University of Texas Chancellor Bill McRaven, a retired U.S. Navy admiral who lead the Navy Seal Six mission to kill Osama bin Laden, has pushed back against President Donald Trump’s characterization of the media.
McRaven said Tuesday that Trump’s characterization of the media as “the enemy of the American people” must be challenged and “this sentiment may be the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime,” according to multiple local reports.
McRaven, who served under both former presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, made the remarks at an event at the University of Texas’s Belo Center for New Media. McRaven graduated from UT-Austin’s School of Journalism in 1977 and went on to write a book about military engagement, Spec Ops: Case Studies in Special Operations Warfare: Theory and Practice.
At the event Tuesday, McRaven also stressed the importance of clear communication and leadership. “To be a good leader you have to be a good communicator,” McRaven said, according to student paper The Daily Texan. “As a leader you have to communicate your intent every chance you get and if you fail to do that, you will pay the consequences.”
The Trump White House has constantly attacked liberal and mainstream media news organizations for reporting what it claims to be “fake news.” Over the weekend, Trump doubled-down on a false claim he made about a terrorist attack in Sweden and blamed the news media for misinforming the public about immigration in the nation.
Give the public a break – The FAKE NEWS media is trying to say that large scale immigration in Sweden is working out just beautifully. NOT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 20, 2017
H/T the Hill