Mainstream Media’s Coverage of the US Women’s March vs. March for Life
Washington DC was the location for two major marches these past two days. On January 19 the annual March for Life was held which calls for better laws to protect the unborn throughout the United States. It is held on the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion in the United States in 1973.
The other rally was the second Women’s March to protest President Donald’s Trump’s perceived misogyny and accuse him of having policies that disadvantage women. During the inaugural Women’s March held a day after Trump’s inauguration many of the protestors wore pussy hats’ as a reference to Trump’s comments on the Access Hollywood tapes. This year the pussy hats returned and also some women dressed as handmaidens from the television show The Handmaid’s Tale to represent that women had somehow become subservient under Trump.
In this year’s March for Life United States President Donald Trump became the first-ever sitting President to deliver a livestream address to the March. Pro-life campaigners have had a number of victories in recent years with more US states enacting laws to better protect the unborn and a number of abortion clinics across the United States shutting down. President Trump during his first year appointed pro-life Justice Neil Gorsich to the Supreme Court and prevented both foreign and domestic government funds being used to use to finance abortions.
The March for Life has stated policy goals, meanwhile the Women’s March is just about a bunch of progressive women raging about how awful they believe Trump to be. Their goal of promoting women’s rights is not helped by the fact that the co-chair of the women’s march Linda Sarsour is on record supporting sharia law and and defending Saudi Arabia’s record on women’s rights.
Despite the contrasts in purpose of these marches you don’t need to guess which march gained the greater mainstream media coverage. With the media wanting to paint a picture of Trump’s Presidency in an ever present state of chaos has put the the Women’s March in Washington DC and simultaneous marches in other major US cities on the front page of their website and the leading story on their news bulletins.
In Australia while Fairfax Media conceded numbers were down this year the Guardian glowingly reported that the march was a sign that the progressives were going to take back the House and Senate in the mid-term elections. They also featured several interviews with marchers who were eager to say how much of disaster the Trump Presidency had been.
The Women’s March also incorporated the #metoo movement which had sprung up this year. This was odd because the movement was born not as a result of any sexual misconduct committed by Trump or officials in his administration but from powerful men in liberal Hollywood who were able to get away with sexual exploits in part because of so called Hollywood feminists covering it up and staying silent.
When the #metoo movement spread into the political sphere it actually engulfed politicians from both sides, with the highest profile scalp being Democratic Senator in Al Franken who resigned after multiple women came forward accusing him of sexual misconduct.
Judge Roy Moore the failed Republican Senate candidate for Alabama was the highest profile person on the right accused after three women came forward saying he assaulted them, two who were underage at the time. Many tried to claim Moore was Trump’s candidate even though in the Republican primary Trump backed incumbent Luther Strange.
If these women want to show their solidarity with the #metoo movement at a rally then Trump is one of the least relevant people to be protesting about. These progressive women probably have more to fear from men on their own side of politics than anyone of the right.
Trump one year after his inauguration has been highlighting his achievements so far in office. So his response to women’s march Trump tweeted how the improved US economic conditions has lowered female unemployment.
Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2018
A few days before the Women’s March former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and father of White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders highlighted that Trump had appointed more women to senior positions and Cabinet posts than any other in history.
Guess which President has named more women to senior positions and Cabinet posts than any other in history? Here’s a hint: this has gone almost completely unreported by the same media outlets that devote plenty of space to calling him a sexist.https://t.co/HgEvxyogS5
— Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) January 17, 2018
The mainstream media believes that with this latest Women’s March and its coinciding with the government shutdown (which is another example of Trump’s own side causing him political trouble) are a sign that the tide will turn against Trump in 2018. But how many times both in his campaign and during his Presidency have they claimed this?
Trump has proven one of the most resilient Presidents against a hostile media. Yes there are always protests against Trump’s Presidency but as we saw with the March for Life only a before there are still plenty of rallies that take place around the nation supporting the goals of his Presidency. Another Women’s March with vague grievances is not going to bring Trump down.
