ABC News has suspended journalist Terry Moran pending further evaluation following his controversial remarks regarding former President Donald Trump and his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller. The network, which emphasizes objectivity and impartiality in its news coverage, does not condone personal attacks that compromise its journalistic standards.
Moran’s suspension stems from his outrageous and incendiary comments fostered during an interview in defense of Trump. He called both Trump and Miller “world-class” haters. He observed that Trump’s hatreds serve as his “soul food.” That’s a sign, it seems, that the former president feeds off of this anger. Those comments were drawn from a social media post that was quickly deleted afterwards. One such screenshot posted by journalist Brian Stelter is now going viral.
In his comments, Moran stated, “Trump is a world-class hater. His hatred is only a means to an end, and that end is his own glorification.” This characterization of Trump as being “richly endowed with the capacity for hatred” has drawn significant backlash from various quarters, particularly from those within the political right.
In response, White House aide Stephen Miller went on the attack against Moran’s comments. He claimed that they are symptomatic of a deeper corporate press distrust of the American people. He pretty much cursed the whole thing, calling it out, “Terry’s complete public meltdown is a testament to one of the most important truths about corporate press in America. For decades now, the privileged anchors and reporters who tell and who control the stories of our society have been radicals in a journalists’ pose. Terry pulled off his mask.
The incident has sparked a firestorm of criticism against media bias. Even JD Vance, that Other Great Hope of the Right, decried Moran’s comment as a “vile smear.” He claimed that these types of comments are providing ammunition to the perception that the mainstream media is out to get the Trump administration.
Moran’s comments included a dismissal of Miller’s influence within the Trump administration, indicating that Miller was not “the brains behind Trumpism” and questioning his ability to translate the movement’s impulses into policy as lacking substance.
This is all developing extremely quickly. It’s sure to increase conservatives’ already vigorous distrust of the objectivity of U.S. mainstream media. So far, ABC News has failed to provide any substantive commentary on their rationale for the decision-making process that resulted in Moran’s suspension.