy's cartoons were producing more reaction than any other topic on cleveland.com.

Which begets the question, does Darcy obsess with Trump, or does his employer dictate more Trump cartoons in order to drive traffic? Or both?

Which takes us farther down the rabbit hole. Is Trump good for the News business? Love or hate Trump, he drives passions on both sides. The Pro-Trumpies and the Anti-Trumpies playing the politics "game" to drive ad revenue. Does Darcy really think dropping Anti-Trump cartoons every other day is good for business? Apparently it is, because whether you love Trump, or love to hate Trump, the very subject moves the needle unlike any other topic in America.

I like Jeff Darcy. I don't want to become Jeff Darcy. I don't want to write about the same topic every day. All these leftists going crazy that Trump's in power, it's not like he beat Gandhi to become President.

With both the Left and the Right entrenched in their positions, it's seems like independent voices are now getting squeezed out of the debate.

#Trump #clevelandcom