In the last month, right-wing media figures have labeled a wide range of people and entities they associate with the Democratic Party â from
Isabella Corrao, Jane Lee, and Helena Hind at MMFA:
In the last month, right-wing media figures have labeled a wide range of people and entities they associate with the Democratic Party â from former President Barack Obama to mainstream media figures and critics of the Iran War â as âtraitors,â in some cases explicitly demanding they be tried for treason and put to death. This rhetoric showcases the right's escalation and propensity for more extreme reactions during the second Trump administration.
Right-wing media hacks attack those opposed to the Iran War or the Trump Regime as âtraitorsâ, mimicking the same campaign under Bush 43 that tarred Iraq War critics.
See Also:
MMFA: Right-wing media's last ditch defense of Trump's Iran war: Blame the press
Critics slammed the top Trump officialâs remarks as a âgreenlight for abuse.â
White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller drew sharp condemnation Tuesday over a message he sent to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers during an interview with Fox News host Will Cain.
Miller asserted that ICE agents have âfederal immunity in the conduct of your dutiesâ and declared that anyone who touches or obstructs them is âcommitting a felony.â
Fox News and other right-wing media figures rushed to the defense of President Donald Trump after the Department of Justice last month relea
Gideon Taaffe and Reed McMaster at MMFA:
Fox News and other right-wing media figures rushed to the defense of President Donald Trump after the Department of Justice last month released additional documents pertaining to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, insisting the president was âtotally exoneratedâ and that reporters âcannot get Trump anywhere nearâ Epstein.Â
However, new reporting shows multiple pages missing from the release, including notes from an interview with one woman who reported that Trump sexually assaulted her when she was a minor.Â
So far, Fox News has ignored this new reporting from NPR, according to a Media Matters review of Foxâs programming from when the news broke through 1 p.m. ET on February 25.
The January 30 document release featured millions of pages, but many were heavily redacted and they did not include everything the department had on Epstein. It also followed months of right-wing media infighting over the presidentâs handling of the Epstein documents, with many angered by the lack of transparency.Â
The Department of Justice released millions of files related to Jeffery Epstein after a congressional battle and right-wing media infighting
Right-wing media have been at odds over Trumpâs handling of Epstein. A Newsmax host attacked Fox News for not talking about Epstein, Daily Wire Ben Shapiro has attacked War Room host Steve Bannon for working with Epstein, and Bannon has attacked the Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal over its reporting on Trump and Epstein. [Media Matters, 7/7/25, 7/18/25, 11/18/25, 7/23/25]
Fox News largely has backed the president on his handling of the Epstein files by limiting discussion of the story. Fox News host Jesse Watters told viewers to not âtake the baitâ on the Epstein story, and fellow Fox host Will Cain said the files are âsomething that apparently not very many people are interested in.â In November, Fox News barely covered emails from Epstein about Trump, and a July Media Matters study found Fox covered Sydney Sweeneyâs American Eagle ad for 85 minutes while mentioning Epstein for just 3 minutes. [Media Matters, 10/1/25, 11/12/25, 7/31/25]
Amid backlash to the lack of information released, Congress passed a law in November that compelled the Department of Justice to release millions of pages related to Epstein. The DOJ finally released a batch of files at the end of January, with âextensive redactions.â Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the DOJ is withholding files that depict violence as well as those that involve attorney-client privilege. [NPR, 1/30/26]
Right-wing media commentators pushed the fictious talking point that the Epstein Files âexonerateâ Trump. However, new reports have emerged that the missing pages allege Trump committed sexual abuse.
As California continues counting mail-in ballots for its primary elections, right-wing media were quick to whip up conspiracy theories and a
Reed McMaster at MMFA:
As California continues counting mail-in ballots for its primary elections, right-wing media were quick to whip up conspiracy theories and accuse Democrats of cheating.
Californians wrapped up voting in their 2026 primaries on June 2 but vote counting is far from over, with multiple major races such as the state gubernatorial and Los Angeles mayoral elections being too close to call.
California historically takes a long time to tabulate election results given the stateâs policies counting mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day that come in within a week. The overwhelming majority of ballots in the stateâs elections are cast by mail, and The New York Times reports âin past California elections as much as 50 percent of the vote has remained to be counted after Election Day.â
After primary voting closed on June 2, some right-wing media figures quickly began promoting baseless claims that Democrats were âstealing and theyâre cheatingâ in the California elections and argued that mail-in voting âleaves the door open for fraud.â Right-wing figures also claimed California elections are âcompromisedâ and suggested officials may âmanufactureâ votes while counting results, calling the process âThird World shit.â President Donald Trump also added fuel to the fire, creating multiple posts on his Truth Social platform baselessly accusing Democrats of âstealingâ California primaries.
Right-wing media promote sensationalistic lies about Californiaâs vote-counting process in the primaries.
In the wake of Democratsâ sweeping election victories across the country on November 4, right-wing media quickly focused their ire on young
Jane Lee, Isabella Corrao, and Helena Hind at MMFA:
In the wake of Democratsâ sweeping election victories across the country on November 4, right-wing media quickly focused their ire on young women, who voted overwhelmingly for Democratic candidates.Â
Figures across right-wing media expressed fear over the demographic, with Newsmax host Carl Higbie labeling âliberal white womenâ as âthe biggest threat to America â they will literally vote for their own destruction and take everyone down with them.â The response from right-wing media to women exercising their right to vote ramps up a trend of conservative voices attacking liberal women in the past year.Â
Right-wing commentators, mainly male, have escalated their unhinged attacks on young women in the wake of Democratic wins on Tuesday.